What have you done to your ride lately?

AlienXtx

Nignog
Will do, and FYI when I ordered mine I called in instead of ordering on the website and the owner gave me a $50 discount off the website price. The owner was super nice and informative.
Might be better to get a jump on it, I only have 26k on it.
 

PSU Taco85

Well-Known Member
Might be better to get a jump on it, I only have 26k on it.
Yeah from what I read obviously the sooner it's installed the better. My truck has 255k on it, better late than never

going to do new injectors and HPOP this summer. Then hopefully that's the last of the big expenses. I've had the filter sitting in my garage since November timeframe, I let the mods pile up and end up getting lazy lol

IMG_0991.PNG
 

AlienXtx

Nignog
Yeah from what I read obviously the sooner it's installed the better. My truck has 255k on it, better late than never

going to do new injectors and HPOP this summer. Then hopefully that's the last of the big expenses. I've had the filter sitting in my garage since November timeframe, I let the mods pile up and end up getting lazy lol

View attachment 14344
that's what I was thinking, I don't plan on getting rid of this truck anytime soon since I finally found what I've always wanted sorta. (crew cab, long box, 4x4 powerstroke XL trim) Just wish it was a mint condition 97' lol. If I hadn't just dropped a few K in the last month on mine not counting the tires, I'd go ahead and order one. I'd still maintain the factory recommended oil change intervals and have the dealer do them till the warranty is up though.
 

PSU Taco85

Well-Known Member
that's what I was thinking, I don't plan on getting rid of this truck anytime soon since I finally found what I've always wanted sorta. (crew cab, long box, 4x4 powerstroke XL trim) Just wish it was a mint condition 97' lol. If I hadn't just dropped a few K in the last month on mine not counting the tires, I'd go ahead and order one. I'd still maintain the factory recommended oil change intervals and have the dealer do them till the warranty is up though.

yep, took me a while to find the one I wanted. 7.3, short bed, manual trans/tcase, lariat trim that wasnt a complete clapped out shitbox in the northeast. I am going to stick with the 5000 mile oil changes on mine even with the bypass filter. For how much I drive my truck that probably still only means 1 oil change a year lol
 

AlienXtx

Nignog
yep, took me a while to find the one I wanted. 7.3, short bed, manual trans/tcase, lariat trim that wasnt a complete clapped out shitbox in the northeast. I am going to stick with the 5000 mile oil changes on mine even with the bypass filter. For how much I drive my truck that probably still only means 1 oil change a year lol
Yeah I think I average 2-3 a year now
 

AlienXtx

Nignog
Installed my new steering stabilizer
View attachment 14270
Going back to stock, this thing is worse then stock and I lost steering radius. I guess my gamble that Bilstein would be like the others that go 2011-2019 on fitment was wrong lol

Anyone interested in a slightly used steering stabilizer?
 

CowboyTaco

Well-Known Member
So after replacing the needle bearing with the ECGS bushing and replacing the DS wheel bearing, I actually hear tire road noise instead of the "knobby tire drone" that people complained about. That's the good thing.

The bad is that I still have the really loud metal-to-metal clunk sound whenever I first start to move. I didn't expect the bushing to fix that....just to be clear on that one. However, it has gotten louder. My driveway has a very gradual slope to it. Nothing steep or out of the ordinary. When I shift from Park to Reverse, it happens every time. If I'm parked on a level surface, I'll hear it when I first start to move forward...usually if the steering wheel is turned when I start moving. It's getting louder and more frequent. I'd like to find and fix the issue before it breaks, but I don't want to just throw parts at it either.

Both lower control arms have been replaced in the last 6 months, so shouldn't be a bushing or LBJ there. CV boots are not torn, but I know that doesn't have to happen for the CV to fail. I've checked to make sure that every bolt/nut is tight. Steering is tight. No wobble or shaking or anything like that.

I definitely think it is on the driver side, or at least louder on the DS. Thoughts or other things I can check?
 

tx_shooter

It is not a war crime the first time.
Staff member
Clunk when you put it in gear? Both forward and reverse? Sounds like a u joint with some wear on it. I would go check all the u joints on the rear shaft for silver linings. The silver line will be the clean area from the play in the joint.
 

CowboyTaco

Well-Known Member
Clunk when you put it in gear? Both forward and reverse? Sounds like a u joint with some wear on it. I would go check all the u joints on the rear shaft for silver linings. The silver line will be the clean area from the play in the joint.

I will check that later today, but I really feel like it's coming from the front.
 

AlienXtx

Nignog
Might be play in the CV joints
 

Silverback

Lima Gulf Bravo Foxtrot Juliet Bravo
front diff have enough fluid in it?
 

PSU Taco85

Well-Known Member
Going back to stock, this thing is worse then stock and I lost steering radius. I guess my gamble that Bilstein would be like the others that go 2011-2019 on fitment was wrong lol

Anyone interested in a slightly used steering stabilizer?

My PMF fab kit didn't work on my truck, and severely limited the steering travel, so much that the shock body was binding on the brackets. Kit was expensive too, close to $700 with the king steering stabilizers, going to be emailing the fella for a refund. I took it back off, trying to figure out a better solution. I had about a 30* turning radius. Think it only has 40-45* from the factory though lol
 

Silverback

Lima Gulf Bravo Foxtrot Juliet Bravo
Would a longer travel shock help?
 

AlienXtx

Nignog
My PMF fab kit didn't work on my truck, and severely limited the steering travel, so much that the shock body was binding on the brackets. Kit was expensive too, close to $700 with the king steering stabilizers, going to be emailing the fella for a refund. I took it back off, trying to figure out a better solution. I had about a 30* turning radius. Think it only has 40-45* from the factory though lol
yeah mine was binding turning left, ran out of strike due to the length of the shock body.
Would a longer travel shock help?
Possibly, I got the factory one back on. Glad I held on to it, just like all the rest of the stock items I’ve pulled.
 

CowboyTaco

Well-Known Member
Clunk when you put it in gear? Both forward and reverse? Sounds like a u joint with some wear on it. I would go check all the u joints on the rear shaft for silver linings. The silver line will be the clean area from the play in the joint.

As far as I know to inspect, the U-joints look good. No silver. FWIW, it didn't make the clunk noise this morning when I put it in reverse or when I started to move forward with the steering wheel turned to the left. Both have become pretty consistent, but nice that it didn't do it this morning.

Might be play in the CV joints

This is kind of what I'm leaning toward. I need to watch some youtube or something to figure out how to test.

front diff have enough fluid in it?

Yes. I topped it off after the recent bushing install.
 

AlienXtx

Nignog
As far as I know to inspect, the U-joints look good. No silver. FWIW, it didn't make the clunk noise this morning when I put it in reverse or when I started to move forward with the steering wheel turned to the left. Both have become pretty consistent, but nice that it didn't do it this morning.



This is kind of what I'm leaning toward. I need to watch some youtube or something to figure out how to test.



Yes. I topped it off after the recent bushing install.
If you jack up the front end and put it in neutral you should be able to grab a hold of the tire and rotate it forward/back in a jerking motion (no homo) and hear a pop or clunk. (Set e-brake first lol)
 

tx_shooter

It is not a war crime the first time.
Staff member
If the rear driveshaft u joints look/felt good then it at least narrows it down some. Double checked the ball joints lately?
 

CowboyTaco

Well-Known Member
If the rear driveshaft u joints look/felt good then it at least narrows it down some. Double checked the ball joints lately?

The lower ball joints were replaced with the Lower Control Arms. I did wonder about the Upper Ball Joint. I noticed there is quite a lot of black stuff (soot, dirt, grease?) around it in the first photo in this post.

CowboyTaco's 2011 DCSB TRD Sport

I don't really want to just throw parts at it, but I also want to get it fixed before it causes something else to fail. Though, if it is the UBJ, perhaps that is the reason I need to sell my wife on buying @Oswego 's old TC UCAs. Otherwise, looks like Amazon is the best place to pick up a new UCA with UBJ, which would get me new UCA bushings. https://www.amazon.com/Dorman-522-721-Control-Joint-Assembly/dp/B00HEF54TQ
 

Oswego

n00b
did you check torque values on all the new stuff? Sometimes they like to loosen up.

if you have soot build up you have grease exiting it and that's sometimes a sign they are starting to go.
 
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