How-to
1989 Ford Bronco Power Steering Gearbox Rebuild
This album follows the teardown and reseal of a loose, leaking recirculating ball power steering gearbox from a 1989 Ford Bronco. chexmix notes it is not a complete rebuild how-to but a record of one job, covering disassembly, new seals, and reassembly of the worm, balls and sector shaft.
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Step 1
Start with the 1989 Bronco and the power steering gearbox mounted on the truck. chexmix describes the unit as loose and wet and says the album documents one job rather than serving as a complete rebuild guide.
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Step 2
Set the gearbox upright on the workbench and pull the pitman arm off the output shaft with a pitman arm puller, which chexmix sourced from AutoZone.
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Step 3
Take the gearbox apart. Remove the ball guide and holder so the balls can be extracted, then collect all of the balls.
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Step 4
Note the large nut and the allen screw that secures it before loosening anything there. Remove the dust shield and the clip.
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Step 5
Fit the new seals onto the worm. chexmix bought the seals at AutoZone and believes they were PowerCraft brand, and warns that the seals stretch but do not really stretch back, so avoid stretching them any more than needed.
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Step 6
Drive out the valve housing seal and bearing, taking care not to damage them. chexmix tapped them out with a large socket and an extension. Install the new valve housing seal.
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Step 7
Put the lock nut and the valve housing onto the worm before feeding the balls back in. Make sure the ball guide is installed as the balls are fed, or they may go the wrong way.
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Step 8
Apply a little thread lock to the bolts that will not be in contact with power steering fluid.
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Step 9
Install the sector shaft, lubing the gears with a little clean power steering fluid to ease assembly. chexmix used an old towel doubled over in place of a rubber mallet to soften the blows, and notes this destroys the towel.
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Step 10
The album closes with the reassembled gearbox and a close look at the output shaft splines. chexmix first reports the sector shaft as cracked and immediately corrects that note to say it is not cracked, mentioning this box came from pick-n-pull. The photos end there, with no installation shown.
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