Sloppy Steering
 

My 98 12vs steering is really sloppy. I replaced my tie rod but it is just about as bad as before. I can turn teh steering wheel almost half way around before it response...No fun to drive. I have a small amount of money I can buy stuff with so what would be best to replace next? Thanks

I had a bad track bar that gave me the same problem.have u experienced the death wobble at all?if it is ur track bar parts geek has a good moog one for like $100 on sale normally like $300.

Gearbox might be toasted... Mine was the same until I replaced it. Bad trac bar could contribute too, but not a half a turn

Normally tierods, ball joints, and track bars won't cause THAT much slop unless it's a combination of them all being worn out. A worn out gearbox CAN cause that much play all on it's own though. I would check the box first then inspect the rest of the linkages.

Alrite I will do it...thanks. The other ball joints do have a little play but not much. The truck has 245,XXX miles and it is all stock so I guess start replacing what I can when I can. Would replacing the control arms or or the sway end bar link do anything?

I don't think so but I'm not 100% sure . A good way to check your steering linkages is to have someone turn the steering wheel back and forth while you look at all the rod ends. You also want to watch your pitman arm and see how much the steering wheel has to be turned before it moves.

Definitely replace the ball joints, and you might as well do the U joint while your in there. As for the sway bar links, unless they are broken in half which is what normally happens to these ones, they wont make too much of a difference. With the control arms the control arm bushings do not normally go bad, but if they do a set of OE replacement control arms is pretty cheap.

What year did Dodge finally go to a u-joint coupler on the steering box input?

That slip-joint coulper on the 1st gens was the primary culprit when sloppy steering symptoms showed up.