hey all, i just bought a 2000 silverado z71 with the 5.3 vortec. i absolutely love it! however, it has a few quirks i am trying to figure out.

#1.........when i turn while driving, i hear a loud popping noise coming from the front right suspension area. as im turning to the left it will pop once and then again as i turn sharper. a buddy of mine said this could possibly be loose torsion bars. what do you all think?

#2..........i have a loose rattling feel in the steering when i am on less than perfect roads. like it feels loose. i have been told this could be my intermediate steering shaft. when i looked under the hood and grabed the shaft to feel it, i found that it is indeed loose. it rattles back and forth side to side a little bit. what do i do?

 

#1 - I would have it checked by a front end shop. Most don't charge for an inspection and then you can decide whether or not you want to tackle the job or have them do it.

#2 - That is a common problem - you can either remove it, regrease it, and reinstall it or buy another shaft. If you regrease it it will need to be done about once a year or so (depending on your driving style). I did my wife's almost 2 years ago and noticed a slight bump the other day when driving it. I am going to just repack it since it is about a 30 minute job and virtually free. The newer shafts are supposed to not need to be regreased, but I haven't heard either way if that is the case.

 

ill try to find a front end shop and see what they say. thank you!
what goes into regreasing the shaft? how do i do it?

 

http://www.gm-trucks.com/resources/h...o-2004-trucks/

Here is a link to how it is done with the kit from GM. From what I understand that kit is not available any longer. I use a radiator block off cap (I think it is 3/4") and a hose clamp instead of the rubber stopper that comes in the kit. Whatever you use it just needs to prevent the grease from coming out of th shaft and the bolt hole. With the shaft expanded - Jam as much grease as you can in the hole, cover it with the block off cap making sure the cap is long enough to cover the bolt hole completely, use a small hose clamp to secure the cap on there, and then collapse the shaft SLOWLY. Repeat this process until you get at least 1/2" of grease on the splines (see link for an illustration). The key is to use the best marine grade grease you can find so it will last as long as possible. The first time took me about an hour, but now I can do them in about 30 minutes - Beats buying a new one!