XJ Steering Shaft Upgrade (88-94 Trucks) 95+instructions on page 31

[Cokeman95]

That's what I was thinking , I have my new FR U joint in my toolbox just waiting for me lol

Well hurry up and do it! Then come do mine!

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[Steve's Chevy]

Lol, I have to find the time.. just had a weeks vacation and was sick the whole time....sucked!

 

[thunderstruck]

How big a job is putting that u joint on?

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If you can run a cutoff tool and drill press, you got it under control. You can PM me if you run into any issues.

2 reasons I went with the JEEP shaft. First was I had the JEEP shaft on an old truck, so it was free. Second reason I went with it is it is keyed wit hthe flat spot on it. I'm OCD, so I like evrything kept in perfect alignment. So the JEEP joint has the flat in it to keep it keyed straight, and the double D shafts keep all that in alignment as well so I don't have to worry about those set screws that hold the joint onto the shaft slipping off since the GM shaft is hollow, and those joints are meant for solid shafts(hollow shafts compress and move whereas solid ones don't).

I see your point about the shaft being hollow, but I'm not worried about it. The shaft is still fairly thick, I was able to make rather deep dimples for the set screws. Whatever could budge that u-joint would also probably tear the rag joint up pretty good too.


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[Knuckle Dragger]

Back in 2011 I did the somewhat popular Jeep steering shaft swap in my '94 C2500LD, to replace the original shaft that had some slop in the upper joint. As many of you know the Jeep shaft has a semi-fixed joint at the top with an integral rubber damper of sorts, and a U-joint at the gearbox instead of a rag joint.

The shaft I installed was used but appeared to be in excellent shape. Now, it has failed. The rubber insert at the top has become loose in its housing and "squeaks" left to right during turning, with nearly 1/2" of play, only stopped by the design of the housing which appears to be a safety feature in case the rubber fails.

The failure -may- have been accelerated by exposure to heat. I sold this truck a few years ago to a friend that installed headers, and they sit closer to the joint as well as radiate more heat than the original manifolds.

(The pics make the distance from header to joint appear much closer than it really is; from looking at it in person you may not think it was close enough to be a problem.)

Gap to the left in pic -

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And to the right -

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So while your mileage may vary, my experience says - do NOT do the Jeep shaft conversion in your GMT400 truck. It sits too close to the exhaust. Insulation of some kind MIGHT help...might not; while it's unlikely to catastrophically fail due to the design, it's going to wind up giving you noticeable play in the steering.

Richard

I had the exact same failure. I have more clearance with the headers but the rubber separated just the same. I noticed the steering got looser and looser the longer I drove the truck, let it sit and cool over night and it felt normal for a while. IMO the modification is made to eliminate the rubber coupler at the box, but all you're doing is changing the location for the failure. It's not an instant steering loss so I'm not sure it's a dangerous deal but anyone who uses the jeep shaft should be sure to take any changes seriously and inspect it from time to time. I'm going back the the rubber coupler.

 

[someotherguy]

I replaced it with the Borgeson shaft. A little pricey but a top quality piece. It's got a rag joint at the bottom like OEM, though. It's nice and tight and will probably be that way for many years; I guess later once it gets worn one could replace that end with a U-joint if they wished.

Richard

 

[THEFERMANATOR]

I had the exact same failure. I have more clearance with the headers but the rubber separated just the same. I noticed the steering got looser and looser the longer I drove the truck, let it sit and cool over night and it felt normal for a while. IMO the modification is made to eliminate the rubber coupler at the box, but all you're doing is changing the location for the failure. It's not an instant steering loss so I'm not sure it's a dangerous deal but anyone who uses the jeep shaft should be sure to take any changes seriously and inspect it from time to time. I'm going back the the rubber coupler.

Thats the nice part about doing this on the 95+ trucks, it completely does away with the rubber coupling.

 

[kssilverado]

Looking at buying one of these shafts for my truck. Can you guys tell me if they're the right ones before I buy...

Number 1:

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Number 2:

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Just want to make sure they're right before I buy one and it not be right. Both are off a 1999. Thanks!

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[SkyHighColorado]

2nd one looks correct.

 

[Stepside_fever95]

I like to use the steering shafts from later model full size chevy vans, the shaft is covered in a big rubber boot all its life you the u joint part stays nice and clean..

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I do cut a 3 inch section from the old lower part and welt to the top because I'm not totally satisfied withthe depth of the male shaft in the lower part so I add a little insurance.

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new one at the bottom of the pic and original one at the top.

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they do work on 96 and up, you just have to use your top half.

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What year chevy vans, and im assuming the express vans?

 

[gunslingertom]

I will say I have TIGHT steering now with ZERO play in it. Now that I know how to do it, it could be done in very little time. One could even use a through bolt instead of welding it so any DIYer could do this mod with basic tools.

I completed this mod today on my '95. Definitely a different truck, well worth the time to do it.