Hello,

I have a '91 Z28 and ever since I bought the car about 7 years ago there has been some amount of play in the steering. I don't really feel it so much when turning corners (it feels reasonable), but driving straight I notice that I can rock the steering wheel back and forth about 1" - 2" of circular travel without affecting the steering.

I have already replaced the idler arm and steering gear box in an attempt to solve the problem.

I'm pretty sure ball joints are bad because when I turn the wheel at the extremes (when parking) I hear a very loud THUD sound. I tried pin-pointing the sound and it appears to come from the tire area. Reading other posts leads me to believe that ball joints are bad. But could this be the reason for all the play in the steering?

I should point out that the car has 150k miles on it and, except for the stuff I've replaced, all the steering is original.

Thanks,
Jeff

 

Travel should be around 1/2 inch... I would have the tie rod ends checked with the ball joints, and upper/lower control arm bushings, etc..

There is an adjusting screw on the gearbox, but I would not mess with that until all other suspension problems had been addressed first...

 

If you can't check the front end take the car to a reputable alignment shop and if anything is loose they will tell you they can't align it and give you an estimate. U can have them fix it or fix it yourself. I don't charge for that but some shops might charge 20-30 for this. Ball joints,idlers,centerlinks,tie rods are common

 

At that mileage, I'd just go through and rebuild the front end. New Ball Joints, New Tie-Rod Ends, and a full bushing kit. Then be sure to get it aligned. That should take care of everything up there and not only tighten the steering, but probably make it handle slightly better as well.

 

I fixed my steering by replacing the "rag joint" with an aluminium disc If you have one you should definately take a look at it, mine was dry, cracked and torn.