Rack And Pinion Paranoia

jro909 · July 13, 2011

So recently a guy i work with had his rack break and now pours p/s fluid like a faucet...its an 06 with 50k on it...my 04 has 120k on it and seems to be ok minus shaking or bucking from every road impurity, i've also got a few guys telling me GM rack and pinions are pure shit...fill me in guys i don't want a 1000 dollar repair bill

Sir Dan · July 13, 2011

I can't speak for the older trucks so much, but my '08 has gone thru 3 racks during the 36,000 mile warranty period due to bad leaks and lots of other folks have had the same issue. I'm at 37,000 now and praying this one holds out. So, I would have to agree that GM rack and pinions are "pure sh*t" but the good news is that if you have a 2006 or older truck, you don't even have rack and pinion steering system to worry about. You have the old reliable recirculating ball steering box system. Cheers!

dlstewart01 · July 13, 2011

I can't speak for the older trucks so much, but my '08 has gone thru 3 racks during the 36,000 mile warranty period due to bad leaks and lots of other folks have had the same issue. I'm at 37,000 now and praying this one holds out. So, I would have to agree that GM rack and pinions are "pure sh*t" but the good news is that if you have a 2006 or older truck, you don't even have rack and pinion steering system to worry about. You have the old reliable recirculating ball steering box system. Cheers!

GMT 800s have rack & pinion steering on the two wheel drives. My 05 has it. I have not had any problems

redjewel2ss · July 13, 2011

yeah, my dad's 04 has 160,000 miles with no major repairs needed on it... "they don't make 'em like they used to!"

nearly 20,000 miles on my 2010 with no problems yet! i keep it on the highway, and we only have extreme summer weather, not so bad winters.

i guess it can really depend on how you drive it too! my old truck was a 98 dakota, and the previous owner ran it into a ditch which screwed up the steering and front suspension on one side... never really drove right for me the 6 years i had it and the ball joints and tie rod ends were always going out. if you don't off-road much or take it slow on the turns, don't worry about it.

jro909 · July 14, 2011

i just can't fathom how the guy blew his rack at 50k....i don't offroad much mostly just shit roads(bumps,potholes,dead people)

greentourismo · July 14, 2011

i would sell your truck...find a different brand thats guaranteed to have no expensive parts go bad

So recently a guy i work with had his rack break and now pours p/s fluid like a faucet...its an 06 with 50k on it...my 04 has 120k on it and seems to be ok minus shaking or bucking from every road impurity, i've also got a few guys telling me GM rack and pinions are pure shit...fill me in guys i don't want a 1000 dollar repair bill

jro909 · July 14, 2011

i would sell your truck...find a different brand thats guaranteed to have no expensive parts go bad

So recently a guy i work with had his rack break and now pours p/s fluid like a faucet...its an 06 with 50k on it...my 04 has 120k on it and seems to be ok minus shaking or bucking from every road impurity, i've also got a few guys telling me GM rack and pinions are pure shit...fill me in guys i don't want a 1000 dollar repair bill

well delorean went under so i'm SOL smart ass

rdnkcpa · July 14, 2011

i would sell your truck...find a different brand thats guaranteed to have no expensive parts go bad

So recently a guy i work with had his rack break and now pours p/s fluid like a faucet...its an 06 with 50k on it...my 04 has 120k on it and seems to be ok minus shaking or bucking from every road impurity, i've also got a few guys telling me GM rack and pinions are pure shit...fill me in guys i don't want a 1000 dollar repair bill

Agreed!!! If you have a 120K on your truck with no major repair bills then you are doing pretty well. My 2004, with 119k, the heads went south, I wish it was just a $1,000 repair bill. If you are worried about repair bills, trade in for new, something with a warranty. You will either have repair bills, or drop 35K on a new truck.

jro909 · July 15, 2011

but the question is... are GM racks junk from the get go?

greentourismo · July 15, 2011

Ive owned many gm vehicles, and hae never had one go bad....slight leaks yes, but not enough to even amount to fluid loss. Also in my years as a mechanic I never replaced a single one. Chrystler had the only racks I replaced, and even then it was very uncommon.

but the question is... are GM racks junk from the get go?

CapitalTruck · July 15, 2011

All I can say is my 04 2wd (Rack and Pinion) hasn't had any problems with 145k on the clock.

Jet-X · July 16, 2011

Just replaced my rack at 70K and a leaking PS pump to the tune of $1700. Both end seals were leaking pretty bad. The dealer stated this problem is very common on GM 2wd trucks and they replace on average about 6-8 a month. Of course the replacement hasn't been improved, so it will eventually fail again. This the biggest ticket item so far on my truck.

ken1mod · July 16, 2011

Gentlemen,

2000 silverado. original rack and pinion and original everything else. no oil between 7000 mile changes. original trans. one of the best vehicles I have ever owned. No leaks anywhere. I do have half a can of thick STP oil treatment in the p/s. works great, it did fix a small p/s leak 4 years ago.

I have 160,000 miles on it. Worst problem is peeling paint that I have to keep after.

Ken

brainpause · July 17, 2011

Had an 85 Buick Century that I had to do rack & pinion on. Seems like I was told it was common on GM cars. Also, IIRC, my parents' late 80's Olds Delta 88 had one replaced within the 3/36.

Same technology?

Larry