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2006 Silverado - How hard are these repairs?


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Now that I have a bunch of time at home thanks to these wonderful world events I decided it would be a good time to take the truck down and get some work done on it that i've been putting off. A couple shops have quoted 1500$-2000$ for all this. Unsure of whats to come, i'd like to avoid this. I have all the parts and fluid in my garage. Ordered it off Rock Auto a few weeks ago. The truck is only a 6cyl work truck, so its not worth but maybe 6k. Its in really good condition and only had 120k on the odometer; plenty more life in this one.

 

This is a 2WD 6cyl truck. So the whole front end is pretty open.

 

Im by no means a master mechanic but I have worked on cars for years as a side hobby with friends. My question is how hard are these things to change/repair?

  1. Rack an pinion replacement
    1. Replace pressure lines and flush fluid
  2. Rear drum replacement (Drum, pads, hardware)
  3. Brake fluid flush all 4 wheels
    1. Ive done one corner when i replaced a caliper, but never have done a full flush.
    2. If i recall you start with the farthest wheel from the master cylinder and pump it till the lines are clear - that should mean that line has been purged, right?
  4. Oil pan gasket replacement
    1. It looks like this is above the subframe so it looks like ill have to drop that cross piece and it should allow me to unbolt the pan
  5. Rear diff gasket replacement & fluid change

 

any input on this is appreciated. The main one I am unsure of most is the rear drum brakes. I've only ever worked on disc brakes. Watched a good half dozen videos on them and i feel more confident on the topic but also would like this groups input.

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The steering rack is pretty easy. I had a 2006 Sierra 2WD with the 5.3 and replaced mine without much issue. I know I needed a crows foot tool though and that is what took me longer that it should have. You may or may not need one depending on if you can get to all the lines just fine.

 

I didn't replace my outer tie rods when I did mine, so I measured my rack and did the eye ball alignment before I drove it the 3 miles into town for a real alignment.

 

With some tools the rear drum/show replacement isn't that bad. They sell the couple drum tools that make removal and install of the shoes easier. With the video's you've watched you should be able to grasp it.

 

Brake fluid change is as you said, it just take a little time and a lot of pumping of the pedal when you don't have a pressure bleeder. Have enough fluid on hand too. 2 bigger bottles just to make sure.

 

The rear diff gasket is super simple. Remove the 10 bolts, clean everything up on both side, new gasket and fill with fluid.

 

Never done a pan gasket on a V6, not sure how much more involved it is compared to a V8.

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Getting a pressure bleeder makes the job go fast...  I got a Motive Pressure Bleeder, and it worked great for me (yes, it's not cheap).

 

The only downside I had with it, is that initially I got it with a plastic cap that fits on the master cylinder reservoir, put it on, added brake fluid to the pressure bleeder tank (this will flow through the line to that plastic cap, to keep the reservoir filled as you bleed the system), then pumped it up to the pressure recommended in GM's full service manual for my truck (I think it said 25 psi).  Evidently, this is way too high for the plastic cap, it blew off the reservoir and sprayed brake fluid all over the engine compartment (which is very bad, as brake fluid likes to eat paint and plastic).  I switched to their metal cap, and haven't had a problem with it since.  I also don't add brake fluid to the pressure tank, but this is primarily because it's a hassle and time consuming to clean out the tank and the line after using it, instead I just disconnect the setup, fill up the reservoir, then reconnect the setup as necessary, which only takes a minute.

 

The plastic cap (which is cheaper than the metal one) works just fine, as long as you keep the pressure a bit lower (15 psi).   It would have been nice if their instructions had said this...

 

And, hopefully, Motive got rid of the absolute moron salesperson they had 5 years ago when I bought it (I bought a package for my truck from some site selling it, had that problem, then bough the metal cap direct from Motive).  That guy could not figure out how to correctly enter my address in their system.  3 times he sent out the cap, it made to my city, and then was sent back due to a bad address.  Finally, after I sent him a picture of a letter I received in the mail, could he fill out the address to match that, and it made it all the way to my house.

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