A few weeks ago, I had a mechanic put my Z28 on a lift to see if he could find why my steering had so much play. He said that everything looked fine except for the steering box. I installed a new one today, and all I can say is WOW! The car drives like it's brand new. No more chasing the car around the road and the steering is now very firm. Thanks to all the authors of previous posts with suggestions on how to do this job. The only extra stuff I had to do was remove a bracket so I could get to one of the steering box bolts and drop the sway bar so I could get the boxes in and out.

 

Awesome, mine use to have some play also but I got away with just adjusting the box from the top.

 

I forgot to mention that mine was also leaking from the pitman arm seal, so I went ahead and put in new box.

 

I had thought about doing this......glad to hear it makes a big difference.

Where did you get it from and how much?

 

I got it from Carquest, around $200 with a $35 core charge. There was a note inside from the manufacturer asking you to "please resist the urge to adjust the gears" since it had been correctly set before it left the factory. At least in my case, they were right - it feels perfect.

 

What do you mean adjusted it? How can you do that?

 

There's a lash/preload adjustment on the top of the gear housing plate. Hex wrench in the middle and a nut to hold it in place. I had someone lightly wiggle the steering back and forth while I adjusted it. I was warned to do this in small increments to avoid locking things up. After a few tests in the driveway, parking lot, and road, it is like new again. If I remember correctly, when made to tight you'll be able to turn your wheel but it won't return to center on it's own so I made sure the car would go back to straight on it's own when testing.

Also note I did this after fixing the loose steering column so I knew the play was coming from the box. Make sure it's in the box before doing this and mark everything so you can put it back if need be. Basically the input shaft would move before the pitman shaft. I'm a hobbyist at best so take it for what it's worth. I couldn't find an actual procedure for this in my 86 shop manual. I'll post it if I ever do.

 

http://www.monte-list.nu/tech/boxmesh.shtml