Went to get an Alignment... bad news

[denny]

i noticed you said the steering was a "little floaty". my 81 malibu was a little floaty to in the steering and i replaced it with the s-10 conversion. local steer and gear said the steering box on these cars were junk to start out with. were screw gear type and not ball type like the good ones. my 81 was also low mileage. i'm by no means a steering expert but my steering is good now.

 

[Gonzo1970]

Replaced the Idler Arm, Pitman Arm, Center Link, all 4 tie rods, and tie rod adjusters. Really wasn't that bad.

Did the string alignment.

The wheel might be off a degree, but the steering is completely different now. Much better. Issue resolved.

Thanks for the tips/help/advice.

-Gonz

 

[1KWIKSIX]

I recently did a bunch of front end work. I'd suggest you find a shop that is familiar with using shims & G Bodies in particular.

Last winter I installed 98-05 2WD Blazer spindles, rotors & dual piston callipers on my GN. Also did a HydroBoost install at the same time.
Also I replaced my old GBody Parts upper tubular control arms with UMI units featuring rod ends that accomodate shim free caster / camber adjustment. I just eye balled the rod end adjustments and installed. Installed a 1/2" taller upper ball joint in the upper control arm too.
I was worried about driving to my alignment shop (owned by a fellow G Body owner) 20 miles away & had a buddy trailer my car there. To my amazement one side was pretty much spot on and only had to slight adjustment to the drives side for caster / camber. He did adjust toe in / toe out, which is what I was most worried about. Toe out will tear your front end apart in short order.
Personally, I'd strongly suggest you have it trailered before driving any distance.
Better safe than sorry!
My concerns about trailering were reinforced by the alignment centre owner.

 

[69hurstolds]

Agree with 1KWIKSIX on that. One thing you could do is ensure you have toe-in before you drive it if you had no other way. It might wander a little, but it's better than toe-out. Cars are driven on the roads all the time with piss poor alignment. That's why alignment shops stay in business.