Steering box and drop arm removal nightmare

My first job was to fix the play in the steering on my 1991 defender. Here's what happened so far:
-Castle nut came off ball joint ok, drag link went off easy!
-Nut for drop arm was solid. 20 mins of going for it only to get it loose after I started to heat it up via the angle grinder on the drop arm.
-cut into drop arm, made lots of cuts on the near side, went all the way through and it did not move!
-in the end I cut two cuts on the off side.
-it broke into two and the back half was still stuck on! I had to hit it and leaver it off! -coming at it via both sides with 2 cuts on both sides worked really well, I bet you would only need to cut deep lower down and then use the length of the drop arm as a leaver -Possible good tip for others-

The bad news, when I was greasing it up I noticed the thread was flat but when I came to install the new arm, the nut would not bind, the thread on the spline was shot as was the nut.

After some thought I purchased a new steering box, the thread on the old was totally gone. Been advised that it was cross threaded when it was but on and we were lucky to get it off after 20 mins of pulling, the whole truck was moving.

Can I ask for any tips on steering box removal please?

The hoses in the top are solid I think? Also what fluid do you need and where can you get it from please? Also side note but not too important, the lid to the oil reservoir has no dip stick? Can you buy new lids?

Hoses may need to be cut off and removed,

Not sure on the fluid, never been low enough to need topping up,

Oil reservoir mean steering reservoir ?

Or are we talking engine oil ?

Steering reservoir has a mesh filter, generally speaking, if theres none in the bottom of the filter, needs topping up

Graynub said:

Can I ask for any tips on steering box removal please?

The hoses in the top are solid I think? Also what fluid do you need and where can you get it from please? Also side note but not too important, the lid to the oil reservoir has no dip stick? Can you buy new lids?

Click to expand...

you need a 9/16 and a 5/8 spanner for pipe unions , just fill res 2/3 full atf dexron 2 or 3, using chisels or suitable screw drivers etc to open slot in steering linkage ujs helps

Cool thanks for the info

Jonnyb1990 said:

Hoses may need to be cut off and removed,

Not sure on the fluid, never been low enough to need topping up,

Oil reservoir mean steering reservoir ?

Or are we talking engine oil ?

Steering reservoir has a mesh filter, generally speaking, if theres none in the bottom of the filter, needs topping up

Click to expand...

If the hoses need to be cut, where do you recommend getting new ones?

Would Hanfords sell flexible hoses and correct unions? Doing the job on Sunday and it needs to be on the road for Monday. I could order the parts in advance maybe?

Thanks for the advice!

Jonnyb1990 said:

Hoses may need to be cut off and removed,

Not sure on the fluid, never been low enough to need topping up,

Oil reservoir mean steering reservoir ?

Or are we talking engine oil ?

Steering reservoir has a mesh filter, generally speaking, if theres none in the bottom of the filter, needs topping up

Click to expand...

Also sorry I meant power steering fluid. Seen photos that there's a gauge on the lid, mine has not. Think common sense and making sure it looks full is enough.

Graynub said:

If the hoses need to be cut, where do you recommend getting new ones?

Would Hanfords sell flexible hoses and correct unions? Doing the job on Sunday and it needs to be on the road for Monday. I could order the parts in advance maybe?

Thanks for the advice!

Click to expand...

Halfords will not stock what you need, order what you need through a proper landrover parts dealer.

I find its best to have every part ready just incase a worst case scenario crops up.

Depending on what hose you need paddocks sell them. I bought a new one last month from them. They only sell the High pressure one for a 200TDi not the low. it was £25 + vat. not bad. You can get gen ones from rimmer - £130 + vat each! Assuming you mean the box to pump (metal pipe/rubber hose assembly)?

I was going to replace both but since there is not a sensibly priced aftermarket variant, I went for the High pressure only. Which incidently was the only one leaking.

As for unions, standard precautions. get the RIGHT sized spanner and if you find the pipe twisting with the nut, give it a gently back and forth action to free it up. Like tapping a thread. I know you are binning the pipe, but you don't want to damage the box or pump.

If you need a parts cat for your hoses, let me know.

And for god's sake - do not cross thread the pipe when you reassemble = new steering box. Done it too many times with brake cylinders. Although that is usually with manky old brake pipes.

Right....

Took off the old steering box
Solid hoses came off ok

Put on new box, bled system all is a ok!

Got good steering now!

I tried to take off the fan cover and I disconnected the top hose coming from the radiator. Some water came out, will I need to bleed any ain't out?

yes,

Any coolant lost needs to be replaced (not with water)!

what engine is it (some are more forgiving than others) ?

Assuming its a 200tdi,

Remove the ****ty plastic thermostat plug (think its a 22mm socket) and the radiator plug, fill expansion tank until it come out of Rad plug (close it once its flowing out),

Thermostat bleeding is a tricky one,

Top up expansion tank, manually pump hose (top one) until like rad its flowing out of the plug, tighten while its flowing,

Go for a 1/2hr drive, heater to full, blower not on, hot air should be circulating, if not, air pocket somewhere (likely by the rad and thermostat plugs)

Top tip I learned from Pikey and Blue Beasty,

replace plugs with 1/2 inch radiator bleed valves (use plumbers tape) as they are the same thread as the plugs used, makes bleeding coolant system easy,

Jonnyb1990 said:

yes,

Any coolant lost needs to be replaced (not with water)!

what engine is it (some are more forgiving than others) ?

Assuming its a 200tdi,

Remove the ****ty plastic thermostat plug (think its a 22mm socket) and the radiator plug, fill expansion tank until it come out of Rad plug (close it once its flowing out),

Thermostat bleeding is a tricky one,

Top up expansion tank, manually pump hose (top one) until like rad its flowing out of the plug, tighten while its flowing,

Go for a 1/2hr drive, heater to full, blower not on, hot air should be circulating, if not, air pocket somewhere (likely by the rad and thermostat plugs)

Top tip I learned from Pikey and Blue Beasty,

replace plugs with 1/2 inch radiator bleed valves (use plumbers tape) as they are the same thread as the plugs used, makes bleeding coolant system easy,

Click to expand...

Thanks for the tips. It's a 200tdi

Not sure about a 200, only know it with a 300

Do the top plugs separately when topping the water off otherwise the water just finds a level an doesn't fill any section.

I did pump the hose and it feels like there's no air in it, will remove the filler cap also.