New style Intermediate shaft????
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Originally Posted by Jim Salko
Hi Fellows:
Its all in the grease. Use axel wheel bearing grease on all the joints as well as the actual shaft. Clean the joints with wd-40 before applying the new grease. Did mine once and still no problems after 25,000 additonal miles. Dealer had done mine once with their injected lithium and it did not work the first time around. Now at 65,000 miles on the 02 Bonneville and works fine. For procedure on how to do look about 4 pages back under "Intermediate shaft recall" topic which should give you enough info to go by in doing it yourself. Of course wait for those sunny warm days again.
Good Luck
Jim
Its all in the grease. Use axel wheel bearing grease on all the joints as well as the actual shaft. Clean the joints with wd-40 before applying the new grease. Did mine once and still no problems after 25,000 additonal miles. Dealer had done mine once with their injected lithium and it did not work the first time around. Now at 65,000 miles on the 02 Bonneville and works fine. For procedure on how to do look about 4 pages back under "Intermediate shaft recall" topic which should give you enough info to go by in doing it yourself. Of course wait for those sunny warm days again.
Good Luck
Jim
Good idea. I'll look up that old thread. I only have a little clunking, but it is best to be prepared and knowledgable.
Question I have is wondering if the shaft is in danger of sheering/breaking, or is it simply a nuscience issue?
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Hi Kevo, from what I've heard (and read) the loosness is actually in the "slip-joint" portion of the intermediate shaft. That Impala HQ website that shows illustrations within the technical bulletin, kind of shows and explains the procedure of working that slip joint back and forth so as to sort of "pump" it full of grease. And that makes sense, which is why the "light weight" grease just doesn't last very long. It also stands to reason that some people are getting by without actually replacing, because the real thick grease will not be so likely to squish out, and if their original part is not very loose, then apparently just the thicker grease is all they need.
I do have a new part on order for mine, but my chevy dealership (pontiac dealer wouldn't give me any price break at all, so screw them) was at least honest enough to let me know that their system shows a "nation wide backorder, with no estimated delivery dates." It has been their experience that sometimes the new shaft will arrive in a week or so, and other times takes several weeks.
I'm anxious to get mine apart to see just how loose it is. I can tell you for sure, according to the feel on the steering wheel, you'd swear that the whole front end was about to fall out of it!!
It is my opinion that there is probably no safety risk at all. -just crappy, clunky, thumpy feeling looseness.
I do have a new part on order for mine, but my chevy dealership (pontiac dealer wouldn't give me any price break at all, so screw them) was at least honest enough to let me know that their system shows a "nation wide backorder, with no estimated delivery dates." It has been their experience that sometimes the new shaft will arrive in a week or so, and other times takes several weeks.
I'm anxious to get mine apart to see just how loose it is. I can tell you for sure, according to the feel on the steering wheel, you'd swear that the whole front end was about to fall out of it!!
It is my opinion that there is probably no safety risk at all. -just crappy, clunky, thumpy feeling looseness.
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I got a new intermediate shaft put in my '02 SE. It was clunky when I bought the car...thanks to BC I knew this was a minor problem....and it was still under GM warranty. The dealer ordered it on a Friday and the following Tuesday called me and told me it was in. It is like driving a different car now...no noise and no clunky feeling in the steering wheel. I didnt realize how bad it was until I drove it after it was replaced and it didnt feel like the whole front end was going to collapse or something.
Deb
Deb
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At least it'* good to know it isn't dangerous. Mine isn't nearly as bad as some here are saying. Just a little bit of grind/popping when turning while going fairly slow. I guess I've been one of the more fortunate ones.
I'm still under extended warranty for a few more years. I'll probably wait for a while and see if it gets any worse. Is it a bear to do the greasing myself?
PS. Thanks for the explanation!
I'm still under extended warranty for a few more years. I'll probably wait for a while and see if it gets any worse. Is it a bear to do the greasing myself?
PS. Thanks for the explanation!
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I'm betting you still need to replace the light weight grease with the heaviest stuff you can find.
Anyway, rather than keep updating on two topics, I'm going to stop replying on this one, and just update my post "New Steering Shaft Part Number."
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