Steering Intermiate Shaft

[khannah]

I own a 2001 Yukon that has vibration in the steering wheel. Dealer found it to be steering intermiate shaft. He back ordered part going on 2 months now. Anybody else have this problem? If so, has it been fixed yet? Did the new part correct the problem?

[audi1031]

2 months for a part wow. I have a 99 Yukon and have not experience that problem, but hopefully it will fix your problems

[GMCTech]

We replace 1/2 dozen of these a week. It does fix the issue, but we are still unsure if it is a permanent fix or not.

The part is constantly on back order because of the sheer numbers of vehicles out there with this issue, and if we don't have the parts in stock, we do the grease "fix" that was the original repair issued by GM, but that only lasts for 6 months to a year.

Hope this helps.

[2kflhr]

Originally Posted by khannah

I own a 2001 Yukon that has vibration in the steering wheel. Dealer found it to be steering intermiate shaft. He back ordered part going on 2 months now. Anybody else have this problem? If so, has it been fixed yet? Did the new part correct the problem?

Visit/join www.gm-trucks.com forum, there is a detailed procedure fro do it yourselfers.

[tjworthen]

GMtech,
What exactly is the fix to the intermediate steering shaft and why does it fail?

[GMCTech]

The "fix" is the original repair that GM issued, which involved removing the shaft, adding a special grease to the splines of the shaft and replacing.

We used that "repair" until GM issued the updated shaft this summer.

[pethicus]

The problem is know as "Steerin Klunk" and as i understand it is an undersized intermediate steering shaft. I have 03 Yukon with the problem. I crawled under it and found the problem by grabbing this shaft as it comes out of the steering secto box and it will klunk slightly from side to side. I took it to dealer with 31000 miles and they knew of the problem. Shaft is nationally backordered. I had them document the problem as being warranty and keep a copy so if my name comes up on the backordered list after warranty has expired I will be covered. Have been waiting three months now. It is annoying but is not safety issue.

[transgta]

how do you get the shaft out to use the grease parts ive bought at the dealer

[GMCTech]

Unbolt the shaft at the lower end (by the steerring gear input).

Push as much of the shaft up into the boot as you can.

Under the steering wheel there is another bolt/nut to undo.

After that is undone it takes a little effort and manipulation, but the shaft will pull out.

Be careful of the variable assist steering (the plastic ring on the steering column) and be careful that you don't pull the shaft into the BCM. It may be easier for you to remove the driver's foot heater vent. (Just a push in clip).

After installing the grease using the accompanying instructions, reverse procedure to reinstall.

Hope this helps.

[Dave Carpenter]

I just posted my shaft experience on another thread. My 03' at about 24,000mi developed the problem. At low speeds (5-15mph) with light steering wheel input, I started to here a faint knocking that I could also feel in the steering wheel. I took it to the dealership and started to explain to my service rep what was going on, and he finnished my explanation before I could. What he told me was that the "permanantly lubricated" connections on the shaft was a faulty design and needed to be replaced with the newly designed shaft that has grease fittings. As far as I know, they're only replacing the ones that people bring in with this type of complaint. I'm sure there are a lot of people out there that don't have the ear or the touch to realize there's a problem. They fixed mine that day, (at no charge of course). These new computerized vehicles, forget it! I opted for the extended warranty. To many unknowns for me.