94 dodge b150-steering column issue

[bluezuan]

About 3 months ago I had my ball joints replaced and all new tires all around. I noticed my van sat much higher as before all the repairs. Within the last month I'm getting a light crunching sound when I turn the steering wheel at the ignition area where you turn the key on and also can feel the tension in the steering wheel. Is there a bearing-bushing in this area? And why would this place stress on the steering column? I had the steering box replaced about four years ago...Any help?

Thanks

[alloro]

Yes there is a bearing near the top of the steering column. It sounds like the grease has worn out.

[bluezuan]

Thanks alloro, your a good man for being in this forum...Is that a big issue I should worry about? Or expensive to repair?

[alloro]

It's probably more of a nuisance right now than a necessary repair. It can be expensive to repair because the whole column has to come out, making it labor intensive...more so if you have an airbag system.

[bluezuan]

I know that there is no airbag in this van. Thats what I was wondering if it was an expensive repair? If the column has to come out? Any idea on man hours involved?

[alloro]

5-6 hours.