Sorry about that,, Check Edited post above yours..

Cheers

 

Was thinking about the cost of a new shaft and wouldn't it be cheaper to replace the two u-joints. Not sure how hard that would be on the steering shaft. Or did Ford design them in a way that you have to replace the steering shaft?
Anyone have any input on this idea?

 

After reading all of the great ideas, I just changed my power steering fluid with Mobil one Synthetic ATF and bleed the system completely while taking off the reservoir and unhooking the two hoses, I fired up my compressor and blew out the larger hose and put a can under the smaller hose to catch about a cup extra fluid. Now it drives like new, guess I was lucky eh?

But all of the info really helped me in case I had to grab a cold one and start wrenching OUCH!

 

I know this is an old thread but it helped me. Bought a 2007 Lariat 10 days ago and it just started turning very hard. It would get stuck, take a lot of pressure to get it "over the hump" then would go a half turn and get stiff again. Hit the joints in the steering shaft with plenty of pb blaster, waited 5 minutes and it was turning like a charm. Thanks.

 

Agree with Triqyriq. This is an old thread, but helped save me a bundle. My 2006 F-150 started turning hard a couple days ago. Researched this thread, sprayed the joints down with PB Blaster this morning, and now turning like a champ! Thanks!

 

Hey guys, just wanted to say thanks so much for the tip on spraying the joints on the steering shaft. My 2008 XLT was also steering hard and getting worse. Put the spray lube to it and it works a lot better but not 100% as it did look quite rusty. Priced a new one at Ford and it's close to $400.00 CDN and 0.7 hrs labor to install. I inquired about buying the joints separately, but the whole shaft must be purchased. Hope this extra info helps. Luckily, I purchased a warranty with the truck, so at least it's covered. Cheers!

 

Thanks for keeping this thread alive!
It just saved me from replacing my power steering un-necessarily.
The steering shaft is hollow, use the straw with the PB blaster to get the product into the inside of shaft for best results. the issue is gone and I saved a bunch of money and most of all hassle, as that PS pump looks like a huge challenge to get to and it would have been for nothing...

 

Found this link on You Tube that shows the problem and fix

 

the little u-jounts on the steering shaft seize up. I keep mine lubed w/ ZEP 45 / PTFE.

 

Some repair shops will replace a rack and then lube the steering shaft u-jounts !!! Toyota Camry's have the same problem.

 

Wow, this old thread just saved me a ton of $$$$ and headaches. I sprayed PB Blaster on the U-Joints like others were doing and BAM! Problem fixed. I now have normal power steering in my wheel. Lets see how long it lasts. Thanks to all of you who kept this thread going.

 

These go bad in all these trucks from rust. I spray mine 2 or 3 times a year with Zep 45 spray, and it keeps the problem from coming bad. Toyota Camry's had the same problem w/ these small u joints too. HARD STEERING! Also power steering pump noise fix by adding one OZ. of Ford Friction Modifier to the PS fliud. Same stuff you put in the rear limited slip rears.

 

Sorry for the re-post!

 

Liquid Wrench on the u-joints did the the job for my 2007. It took me more time to read though this thread than fix the problem! Many thanks to all.

 

I was having the same issue with my truck. I sprayed the u-joints on the intermediate shaft with some spray lubricant and now it steers like a new truck. You may have a different issue going on but I would give this a try.