When ever I turn the wheel, my front end sqeaks. Which parts need to be changed. I know there are only two fittings for lube on the whole front end. Any ideas where to start on the cheapest route?

 

My truck has also, started doing this.

Any

BOB

 

Hey, found the answer here,

https://www.f150online.com/forums/sh...ise+turn+front

Search function

BOB

 

yep, grease your pitman arm. you might as well grease all the boots while your under there. just to let you know, after i greased mine it took almost a week for the noise to go away. It's been 6 months and not a peep.

 

Thanks for the info. I tried the silicon spray lube thing and it only lasted about a day and a half. I've been living with this problem way longer than the six months mentioned above. I kind of figured it was the pitman arm, but I have to go on the road a lot and everytime I come home I have to fix at least two of my four vehicles from my wife and kids driving them. I should be able to get this done now. Thanks again.

Tony

 

The tie rods and ball joints could also be the cause of the problem. They do not have zerks to grease. If you get a grease injection kit from any auto parts store, you can inject grease right into the boot and this will most often eliminate the squeak. The kits come with a syringe and you have to pierce the boot to inject the grease. Mine had a left lower ball joint squeaking.

 

Replace the pitman arm I had to do it about 1 month ago the stock pitman arm has no grease fitting so lubing it is not possible other than trying to spray some WD-40 in it or poking a hole in the rubber boot and trying to put some gease in but that is only going to prolong the ineveitable. When the pitman arm is squeking like that it is also binding up and causeing severe stress and strain on other steering componets as well as your steering box itself the stock pitman arm is actaully made aof rubber inside and is JUNK. They put the metal ball part of it in then it is injected with a hard plastic type rubber which is also how the tie rod ends and most of the other pieces are as well. Replace hem with some MOOG chassis parts that have grease fittings. DON'T FORGET TO HAVE AN ALIGNMENT DONE AFTER REPLACING THE PITMAN ARM

Richard D.

WHIEL YOUR HERE CHECK OUT MY GALLERY:
https://www.f150online.com/galleries....cfm?gnum=2479

 

I replaced my Pittman Arm with a Moog replacement also. The stock had no grease fitting. Easy to do, took a couple of hours. Just make sure you have the Pitman Arm puller tool aligned correctly. Also, when the stock Pitman breaks free, the tool can bounce around some. When the arm on my truck broke free, it sounded like a gun shot. My wife comes rushing out of the house to see if I had killed myself. Kinda funny, really.

 

exfordguy you must have a 4x2 becasue on the 4x4's you have to remove the entire steering box in order to get the pitman arm off and it is a PITA. So you will also need to get yourself some power steering fluid in order to refill it becasue you will lose it all once the lines get disconnected.

Richard D.

 

Rodger That! on the 4x2. I forgot to mention it on my previous post. Good catch.

 

I have expeirenced the same noises and had to have a ball joint replaced.

 

if done correctly, there is absolutely no need to realign the front end after replacing pittman arm. Place the truck pointed straight ahead and lock the wheels before repairing it. It is very easy to stop a pittman arm from squeaking. Buy a $5 needle grease fitting, buy a $15 grease gun, buy a $3 tube of grease (all of this stuff will last for years). Poke a hole in the pittman arm and lube it. Do not overlube. Put a dab of silicon over the hole so water will not enter. It is a 5 minute procedure. My factory pittman arm and all other front end components are still going strong at 146,000 miles on my 97f150. Just greased the pittman arm twice. Get a haynes or similiar manual if you arent sure what a pittman arm is or where it is located. Remember, curing the front end steering squeak on late model fords is cheap and easy (assuming 2wd, never wrecked,etc)

 

p.s. spraying silicon or anything similar is a Complete Joke on somebody. The joint simply requires automotive grease.

 

My 97 did it for months,not no more. Grease goooood!
Love this site -Vince.

 

I just expiercenedthe front end squeak on my 99 F150 4x4 and until I read one of the threads on this website I thought I was in for a lenghty costy repair battle with my warranty company.

My truck squeaked like crazy through the walmart parking lot and around the neighborhood, it was LOUD!!!

I had my dad bounce up and down on the front bumper so I could locate the sound. I thought it was the shock so I replaced them. NOPE wasnt' it.

Then I thought it was coming from the rubber boot of the 4wd system where it mates to the wheel.

I read someones advice on greasing you Idler arm, so I took a look at mine and they had zerk fittings. Hooked up the grease gun gave her a few squirts and started jumping up and down on the bumper a few times and the noise went away.

Remember try this stupid stuff before you go and start dropping some big time cash at your local Ford guy.