My '90 amigo just has too much play in it to keep driving it this way and everything in the front end is tight. Going to start searching the local junkyards and was wondering what other models would be interchangeable? I'm assuming Troopers & Rodeos also, but what years?

All the 1st gen boxes are interchangable. Use car-parts.com and punch in your Amigo. Their search engine uses an interchange so whatever it lists will work. There are different part numbers for the boxes, but they do seem to interchange fine.

But, are you *sure* all your linkages are tight? Sloppy steering is much more likely to be a blown idler arm on the passenger side frame rail, and then maybe worn ball-joints in the center link. Have someone wiggle the wheel back and forth while you watch the links. A bad idler will be obvious as the arm and center link lifts up and down before the wheels ever start turning. If you watch it closely, you can see the shaft of the idler arm move up and down inducing the slop.

--Dan

Oh wow, do you really want to look at that first.

Swapping out an idler arm? Like, an hour of work.

Swapping out a steering box? Let's just say that the absolute best thing for you to do, right off the bat, is the remove the radiator. It's gets more fun from there.

Check everything else, first...

- mike

He ain't kidding... it may not seem like this is necessary, but the way the hard lines are run for the power steering hoses and cooler, this is the way you'll wind up going unless you're extraorinarily flexible and lucky.

Definitely check the idler and linkage joints first, as discussed in this thread:
http://www.4x4wire.com/forums/showf...&Number=451483&Forum=c15

...but also look at adjusting the freeplay in the steering box itself. Here are some links detailing the process:
* http://www.4x4wire.com/forums/showf...&Number=760522&Forum=c15
* http://www.4x4wire.com/forums/showf...&Number=566652&Forum=c15 (Steve has some great pics here!)
* http://www.4x4wire.com/forums/showf...&Number=489775&Forum=c15

Randii

Listen to Randii. He has done more steering box swaps in the last week than most people do in a lifetime. However his percentage of SUCCESSFUL swaps in the last week is relatively low. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />

By the way, he has been doing the swaps on his tow rig, not his towed rig.

Finally got a good rebuild from Kragen, got it together, and drove the damn thing to work today. It handles like a sports car, now. Well, a 3.5-ton sports car. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/pfft.gif" alt="" />

Randii