'96 XJ - Steering Gear Mounting Bolts

G'day folks,

My 1996 XJ Cherokee has had quite a bit of play in the steering for some time now and due to university commitments and exam prep I've put off doing anything about it.

Well this morning as i pulled into my driveway I got the reward of a loud clunk as (I think) I sheared a steering gear mounting bolt. Now i havent had the time to have a proper look at it but there is definitely movement in the steering gear and some clunking around as it does so.

Basically I've had a quick browse through my Haynes manual and looked at removal and installation of the steering gear but what I'm thinking is if its possible to replace the bolt that is sheared (assuming thats actually what's happened) without removing the assembly?

Hopefully its not too big of a job even if I do have to remove the assembly, just means getting my (as yet un-greasy) hands onto some tools.

So any advice, comments will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers Alex.

well lets see I don't know if its possible to shear off one of the mounting bolts. but hey its never happend to me. What im thinking it might be is the gears inside the box.

I've read accounts of the mounting ears on the box breaking- certainly want to figure out exactly what failed soon. I doubt a single bolt would fail, as the box would have to move in order to do that, but I wouldn't rule much out just yet.

I would guess that if one bolt failed, all the bolts were probably loose, or damaged, and I would suggest taking it all the way off for a good hard look. It's not that hard to get out, and anyway, how else are you going to get at the remains of the sheared bolt?

Of course, there would be that flimsy aluminium spacer in there that tends to crumble, or frame damage.

Check this: http://www.c-rok.com/sb.html

G'day folks well yesterday i had the time (And light) for a proper look at it. Basically what's happened is one of the (i can only see two!?) mounting bolts was very loose and the other sheared off under the force of turning (the bang i heard). With a multi-grip and a lot of 10 degree turns i've removed the remains of the busted bolt and found the other side in the mud skirt under the horn.

I'm gonna take that bolt to a store tomorrow and get a replacement. Now what I've gotta work out i guess is whether the problem was simply the bolt coming loose in the past 13 years or if it is this a problem with the chassis rail that seems common in RH drive models. Basically from what i've heard there was a factory recall on where the steering box mounts to the chassis as it would crack under the strain, allowing the bolts to come loose and then shear.

I found one post on it: Chassis Crack Post by searching an aussie forum so now I'll have to take another look to see if mine has this fault. I'm just writing here as a follow up to those who helped out and also to share this info with any other RH drivers out there with the XJ.

I really appreciate all of your input and advice, congrats on taking the time to help a fellow driver out!

Cheers,
Alex.

EDIT: Just noticed Joe's post about frame damage, followed the link and that sounds exactly like what I was talking about. Supposingly theres an outstanding factory recall here in Aus, but i guess i won't know for sure 'till i chase it up.