2007 RT 210 Chevy squirley and rough

[It's a beast]

Originally Posted by peteco

I have had a 2006 210P for 10 years now. I handled fine when I got it at 5 years old. I put stiffer springs in front and airbags in the back to raise it 2-inches. It still handled fine. A year or 2 later I found that the idler arm was worn out, so I replaced it, the pitman arm and the tie rod ends. The ball joints were fine (still are at 130k miles. THe van handles fine at all speeds. I drive it at 75 mph at times on the interstate. If very windy, I drop down in speed. A swaybar would be nice but the airbags improved things enough that I am fine with it now.

I must say it does ride "rough" as the springs are stiff, I put in Bilstein shocks, and the Bridgestone V-Steel tires have a stiff sidewall, somewhat due to their "S" speed rating (which GM recommends BTW).

THe steering is good and not squirrely. So perhaps something is worn out on yours. You might want to check another suspension shop.

One suggestion, be sure to lube the front steering and suspension joints every oil change. I now have 130k miles and all the joints are still good (replaced at 50k).

I took my rig to a alignment / suspension shop. He took it for a good drive and put it on his rack for a thorough inspection. He recommends replacing ball joints, inner and outer end tie rods, idler arm, pittman arm and rebuilding the steering box! He also said he has another customer with a similar rig who added a steering damper. So, I'll start with the new parts and see how it does. I could tell from the moment I drove it something wasn't right!

[peteco]

Originally Posted by It's a beast

I took my rig to a alignment / suspension shop. He took it for a good drive and put it on his rack for a thorough inspection. He recommends replacing ball joints, inner and outer end tie rods, idler arm, pittman arm and rebuilding the steering box! He also said he has another customer with a similar rig who added a steering damper. So, I'll start with the new parts and see how it does. I could tell from the moment I drove it something wasn't right!

It will be interesting to see the difference with the new parts. How many miles on your 2007 Roadtrek?

[leva56]

Just got back from a short trip (300mi.). My installing a steering stabilizer did not seam to help me any.

[It's a beast]

Originally Posted by peteco

It will be interesting to see the difference with the new parts. How many miles on your 2007 Roadtrek?

It has 126,000. I need to be comfortable driving it to be safe. If replacing all these parts doesn't help, then all I can say is I tried... And I'll sell it. Othwise, it's a great rig!

[peteco]

Originally Posted by It's a beast

It has 126,000. I need to be comfortable driving it to be safe. If replacing all these parts don't help, then all I can say is I tried... And I'll sell it. Othwise, it's a great rig!

Let us know how it drives after these parts are replaced.

One item that may help also is the alignment specs. Booster has studied this and may have a recommendation for you to pass on to the alignment shop.

Also, if the van "wallows" too much for you then adding a rear sway bar would help alot. Again, Booster is the expert on this. Let's see how it does after you replace the planned parts.

DOn't give up. These vans are great and it should be fixable to make it drive good and safe. But don't expect it to drive like a car.

[It's a beast]

Originally Posted by peteco

Let us know how it drives after these parts are replaced.

One item that may help also is the alignment specs. Booster has studied this and may have a recommendation for you to pass on to the alignment shop.

Also, if the van "wallows" too much for you then adding a rear sway bar would help alot. Again, Booster is the expert on this. Let's see how it does after you replace the planned parts.

DOn't give up. These vans are great and it should be fixable to make it drive good and safe. But don't expect it to drive like a car.

I am hoping the steering is tighter... The looseness is what really makes it hard to handle at highway speeds. I will take a look at Boosters posts regarding alignment. I hope I can get confortable because othwise, I really love it and the engine is really strong! Thank you!

[leva56]

How do we find Boosters posts?

[booster]

Here is a link from search that list all my posts, but there are an awful lot of the them to go through.


https://www.classbforum.com/forums/s...archid=2190704


You are probably better to use the advanced search for specific terms concern Chevy lifts, handling, alignment, sway bars, and such. That will also lead you to discussions by others and many different ideas and solutions. What is right for one driver is not necessarily right for someone else, as we all seem to have handling traits we like and don't like.


The even better way to search is to use the Google custom search. Google does a much better job of finding what you want, and it will search only the forum here.


https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=015066...95:k1dvq8an7ly

[rowiebowie]

Driving my 2011 Express 3500 has always felt heavy, but not particularly top-heavy (even after my recent 3" lift) and has always felt more stable on the highway and high winds than it has a right to be. Relaxing, smooth, and comfortable to drive for something so tall and weighty. I did replace the worn out OEM shocks with Koni FSD's at the time of purchase (25K miles).

Before my recent lift, I got estimates for replacing all front end parts (not because I sensed a problem, just because at 10 yrs. old & 50K miles I expected some wear). Wow, was the estimate high! Over $2500, so I decided to do the lift and get an alignment with the original parts in place so I could see just how much the lift affected things. The answer was, nothing was noticeably affected. Still rode, steered, and handled as well as it did before the lift. The shop doing the alignment did not recommend any replacement parts.

The only part that needed replacement (and I did this myself) was the front sway bar bushings which were crumbling apart. I only noticed them being in bad shape after the lift when I could finally crawl underneath without running it up on blocks. As poor a condition as they were in, I still did not notice any noise or looseness.

I mention the above only to provide the OP with a comparison that shows I've done relatively little to my suspension (minus the lift which affected the handling to no noticeable extent) and yet have had a different experience with ride and handling. Luck on my part? Maybe. But the Express chassis seems to be robust and durable which makes me think he'll find the answer in some specific part and not in a total suspension replacement.

[peteco]

Originally Posted by rowiebowie

Driving my 2011 Express 3500 has always felt heavy, but not particularly top-heavy (even after my recent 3" lift) and has always felt more stable on the highway and high winds than it has a right to be. Relaxing, smooth, and comfortable to drive for something so tall and weighty. I did replace the worn out OEM shocks with Koni FSD's at the time of purchase (25K miles).

Before my recent lift, I got estimates for replacing all front end parts (not because I sensed a problem, just because at 10 yrs. old & 50K miles I expected some wear). Wow, was the estimate high! Over $2500, so I decided to do the lift and get an alignment with the original parts in place so I could see just how much the lift affected things. The answer was, nothing was noticeably affected. Still rode, steered, and handled as well as it did before the lift. The shop doing the alignment did not recommend any replacement parts.

The only part that needed replacement (and I did this myself) was the front sway bar bushings which were crumbling apart. I only noticed them being in bad shape after the lift when I could finally crawl underneath without running it up on blocks. As poor a condition as they were in, I still did not notice any noise or looseness.

I mention the above only to provide the OP with a comparison that shows I've done relatively little to my suspension (minus the lift which affected the handling to no noticeable extent) and yet have had a different experience with ride and handling. Luck on my part? Maybe. But the Express chassis seems to be robust and durable which makes me think he'll find the answer in some specific part and not in a total suspension replacement.

How often do you lube the front end? Regular lube (every oil change) is a key to longevity in my experience.

[It's a beast]

Originally Posted by rowiebowie

Driving my 2011 Express 3500 has always felt heavy, but not particularly top-heavy (even after my recent 3" lift) and has always felt more stable on the highway and high winds than it has a right to be. Relaxing, smooth, and comfortable to drive for something so tall and weighty. I did replace the worn out OEM shocks with Koni FSD's at the time of purchase (25K miles).

Before my recent lift, I got estimates for replacing all front end parts (not because I sensed a problem, just because at 10 yrs. old & 50K miles I expected some wear). Wow, was the estimate high! Over $2500, so I decided to do the lift and get an alignment with the original parts in place so I could see just how much the lift affected things. The answer was, nothing was noticeably affected. Still rode, steered, and handled as well as it did before the lift. The shop doing the alignment did not recommend any replacement parts.

The only part that needed replacement (and I did this myself) was the front sway bar bushings which were crumbling apart. I only noticed them being in bad shape after the lift when I could finally crawl underneath without running it up on blocks. As poor a condition as they were in, I still did not notice any noise or looseness.

I mention the above only to provide the OP with a comparison that shows I've done relatively little to my suspension (minus the lift which affected the handling to no noticeable extent) and yet have had a different experience with ride and handling. Luck on my part? Maybe. But the Express chassis seems to be robust and durable which makes me think he'll find the answer in some specific part and not in a total suspension replacement.

I have a 2007 with 125,000 miles. In my original post, I said "squirley" but really I should have said "super loose steering wheel"...way too much play in it, which caused my difficulty in handling. A regular mechanic shop said "it all looks good.. You just have to get used it it". But when my friend drive it, he said "this isn't right! ". I got another referral to an alignment / suspension shop who was able to lift it. Interesting to note the power steering fluid was low, and the steering box was leaking, which the regular mechanic missed! Anyway, I'm having several parts replaced on the front end and the steering box rebuilt. So it should be near "perfect" when I get it back. Of course, I'll drive it before paying! I'm a woman, BTW, and wish I had payed more attention when I took auto shop in high school!

[rowiebowie]

Originally Posted by peteco

How often do you lube the front end? Regular lube (every oil change) is a key to longevity in my experience.

Ah, I see you're paying close attention and very good question.

In my case, all front suspension parts were lubed at the time of the post-lift alignment. This was the first time in 3-1/2 yrs. and 26K miles of ownership that I'd had that done. And likely, it was the first time the van was ever lubed.

I blame my laxness on the fact that many of my recent cars had few to no grease fittings and I wrongly assumed that was the case on the Express. Plus, as mentioned previously, pre-lift was wasn't able to slide under to see very much of what was going on and I can only offer that I was too lazy to run it up on blocks.

I was pleasantly surprised at how many zerk fittings were available for nearly every steering and suspension part. Kudos to Chevy.

Anyone know if the driveshaft has any grease points?

[peteco]

Originally Posted by rowiebowie

Ah, I see you're paying close attention and very good question.

In my case, all front suspension parts were lubed at the time of the post-lift alignment. This was the first time in 3-1/2 yrs. and 26K miles of ownership that I'd had that done. And likely, it was the first time the van was ever lubed.

I blame my laxness on the fact that many of my recent cars had few to no grease fittings and I wrongly assumed that was the case on the Express. Plus, as mentioned previously, pre-lift was wasn't able to slide under to see very much of what was going on and I can only offer that I was too lazy to run it up on blocks.

I was pleasantly surprised at how many zerk fittings were available for nearly every steering and suspension part. Kudos to Chevy.

Anyone know if the driveshaft has any grease points?

I don't think the driveshaft has a grease fitting. I have thought about lubing it too.

[rowiebowie]

Originally Posted by It's a beast

I have a 2007 with 125,000 miles. In my original post, I said "squirley" but really I should have said "super loose steering wheel"...way too much play in it, which caused my difficulty in handling. A regular mechanic shop said "it all looks good.. You just have to get used it it". But when my friend drive it, he said "this isn't right! ". I got another referral to an alignment / suspension shop who was able to lift it. Interesting to note the power steering fluid was low, and the steering box was leaking, which the regular mechanic missed! Anyway, I'm having several parts replaced on the front end and the steering box rebuilt. So it should be near "perfect" when I get it back. Of course, I'll drive it before paying! I'm a woman, BTW, and wish I had payed more attention when I took auto shop in high school!

First of all, welcome to the forum!

I don't know if the chassis changed between your model year and mine, or if your higher mileage plays a significant role. But the steering box may be your best place to start. On my '2011, the steering box is very robust and has two pitman arms (not one like every other vehicle I've owned). Again, very robust, but things can always wear out.

While you're at it, don't forget to try the suggestions of others that include:
- making sure the correct shocks for your vehicle were installed by previous owner;
- try 60psi front/ 80psi rear tire pressure; EDIT: and make sure the tires are "E" load rated for the weight of your van.
- check sway bar bushings;
- consider new front suspension bump stops (my orignials were very cracked & deteriorated from impact) and rear bump stops. I used SumoSpring black in front and yellow in rear. My original rear never impacted and seemed to only be there to prevent possible metal-to-metal contact. The new SumoSprings will provide constant contact and some additional stability.

Please let us know what works and what doesn't. Your feedback will help this forum's knowledge base.

[leva56]

I have a 2002 Ford 350 Pleasureway, It came with plugs in the upper and lower ball joints, I replaced them with zerks.

[rowiebowie]

Originally Posted by leva56

I have a 2002 Ford 350 Pleasureway, It came with plugs in the upper and lower ball joints, I replaced them with zerks.

The manufacturer's foolishly leave them off to save $.25 and tout zero maintenance.

[peteco]

Originally Posted by rowiebowie

The manufacturer's foolish leave them off to save $.25 and tout zero maintenance.

And to take your money when they need to be replaced.

[booster]

Be sure to catch all 11 lube points, as it is very common to miss the upper idler arm fitting.

[rowiebowie]

Originally Posted by booster

Be sure to catch all 11 lube points, as it is very common to miss the upper idler arm fitting.

Yea, they missed that one (even though I enumerated all points in a post-it attached to the work order). Will have them catch it on my next oil change service.

I debated buying a new grease gun & cartridge and do it myself, but I thought my shop would get them all. Guess doing a complete job is a lost art.

[peteco]

Originally Posted by rowiebowie

Yea, they missed that one (even though I enumerated all points in a post-it attached to the work order). Will have them catch it on my next oil change service.

I debated buying a new grease gun & cartridge and do it myself, but I thought my shop would get them all. Guess doing a complete job is a lost art.

If you think you can do it I would highly recommend getting your own grease gun. The one time I had a shop do mine I found half the joints had a big glob of grease around the outside of the fitting. There is a little bit of art to it. Should be some good instruction on the internet. So no grease got in the joint and if it had it would have been too much. I have a small handheld gun with about a 14-inch hose and a 90-degree tip. Get as good a quality gun as you can as cheap ones have trouble priming sometimes.