Several favorable reports here on this mod but haven't seen anything lately.... so here is my $.02.

At 180,000 miles, my front end was feeling loose and sloppy (already have 3rd gen track bar and DSS). Wasn't sure what to do.
But had a positive report on Thuren from a trusted friend so I took a chance.
Had mixed feeling on Thuren's steering upgrade due to price, even after ordering it. But not anymore.
This steering conversion is worth every penny!

Cross Over Steering got rid of the +/- 1" play in steering wheel.
It got rid of the very slight left pull when on the interstate or above 60 mph.
My CTD now tracks straight down the road for hundreds of yards... better than when new!
On local rough roads and washboard roads, it has a tight, brand new truck feel.
No more bump pull in the steering wheel.
Minor front end noise/rattles that must have snuck up on me ....are gone.
Truck is fun to drive again! I recommend this addition to anyone not happy with their steering!

RJ

 

Looks good..so what was the cost? Did you do the work yourself and if so how was the install? thanks for the info...

Capn

 

agreed looks and sounds good.

would also like to know more details such as cost and installation difficulty level/hours.

if a component wears out - what do you replace it with?

 

i noticed there is no drag link adjustment to center the steering wheel . . . .

 

you have 17" wheels?
would it work with stock 16" wheels?

 

Dang it RJ! Why do you keep finding things I need to spend more money on?

I never used to notice the extra steering play, but now it stands out when I keep swapping back and forth between the truck and the wife's car. I guess I'll have to budget for cross-over steering now. Or maybe I should just finally get that 3rd gen track bar installed. LOL

 

Cost breakdown HERE. Believe I pd $549 to my door, with shipping & steering shock attachment!
DIY install is fairly straight forward but requires a HD Drill and a 3/4" bit to drill out pitman arm and both knuckle attachment points!
Took two of us total of 2.5-3 hrs, in his very well equiped shop. Easier when your coworker is a young flat-belly!
Only trick is resetting the toe in for alignment.
I had advice of someone that had done it before so I did not have to reinvent the process!
Simply put.... measure distance between front of tires and rear of tires. You want between 1/16 and 1/8" toe in.
We spun the tires when up on jacks and spray painted a narrow line down the middle... than measure to the center of the line.

With no more than 2" lift it's OK, according to Don Thuren. There is about 1" space above grade 8 bolts on my 17's.
I can measure exactly, if you are seriously interested? But worst case scenario, you could shorten the bolts a bit.

You center wheel (also adjust tow in) by turns on the heim joints. Both arms work like a turn buckle.
Hold wheel centered and adjust drag arm to proper length to reach bolt. Fine tune, if needed by 1/2 turns on one heim joint.


RJ

 

Still on the shop floor, huh? Been what, 2 yrs I've been hearing, "that bar is getting installed at our next DTR meet"?
Do that first! They make a big difference also.

RJ

 

I like Don's stuff but wonder if the monkeys at Firestone would balk at not having stock adjustments when re-doing my lifetime alignment? They already declined to mess with adjustable ball joints. (Adjustables are unnecessary unless camber is out. I wish I hadn't gotten them.) Is toe the only setting that can change with the install?

 

Row,

Do you think there would be much differnce over the "T" style setup my 98 has? Was yours the "T" or "Y" before you did the mod?

 

Yes...it's the only one that does.

EDIT at 10:50 - Not really clear on T vs the Y style? Here is pic of my 02 factory setup....from before.

RJ

 

My "T" setup looks a lot like your Thuren setup. It was Factory on some 98 and 99 models, AFAIK

 

Mcmopar - see edit above!

Also - probably should have given an A rating instead of A+. Reason..... the drag link and tie rod comes unpainted!
For that price I would think they would have some coating?
I used 2 coats each...Rust-o-leum grey Primer and Rust-o-leum Black Satin finish. Came out very nice.
No biggy but just surprised. Guess some prefer to match body color?

RJ

 

I have the T-steering conv done on my truck its sorta the same. but the thuren both top and bottom links come together on the knuckle the T-steering comes close to in but not on knuckle. I still have the draglink adj. I'm happy with my T-steering. I looked at thuren and cannot say anything bad hope it works out for you. if I was to do it I guess my concern would be drilling the knuckles. I guess if you have a shop and could do it with percision your golden. but by hand i dont know. the smallest bit of well you get my point. on the knuckles where the bolts go through is it just a bolt or is there a sleeve that goes in the knuckle first. sorta like a wearing sleave. looks good hope your happy

 

No problem drilling by hand due to heim joint ends! No wear sleeve needed in cast iron. Here again... Heims handle the rotation and kind of a compression fitting on the 3/4" bolts. The heim joints seem custom and very high quality (for those concerned about heims on the ends)!
Worst case...heims get loose and need replacing. But this is not a new product.
Several must be well over 100,000 miles, with no mention of problems!

RJ