Lack of lube in Silverado fittings

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Feb 5, 2004
Messages
48
Location
Minnesota
Thanks for the heads up. I'll have to check mine out this weekend. I'm probably overdue for a grease up anyway.
 
This is something that has been bothering me for a while- my cousin has a nearly new Silverado, and visiting him I offered to help lube it, put it up on the rack and hey, great, it has lots of grease fittings. So we lube the fittings visible, old grease squeezes quickly from eg. ball joints, the doughnut shaped ones I leave alone when they plump. And then I see hey, under that plastic cover there seems to be more nipples. So take the cover off and start greasing those. Hey whats wrong with this gun, nothing is happening? Surprise surprise, after a lot of squeezes on the gun the SAME COLOR CLEAN grease comes out as I was putting in (a yellowish grease)! This was on the Pittman arm assy. The doughnut shaped ones elwhere were dry and flabby also. I can't imagine these were not meant to be lubed. Anyone have any idea what was going on there?
confused.gif
I would definitely give a heads up to anyone that has a Silverado to check on this before everything in there grinds to powder.
 
Be carefull not to over fill the upper ball joints...they will pop open. I learned the hard way on my 2003 Silverado. I fill them all the way and then bleed them off a bit by squeezing them with my hand before I put the weight of the truck on them and no more poped boots. This only happens with the uppers and I'm not sure why.
 
The ball joint seals seem to "pop" and start squirting easily with just a shot or two, you would think they would design these a bit stiffer if they were not meant to pop. People lubing these industrially are not going to bother treating them with kid gloves. And the manual is not much help.
 
Alot of vehicles don't come with very much grease in them from the factory, especially those "lubed-for-life" ones. It may have to do with people who like to overfill them.

Most fittings are meant to be filled until plump, no more. A lot of people like to fill them until the burst, which is not a good idea. This allows contaminants in and allows the grease to leak out, meaning you have to lube them alot more.

Most likely these fittings were just missed because they are hard to find. Alot of fittings go ungrease, especially at mechanics and fast lube shops. So many cars come without any fittings it's become kind of a "lost art" to grease fittings. Everyone should take another look at their vehicles and look for grease fittings, you'd be suprised at what you'll find sometimes.

-T
 
My '02 Silverado had grease in every joint when I did the 3000 mile oil change + grease, but I don't know if it was factory or dealer installed.

I counted a total of 11 zerk fittings...3 of which require dropping the plastic skid plate to access.

Little red plastic zerk caps from Vette Brakes make a nice addition, especially up North. Keeps all the crud and salt out.
 
I have a 1999 Silverado Ext. 2WD. I can only find 3 zerks on each side of the front end (ball joint, pitman arm, one more - forget the name) and then the u-joints on the drive shaft. I have looked everywhere for others. Are there any? Also, how often are these to be greased and how much? I know the rubber on the front end joints should be firm to the touch, but what about the u-joints?
 
I also learned the hard way to use only approved grease and you only need add enough to cover the BALL. One pump with a hand pump is more than enought. Pump till it puffs and it's wasted and stressing the protective boot. ed
 
I found the grease very low on the pitman and the idler arms. Especially the idler arm. It looks like the factory tried but did not get the fitting on right and squirted grease all on the outside and nothing on the inside.

To make it a lot easier to lube the idler arm first buy a 90 degree grease gun fitting and a 18 inch grease gun hose. When ready to grease turn the front wheels to the right only a 1/4 of a turn on the steering wheel. This moves the idler arm away from the AC lines.

I find greasing around every 6000 miles is good.

There are 11 fittings on the Silverado.
1 - Drivers side, Upper ball joint
2 - Drivers side, Outer tie-rod end
3 - Drivers side, Lower ball joint
4 - Drivers side, Inner tie-rod end
5 - Drivers side, Pitman arm
6 - Passengers side, Idler arm
7 - Passengers side, Upper end of idler arm mount
6 - Passengers side, Idler arm
8 - Passengers side, Inner tie-rod end
 
Hey johnny04, thanks. Just wondering, are those 11 zerks only on the 4WD? My truck is only a 2WD. Found the GM Truck site that shows all 11 zerks on the 4WD, but I still couldn't find them on my 2WD. Only found the 6 (3 on each side) of the front end. They are the upper and lower ball joints and the outer tie-rod end. Another member said something about a plastic splash guard covering some of them. Think this applies to my truck? Believe it or not, my local service centre had it up and could only find the 6 (plus the u-joints), but they were in a rush. I really think there are more on the front end. Also, how come there aren't any on the back end of a 2WD?
 
All chevy 4x4 front ends have 11 fittings.

And always pump a pump or two into the plump ones as well.
 
Ops! made a mistake listing the grease points. This is the 11 points.
1 - Drivers side, Upper ball joint
2 - Drivers side, Outer tie-rod end
3 - Drivers side, Lower ball joint
4 - Drivers side, Inner tie-rod end
5 - Drivers side, Pitman arm (at relay rod)
6 - Passengers side, Idler arm (bottom)
7 - Passengers side, Idler arm (top)
8 - Passengers side, Inner tie-rod end
9 - Passengers side, Lower ball joint
10 - Passengers side, Outer tie-rod end
11 - Passengers side, Upper ball joint

The bottom ball joint zerk is hard to see. It's on the side, facing backwards.

This is for a 4WD I am not sure if 2WD is different.
It is easy to miss the Pitman arm and the two on the idler arm assemblies. Their tucked up high and hard to see.
 
Thanks rgl, I have done the 6 zerks plus the u-joints without putting the truck up. Soon as it gets warmer, I'll look for that plastic splash guard and see if the other 4 or 5 are behind there. Might be a stupid question, but is this splash guard in the central portion of the front end covering the axle? I've never noticed (or looked for )it, since that mechanic told me there were only 6 zerks on the front. Only 1-2 minutes to remove?
 
quote:

Another member said something about a plastic splash guard covering some of them. Think this applies to my truck? Believe it or not, my local service centre had it up and could only find the 6

You can remove the plastic guard in about 1 minute and check. It only has a few bolts holding it on. You don't have to have the truck up on a lift. all you need is a flashlight. As a matter of fact, you can service all of the fittings without putting the truck on a lift as long as you don't mind being on your back and contorting a bit. However, I would wait until the temperature is in the 40s at least if you are doing this in winter. I have changed tranny fluid in an unheated garage in 20F and it is not much fun.
 
11 Grease Fittings Wow.

In the 70's, I had a 1950 Ford truck. It had a grease fitting on just about everything that moved.

I told my friend (we were Engineering students at the time) that Engineers must build these trucks..stylists hadn't gotten to them yet.

Sounds like at GM, they're still doing it.
 
Some '99-present 2WD Silverados (New body style) have rack and pinion steering, these vehicles have either 6 or 7 grease fittings. Lower/Upper ball joints, outer tie-rod ends and depending on options, there may be a zerk fitting on the driveshaft. Some of the newer Silverados have the traditional steering linkage setup with pitman/idler arms have 11/12 fittings. It all depends on the options. Factory 20" wheel equipped units have the pitman/idler setup.

All 4WD have 11 or 12 fittings, depending if there is one on the driveshaft.
 
quote:

Might be a stupid question, but is this splash guard in the central portion of the front end covering the axle?

Sorry I did not notice the post, it is right up front under the bumper and below the radiator. I forget the shape and how far back it goes. It's not my car so I don't remember too well, but it had about 5 or 6 bolts holding it on. It's big, and right up in front, so if you can't see right under the front, maybe it came without. I don't know too much about Silverados in general to know which ones came with it or not, or if only some years have it.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top