Idler Arm

[lanesharon]

2000 Dodge B1500 Van, 51,000 miles. I take it to a local place for oil and grease, because they can put it on a lift and get all the grease fittings. Only problems is that they sometimes do it, sometimes don't (more times don't). Well, here in Arizona, that can be a bad situation. A week after I had this last greasing, I kept hearing a kind of rubber on rubber noise in the front end. I know that sounds weird, but it sounds like two rubber tires rubbing on each other.

So, I took it into Sears and they greased it for me. The mechanic pulled the idler arms off the center link, and greased where the bushings are. He said that this part is the only one without a grease fitting and he believes that this may be the thing that is making the noise. That's when I got handed an estimate of close to $400 for replacing both idler arms.

Then I checked at Autozone to see what the part costs ($44 each) and started trying to see if it is something I can do myself. Problem is, I cannot find a manual that explains how to do it. Removing from the center link is easy - remove the cotter pin and nut. It is the other side, where it is covered my a rectangular body part that seems to have been welded together specifically to protect it. I am not sure if I need a pickle fork. Or how to work it out. Any suggestions, or manual pages, you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Sharon

[Dodgevanman]

Should just be a through bolt holding the idler arm in place. Remove the nut & bolt and the idler arm should just slide out of position.

Your mechanic told you that the idler arm was the only part with a grease fitting? Unless they changed something along the line, the tie rods, drag link, ball joints, pitman arm, and idler arms should have grease fittings.

If you serious about doing your own maintenance, do a search on Ebay for a factory service manual. That's where I got mine. I won't use anything else.

[lanesharon]

Should just be a through bolt holding the idler arm in place. Remove the nut & bolt and the idler arm should just slide out of position.. Not that I can see. As I said there is a welded rectangle around it, as seen by the yellow arrow in the pic attached.

My bad on the grease fitting - mistyping. I meant the only part without a grease fitting. The bushing on the center link looks fine, but I can't see what is on the other end.

I am not necessarily serious about doing my own work. Just too poor to have someone take $400 away from me for possibly nothing. That's almost half of my monthly income!

[van-nut]

Sharon -

It should be exactly as Nate described it - a nut and a bolt which go thru the pivot area. Check it out (click on image to super size it) :

Pete

[lanesharon]

Thanks for the pics and instructions. That helps a lot. Let me ask a couple more questions:

1. Before I do this unnecessarily, does that rubber on rubber scraping noise sound like it could be the idler arm? The bushing looks fine. I only have 50,000 miles on the van. The mechanic said he thought it 'could' be the problem. I can't waste money on maybes.

2. I have no jack here (everything is in NY). If I am only taking out the idler arm (one at a time, do I need to jack the engine up. I can crawl underneath to do everything, so far. The center link is connected to other suspension parts. Will not taking the weight off the wheels make removing the idler arm impossible or problematic?

Thanks for your time and answers. This has helped a lot. :dtrocks:

[van-nut]

If it was me, I'd try to diagnose the noise a little more before spending money and time on it. Seems like every time I guess at something (ESPECIALLY something electrical!!), sure enough I'll be wrong. :mad:

Here's one thing I noticed - If I'm understanding correctly, you had the noise, then took it to Sears where the mechanic removed the idler arm(s) and greased the pivot(s), and now you still have the same noise? That would seem to indicate that the idler pivot is not the source of the noise. I could be wrong, but if its got freash grease in there, it should be quiet.

O.K. - Question : When does it make the noise? Will it do it when the van is stationary in Park? Like so maybe you could get a helper to turn the steering while you got under it and tryed to isolate it?

Oh, and lastly, I suppose you COULD remove the idler arms without jacking it up, but I would think it will be a hassle to reassemble it. Likely the front wheels are going to want to go off in their own direction, and trying to move then back with the weight of the van on them won't be easy. Maybe. You don't even have the factory jack in the back?

Let us know what you find.

Pete

[lanesharon]

If I'm understanding correctly, you had the noise, then took it to Sears where the mechanic removed the idler arm(s) and greased the pivot(s), and now you still have the same noise?The 'noise' was a rubber on rubber sound. It diminished immensely when the guy undid the bolt on the idler arm and dropped it down from the center link and put grease in between. In Arizona, this may only be a temporary fix (grease can melt here).

When does it make the noise? Will it do it when the van is stationary in Park? Like so maybe you could get a helper to turn the steering while you got under it and tryed to isolate it?The mechanic showed me while it was on the lift. He turned it, then took it apart, greased it, and then turned it again. Big difference. Why would putting grease on the outside help?

You don't even have the factory jack in the back?I don't want to be pulling on it with only the factory jack. What if I blocked the wheels, in some way?

Let me ask one more question, would it seem 'normal' for a van with only 50,000 miles on it to start having this type of suspension problem?

Thanks Pete, for all your answers.