97 B2500 Van front end self alignment

From : lurker

Q: bobcowan@access4less.nospam.net writes interesting to note that this will affect production of 3% of the fuel used daily. but i bet all fuel goes up by more than 5%. bend over here it comes again. the 3% number is correct. however fortune magazine thinks that bp/amoco will take a hit well into the $billions$ in liability claims which it will of course pass on to consumers. now that the dust has settled were seeing more of the effects of the explosion. a few nearby homes and businesses were blown up to a foot off their foundation from the force of the blast. glass damage claims are coming in from as far as 5 blocks away. on the up side the plant is located in an impoverished area where most of the homes are little more than shotgun-modest shacks. on the down side the death toll now stands at 15. there were 109 people admitted to area hospitals tonight 23 are still hospitalized and 1 of those is in icu with 2nd & 3rd-degree burns over 90% of his body. here in houston the price bump 6 a gallon hit immediately and of course is unjustified because whatever the effect on the wholesale price of gasoline wont actually be felt directly by the retailers for at least a month at which time theyll of course bump the pump price another 6 to compensate. unfortunately for bp/amoco their track record at this refinery shows a number of blemishes and safety violations. osha has hit them for $109000 in fines just in the past year. at this same time last year mar 04 two bp/amoco workers were scalded to death in another plant accident. of course the fbi descended on the scene like flies on a manure pile looking for any possible link to terrorism but found nothing. i really dont know how they could make that assessment so soon. maybe they thought someone flew a private jet into the facility or some crazy thing like that. .

Replies:

From : steve lusardi

i have a 1996 dodge 2500 conversion van. yesterday i started the van and drove it around the house to hook up a trailer. i left it running. when i got back in the van the brake light was on. i set and released the parking brake but the light stayed on. i thought it might go out by time i drove around the house. by time i got to the street the abs light came on. the brakes felt fine however i shut off the engine and checked the brake fluid. all was well. when i restarted the van the lights were out and remained out for the remainder of the trip. i know there might not be a lot to go on here but i am just curious as to what could be the issue if there really is an issue. thank you fred .

From : dfw dot

my guess from what you said would probably be a bad or broke front shock. try pushing up and down on the front of the truck and see if you hear anything. i need some help diagnosing a problem with my wifes 98 durango 4x4 with 360 and the selectable part time and full time transfer case. anyway when turning left or right or stopping or accelerating from a dead stop a popping noise is coming from what feels like the steering column. like up under the dash or on the inside of the firewall. also i found a clean gray or silver bolt that was broken in half under where the wife usually parks her durango. the bolt was around 1.5 inches and had a locking nut on it. i dont know for sure if this came off the durango but the popping noise appeared about the time i found that bolt. i have looked under the hood for a missing bolt and havent found one yet. i havent removed the plastic under carriage covers yet to see if that might reveal a hole somewhere in need of a bolt with locking nut. the steering wheel and column do not feel loose. the popping noise also seems more pronounced after the vehicle is heated up or it is above 60 degrees outside. the steering pump does have a little whining noise and i have had the wife turn the steering wheel left and right repeatedly while i watched the power steering and linkage move. no audible popping while that was going on either. im just before taking it to the dealer and letting them try to find the source of the popping. any help here would be much appreciated. ben .

From : lurker

im from michigan i have a 99 dakota. im serching for a right side foglight mounting bracket. the foglight works fine but the plastic bracket is broken in 3 places. cant repair it. anyone knows where i can get the bracket let me know as all i can find is a complete foglight for 75 bucks. dont need the light. thanks .

From : ld

overfilling the tank does it also..done it myself a few times..it just clears itself in a few days scott thank you both for the tips and advice. i agree with miles. change the gas cap. and to clear the check engine light unhook the battery for for bout a minute. if it comes back after that then there is definitely a leak in your lines somewhere. maybe replace the lines just so you know that there isnt any leaks. good luck with that. .

From : lurker

hello all i have a 96 b250 conversion van. it originally had ride control air shocks but the pump and shocks are bad. it was recommended to me to forget that setup and use spring over heavy duty shocks. i tow a camper with this van. well today was the first time i really looked at it. the shocks that are on it are more horizontal than vertical. i am sure there is some amount of support they provide but it can not be much. what are the advantages or what should i know before i go to spring over shocks thanks fred .

From : ld

tom thanks for the very detailed and clear explanation on cad. please bring me up to date here tom. what is a cad central axle disconnect. the passenger-side axle is actually in two pieces and inner and outer section. the cad is a device that slides a locking collar to couple the two shafts together or disconnect them. when disconnected the passenger front wheel/hub just spins the outer shaft. the drivers side wheel/hub spins the left axle shaft which in turn spins the side and spider gears of the front differential but the front driveshaft isnt spinning. the operation of the cad in stock configuration is controlled via engine vacuum switched through a vacuum switch in the transfer case. when shifted into 4wd either high or low vacuum is applied to the cad motor which makes the collar move and the front axle engages. the 2wd low conversions separate the transfer case and front axle operations so that you can engage the transfer case into low range but leave the front axle disconnected leaving your vehicle in 2wd. in this operation the front driveshaft is turning along with the rear driveshaft but since the passenger-side axle isnt connected you can make sharp turns without binding up the driveline. this isnt an option on the 3rd gen trucks becuase their front axles are solid one-piece units and therefore always engaged. .