2013 vs 2014+ dodge ram 1500 rack and pinion differences

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Tyson Leiterman

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Hey guys, First time poster. I have a 2013 ram 1500. My rack and pinion bushings are shot. Unfortunately they appear to be non servicable. Called the dealer, used dealers etc. They all say 2013 is a one off year and 14+ will not work. Looking at them they look identical, mounting locations are the same, electrical connectors are the same, everything appears to be the same. Has anyone ever put a 14+ rack in a 13? Anyone know the differences or if its possible even? Hard to find used 13's where as 14+ seems to be a lot of them for sale. Brand new is 2700 CAD. Which is insane, seeing all thats wrong is the bushings are shot. Thanks in advance.
 

NJMOPAR

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Probably the number of splines on the shaft, or the shaft length from the housing.
That's more than likely the difference.
 

kurek

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That's bad news but it doesn't surprise me. I have not had to work on the steering rack in my Ram thankfully but if they're on the data bus it may not be possible to initialize the "wrong" rack even if mechanically and electrically it drops right in.

Part of why right to repair is such an important topic.
 

Bzz Ram

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Good morning, I was wondering if you were able to find a solution to your problem. I also have a 13 with bad bushings and the rattling is driving me nuts.
 

Jeepwalker

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I assume it's electric steering, right? If it looks physically the same, my next guess would be the electronic module inside was possibly revised to a 'new and improved' module after 2013, possibly for safety or efficiency. But it's just speculation. Do the connectors appear to be the same (same number pins and same location)?

There are rebuilders out there. You might contact a few and see if they do Ram steering racks. If no, maybe you could talk to one of the managers and see if they'd like to start doing them ...and use yours as a first try. You'd probably get it done for free, but then it might take a month too...

Are there bushing kits available on ebay? Or a specialty house?
 

Bzz Ram

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Yes it’s a 13 with electric rack, I’ve looked for bushing kits and they only sell up to 2012. Thanks for the info I appreciate i.
 

brentwasham

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Jeepwalker

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If guess if it were my tk, considering the cost of a new rack, I would remove the rack, press out the bushing/s, then measure them up and look for universal replacement bushings (if '14's or other year Rams's didn't fit). Chances are high the engineers used an off-the-shelf size as it would be cheaper and faster than having a vendor create a brand new dimension bushing. It's possible it is a one-off, but generally car companies like to standardize on common items such as bushings so they can buy in bulk and save $.

There are scores of bushings out there like on Summitracing.com, and other places that provide dimensions. One ought to be able to match something up, I would think. If the only size (diam) was too long, you could cut it shorter, for example. In the odd chance you can't find the right diameter, you could create a sheet metal sleeve to build the gap, or pin a pretty-snug bushing in place. If you or a buddy have a mini-lathe, you could remove a little material off one that was a scootch to large. So you have options. I would be very surprised if you couldn't find a bushing that would work.

If needed, you might need to measure the bore and the bushing then reinstall the bushing and rack if you need to drive the tk while you are searching/waiting for the new bushing unit to arrive.

Did you look on Youtube to see if anyone has a proposed solution?
 
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brentwasham

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The BBB industries rebuilt rack and pinion unit ($600) I just ordered has new bushings installed and its supposed to fit 13-14 ext and crew cab models. Another part no fits regular cab models those years. That tells me that bushings are not unique to '13. Chrysler sells the same rebuilt unit part no. covering '13-'21 models so bushings should be commonly available. From poking around looks like turns lock-to-lock are primary differences between the two part numbers spec'ed. I'm thinking the software has been changed to allow a wide spectrum of applications with same rack and pinion hardware.
 

hunterdan

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The rack that I had installed on my 19 classic from rockauto was rebuilt. The guy that did the install checked everything with his scantool and the rack originated from a 2013. I crossed the numbers from my oem rack, to the rockauto cross reference numbers and everything pretty much came back as interchangeable. The differences I found I thought were related to Mexico vs us built trucks. That said, I'm not really sure if there's a difference between the 2 replacement parts offered by mopar other than price.
 

Dodge trucker

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You already had to put a rack into a '19??? Yikes.
I wish they would have stayed with a regular conventional gearbox instead of a rack design.
I bought a '12, and part of the reason was I was looking at newer ones, every 13 and newer one I saw, had an electric rack and knowing some of the problems I've seen on the Ford's at work (which I hate) made me not want one on any truck of mine.
Seen more than a few Ford racks die because they got a little water in them.
So if I can't have a conventional gearbox, I want at least to have a conventional power steering pump.
 

hunterdan

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You already had to put a rack into a '19??? Yikes.
I wish they would have stayed with a regular conventional gearbox instead of a rack design.
I bought a '12, and part of the reason was I was looking at newer ones, every 13 and newer one I saw, had an electric rack and knowing some of the problems I've seen on the Ford's at work (which I hate) made me not want one on any truck of mine.
Seen more than a few Ford racks die because they got a little water in them.
So if I can't have a conventional gearbox, I want at least to have a conventional power steering pump.
Hit a massive pothole that immediately disabled the system. Unfortunate, was about 6k miles past the warranty and had to pay out. That's why I ended up going rebuilt. Was cheaper and actually has a better warranty.
 

toyo_automotive

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Hey guys I have bad rack and pinion on my 2014 Ram 1500 Reg Cab 8ft Bed. The part number is 68536636ab but I am wondering if I can use one from newer model Ram. I have difficulties finding the one with the part # I have. The new ones are too expensive and they are on back order 4 months... Please help.
 

hunterdan

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Hey guys I have bad rack and pinion on my 2014 Ram 1500 Reg Cab 8ft Bed. The part number is 68536636ab but I am wondering if I can use one from newer model Ram. I have difficulties finding the one with the part # I have. The new ones are too expensive and they are on back order 4 months... Please help.
Check ebay. Check rockauto. Cross-reference the mopar part numbers from rebuilt rock auto units to see what they cross over to.
 

Cash22

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