Ball joints are one of our biggest steering woes on the JK. Keep an eye on those. Good mid range set will run $225-250. There is a chance you might be looking at a new steering box if that is the cause of the play. If that appears to be the case, at least consider a rebuilt box from West Texas Offroad. Those guys are great and I'd rather have a box from them than a new one from the parts store. If you take pics of the TB and control arms we can tell you if they're factory or not. The control arms are most likely factory (square'ish tube). The TB may or may not be with a modest boost or lift. If you see any jam nut or it looks adjustable, it's not factory. For a steering stabilizer, cheapest thing out there is fine. Do not buy gas charged units as they typically cause a wander to one side.

 

Thanks for the info. I do believe the front lower control arms are squarish so I’m going to guess they are stock I will look at the track bar as well tomorrow. I will also look at the steering box and see if the play appears to be on the input side of the box or after the steering box.Is a JK steering box similar to a GM Saginaw box?

 

I know it wasn't mentioned earlier but you need to watch yourself on the early JK's as they were known for consuming oil. There are some that don't have the issue but it seemed that the issue really flared in the 07-09.

 

Well, on that note. The engine was replaced about a year after they purchased it. It threw a rod. The dad thought she had put the jeep in 2 not drive and was driving at interstate speeds with the top down and radio in and did not notice. I guess they don't really know exactly what happened with a teen aged driver.

 

If it's got a newer motor and you can get a warranty transferred on it then it may be a viable option, but otherwise be aware that the early ones could easily consume 1qt of oil in 1k miles and Chrysler says that's normal. Some consume more, some consume none. Just something yoto be aware of.

 

I'm not familiar with the GM box myself. I will tell you that the early boxes in the JK were Delphi boxes that could be rebuilt, and if you buy one from WTO, what you'll get will almost certainly be a Delphi box. It seems it didn't take long before the JKs starting coming with Chinese boxes that couldn't be rebuilt and were just bricks to throw in the trash when they crapped out. If you buy one these days, that is what you'll get. You can't miss the big DELPHI stamped on the sides of those boxes. If there is that much slop in the steering, I'm guessing it's probably the box. Bad ends in any of the other components are going to display various other symptoms of being bad as well that I'd think you'd notice quickly on a test drive, but if you buy an older jeep, freshening up anything in the steering system wouldn't be a bad idea.