[1972MaineK5]

Thanks again hemi43. I really do appreciate the input. So... well yeah... replacedthe diff. Fluid yesterday. What a mess in there. Milky white oIL and milky white sludge. Some of it like toothpaste some stuck and alost like bubble gum stuck to non meshing surfacea. It's definitely been running a while with water in there. So I did clean it out and put in fresh oil. My intent... because I'm sure I didon't get it all was to run this for a couple hundred miles or so and then switch it out again. I'm thinking water through the vent fitting. I blew air threw it when I had it apart and it's wide open. I've been driving around it wet puddles and snow for 3 or 4 months now so I'm sure that's how water was getting in. And... while I dont think that was the solution to my problem mysteriously I had no steering issues at all today.so I'll keep an eye on things and keep investigating as I have time. I considered pulling the locking hubs yesterday... covers at least but just didn't have time. 2 young kids.. work full time. Really do enjoy working on cars, mechanical engineering background. But it's always a question if I have time to do it myself. I've got a great guy who I trust completely and charges $49 hourly. Sometimes it's just easier to pay for a couple of hours work that would take an entire Saturday afternoon. Also in about 2 months the 66 Chevelle convertible will be on the road and I'll be able to leave the blazer to have my guy take it a step beyond what I'm willing and or capable of doing.

My previous car was a 99 range rover. So I spent 9 years with that beast diagnosing and problem solving and fixing. That thing always had something wrong with it. And if I didn't do it myself there was no way I was paying to have a dealer even look at it. I've been enjoying the blazer imensly. Generally speaking very easy to diagnose and remedy problems but also so relatively cheep in comparison. Blow motor $19. Coil and module $45 or so.

So I think I'll pull the locking hubs and take a peak. No grease in there from what I've seen. Light oil. And it doesn't look like there is any way to grease anything in the front end from my inspection. Ball joint, u joints, wheel bearings all closed with no fittings.