gsi23

ya i have a 90 4x4 pickup with 67,000 miles on it. i just bought it for a fishing truck up here in alaska. i took it to the shop and they told me that my steering gear box, pitman arm and idler arm, and upper and lower balljoints are all bad. They last owner must have 4wheeled the ลลลล out of it. im just wondering how to make sure that all these parts are really bad. espically the steering gear box cause that part is really expensive.

eric-the-red

The pitman arm and idler arm you can check by grabbing the centre link and pulling on it, you'll see play at the joints if they're worn. On a 90 the idler arm is probably gone if it's original. They can be rebuilt,
http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/maintenance/idler/

As for the steering box I would think it would be hard to tell if there is play in it if the idler and pitman arms are worn. The steering boxes have an adjustment screw on top to tighten up the end play which I would try first before replacing it.

To check the ball joints this is the procedure from the FSM:
BALL JOINT CHECKING
1) Inspect ball joints for wear. Raise and support front of
vehicle. Allow suspension to hang freely. Set front wheels to
straight-ahead position. Press brake pedal.
2) Pry lower control arm up and down. Measure lower ball
joint vertical play. Replace ball joint if vertical play exceeds 0.
091" (2.30 mm).
3) To inspect upper ball joint for wear, pry upper control
arm up and down. Replace upper ball joint if any vertical play exists.

I would rebuild or replace the idler arm, and replace any worn ball joints and see how the steering is after that.