When there's too much play in the tie rod ends, it can adversely affect your Chevy Silverado's steering. Just doing an alignment won't help--you'll have to replace the tie rod ends. The good news is that after you replace the tie rod ends and get your truck aligned, it'll be as good as new.
Make sure you purchase Chevy Silverado tie rod ends that are specific for your truck, as these can vary not only from model year to model year, but from the Chevy Silverado 1500, 1500 HD, 2500, 2500 HD, and the 3500.
Loosen the lug nuts on the wheels, but don't remove them. Raise your truck up with a jack then support it on jack stands. Remove the tires.
Take out the knuckle end ball stud's nut, then separate the tie rod ball stud and the steering knuckle with a screw-type tie rod puller. Loosen and remove the nut that's located on the inner tie rod ball stud, then separate the tie rod ball stud and the relay rod using the screw-type puller. If you have a C3HD, do not remove the tie rod ball stud's nut.
Use a wire brush, then count the number of threads exposed on the threaded portion of the tie rod, and record it. Measure the length of the tie rod assembly and record this number.
Loosen the nuts on the clamps, and spread the clamp so you can unscrew the tie rod end from the inner tie rod. Record the number of turns it takes to do so.
Put a coat of chassis grease on the tie rod ends, and screw them on the same number of turns as it took to remove them (see Section 1, Step 4). Measure the length of the tie rod assembly, and adjust the tie rod end's position if necessary.
Connect the tie rod assembly with the relay rod and put a new nut on the ball stud, tightening it to 40 foot pounds.
Place the other end of the tie rod in the steering knuckle, and tighten the nut to 46 foot pounds. For the C3HD, tighten the nut to 65 foot pounds.
Make sure you position the clamp so it's between the nuts' dimples and on either side of the adjusting sleeve. Tighten the clamp nuts to 18 ft-lbs. For the C3HD, tighten the nuts to 65 ft-lbs.
Repeat Sections One and Two for the other tie rod end, the reinstall the tires. Tighten the lug nuts to 140 foot pounds. Get your Silverado aligned.
