I was recently out of town, had a flat and ended up buying a new set of tires (I did need them). The shop told me that they could not complete the alignment because my strut bar bushings were shot. I know that I have lots of miles on the truck, and don't doubt they may be gone, but I didn't even know I had a strut bar.

What's involved in changing the bushings?

Thanks

If you have a 2WD version, they are called 'tension' rods and they run from the front of the truck frame back down to the lower control arm.

If you have a 4x4 the they are called Strut Rods or Compression Rods and they run from the lower control arm backwards and up towards the frame area just under the cab.

There are rubber bushings on either side of the frame bracket that support the bar. The function of the bar to reduce misalignment of the control arm from it's normal position. It the lower control arm is allowed to move backwards it affects Caster mostly and can cause your truck to wander or drift to one side of the road.

The bushings are available in the aftermarket from MOOG, TRW and of course the dealer. Energy Suspension makes a nice set or Eurethane Bushings for this application and it really improves the handling of the Hardbody. I did it my 4x4's for my 1986 and 1995 models. Huge improvement!

One thing...they are easy to replace. But there might be some bracket wear that could need repairing. IE Welding a plate to fix worn surfaces.