quick steering question

I recently lifted my 90 jeep cherokee 3 inches. I replaced the steering stabalizer as well as the lower control arms when i did this install. I also left the rear sway bar on as well as the front. When i drive down the road at about 30-40 mph the jeep seems to wander where it wants to , then steer fine again. What should i look at to fix this problem? Do i need a trac bar ? any other opinions or ideas ? its my DD and i like it to be a safe as i can have it

Dustinyork said:

I recently lifted my 90 jeep cherokee 3 inches. I replaced the steering stabalizer as well as the lower control arms when i did this install. I also left the rear sway bar on as well as the front. When i drive down the road at about 30-40 mph the jeep seems to wander where it wants to , then steer fine again. What should i look at to fix this problem? Do i need a trac bar ? any other opinions or ideas ? its my DD and i like it to be a safe as i can have it

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Loose nut between the steering wheel and driver's seat.

i dont think theres any tightening that one up

Sorry, had to do it. Could it be an alignment issue?

If i let go of the wheel it pretty much goes straight, it may drift to the right a little but only slightly. Im willing to buy an adjustable track bar if it solves the problem but i didnt want to spend the money if i didnt have to. anything i could have done wrong during the install?

Did you get an alignment done after the install? There's a lot more to an alignment than "going straight".

akighnment scheduled for next week. But iwas trying to tie up any loose ends on my part . with a 3 inch should you run an adjustable track bar ? what would the problems be if the track bar was the issue ?

adjustable track bar yes. did you overlengthen or underlengthen the lower arms? sounds like castor

as long as the joints on your stock trac bar are good it shouldnt' cause a problem with wondering. having and adjustable tracbar just allows you to center your axle under the vehicle.

The lower control arms are the fixed type i kust bolted them in pace of the originals. Everything seems to be in good condition and not really worn. i keep everything well greased . is there a certain way to check the track bar for wear ?

Spray paint the axle mount bolt for the Trac-bar. Go drive it around. If the paint is scratched off, the trac-bar is moving in the axle mount, and will cause your symptom.

Did you replace the trac-bar factory bolt and nut, or use a standard one? The non-factory nut will come loose.


Did you move the trac-bar over, and redrill hole for trac-bar mount, to center the front axle under the Jeep? With your sway bar mounted and a non-centered axle, you can get the same symptoms too.

to check for wear of the TRE on the Trac-bar, get someone you can trust to sit in your running Jeep, and turn the steering wheel back and forth while you get under the front and hold on to the trac-bar.

Make sure your hand isn't in a spot that can get pinched by the tie-rod or drag link... and if you see that thing up in the engine compartment that's spinning at a dizzying speed, don't put your hand up to check it out... that's the Fan.

Thats a fan !!! no way .... i thouht it was a super fast mery go round for midgets! ! ! man o man wait till i tell the guys ! lol . Thanks for the ideas i will try them tomorrow and see what happens.I didnt drill or move the trac bar at all and the stock sway bar is stiill hooked up. Maybe tomorrow i will just buy an adjustable track bar and see if it helps. I dont need anything super expensive , but i would like to get all the wandering problems out of it. oddly enough ...I dont like not being in control what im driving .

at three inches, you can drill a hole (for 4.5'es I moved a friends over 1 inch) toward the driver's side. Measure the distance the driver's tire sticks out from the flare, v.s. the pass side (you can look at the closest tread pattern for reference too) You should find that the driver's side sticks out further than the pass side. Drill a hole that distance from the original one for the trac-bar. Make sure you use that funny lookin' factory nut when you put it back on. If you've lost it, you can get a new one from the Stealership, or get a grade 8 lock-washer, and put a fat nylon washer beneath it.

You really don't need an adj. trac-bar with 3"es (imo) of lift. Then go get an allignment.