seanof30306@yahoo.
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Tulsa, Ok
OK, 96 XJ Up_Country
158,000 miles
Last Summer, out of nowhere the steering went crazy. Was first diagnosed as a bad steering box. Put in a NAPA stock replacement box.
Turns out, the problem was the KOR track bar. Put in a Rugged Ridge track bar and bracket: http://www.ruggedridge.com/hd-adj-front-track-bar-18205-05.html
Also put in a Moog HD steering damper with a lifetime warranty: http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/d...=Catalog&utm_source=Header&pt=02894&ppt=C0203
Problem solved.
Was going to sell the Jeep, waiting for some money to come in. Tires had 59,000 miles on them. I'd hoped to sell the Jeep without having to put tires on it, but they were nearly bald, dry-rotted, and one of them was starting to separate. I put a set of Yokahama Geolander AT GO15s on it in 255/60-16.
https://www.yokohamatire.com/tires/geolandar-a-t-g015
They said they couldn't align it because the ball joints and a tie rod end were bad.
Sigh .... guess I'll be keeping her for awhile.
So we replaced all 4 ball joints, and both tie rod ends. The control arm bushings looked a little sketchy, so we replaced the control arms with Moog Problem Solvers.
http://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=4203615&cc=1180314&jsn=25
http://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=4202976&cc=1180314&jsn=26
Replaced the sway bar end links, too.
The power steering pump had been giving me problems, too. In really cold weather, It was really jerky, and sometimes didn't work at all for the first 1/10th of a mile, or so. We replaced it with a stocker from NAPA.
When I was driving it to be aligned, it felt all darty and janky, but I thought that was because of the alignment being out. No such luck. It's been aligned, but it drives like a completely different vehicle. There's a noticeable dead spot in the wheel that appears to me to be worse at some times than others.
That's not all, though. I bought this Jeep new in 1996, and I've always loved the way it drove; almost like a sports coupe. Solid, tight steering, even at 90-95 mph. Now, it feels mushy and sloppy. The faster you go, the worse it gets. I took it up to 85 today, and nearly lost control.
I thought the dead spot in the wheel might be tie rod end roll, but we got up under it this evening and turned the wheel back and forth; couldn't see anything that looked wrong.
Does anyone have any ideas?
158,000 miles
Last Summer, out of nowhere the steering went crazy. Was first diagnosed as a bad steering box. Put in a NAPA stock replacement box.
Turns out, the problem was the KOR track bar. Put in a Rugged Ridge track bar and bracket: http://www.ruggedridge.com/hd-adj-front-track-bar-18205-05.html
Also put in a Moog HD steering damper with a lifetime warranty: http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/d...=Catalog&utm_source=Header&pt=02894&ppt=C0203
Problem solved.
Was going to sell the Jeep, waiting for some money to come in. Tires had 59,000 miles on them. I'd hoped to sell the Jeep without having to put tires on it, but they were nearly bald, dry-rotted, and one of them was starting to separate. I put a set of Yokahama Geolander AT GO15s on it in 255/60-16.
https://www.yokohamatire.com/tires/geolandar-a-t-g015
They said they couldn't align it because the ball joints and a tie rod end were bad.
Sigh .... guess I'll be keeping her for awhile.
So we replaced all 4 ball joints, and both tie rod ends. The control arm bushings looked a little sketchy, so we replaced the control arms with Moog Problem Solvers.
http://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=4203615&cc=1180314&jsn=25
http://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=4202976&cc=1180314&jsn=26
Replaced the sway bar end links, too.
The power steering pump had been giving me problems, too. In really cold weather, It was really jerky, and sometimes didn't work at all for the first 1/10th of a mile, or so. We replaced it with a stocker from NAPA.
When I was driving it to be aligned, it felt all darty and janky, but I thought that was because of the alignment being out. No such luck. It's been aligned, but it drives like a completely different vehicle. There's a noticeable dead spot in the wheel that appears to me to be worse at some times than others.
That's not all, though. I bought this Jeep new in 1996, and I've always loved the way it drove; almost like a sports coupe. Solid, tight steering, even at 90-95 mph. Now, it feels mushy and sloppy. The faster you go, the worse it gets. I took it up to 85 today, and nearly lost control.
I thought the dead spot in the wheel might be tie rod end roll, but we got up under it this evening and turned the wheel back and forth; couldn't see anything that looked wrong.
Does anyone have any ideas?