Steering upgrade and fix questions

So the fiancee (soon to be wife as of Saturday!) hates driving my Jeep because of how it handles and steers, saying it's sloppy and leans all over. We decided it's a lot easier for her to drive my Jeep to her work around the corner and I take her little jellybean car up to my work 30 miles from her house (where we'll be staying until we close on the house we are in the process of buying).

With the skidplate removed so I can adjust the steering wheel alignment sleeve (it has been aligned recently), I figured I'd sort out the other steering issues Jeep has so it's better on the street.

I was told ZJ v8 bars are direct swaps and of larger diameter, and help the Jeep feel more planted. Any truth to this?

The stock swaybar does nothing as it is disconected, so I'll need some swaybar discos. Being a choosy buyer, I'm thinking JKS, or something less pricey that's made here in the good ol USA. As always I like to keep my neighbors working.:wantyou:

Stock swaybar links are long since gone. So budget discos are out the window.

Can you adjust the steering box with the box inside the Jeep yet? I've found no good how-tos, beyond there's an allen nut on the top of it you turn a quarter turn at a time. I have a fair amount of slop in it.

Does the steering stabilizer do anything really?

I know I can't make a XJ with a 3.5" lift handle like a Civic, but I can make it at least wife-friendly. Then maybe she'll be more willing to let me spend money on it.:guitar:

Thanks for any advice,
Matt

Lower your tire pressure--smoother, more cushy ride.

Inspect the front end and see what is "sloppy" and fix it.

I wouldn't mess with the box, sounds like it is worn too much, salvage yard a newer one.

The steering "dampner" does just that, it dampens the steering so it feels better.

Check your steering angles--did you install an adjustable trackbar or re-drill/relocate the frame mount?

What is your caster? It it isn't enough positive it can make it feel like a P/U with a ton of weight on the rear behind the axle--the front end is floating around.

That should get you started.

ZJ tie rod are 1" solid while the stock XJ is 5/8 hollow tube if I'm not mistaken. Drastic weight difference.

A ZJ swaybar comes close to 28mm. Replacing ur stock swaybar with a thicker one. So u get the responsiveness ur wife wants and with discos the offroading u want.

I've gone as far as to install WJ control arms to further aid in onroad drivability of my jeep as the stronger control arms don't flex.

With 3.5" lift you could also look into grabbing drop brackets to help smooth out the ride.

Hope that helps

I have the same amount of lift and it handles great - granted not Porsche like - but feels safe and confident.

Things to check in addition to above:

Worn shocks won't help you much, or softly valved shocks.

Sway bar being connected and and new bushings will make a huge difference.

Trac bar - my daughter's XJ was a real handful until i replaced a worn trac bar.

Tires - aggressive off road tires handle like crap. what do you run? I ran Mud Kings for a long time. I switched to an all terrain and it was liek night and day. Currently running a fairly mild Michelin and i have no complaints.

You could reinstall the rear sway bar as well, although if you address the other areas, you shouldn't need to.

Good luck. It should be relativle easy to make your rig a little more user friendly.

Sit in front of the jeep and watch the steering while your fiance is turning the wheel back and forth. Spots to look at are all TRE's on the steering arms, both ends of the trackbar, the trackbar bracket on the frame, and even the control arm bushings. Basically, you want to see if the body of the jeep is moving side to side over the axle. If it is, you have slop in some of your bushings or TRE's.

I'd say the main reason she probably gets a bad feeling driving is because of the sway bar being removed. Put that back on and it'll feel a lot better around corners, much less tippy. That might be your only problem really. Wandering steering bothers my gf a bit too, but she really doesn't like it with the swaybar off because it leans hard around corners, enough to steer you out of a turn.

Get some good shocks. Some Bilstein 5150s (or 5160s I think are the new ones) valved somewhat stiffly will sharpen things up considerably. I went with 7100s valved at 360/80 front and 255/70 rear and wish I had gone stiffer with the rear shocks. I run no swaybars but very rarely does my XJ feel tippy. Eventually I'll be getting a new swaybar mounted up but for now it still feels pretty decent.

I got shocks with the lift (last year), a JKS trackbar (3 years old now), and I left the steering damper alone. Rubicon Express LCAs came with the kit (3.5 RE with new coils and new leafs)

I run 31" BFG ATs. Only slightly louder than stock size goodyear tires. Mild fender trimming=no rubbing.

JKS discos and a durango box with checking the air pressure in the tires should solve your problems.

Don't overlook the intermediate shaft. There's a bushing in there that allows for movement and as it gets worn the steering will get quite sloppy.