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Swerving like a Drunk

98XJLongBuild

98XJLongBuild

NAXJA Forum User
Location
San Jose, CA.
Hey Ya'll,

My 98 Sport has alot of free play in the steering wheel. I know that Cal. legal limit is no more than 2 inchs.. My rig has atleast 4 inchs. in the steering wheel. My control arm is all snug and all my bushings are good. Alos my track bar is tight and aligned straight. The only questionable things that I can come up with would be the ball joints or the steering pump.

How would I test to see if any of these are the true cause of there being so much free play?

Also when I brake hard going down the freeway it pulls hard to the passenger side. Also going down the freeway it likes to swerve around alot(like a drunk driver) around 65-70 mph. It gets to become alot to hang onto. At 55 mph. it is hardley there but still noticeble.

Thnaks
 
X2 ont he ball joints. Also, check to ensure your steering box bolts are tight. Look inside the driver's side wheel well and you'll see the bolt heads for the steering pump.
 
Also check the castor of the front axle. Lifted vehicles tend to have less castor and feel "darty" or tend to wander. Get the castor back in spec and it will feel a lot better.
 
1. Wheels on the ground, you crawl under the front end with a bright spotlight. Have a friend slowly turn the steering wheel left, then right, while you observe all of the components for odd movements.

2. Jack up the front end and put stands under the unibody. Grab one wheel at 12 and 6 and see if you can wobble it--if it does. replace the ball joints.

3. Front end still up, grab the wheel at 9 and 3 and see if you can wobble it--if it does, replace the unit bearings.

As the_weirdo suggested, check your caster--the closer to 7 degrees positive the stabler the feel will be. Don't forget to check your pinion angle.
 
Its not the state law thats the problem its just these more than wonderful roads that we have here in Cal..
 
Get a smaller steering wheel so the play is back in spec :eyes:

Bleed your front brakes, If the drivers side cant be freed up, you will need to look for another.
 
Check all your joints for freeplay. X10 on balljoints, there a maitanence item that should be done every 90K (In an Ideal world!!). A sticky caliper could also do it, calipers are cheap enough and they will get slow over time.
Peters is right on, you need to test and see whats loose.
 
I agree with the_wierdo, check your caster angle. I was having this same problem. There was about 3 inches of play in my steering wheel and this made me sweat balls with an 8" lift cruising 70 on the freeway. After replacing all of the parts below it came down to just making a couple of degrees difference to the caster of my front axle tilting it back by shortening my adjustable upper control arms a little and now my steering wheel is tight at high speeds and my Jeep tracks strait. Here is an article on this which briefly mentions the benefits of having correct caster: http://go.jeep-xj.info/HowtoAlignment.htm
So my list of replacements went like this:
-Double shear trackbar and mount from IronRock Offroad (slight improvement noticed)
-Drop Pitman arm (slight improvement noticed)
-Grand Cherokee tie rod swap(definite improvement notice)
-tightened steering box bolts and picked up a box brace (slight improvement noticed)
-new ball joints (slight improvement noticed)
-new wheel bearing units (nothing)
 
No they don't test for it. But it is a Cal. state law. If you ever have to take the class A liscense test it maybe on there.(No more than 2 inch's. of free play) Sprry for the confusion.
 
Also after reading all this it finally rung a bell in my little noggen that maybe my springs shouldn't be bent forward(like an arc going forward). I'll go thru this Saturday and make them sit straight.
 
98XJLongBuild said:
Also after reading all this it finally rung a bell in my little noggen that maybe my springs shouldn't be bent forward(like an arc going forward). I'll go thru this Saturday and make them sit straight.
Click to expand...

That is a huge piece of info that tells you that your castor is probably out. Rotate the axle so the springs sit straighter and it should solve the darting. the play in the steering wheel is likely another issue.
 
98XJLongBuild said:
No they don't test for it. But it is a Cal. state law. If you ever have to take the class A liscense test it maybe on there.(No more than 2 inch's. of free play) Sprry for the confusion.
Click to expand...

XJ does not require a Class A (commercial) license!

Still, it isn't a law. All they do is see if you check it when you take your driving test and they "recommend" that it isn't more than 10 degrees of wheel movement.

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/cdl_htm/sec10_a.htm
 
My springs were curved forwards for the longest time. My suspension worked like poop and my steering was poor making the vehicle tough to control. Rotate the axle backwards and if necessary get longer lower control arms or what I ended up doing was getting control arm drop brackets from Rough Country and you should notice a difference. I second the upper control arm bushings on the axle. I replaced those too and it made a slight improvement. Mine were worn badly, but a bear to replace. I ended up buying a 5lb sledge hammer.
 
Last edited:
98XJLongBuild said:
Hey Ya'll,

My 98 Sport has alot of free play in the steering wheel. I know that Cal. legal limit is no more than 2 inchs.. My rig has atleast 4 inchs. in the steering wheel. My control arm is all snug and all my bushings are good. Alos my track bar is tight and aligned straight. The only questionable things that I can come up with would be the ball joints or the steering pump.

How would I test to see if any of these are the true cause of there being so much free play?

Also when I brake hard going down the freeway it pulls hard to the passenger side. Also going down the freeway it likes to swerve around alot(like a drunk driver) around 65-70 mph. It gets to become alot to hang onto. At 55 mph. it is hardley there but still noticeble.

Thnaks
Click to expand...

Check your tie rods, pitman arm, and steering box. The steering pump itself has nothing to do with the problems you've described. Sometmes you can adjust the steering "worm" gear, but if it's got movement, I'd just go ahead and replace it!
 
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