My steering wheel is off by about 15º

OK..... I am not hundred percent sure when it happened but I think something must have caused it in the afternoon....

On Sunday I have installed the inside C-Rok plate (I already had the outside for couple months now) and I'm pretty sure that while driving to work everything was still good (hey it's 5:30 am when I leave home so I'm allowed not to notice the little things). Also when I pulled out the aluminum spacer the new inside plate and the spacer pretty much matched.

In any case, the steering box is tight (torqued to spec per FSM numbers). THere seems to be no looseness and no pulling to either side. Wheels seem to be on straight (as in no slant and so on) when I have the steering turned about 15º to 20º to the right... any ideas anyone? it's kind of irritating....

oh.. it's a 98XJ with about 120K miles on it... rest of info is in my sig.

Kejtar

Okay -- what's a C-rok plate? Is this a steering box mounting brace? Does it fit between the frame and the box?

If so, you moved the box over to the right. To the steering geometry, that's the equivalent of lengthening the drag link. Now you just need to get under there and adjust the sleeve (on the upper end, next to the pitman arm) to compensate.

Like Eagle said, you probably moved your box over some. That plate is waaayyyy bigger (longer and taller, not thicker) than the stock aluminum piece. Have you contacted C-ROK about this to see if anyone else is having this problem?

Sean

the crok plate set (there is two) consists of the outside plate which is a frame reinforcement and an inside plate which replaces the aluminum spacer......

Will an alignment people do it for me? I don't feel like digging through all that myself..... Also how little of a shift would cause about a 15º shift?

Kejtar

Yup... I talked to Greg and it appears that I am the first lucky one with the shift

Kejtar

Yep, that's the last thing they set during an alignment. They'll probably charge ya for a full awn job though, unless you're buddies with a local garage of course.

Sean

Really though the adjustment is easy and doesn't affect the alignment at all. Just loosen the two clamping bolts on either end of the sleeve and us e a pipe wrench to turn the sleeve until the wheel is straight. Helps to have someone inside watching the wheel but not necessary.

well... I think I need an alignment anyways.... it's never been aligned since I bought it (had it checked out couple times and it was all good... even after the lift) so I guess it's time to pay the piper

Kejtar

Dude, just loosen the locking collars and twist the sleeve with channel-locs or whatnot. You can be back to 0* in -10 minutes! (just remember to tighten those collars back up after it's set)

Woody

Yeah, the allignment on that will fix it, but I would definitely do it yourself. It really takes at MAX, with getting all your tools out doing the job, and putting them back, 15-30 minutes. straighten your wheels (like you want to move straight) with the steering wheel offcenter the 15* you said it was. Loosen the collar on the drag link with the 2 bolts, and twist the collar a few turns with a pipe wrench, pliers, etc., then go look at your steering wheel and see where it went, if it's getting further from off center, turn it the other way. Once it's centered, tignten that collar's two bolts and be done with it. _nicko_

Just to make sure... that will not mess with the rest of the alignment system? (steering components are beyond me as you can see LOL)

Kejtar

Kejtar....I have done this, that should tell you how easy it is. Just adjust the sleeve that is on the link attached to the pitman arm and it will not mess with any other adjustment.

Rev

cool..... one more question... (I think I know the answer to it, but I wanna confirm)

Will it hurt anytihng to drive like that for a while? I'm in a middle of ripping out 2 windows and replacing them and putting hard wood floors in...... I need/want to get the construction out of my hair before I dig into the XJ (one thing leads to another and I end up spending a whole day in the garage LOL)

Kejtar

No, it won't really hurt to drive it this way, I've driven for month with an off-center steering wheel. What you do lose is the "return to center" function (which is good, but minor.)

BTW, you may want to hit the adjustment sleeve threads on the draglink with some PB Blaster, Kroil, etc. the night before.

Nope...mine is off-center for 1 year now...to lazy to fix it.

Rev

Rev...I thought you said you've done it?

I did....then I fixed the trac bar and did it again. The 2nd time I was really in a hurry, and rushed it, so it ain't perfect.

Rev

Be certain the key is in the ignition and the steering column is not locked when you do this -- otherwise instead of turning the steering wheel you'll be turning the road wjeels. Doesn't hurt anything, but you can't see if you're going in the right direction, or when you've gone far enough.

geeze kej, I thought you knew the right way to fix your probelm....

what you should do is let out 10 lb. of air pressure out of the tire thats "away" from the direction that the steering wheel is favoring.....

whalla!

steering wheel centered!

Be the ball, Danny

You will be so torqued at yourself for driving that way at all once you realize how easy it is to remedy the situation, seriously. It affects nothing about the alignment but the location of the steering wheel center. It takes 5 minutes, literally. I lifted my rig another inch, which effectively shortened the link and pulled my steering wheel to the left a little. I forgot to readjust it as extracurricular activities clouded my schedule. I pulled over on the way home and adjusted it on the side of the highway, in the dark. From the time I got out of the car, got the tools, adjusted it(myself, mind you) and put tools away, the same song was still playing on the cd player. 'Saint of Circumstance' is not that long of a song. If your rig tracks straight and your tires wear evenly, why waste your time and money on an alignment that may either help or hurt your current setup. Some garage techs actually understand the geometry of a steering system, and others just read a shop manual and push buttons. It takes awhile to find someone who can properly align a lifted rig, and when you do, take care of him. I got a 3 year alignment for $99 and I use every cent of it because the main tech at the garage is great. Just to make sure he doesn't dread seeing my rig after each time I wheel it hard, I take him a 6 or 12 pack after he finishes the job. Karma.