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ORO U-Turn Steering

meatplow5150

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Gilroy, CA
When I bought my XJ, it had already had several modifications made to it by the previous owner, among them, he had installed Rusty's XJ/ZJ/TJ/YJ Tie-Rod Conversion (http://rustysoffroad.com/Merchant2/...=rustys&Product_Code=SC-250&Category_Code=ste)... essentially an inverted "T". This setup was, to put it mildly, less than adequate. On the highway, it wanted to wander all over the place, had bad bump/brake steer and a HUGE dead spot in the middle.
Soooo... I decided to drop a big chunk-o-change on the U-Turn by Off-Road Only (http://www.offroadonly.com/products/new/u-turn/).
The instructions were VERY thorough, installation was VERY easy, and so far, the resulting steering characteristics are highly favorable. No more dead spot, bump/brake steer is still there, albeit only a small fraction of what it was before. Unfortunately, I haven't had it off-road yet as I just found that I also have a bad engine mount.
Like I mentioned, it is expensive ($650 + shipping) but I'm a novice welder and have limited tools available. This kit really is 100% bolt-on. All in all, I'm very pleased and would recommend this setup to anyone wanting something more from their current steering setup.
 
skyjackedxj96 said:
jeepin jason was pleased with his as well.
NEED PICS!!!!
IMG_0051.jpg

IMG_0054.jpg

IMG_0055.jpg

IMG_0056.jpg
 
meatplow5150 said:
When I bought my XJ, it had already had several modifications made to it by the previous owner, among them, he had installed Rusty's XJ/ZJ/TJ/YJ Tie-Rod Conversion (http://rustysoffroad.com/Merchant2/...=rustys&Product_Code=SC-250&Category_Code=ste)... essentially an inverted "T". This setup was, to put it mildly, less than adequate. On the highway, it wanted to wander all over the place, had bad bump/brake steer and a HUGE dead spot in the middle.
Soooo... I decided to drop a big chunk-o-change on the U-Turn by Off-Road Only (http://www.offroadonly.com/products/new/u-turn/).
The instructions were VERY thorough, installation was VERY easy, and so far, the resulting steering characteristics are highly favorable. No more dead spot, bump/brake steer is still there, albeit only a small fraction of what it was before. Unfortunately, I haven't had it off-road yet as I just found that I also have a bad engine mount.
Like I mentioned, it is expensive ($650 + shipping) but I'm a novice welder and have limited tools available. This kit really is 100% bolt-on. All in all, I'm very pleased and would recommend this setup to anyone wanting something more from their current steering setup.


I have that same Rustys setup with the same "deadspot" and pop in the middle... it's where it rubs on the tracbar bolt on the axle end... sucks, I'm gonna do a flex rod, OTK inserts and right hand drive draglink here before long.
 
91 Jeep Project said:
I'd imagine the bumpsteer is still there because the trac bar hasn't been relocated.

Agreed. As it is right now, the track bar should be mounted right about where the steering stabilizer is mounted. Not sure it's something that I want to tackle at this point though since the bumpsteer is minimal at its worst.
 
meatplow5150 said:
Agreed. As it is right now, the track bar should be mounted right about where the steering stabilizer is mounted. Not sure it's something that I want to tackle at this point though since the bumpsteer is minimal at its worst.

no you should tackle that as soon as you can! that stabilizer masks a lot of the feedback you are getting. take it off and see how it rides.
 
91 Jeep Project said:
I'd imagine the bumpsteer is still there because the trac bar hasn't been relocated.

meatplow5150 said:
Agreed. As it is right now, the track bar should be mounted right about where the steering stabilizer is mounted. Not sure it's something that I want to tackle at this point though since the bumpsteer is minimal at its worst.

In addition to the panhard and draglink being parallel, they both have to be about the same length to eliminate 100% bump steer because it makes a perfect parallelogram. That is virtually impossible when you run a crossover set up like that. That is why some opt to go inverted T.

DSC07031%20(Medium).JPG
 
it looks like you have the draglink upside-down compared to the pictures on the website; they have the bend in their's so that it gives more clearance to the oil pan.

it looks like the Ackerman gets really screwed up with the tie-rod location, do you hear the front tires squealing a bit more on sharp pavement turns?
 
BrettM said:
it looks like you have the draglink upside-down compared to the pictures on the website; they have the bend in their's so that it gives more clearance to the oil pan.

it looks like the Ackerman gets really screwed up with the tie-rod location, do you hear the front tires squealing a bit more on sharp pavement turns?

The draglink is installed as per the directions. The bend is on the axle end to clear the stock swaybar mounts. Works like a charm... no tire squealing noticed at all.
What the hell is Ackerman????
 
Ackerman is having the inside tire turn more in a turn than the outside tire to account for the larger turning radius at the outside. "proper" Ackerman is achieved by a straight line from the TRE connections, through the balljoints, to the center of the rear axle. Moving the TRE connections in like that produces worse Ackerman and therefore, worse turning radius, increased tire wear and decreased traction in a turn. Those are all technical downsides though I don't know how much of a problem it actually is in real life.
 
I just built a new tie rod for mine yeaterday. My Ackerman was all screwy from the tie rod attaching to the high steer arm on a WJ knuckle. It wandered around like really bad bump steer...sort of. The new tie rod attaches to the regular spot on the knuckle, but on top with some spacers. Like a night and day difference for handling.

Why would ORO build something like that, and have the TR hanging almost as low as the stock set up??

-Dan
 
Dan Turner said:
I just built a new tie rod for mine yeaterday. My Ackerman was all screwy from the tie rod attaching to the high steer arm on a WJ knuckle. It wandered around like really bad bump steer...sort of. The new tie rod attaches to the regular spot on the knuckle, but on top with some spacers. Like a night and day difference for handling.

Why would ORO build something like that, and have the TR hanging almost as low as the stock set up??

-Dan

Cause it's bolt-on, and an "upgrade". And people are picking them up at $650 a pop.
 
91 Jeep Project said:
I thought the same thing as soon as I saw the pic Brett.

You do have the draglink on backwards, you need to flip it around.

My draglink has a bend on both ends. You can't see the one on the axle end very well because of the angle at which the picture was taken, but I assure you it is there. The adjuster was pre-installed on the drag link when it arrived and the bend on that end is not as drastic as the one on the axle end.
 
meatplow5150 said:
My draglink has a bend on both ends. You can't see the one on the axle end very well because of the angle at which the picture was taken, but I assure you it is there. The adjuster was pre-installed on the drag link when it arrived and the bend on that end is not as drastic as the one on the axle end.
It looks like your drag link is straight from the pitman arm to the knuckle. Your track bar has a couple bends in it. Your drag link is still backward though.

A
 
99xjache said:
It looks like your drag link is straight from the pitman arm to the knuckle. Your track bar has a couple bends in it. Your drag link is still backward though.

A

OK... I rotated the drag link a little to show that there really is a bend at the axle end.
IMG_0057.jpg

Keep thinking it's backward if you want, but it was installed as per the directions.
 
They (99xjache and 91 Jeep Project) meant to say tie rod is upside down or backwards. Not the drag link.

Kyung
 
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