• NAXJA is having its 18th annual March Membership Drive!!!
    Everyone who joins or renews during March will be entered into a drawing!
    More Information - Join/Renew
  • Welcome to the new NAXJA Forum! If your password does not work, please use "Forgot your password?" link on the log-in page. Please feel free to reach out to [email protected] if we can provide any assistance.

Steering Wheel Slop and Tracking Wanders

thebyus

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Albuquerque, NM
The steering on the my XJ has been crap since I bought it in July. Lots of slop in the steering wheel, it wanders all over the place. Wasn't a big deal, but now I want to start road tripping in the thing and after a 4 hour trip this weekend, the steering/wandering is:
A) a PITA
B) exhausting and
C) flat out dangerous

Finally got underneath and checked it out while my son turned the wheel this morning. All the bushings are solid, the track bar and drag link bar are parallel, the drop pitman arm is working correctly.

What I found is that if you play the slop in the steering wheel, the steering shaft rotates but the wheels don't budge. Once you get through the wheel slop, everything works fine.

I found these two videos on youtube that perfectly show my problem:

Steering wheel slop

Steering shaft turning

After trolling the threads, i found two possible solutions, either it is a steering box problem (if so, could tightening the box fix it, or I am I looking at replacing it?) or a shaft problem (though I'm not sure about this one, as the steering wheel seems to be sending the output all the way down the shaft, but there seems to be a problem with the steering shaft inputting to the box).

Would love advice/opinions -

fyi - 2001 XJ, 190K miles, lifted 6", rolling 35's, custom over-sized tie rod, drop pitman arm.
 
When I decided to change the steering boxes in my 87 and then later in my 88, both times the pitman shaft had noticeable movement up and down while somebody turned the steering wheel a couple of inches left and right.

Other times I had wander was (twice) the top trac bar joint was loose. The tip off was my steering hell wasn't straight when the tires were straight.

Another time was a drag link. The drag link joint moved a little up and down and not sideways like you'd suspect.

I also once bent a tie rod end, tires were out of alignment. With the bad alignment the groves worn in the highway by trucks were a killer. Felt kind of like I was roller skating, it would push one direction then suddenly push in the other direction.

I've adjusted the input shaft on saginaw boxes, it worked out just fine. I'd tightened a couple of center over adjusters over the years, that helped a little. The last one I adjusted almost ran me into a brick wall at 40 MPH when the box heated up, the innards expanded a little and I found out tight isn't necessarily a good thing and can be overdone.

I now order rebuilds from a reputable supplier and don't mess with the boxes anymore. The savings, doing it myself, just isn't worth the possible consequences IMO. I don't rebuild enough boxes to have a good feel for it.
 
6" lift and stock Steering ? Sounds like the tie rod roll and the dead spot. If the steering is stock, the drop pitman arm doesn't help any either. An Over the Knuckle steering conversion should cure the problem.
 
Well, seems obvious to me. Steering movement going in, no response from the steering gear... The gear is worn out.

'Good' boxes are not cheap. Remans aren't really that cheap either and very few good reman boxes out there. Just make sure you get one with a warranty, and if you buy reman from a chain store, don't tell them the jeep is lifted.
 
I have been running 35's on a 7" lift for about 6 years, wheeling pretty hard all over AZ. I to have replaced nearly every joint/bar/rod combination you could think of, including the steering shaft 2 times so far. Not to hard to change. You can buy new, or pull a part. There is a rubber bushing in the top end that does wear out and will cause about 1\4 turn of slop into your steering wheel (which is noticeable when you turn the wheel back and forth, with engine off). If you go with a used one, check it before you pull it. I think this is most likely your problem, based upon your symptoms.
 
Last edited:
I had the same problem with my 99 when I bought it. Put about $600 into front end parts finally ended up replacing the gear box, all the slop is now gone. It was so bad I could not even think about steering with one hand. Good to go now.
 
Thanks for the input everyone. I pulled the aux fan last night and adjusted the adjustment screw on the top of the steering box. It took just over half a turn, but now when I start to turn the wheel, the tires start to wiggle. Took it out for a quick spin and it is like a whole new beast. I don't feel ANY tightness in the box, and no popping or anything, either. I'm calling this fixed! Now on to the next project (i.e. reattaching the rear BPE's, BOTH of which managed to break loose last weekend, though I think the PO had only installed them with a single bolt each!)
 
Back
Top