Major steering problems!!!

[Garyson1311]

Hey guys im new the forum. I entered "Steering problems" in the search and scrolled through a few pages and couldnt find anything on my exact problem so here goes:

Keep in mind, these problems came out of the blue.. I had driven the car about 2 weeks before on a hunting trip, did some light offroading, no accidents, no nothing.


I have a 91 XJ with mostly stock components other than suspension, exhaust, intake, rims, tires, etc. The guy who had it before me removed the sway bars for better articulation and I don't drive far or drive it other than when im offroading so I just left it that way. It also has an aftermarket steering wheel (you'll see why this matters..) I've only had the Jeep about a year and havent really done much to it so i'm pretty sure most of the steering components are stock for the most part by looking at them. I got it to cruise around the desert and to geocache but the last time I took it out, I noticed as I was backing out of my driveway that I needed to turn the steering wheel A LOT for the tires to turn. When I say alot, I mean that I spun the wheel probably 5-7 complete rotations to get the tires to turn all the way. It's not spinning freely but theres hardly any resistance at all, I bet I could make the wheel spin 15 times with one push. (With the car off, the wheel is still spinning like crazy if I spin it) I tried driving up and down the road and it feels like sometimes it will take like 3 spins of the wheel to get it to turn all the way (Which is still not how it is supposed to work) and other times i'll need to spin it like 7 or 8 or even 10 times to get the wheels to turn all the way. They still turn as I turn the wheel but it seems like sometimes it just do anything to spin the wheel and sometimes it does. It feels like sometimes it grabs and sometimes it doesnt. I dont hear any grinding or anything but the steering definitely is having issues. I got underneath the jeep and didnt see anything bent or busted. The only thing I noticed was that the power steering fluid was a little low but that shouldnt affect this problem. I'm not sure where to start on this thing as the steering isnt completely out but is definitely not right. The problem did seem to get worse as I drove it so its parked for now. Any and all info is greatly appreciated!

 

[lazyxj]

I noticed as I was backing out of my driveway that I needed to turn the steering wheel A LOT for the tires to turn. When I say alot, I mean that I spun the wheel probably 5-7 complete rotations to get the tires to turn all the way. It's not spinning freely but theres hardly any resistance at all, I bet I could make the wheel spin 15 times with one push. (With the car off, the wheel is still spinning like crazy if I spin it) I tried driving up and down the road and it feels like sometimes it will take like 3 spins of the wheel to get it to turn all the way (Which is still not how it is supposed to work) and other times i'll need to spin it like 7 or 8 or even 10 times to get the wheels to turn all the way. !

You need to park your XJ and find out what is broken before you kill yourself or someone else.
I would look for a stripped coupling between the steering shaft and steering box or where the the aftermarket steering wheel attaches to the steering shaft.
Have someone turn (spin?) the steering wheel while you get under the front end and see what is slipping. It should be obvious.
This is a serious safety issue.

 

[Garyson1311]

Thankyou, I will check that out. I only drove the Jeep in front of my house while having these issues when I first discovered them, I then parked it in my garage.. I wouldnt dare take it out.. I'm not that crazy. If I made it seem like I was out cruising around then im sorry, most definitely not the case! Thanks a ton for your input!

 

[stockli]

Also might want to check and see if your steering shaft is turning (have a buddy look at it) while you turn the wheel and see it the shaft is actually moving. If it is you may need to look at your steering box.

 

[Robs92XJ]

Yep. Take a look at everything involved in turning the wheels, starting at the steering wheel. Check that the steering wheel is turning the stub shaft where it enters the engine compartment. Where the stub shaft meets the upper steering shaft there is a splined joint with a pinch bolt to hold it together, make sure that bolt is there. There is a rubber coupling just down the shaft from that, that links the upper and lower shaft. Make sure the steering shaft assembly rotates through that coupling. Then there is a u-joint, make sure that is intact. Then there is another splined connection with a pinch bolt where the lower shaft meets the steering box, make sure the steering shaft is rotating the steering box input shaft without any slippage.

Then the steering goes through the internals of the steering gear box. The thing to look for is that when the input shaft is turned by the steering shaft, the pitman arm rotates a corresponding amount. If the input shaft turns without the pitman arm moving, or with intermittent movement by the pitman arm, then the box is fubar. This might be easier to check with the wheels in the air or the drag link removed.

From there, you have the tie-rod end joints at the pitman arm to draglink connection, at the drag link to PS knuckle connection, at the tie-rod to drag-link connection, and at the tie-rod to DS knuckle connection. Make sure none of these joints have excessive movement, that the castellated nuts and cotter pins are present and tightly installed.

 

[Wallyman]

Hi all, I'm bringing this thread back from the dead for a question,
In the coupling for the upper steering shaft section connecting it to the stub coming thru the firewall, i have major slippage. I'm having difficulty finding a decent exploded diagram showing weather or not there is another clip, bushing, or clamp that may be missing or if you need to replace the entire shaft to rectify the issue.
The area is question is the junction as quoted from above.

"There is a rubber coupling just down the shaft from that, that links the upper and lower shaft. Make sure the steering shaft assembly rotates through that coupling."

It rotates alright, but if you turn the steering wheel too fast or if you continue to turn the wheel past the stops, this coupling will continue to spin... pretty big safety issue. I've owned three XJs in the past and an MJ and never ran into this problem yet. This is my oldest XJ, being a 1988 model. Being as how it is for my niece who is 16, i think i would be better-off replacing the whole shaft instead of a fix that may fail. Anyone have experience with this particular coupling?

 

[Jays siik xj]

Seems like the bolt was loose on it and caised caused it to slip and probably strip. In order to replace it you have to pull out the steering column to get tonit easily. It only took me about 10 mins to pull it out. un bolt the steering shaft from the steering box and pull it all out at once.

 

[Matthew Currie]

It's been a while, but as I recall, the upper coupling to the steering wheel stub is simply a round coupling with a flat on it, and not much stripping is possible there. It must be clamped, though. The bottom is splined, and only goes on one way, and also must be clamped. The upper universal joint has a rubber inner portion (I hear it referred to as a "rag joint" even though it's not quite what that used to mean). If that rubber has gone bad, you simply need a new shaft.

The pre-97 version could not be replaced without unbolting either the steering column or the steering gear. It's just a gnat's eyebrow too long to fit in, and though collapsible, it's held rigid by plastic until you crash. I think the later models can be gotten in without so much trouble, and the collapsing section is a bit different. The dimensions of the steering column stub changed, though, so they're not interchangeable.