serious help needed

[Rockhound]

got a steering problem i want to run by you guys. iv'e been able to track it back a couple of months to a specific event but it doesn't help, well it doesn't help me.
my steering feels really loose. a couple months back i hopped a curb with my passengers side. had the wheels turned to the right approx 30-35 degree. since then my steering has been out of control when i hit a sharp bump ( like a deep pothole ) or even a 5 foot stretch of shotty roadwork with my passengers side. was really bad for awhile and i put on a new RE XD tracbar and bracket and an OME stabilizer and it tightened up a bit, a good bit, but its still out when i hit those bumps. the thing is whatever it is it is self correcting. i don't lose complete control but both wheels flop right to left till i get down to about 10 MPH.
have had balance, castor, camber and my toein checked myself numerous times and by a pro and everything checks out everytime.
NEED HELP!! Eagle, Beez, Karmir............anyone
thanks
Rockhound

 

[Rockhound]

stats

forgot these:
'91 4 dr laredo
7 1/4" lift
33x12.50 BFG AT KO
auto

 

[Speed_racer]

Oh! I sooooo have the same EXACT F*n problem, Ive got new LCA"s new bushings EVERYWHERE, fine Caster, fine EVERYTHING! still DW!!!

 

[Rockhound]

yep, and i'm not about to pay someone $60 an hour to smoke. just out of ideas.

 

[Speed_racer]

Ive had everything on mine checked, ball joints, u joints, you name it... track bar's hella tight...

 

[MaXJohnson]

have had balance, castor, camber and my toein checked myself numerous times and by a pro and everything checks out everytime.

NEED HELP!! Eagle, Beez, Karmir............anyone
thanks
Rockhound

Well, Karmir, what do you think it could be???

Since your problem is bump induced, balance is probably not the issue. What are the alignment specs? How good is your castor with over 7" of lift? How thorough did you look for damage after hitting the curb? Did you find damage? What did you repair? Some possibilities are a wasted control arm bushing, bent wheel, castor (just reminding you ) and steering box.

 

[Rockhound]

checked for damage very thoroughly. had the wheels checked too and they were fine too. don't know what my castor or alignment specs are exactly as i was so pissed that they didn't find anything i forgot the printout. have replaced the CA bushings already but its been awhile. is there any way to actually check the bushings? or is it completely hit or miss? last time i changed them i had the bushings and i was turning the bolts around anyways so i did it for the hell of it.
thanks
Rockhound

 

[MaXJohnson]

I could just picture the center sleeve ripping rearward through the bushing on impact. Thereafter, the bushing wouldn't contain motion in that direction. I could also visualize the steering box taking the brunt of the impact if the tire hit at an appropriate angle.

To check the bushings, you'd pretty much have remove or partially remove each control arm and inspect the rubber. Have you inspected the steering while someone else rocked the steering wheel back and forth. Many times, that will show where a joint or component is loose.

I mentioned castor because at 7"+ it's pretty hard to achieve decent castor angles without getting your pinion angle way out of wack. Your average alignment shop checks cars and IFS trucks all day long at 2° - 3° castor. They might assume that's enough for your Jeep.

 

[YELLAHEEP]

Well, I'm not a big expert or anything, but from my experiences I can tell you that when you're lifted over 5 o 6 inches, that darn death wobble problem seems to plague just about everyone.

Here's what I'd suggest checking if the other suggestions made by the guys before me don't pan out. First, look at the angles of both your track bar and your steering linkage that drops from the pitman arm. They should be at very similar parallel angles when you look at them from the front of the Jeep with the Jeep sitting level on the ground. If one is steeper than the other, your steering linkage and trackbar drop at different angles as the suspension cycles. When the front suspension moves up and down, you get a certain amount of push or pull on the steering parts that will cause some minor steering direction changes - especially if you're using stock steering components with a tall lift. To demonstrate this, center your steering wheel and lock it in position. Then lift the jeep high enough to allow the front axle to droop completely. You'll notice that the wheels are no longer aimed straight ahead as you had put them when the jeep was on the ground. (They will likely be turned slightly to the left.) Anyways, look at those angles and also check the tie rod ends for play as well.

Another idea: Lift the front tires off the ground and give the lower part of the tire/wheel a good shake while a friend watches the lower ball joints. Loose lower ball joints can contribute to some wobble issues.

Something else: Having a 12.5" wide tire can add to the problem. Wide tires like to grab the ruts and imperfections in the road surface at highway speeds. The steering damper you installed probably is doing everything it can to keep those tires in check. If you're running stock steering, there's a possibility that there may be just enough flexing or bowing in the steering linkage when you hit those potholes to contribute to the wobble problem - kind of like a spring action. Tire air pressure is another thing to check. There may be differing opinions on this, but running your tires at around 35 psi would be better than say below 30 psi. - less flex of the sidewall and tread drift.

Also, be sure to use the search feature on our wonderful website and enter things like "death wobble" and "bump steer" to see some of the other posts about problems similar to yours.

Good luck!
Troy

 

[Rockhound]

thanks guys, i'll crawl back under and play around again this afternoon.
the most annoying thing is the fact that i drove it the same route day in and day out for 8 months and then one day my drive was completely different and has been ever since. i probably hadn't even touched the front end in a month or so.
MAX: thanks for the visual, i even threw in some slow motion tearing sound effects.
TROY: steering all checks out. i have all new balljoints in boxes waiting to be put on. the only thing is my TRE on the passenger's side knuckle. i can't get the castle nut off the freekin thing. the whole TRE, minus the draglink, spins as well. other than that it still nice and tight.
thanks guys
Rockhound

 

[MudDawg]

Use a torch, nutsplitter or cutoff wheel to remove the nut...if it will spin in the knuckle right now, that may be the problem..it doesn't take much looseness to get the oscillation going...

 

[Beezil]

the BEST way to check for your problem is to have some make quick see-saws with the steering wheel (motor running, tranny in park) while you crawl under the front, putting your hand over each steering point.

start with the steering shaft itself. make sure there is n play withing the two little u-joints.

check everything. cheack all the steering, and tracbar mounts too.

then put the axle tube on jackstands and check for loose balljoints and/or unit bearing failure.

you'll find it