steering

[np205owm]

Looking at a 90 xj, 4x4 stock 4.0. The steering is kinda touchy. You don't want to dare take your eye's off the road in front of you or your all over the place. New to jeeps, is there any other problems besides worn out steering parts or any steering fixes to do to xj's.

Thanks

Owen

 

[Shorty]

loose track bar, track bar mount, tie rods, control arm bushings, and hub bearings are the common areas to check-- that's assuming decent tires and wheels are on it with good balance.

 

[biztyke]

i bought a 90 not too long ago, my steering was pretty loose. i checked everything over and the linkage and everything was pretty tight underneath but the steering box was worn out. i just adjusted the preload screw on it(not the "proper" way to do it, but i wasnt about to pull the box out) and the play in my wheel went from 3-4" down to 1" so im happy.

i would check your floorboards as well, mine had rot in the drivers side that i didnt know about. ive since fredone it with sheet metal. other than that, just common wear items like u-joints, shocks, leafs(older xjs tend to sag in the rear), fluid changes(check right away, my jeep's PO changed nothing except the engine oil), etc, etc......

 

[Low Range]

Mine is a 96,It is actually to tight,,damn things anyhow ,,sorry cant help ,good luck though

 

[XJ AV8R]

All good suggestions. When the steering/axle is functioning properly with no worn out parts, the XJ drives very well. The behavior you describe is definitely NOT something that an XJ should do, just so you know. It could be an alignment problem too. Is the XJ stock or lifted, by the way?

 

[np205owm]

It is stock and not lifted, decent tires, stock size. I'll have to go over it with the guy to check it out. The other thing he want's is a posi-loc for the front axle. Does warn still make the lockout hub kit with axles and spindles for the xj dana 30?? It has ford ranger style hubs.

 

[lawsoncl]

Crawl under the front and have someone crank the steering back-n-forth while you look at and put you hands on parts. In particular, the upper trackbar mount (very common), lower trackbar mount, and tie rods. If you see the steering box itself shifting it may be ripping itself out of the frame, which is a much more expensive repair. I'm betting on a sloppy trackbar.