Loose steering after lift and 35" tires
#21
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Okay guys, so I went to the shop this morning and told him what was going on and he replied with "that's what happens when you lift these 4 Dr wranglers, they drive like crap. You need to get that dual steering stabilizer I was telling you about." I shrugged this off and asked what my caster was at when they did the alignment, he said "we adjusted it to keep it in the green. We don't check the angle, just put it where it drives right. " which I know is crap because I have fixed arms that can't be adjusted. All I wanted to know is if these new LCAs put the caster where it needed to be or if I needed to shell out the cash for some adjustable ones but apparently I wasn't getting this info from him. So I went to my local quick lube to see if he could tell me where my caster was sitting, my tires were too big for his machine. Now I've been referred to a shop 50 miles away, which has a big machine which can grab 35" tires.
#22
Okay guys, so I went to the shop this morning and told him what was going on and he replied with "that's what happens when you lift these 4 Dr wranglers, they drive like crap. You need to get that dual steering stabilizer I was telling you about." I shrugged this off and asked what my caster was at when they did the alignment, he said "we adjusted it to keep it in the green. We don't check the angle, just put it where it drives right. " which I know is crap because I have fixed arms that can't be adjusted. All I wanted to know is if these new LCAs put the caster where it needed to be or if I needed to shell out the cash for some adjustable ones but apparently I wasn't getting this info from him. So I went to my local quick lube to see if he could tell me where my caster was sitting, my tires were too big for his machine. Now I've been referred to a shop 50 miles away, which has a big machine which can grab 35" tires.
#24
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He didn't know. Didn't give me a print out and apparently isn't mindful about how he adjusts the alignment. I spent $5k with him between wheels, tires, and the other little things he convinced me I needed, but he wants to treat me like a fool. I'll just follow the guide on here to do a home alignment, then I'll take it to a real 4x4 shop to see how close I was. That way I gain some knowledge in the process.
#25
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Check with any other alignment shops near you as well, not just 4x4 shops. Many can take bigger tires, and some will even do free checks where they throw it on the rack and print out the 'before' specs without actually adjusting anything. Might be worth a few minutes of your time to make some calls, at least.
#27
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You never answered the question about having a drop pitman arm in conjunction with your trackbar relocation bracket. If the track bar has been relocated, but not the drag link, you have a real problem. The track bar and drag link must maintain a parallell orientation.
As far as alignment. Take your jeep to an alignment shop that will give you a print out. If your caster isn't setting near 5, the jeep wanders at speed. Also a toe out condition will cause flightyness. I know people running no steering stabilizer on 37's and 40's.
As far as alignment. Take your jeep to an alignment shop that will give you a print out. If your caster isn't setting near 5, the jeep wanders at speed. Also a toe out condition will cause flightyness. I know people running no steering stabilizer on 37's and 40's.
#28
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You never answered the question about having a drop pitman arm in conjunction with your trackbar relocation bracket. If the track bar has been relocated, but not the drag link, you have a real problem. The track bar and drag link must maintain a parallell orientation.
As far as alignment. Take your jeep to an alignment shop that will give you a print out. If your caster isn't setting near 5, the jeep wanders at speed. Also a toe out condition will cause flightyness. I know people running no steering stabilizer on 37's and 40's.
As far as alignment. Take your jeep to an alignment shop that will give you a print out. If your caster isn't setting near 5, the jeep wanders at speed. Also a toe out condition will cause flightyness. I know people running no steering stabilizer on 37's and 40's.
#29
Put some miles on it before taking it in for another alignment, and give the parts some time to settle/break in. More than likely the alignment is ok if the lift kit was complete. I've done alignments and forgotten to do the printouts and with my system, I couldn't go back and make a print out without putting the vehicle back on the rack. It's completely normal for it to be driving completely different after 4 ball joints, a brake caliper, an alignment, and a lift. While you may not necessarily need a new steering stabilizer, it may help the way the car drives. I haven't had experience with many brands of steering stabilizers on and specific type of vehicle, but I have a dual stabilizer on mine and although I assume there are better single stabilizer setups out there that fit and perform better, mine works better than the factory one did.
#30
Sounds like this Shop lacks confidence. It could be a number of different things. If you don't want to spend money on control arms try some control arm drop brackets for a 100 bucks. I ran them in the past and they worked great and took a beating on the trails as well. Other than that every lift rides different. I had a 3.5 lift on my jkur that rode like crap and swapped out for a different 3.5 lift with all arms and the ride is amazing. Also you stated 20x10 wheels. Who know the wider wheel may grab the road more.