Driving my daughter's 1995 RRC and noticed play in the steering wheel as well as wobble when hitting bumps. The steering damper is an OME less than a year old. What else should I look at.
Thanks
Rico
Thanks
Rico
death wobble
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Alignment, tire balance, pan hard rod bushings, tie rod ends, and swivel pin preload.... most likely the swivels.
Hardly ever the damper.
Hardly ever the damper.
what kk said...dealing with the same issue on my DI right now. All steering components were just replaced with RTE HD (new ball joints/damper etc). Tires are decent but could be out of balance. Leaning more towards swivel balls also-driver side is weeping a bit so i'll be replacing the seals this weekend. need to look up the procedure for setting the pre-load.
Rico, given the age of the truck I also encourage you to look at swivels. Especially if you don't know the history.
Within the past 6 months I replaced my tie-rod ends and rebuilt my swivels completely. Both were easy jobs, parts didn't cost much (got most of them from Will Tillery, PT Schram), and the improvement in handling has been noticeable. My steering feedback is still a little vague so the final piece in my puzzle is going to be replacing the steering box, which leaks.
Good luck and let us know what you do/how it goes.
Within the past 6 months I replaced my tie-rod ends and rebuilt my swivels completely. Both were easy jobs, parts didn't cost much (got most of them from Will Tillery, PT Schram), and the improvement in handling has been noticeable. My steering feedback is still a little vague so the final piece in my puzzle is going to be replacing the steering box, which leaks.
Good luck and let us know what you do/how it goes.
Tires are new, balanced and aligned. I just had it aligned today. The mechanic at the tire shop thinks its the steering box due to the play in the wheel. The steering wheel doesn't line up. I will be checking the steering shaft joints tomorrow.
I'll keep you posted when I find it.
I'll keep you posted when I find it.
Did I mention the swivels already????
Good article for you.... http://www.landroverclub.net//Club/HTML/Wheel_wobble_cure.htm
Good article for you.... http://www.landroverclub.net//Club/HTML/Wheel_wobble_cure.htm
Be sure to double check the bushings on the steering stabilizer, make sure it is tightened on the stud end all the way. if it was tightened originally just enough to compress bushings it may have worn enough that there is some play. I found this on my own RRC ...put a brand new stabilizer on and tightened it enough to compress bushings, but not enough to bottom out at end of threads. It lasted about a week and i had to completely stop after hitting a certain bump on my commute.
i originally thought the stabilizer was bad, or there was another issue (swivels). For some reason i went out and grabbed one of my donors stabilizers and cranked it down until it stopped....and it solved the problem.
in other words, go tighten the stabilizer stud end and see if it still does same.
i originally thought the stabilizer was bad, or there was another issue (swivels). For some reason i went out and grabbed one of my donors stabilizers and cranked it down until it stopped....and it solved the problem.
in other words, go tighten the stabilizer stud end and see if it still does same.
Must be that time of year... had some DW myself. My radius arm (axle end) and panhard rod bushings were all shot (damn rubber). I'm trying out Polybush blue/comfort bushing this time around... just for something different. The "feel" of them while on the road is different than rubber.
One thing that wasn't mentioned as a cause is tire pressure. Having the front tires too low or very different from side-to-side can do it, too. Doesn't always, but there's a chance (have had it myself).
Good luck getting it sorted. DW sucks.
One thing that wasn't mentioned as a cause is tire pressure. Having the front tires too low or very different from side-to-side can do it, too. Doesn't always, but there's a chance (have had it myself).
Good luck getting it sorted. DW sucks.
Oh, and what the heck... do alignment shops not ensure the steering wheel is straight these days? Who does an alignment and not adjust the drag link to get the wheel straight? It's been a long time since I've had one done, so maybe I'm working on out-of-date knowledge.
I know this...thats why i asked. i had a local shop (i've used for things in the past) tell me they can do a 4wheel on my disco....
Toe is the only thing you can adjust. And if your wheel isn't straight I wonder if they even did that.
The steering wheel never comes out straight on a Disco with a Hunter alignment machine. I usually just set the toe and straighten the steering wheel on the ground in the shop.
On a Disco or a defender I usually just set the toe with a tow bar on my drive on rack and do like you said to center the wheel. But I get the toe set and then center the wheel on the test drive. I just keep finding places to pull over and move it a little. When its right I go back to the drive on rack and lock it all down.
I put my trucks on the machine cause I like to see what the lift does to some angles. I will say that an adjustable pan hard rod is a must have once you start lifting. Ever notice how after you lift one the tire hits when you make a tight turn , one direction but not the other? You should check the thrust angle after you lift one cause it moves.
If you are are still running EAS, check the front shock bushings. It is very easy to install them the wrong way, resulting in the nut bottoming-out before the bushings are compressed. This diagram shows the concave side of the bushing goes in the cup, NOT toward the shock.
New bushings can be a bear to install and still get the nut on the shock stud.
New bushings can be a bear to install and still get the nut on the shock stud.
I would suggest you replace the Radius Arm Bushings on the front. There are 4 of them. They get hard and shrink up allowing the front axle to have play creating white knuckle driving every time you hit a bump at high way speeds. Atlantic British has them for ~ $5 each.
Ok. Here is the update just in case you are wondering. Luckily I was to busy and took the LWB to my mechanic friend. It was the pan hard rod / track rod bushings. He noticed it quick because it was a problem on the old Fords.
I took him the pan hard rod off my parts car and it drives like new.
Yes new bushings are on the way from RN, but I needed the quick fix and he will be pressing the new ones in for me when the are delivered.
I took him the pan hard rod off my parts car and it drives like new.
Yes new bushings are on the way from RN, but I needed the quick fix and he will be pressing the new ones in for me when the are delivered.
