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Is there a true fix for the Steering/Wandering issue?

PDQ

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Update, had my adjustable LCA's put on today. Changed caster from 4.7 to 6 as well as corrected too much toe in. What a difference, it's actually driveable, 85mph, no issues. Steering feels tighter, and 90% less wander. Can't say enough good for those on forum who have mentioned to get your caster set at 6 and to AJ at Northridge 4x4 for setting everything up for me. Good luck to all those out there.

what is LCA's? thanks.
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#1 for me

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Actually depending on the problem it can correct an issue, besides which what would that larger issue be. Sort of as helpful as the guy who suggested buying a 2019 or 2020......

In the really long thread about death wobble at the point I stopped reading several were reporting that after repeated replacement of various stock steering stabilizers not solving the problem an upgrade to an aftermarket SS did.

One thing that you and nobody really seems to look at is tread pattern. If the OP were to put his original tires back on his Jeep would the problems go away? Also this death wobble issue, some people report having it big time, others say they don't but what I do is look at the user sig and see which flavour of JL they are driving. Is there a correlation to the package vs problem and since different packages have different tires and different tread patterns....

Yes it's entirely possible that setup could be an issue but looking at the OP's sig he started off with a Sport and appears to have upgraded his wheels and tires. If he just kept the stock SS then that would be the first place I'd be looking though he has not provided a whole lot of details on what he is now running and what he has upgraded..... But on the various Jeeps and 4WD pickups I have owned and currently own after installing upgraded wheels and tires and then having everything set up I've found that the tread can also throw things off. When I upgraded to the Mopar 2" factory lift with my 34" Generals which have a fairly straight grooved tread the Jeep tracked straight and had no issues hitting pot holes and having the steering wheel gyrate wildly, at that time I upgraded my ball joints as well. After changing to KO2's hitting a pot hole sent the steering wheel rocking back and forth just like all the videos showing the 'death wobble'. Jeep still tracked straight. Upgrading to the Fox stabilizer completely got rid of the wobble. However the KO2's with their zig zag tread pattern I find react a lot quicker to steering input vs the Generals or any of the performance street tires I run on my other vehicles.
I believe your on to something here on my Z71 I replaced the Goodyear Wranglers 265-75-16 with KO2's now I have a wondering issue when I had them mounted I had Discount Tire put 45psi in even though they recommended 40psi I lowered the psi to 40 which helped . I too would agree the tread design has a lot to do with it but the wobbling is another issue .
 

Command Line RC

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Finally fixed my "wandering issue" on the interstate. Like most of you, I was pissed, mad, sad....you name it I went through it. The steering wheel had about an inch of play from side to side on the interstate. Finally tired of dealing with FCA, dealerships, and Jeep Cares, I replaced my tie rod and drag link with Synergy. The wondering is 100% gone and the dead spot in the steering wheel is 100% gone. When I removed the tie rod, I noticed the ends where the ball joints are....I could move them all around with my pinky. To me, they should be stiff to the point to where I can move them but with force. The Synergy tie rod ends, I had to actually put some muscle in moving them. I am very happy with the Synergy product line @AllJumpStyle. Side note, if you happen to damage a tie rod end, they are $30 bucks to replace...not bad at all compared to other companies.

I hope this post helps some of you.
 

HiJinx69

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Finally fixed my "wandering issue" on the interstate. Like most of you, I was pissed, mad, sad....you name it I went through it. The steering wheel had about an inch of play from side to side on the interstate. Finally tired of dealing with FCA, dealerships, and Jeep Cares, I replaced my tie rod and drag link with Synergy. The wondering is 100% gone and the dead spot in the steering wheel is 100% gone. When I removed the tie rod, I noticed the ends where the ball joints are....I could move them all around with my pinky. To me, they should be stiff to the point to where I can move them but with force. The Synergy tie rod ends, I had to actually put some muscle in moving them. I am very happy with the Synergy product line @AllJumpStyle. Side note, if you happen to damage a tie rod end, they are $30 bucks to replace...not bad at all compared to other companies.

I hope this post helps some of you.
Were you waiting on parts before you went with Synergy, or did they blow you off? Synergy was a good choice!
 

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Command Line RC

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Were you waiting on parts before you went with Synergy, or did they blow you off? Synergy was a good choice!
I was not waiting on parts. I was tired of the round and round conversations between myself and other parties mentioned in my previous post. So I said F it and decided to take matters into my own hands.
 

Arrowhead

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I replaced my tie rod and drag link with Synergy. The wondering is 100% gone and the dead spot in the steering wheel is 100% gone.
I just finished putting in a Synergy Drag Link. This solved whatever the loose drag link was doing. The play I had with the flopping tie rod is gone and the tires and the steering wheel move in unison. The play in the steering wheel is 90% gone!
This is good news, thanks to both of you for posting this. The one end of my drag link is shot and also have the soft bushing on the track bar. I have a Synergy drag link sitting on my bench ready to go in and hope to get it this weekend.

Like you @[SIZE=4][B][URL='https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/members/command-line-rc.15007/']Command Line RC[/URL][/B][/SIZE] I just don't have the time or energy to argue with the dealer to replace inferior parts with less inferior parts.
 

Command Line RC

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This is good news, thanks to both of you for posting this. The one end of my drag link is shot and also have the soft bushing on the track bar. I have a Synergy drag link sitting on my bench ready to go in and hope to get it this weekend.

Like you @[SIZE=4][B][URL='https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/members/command-line-rc.15007/']Command Line RC[/URL][/B][/SIZE] I just don't have the time or energy to argue with the dealer to replace inferior parts with less inferior parts.
LOL heard you on that!
 

jmcl

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Took my 2018 Jeep Wrangler Sahara to dealer Wednesday for loose wandering steering. My Jeep has build date of Sept. 2018 so it already had firmware for steering system. They replaced track bar and realigned and I will say the wandering is considerably better. I still have the very annoying 1-2 inches of play in the steering, but with the wondering improved I am not having to constantly correct while driving. Dealer would not adjust steering box and did not want to replace it. I still believe the steering box has way too much play in it.
 

HiJinx69

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Took my 2018 Jeep Wrangler Sahara to dealer Wednesday for loose wandering steering. My Jeep has build date of Sept. 2018 so it already had firmware for steering system. They replaced track bar and realigned and I will say the wandering is considerably better. I still have the very annoying 1-2 inches of play in the steering, but with the wondering improved I am not having to constantly correct while driving. Dealer would not adjust steering box and did not want to replace it. I still believe the steering box has way too much play in it.
When you say realigned, what did they adjust? The factory track bar is one piece and not adjustable. Just curious.
 

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jmcl

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When you say realigned, what did they adjust? The factory track bar is one piece and not adjustable. Just curious.
4-wheel tire alignment
 

jmcl

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Took my 2018 Jeep Wrangler Sahara to dealer Wednesday for loose wandering steering. My Jeep has build date of Sept. 2018 so it already had firmware for steering system. They replaced track bar and realigned and I will say the wandering is considerably better. I still have the very annoying 1-2 inches of play in the steering, but with the wondering improved I am not having to constantly correct while driving. Dealer would not adjust steering box and did not want to replace it. I still believe the steering box has way too much play in it.
Today I tightened up my steering box and now drives perfect. I was definitely afraid I was going to strip the allen nut and that must be the reason dealers are refusing to mess with it. New track bar, proper wheel alignment, and tightened steering has my jeep driving great.
 
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2019RubiconNY

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My steering hasn’t really improved. But I went to get a new driver side fender flare installed and painted. The body shop Jeep in Carmel uses is trash and totally messed it up.
So they “took care of it” and put on a flare from another white Jeep. BUT ITS NOT A RUBICON FLARE so it sits lower. Look at how low driver side is.
Unreal, how can this dealership be so careless!!!
@JeepCares i sent you a message, PLEASE CALL ME. All this dealer cared about was getting their loaner back. THIS NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED!
 

RagTopDeluxe

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Interesting thread.

I have less than 500 miles on my JLR, which I’ve had for little over a week. We took it to the coast Saturday and my husband did not like driving it at all because of the wandering and looseness. He had a JKUR with a lift that handled better.

I have the PSI at 35 cold.

It’s going to the dealer in the morning because the rear differential is acting up :angry: and I’m gong to have the steering issues looked at/entered into the system, too. (At least once it’s driveable again).
 

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Did the dealer give you a hard time acknowledging the existence of the issue? A lot of people are getting the "it's a jeep thing" excuse which is totally unrelated in this case.

My dealer acknowledged the issue and took it in right away. I still have a slight wobble on the drivers side sometimes, and they want it back to changes more parts. They owned up to it right away, no questions.
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