New JLUR 392 (~150 Miles), Caster is 3.7 and 4.0 degrees, dealer says it’s within spec

[Birdcatcher]

Hey there,

I took delivery of a JLUR 392 and immediately noticed the vague steering. Asked dealer to check alignment. Caster is 3.7 and 4.0 degrees. The factory range is 4.0-5.8 degrees.
Dealer/ Service dept says it’s within factory spec.

My DD is a BMW so the dealer insists I’m not familiar with driving a Jeep and that it’s a “Jeep” thing.

I know and have seen many threads about people complaining, expecting different from Jeep and laughed about it. Maybe it’s different when it falls upon you!

My take on this is - please don’t tell me 3.7 lies between 4.0 and 5.8!
Any vehicle that comes out of the factory needs to be within spec., otherwise, in my opinion, it’s a Quality control issue. I will deal with the handling and live with it if the caster is at least 4.0 on both sides!

Someone should be accountable for such poor quality, or maybe change factory spec range to -90.0 and +90.0 degrees, to have a blanket coverage so everything that comes out of factory is within spec!

What should I do, just go after market and fix it (I have the resources and I can), or just live with it!

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[Old Dogger]

The electronic assist P/S likes a positive caster of 5.0 to 6.0. The closer to 6.0, the better.

 

[Gorilla57]

Camber looks like crap too.......but within spec. So they won’t do anything about that.

 

[LOBBS]

You could always add the Mopar lift kit's LCAs. That would bring your caster into spec while still using an FCA part. The fact that all Wranglers use the same control arms from the Sport to the XR package is kinda mind boggling. Those longer control arms should really be stock on anything with the factory lift of the Rubicon on up.

 

[Birdcatcher]

Do you think the Mopar LCA's 0.25" extra will make enough of a difference from this low?
(Not sure, maybe bump it up by a degree or so and get it to 4.7 to 5.0 caster?)

 

[GATORB8]

Stock, caster is not adjustable. I show factory spec as 4.80* +/- 1*.

You are higher than a standard Rubicon, but have the same control arms, only logical you would be on the low end of the specifications.

 

[GATORB8]

Do you think the Mopar LCA's 0.25" extra will make enough of a difference from this low?
(Not sure, maybe bump it up by a degree or so and get it to 4.7 to 5.0 caster?)

Should get you around there. Cheap solution, under $100 for both, and probably a 15 minute install on the ground.

 

[JLUandCJ-7]

Hey there,

I took delivery of a JLUR 392 and immediately noticed the vague steering. Asked dealer to check alignment. Caster is 3.7 and 4.0 degrees. The factory range is 4.0-5.8 degrees.
Dealer/ Service dept says it’s within factory spec.

My DD is a BMW so the dealer insists I’m not familiar with driving a Jeep and that it’s a “Jeep” thing.

I know and have seen many threads about people complaining, expecting different from Jeep and laughed about it. Maybe it’s different when it falls upon you!

My take on this is - please don’t tell me 3.7 lies between 4.0 and 5.8!
Any vehicle that comes out of the factory needs to be within spec., otherwise, in my opinion, it’s a Quality control issue. I will deal with the handling and live with it if the caster is at least 4.0 on both sides!

Someone should be accountable for such poor quality, or maybe change factory spec range to -90.0 and +90.0 degrees, to have a blanket coverage so everything that comes out of factory is within spec!

What should I do, just go after market and fix it (I have the resources and I can), or just live with it!

Get the longer LCAs. I have them on my stock height Rubicon suspension and it made a world of difference. It's out of spec on mine still, but landed on the comfort side (in the 6s).

 

[joegrasse]

I thought this was pretty straightforward. Red bad, green good.

 

[Murphydog]

I did not have my alignment checked, and my other ride is a 2020 BMX X3M. My Jeep (Standard Rubicon) seemed a bit squirrely when I drove it off the lot. The first think I did was to drop air pressure to 35 PSI. I have toyed with the slightly longer Mopar control arms, but at 35 PSI my Rubicon drives good enough for me.

I don't know if lowering PSI will help, and if you do go with the longer control arms, please let us know the impact.

 

[JLUandCJ-7]

Do you think the Mopar LCA's 0.25" extra will make enough of a difference from this low?
(Not sure, maybe bump it up by a degree or so and get it to 4.7 to 5.0 caster?)

Found my alignment report with the longer LCA. I installed some of the tallest Rubicon springs and have .5 inch spacer. Ended up in the 6s.

 

[GATORB8]

I did not have my alignment checked, and my other ride is a 2020 BMX X3M. My Jeep (Standard Rubicon) seemed a bit squirrely when I drove it off the lot. The first think I did was to drop air pressure to 35 PSI. I have toyed with the slightly longer Mopar control arms, but at 35 PSI my Rubicon drives good enough for me.

I don't know if lowering PSI will help, and if you do go with the longer control arms, please let us know the impact.

This is a great point. Mine was delivered almost 10 PSI over the door placard.

 

[Birdcatcher]

I can certainly consider the MOPAR LCA's swap to get it to ~5.
However, I was just thinking if I should go with adjustable/ or .375" longer to bring it near ~6.
Or, is voiding warranty not worth the risk ?

So to sum it up, the way to go about this is to fix it myself, right? And try not to
void warranty!

 

[Birdcatcher]

Found my alignment report with the longer LCA. I installed some of the tallest Rubicon springs and have .5 inch spacer. Ended up in the 6s.

Do you happen to happen to have the Caster measurement before doing the MOPAR LCA swap?

 

[JLUandCJ-7]

Do you happen to happen to have the Caster measurement before doing the MOPAR LCA swap?

I don't, but this may prove helpful.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...heel-alignment-specs-toe-caster-camber.17832/

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