Jnez2006
Member
Wow! Thank you for the explanation! That was very helpful! I think I’m starting to get used to the feeling.... I’ve only ever driven sports cars, so when making the transition it was pretty freaky. Felt like I had absolutely no control!This is because of the steering box ratio - according to some research done by another member, the 4-door box is 15.6 to 1 and the 2-door box is 17.4 to 1. Basically what's happening is since we have these high-ratio boxes, it makes the turning effort easier because of the heavy wheel-tire combo, but can make it prone to numbness or wandering (think old '70s couch-on-wheels Buicks and Cadillacs). Sports cars and the like have much tighter ratio boxes, usually around 12 to 1.
These numbers translate into roughly 4 complete rotations of the steering wheel to go from full-left to full-right when you have a box around 17:1, and 3 complete rotations (maybe less) of the steering wheel when it's dropped down to 12:1. That will make a big difference in how much the steering wheel needs to be turned to negotiate a curve, and how numb it may feel. But again, remember this is Jeep's way of avoiding complaints that the steering is too heavy or firm; a quick-ratio box can give that feeling to some drivers, especially with heavy wheels and tires.
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