Poor steering.........throwing in the towel

[Tunesoul]

Please keep in mind that this is only one of a relatively small amount of folks (in comparison to the people who have no issues) reporting steering problems.... Like I've mentioned, my steering and Jeep overall has been nothing short of amazing and solid as a rock!
Am I the only one????????? Maybe I just got lucky and got one of the few JLURs without issues... Sweet!!!

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[Dusty Camaro]

Please keep in mind that this is only one of a relatively small amount of folks (in comparison to the people who have no issues) reporting steering problems.... Like I've mentioned, my steering and Jeep overall has been nothing short of amazing and solid as a rock!
Am I the only one????????? Maybe I just got lucky and got one of the few JLURs without issues... Sweet!!!

Happy to hear yours is issue free!!

And yes, those of us dealing with it are seemingly a small percentage of overall owners. However, for those of us who own one that is problematic, it's genuinely disappointing. And, the lack of solution from FCA is nothing short of abysmal. Driving a Jeep w/ steering issues is like that little hand held pinball game with a bb that you try to drop in a hole. It wanders from white line to yellow line.

 

[Chewbacca2264]

So a couple more quick points, when my dad drove this thing he described it as having "too much body roll" and followed it up with the fact that he felt that the front wheels were not going in the same direction as the body, when attempting to steer to correct this there was a dead spot and then a rapid "catch up" that caused oversteering. Honestly his description was pretty dead on for a non Jeep guy, though in all honesty he drove both of my JK's so he has some Jeep experience. I guess I can't really describe the steering any better than that. Also today I started the process of putting this back to stock, went to set the tow back to the .1 it was set at during alignment. While torqueing the lock nut after collar adjustment I noticed that the tie rod moves up and down. Not rotationally, literally straight up and down with a clunking noise. Look a metric value of maybe 3/16-1/4 of an inch. As I recall my JKUS tie road would rotate but not move up and down. Last point I am finding that the closer I get the tow to 0 the better the Jeep handles. It is still vague and the steering still sucks but it does track better. I played with bumping the tow in past 1/8 and it actually got worse. I have it back to 1/16 now because that it is where it was set during alignment but while playing with it when I took it to 0 it did handle better, FWIW.

 

[Chewbacca2264]

Wow, that's crazy. I have 8500mi on my 2018 JLUR and the steering has been solid. Hands down the best feeling steering I've ever experienced in any of my vehicles. Trips me out when I hear that some people feel their steering is less than perfection. I'm wondering if there really is a problem or if people just don't like the way it feels for some reason...

Tunesoul,
I can tell you that I put in over 100k miles in two JK's, one two door sport and a JKUS, trust me there is a problem. I am so pissed I traded in my JKUS that I cannot even begin to explain. This vehicle has been nothing but a headache from the beginning. Two JK's had exactly one warranty item that took approximately 15 min. This thing has been back at least 4 times now, the service guys are absolutely stumped and to make matters worse I bought this from a buddy who works there and he feels awful. Silence from FCA and that is the most disappointing part. Oh and I would like to add that one of my buddies bought a very similar Jeep to mine a week before, his is tight as could be and handles like a dream. I guess it is a game of chance and I lost on this one.

 

[Tunesoul]

Tunesoul,
I can tell you that I put in over 100k miles in two JK's, one two door sport and a JKUS, trust me there is a problem. I am so pissed I traded in my JKUS that I cannot even begin to explain. This vehicle has been nothing but a headache from the beginning. Two JK's had exactly one warranty item that took approximately 15 min. This thing has been back at least 4 times now, the service guys are absolutely stumped and to make matters worse I bought this from a buddy who works there and he feels awful. Silence from FCA and that is the most disappointing part. Oh and I would like to add that one of my buddies bought a very similar Jeep to mine a week before, his is tight as could be and handles like a dream. I guess it is a game of chance and I lost on this one.

Lemon Law?

 

[Chewbacca2264]

Lemon Law?

Looked into it, likely to take months during which time no Jeep. At this point I just want it gone.

 

[kre62]

Why not go the distance first and replace the tie rods and drag links with steer smarts components? Seems like those are the true issues. Many reporting that with the full steer smarts setup, steering is immaculate.

 

[smithrd65]

My steering is solid 12K miles all smiles.
All I can say is BYE

 

[Bearded_Dragon]

Please keep in mind that this is only one of a relatively small amount of folks (in comparison to the people who have no issues) reporting steering problems.... Like I've mentioned, my steering and Jeep overall has been nothing short of amazing and solid as a rock!
Am I the only one????????? Maybe I just got lucky and got one of the few JLURs without issues... Sweet!!!

According to this poll (https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...no-wander-no-wobble.21691/page-13#post-542809) if you combine both excessive steering wheel play and wandering issues votes, its almost 50%. That's a pretty large number lol.

Sorry to hear you're throwing in the towel Chewy.

 

[GreyFox]

According to this poll (https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...no-wander-no-wobble.21691/page-13#post-542809) if you combine both excessive steering wheel play and wandering issues votes, its almost 50%. That's a pretty large number lol.

Sorry to hear you're throwing in the towel Chewy.

Not entirely accurate tho. People either join forums to bitch or to learn (usually). People genuinely happy aren't getting on here singing praises. It sucks people aren't happy with the steering and they can't resolve it.

 

[californiajeeping]

After 6500 miles, non stop frustration and $1500 in aftermarket parts I have made the decision to throw in the towel and get rid of this thing. Bottom line is that it is not safe to drive, you can massage it around and drive super careful and get where you are going, but make no mistake if you have a situation where you have to react to some other dumb driver this thing is a death trap. Had a run in with a box truck yesterday on a mountain road that sealed the deal for me. He came around a sharp right hand corner in my lane. I was going up the mountain luckily and reacted by yanking the Jeep to the right, he also moved right and missed me by about 18". Problem is once the Jeep went right I tried to ease it back to the road, the passenger side tires were on the shoulder and well below the drivers side tires and there was not enough of a response. Forced to yank the wheel I was shocked that the Jeep rebounded dead left and carried me clear across the opposite driving lane. I managed to gather it up from there and did no damage but honestly after logging 100k miles in two JK's I can positively say that both of my JK's would have handled that situation with little more than some cursing from me. Bottom line is that after a Falcon Nexus 2.2, adjustable LCA's with caster set, a yeti track bar and a new steering box this thing still stinks. The box seemed better for about 200 miles, or until the weather warmed back up over 20 degrees and now it is as bad as the original box. There is a dead spot where the wheels do not react, once you get through that spot the wheels seem to react too quickly and when you are forced to make quick adjustments, like to avoid an idiot in your lane the Jeep is completely unpredictable. I have a line on a couple of 2018 JKUR's and will be dumping this thing at a bad loss as soon as possible. To all who have the poor handling Jeeps, beware and be careful, if you are forced to take evasive action on the road these things are worse than a handful.

Chewi

Did the dealership conduct the "Over-Center" test as described in the Star case at https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...has-play-and-drifts.3691/page-179#post-554123 ? They should check your old steering box and the new steering box that is now failing as well. Obviously a large amount of steering boxes are having this problem and they should keep replacing it until they find a good one.

 

[The Acme Company]

There are really two issues- steering stabilizer and the programming of the electric power steering pump.

The stabilizer causes the steering oscillation. There is a TSB posted in this forum for the power steering issue that may cause stiff steering in cold temps.

I have had both resolved by my dealer and my Jeep drives better than new. It puts my Jk’s to shame.

 

[jeepinhokie]

Looked into it, likely to take months during which time no Jeep. At this point I just want it gone.

Has anyone considered using NCDS (https://www.ncdsusa.org/consumers/automotive-warranty-disputes/) to resolve their issues?

As someone who has had a vehicle replaced by reporting my issues to BBB Auto Line (which FCA doesn't participate in--but does participate in NCDS, which appears to be analogous) and going into arbitration, I consider it well worth my time. The amount of attention I received once I made the report and followed the process was striking. By following this process, I ended up with a new vehicle.

I'm unsure if NCDS is as effective as BBB--but if they are, I'd seriously consider this option.

 

[californiajeeping]

Chewi, check this out - https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...has-play-and-drifts.3691/page-185#post-562919 Are you able to remove your steering stabilizer and safely test it like this OkRube did? Check out the follow up messages to his post. Fascinating.

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