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steering issues after lift

robertsj22

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so im thinking this is an age old problem. My buddy and i installed a quadratec 2.5 in lift on my 18 jlu sport. also put 35 in tires on it. Love the look. However the steering isn't right. It doesn't track well and wonders. and vibrates some. I checked the air pressure this morning and set them all to 35 psi. Also going to schedule an alignment as soon as i can get it in. Should this be just a front end alignment or do the whole vehicle. Any other steps i can take before i get this done? Im a rookie at this stuff so please be gentle
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moments.by.ron

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Did you install any other components - adj track bar or longer LCAs?
 
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robertsj22

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i did not just springs, shocks, sway bars and bump stops
 

Roky

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so im thinking this is an age old problem. My buddy and i installed a quadratec 2.5 in lift on my 18 jlu sport. also put 35 in tires on it. Love the look. However the steering isn't right. It doesn't track well and wonders. and vibrates some. I checked the air pressure this morning and set them all to 35 psi. Also going to schedule an alignment as soon as i can get it in. Should this be just a front end alignment or do the whole vehicle. Any other steps i can take before i get this done? Im a rookie at this stuff so please be gentle
Your caster is to low, don’t get alignment, you didn’t do anything to affect it. Get some adjustable lcas and then get alignment have them adjust your lcas to 6 degrees caster, this will fix it.
 

limeade

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i did not just springs, shocks, sway bars and bump stops
You answered your own question right there.

If you want your Jeep to steer and ride correctly after lifting it, you'll need to add (at a minimum):

Either adjustable front UCA's or LCA's - this is to adjust your caster. Symptoms of low caster are poor tracking and wandering (especially at higher speeds). When you lifted it, you shortened up your caster.

Front and rear adjustable track bars: your front axle is currently shifted to driver side and rear axle is shifted to passenger side. Therefore your handling is all wonky. Get the axles re-centered.

These are the minimum's you need.
 

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robertsj22

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would a new steering stabilzer help as well?
 

Jamrock

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This will help you understand.

When your Jeep left the factory, the suspension, track bar, control arms, etc. were all lined up to give you a reasonable ride. When you changed the height of the vehicle, things were no longer lined up.

You need to make some adjustments to bring things back in line.

 
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robertsj22

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Just as an update to this thread you guys were correct the caster was off currently it have it at right around 4-4.5. And yes the front axle is shifted to the drivers side these photos show it

37B9C0A6-B2E5-4855-B281-7F02FD58BF94.jpeg


D9D3B799-B1F9-41D6-B48F-39EE3C342E32.jpeg
 

Chief20

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Just as an update to this thread you guys were correct the caster was off currently it have it at right around 4-4.5. And yes the front axle is shifted to the drivers side these photos show it

37B9C0A6-B2E5-4855-B281-7F02FD58BF94.jpeg


D9D3B799-B1F9-41D6-B48F-39EE3C342E32.jpeg
So what did you wind up doing to fix it for your scenario ?
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