JK Front end pulling...

[ThinkMud]

I have over 4"s of lift on my JK, with stock steering, control arms etc... only thing new on the front end is an adjustable track bar. I believe I have it set up right, the axle is pretty centered (just eyeballing it). but it pulls all the time, mostly to the passenger side, but sometimes to the driver side.

I've left the tow in (i think that's what it's called) the same as stock, but I've read on some JK forums that for 35" tires you should actually adjust the tow in more, and then for 37" less? but my race car/mechanic friend says he always makes his rides' tow to be 0, true straight or something he called it.

i think the stock JK has like a 1/8" tow setting, making the tires actually point together from the front 1/8" more the from the back.

also I think i'm getting a teeny bit of bump steer, nothing major, but noticeable at times. I still have my stock steering dampener on too.

so any suggestions what I could try/buy to use? i'm wondering if my tie rod is just not beefy enough to handle the tires? or maybe I just need to adjust the tow? or would caster angle have anything to do with it? if so, then i need adjustable control arms, since the JK has no way to adjust caster.

Thanks for any advice.

[Pacifier]

Balance the tires and get your JunK aligned properly, and the issue should be fixed. Trust me on this one!

[ThinkMud]

Tires are balanced perfect now, no more death wobble! and i'm not paying to align it when that is too easy on a solid axle. I just need to know what the tow should be, 0, 1/8", 1/4" etc... that's the only alignment option you have on a jk, and that is just adjusting the tie-rod. (ten minute job with a long ruler).

I was just wondering if anything else could be making it off, like could caster be causing it, or maybe my ball joints in my tie-rod are bad b/c of wheeling it or something?

also it pulls the same with different psi in my tires, i've tried 28 through 35 and it still does the same thing.

[Pacifier]

Bad Ball Joints - You'll notice that as you drive, your vehicle is wobbly and unable to stay in a straight line. There may also be loud, clunking noises coming from your vehicle when you attempt to drive over bumps if you are having problems with your suspension system. The purpose of your ball joints is to joint your ties and suspension together. The weight of your vehicle is also supported by the ball joints. Higher mileage vehicles are usually the ones that end up needing replacement ball joints and ties. Oversize tires will also cause quick wear and tear on your Ball Joints.

[ThinkMud]

so a beefy HD tie-rod is my future? that sounds good to me:) can Diego get some deals?

[Pacifier]

Let me know the part (brant, part number) that you're looking for, and I can try to get them cheaper for you.

[ThinkMud]

alright, i'll have to look around, not sure how many companies are making them for the JK. I'm guessing they aren't cheap though:(

[sparky]

aA low caster angle will make it more sensitive to road crown, sometimes it might pull left and sometimes right. Hope that helps somehow.:tinysmile_shutup_t:

[ThinkMud]

aA low caster angle will make it more sensitive to road crown, sometimes it might pull left and sometimes right. Hope that helps somehow.:tinysmile_shutup_t:

actually man, i think you are dead on it! I've been doing some research about JK's and lifts and I think it is mostly the caster being out of whack. so I ordered a set of Rusty's front adjustable lower control arms. they will allow me to set my caster properly and hopefully bring the front end geometry back closer to stock.

they should be here next week, so we'll see how they do with with helping my issues out.

and a beefy tie-rod is next on the menu for the front end.

[richs347]

Please make sure you fill us on whether or not things changed.

[ThinkMud]

I will, I'll be mad if it doesn't aprove anything, but it totally makes sense about the caster.

[blthomas]

What Sparky said. CJ guys fight this alot since the Scout fronts have 0 degrees castor, CJ's have 4-6 IIRC from the get go.

My last one I had screwed up castor angle and I wsa all over the road.

I didn't put in shims with my 2" lift, with the 4.5" I might have to.

Hope those control arms help you out.

[sparky]

actually man, i think you are dead on it! I've been doing some research about JK's and lifts and I think it is mostly the caster being out of whack. so I ordered a set of Rusty's front adjustable lower control arms. they will allow me to set my caster properly and hopefully bring the front end geometry back closer to stock.

they should be here next week, so we'll see how they do with with helping my issues out.

and a beefy tie-rod is next on the menu for the front end. Doesnt yours have eccentric bolts on the LCA`S?
mine has the mopar lift on it and it doesnt do anything weird, my tj on the other hand at 3 in was a nightmare for some reason never did get it right so i traded it!!:tinysmile_fatgrin_t

[ThinkMud]

No, stock JK's do not have any way to adjust any of the control arms. there is no cam bolts or anything, but people have kits for those, but they don't work good.

I got Rusty's Adjustable Lower Control Arms and they got here today and they are super beefy, and should give me some more flex since they have flex joints and not fixed "bushing" joints like the stock arms:)

[ThinkMud]

ok, i have not installed the front lower adj. control arms, but did swap out tires to the new IROKs, and they are way wider then the BFG's, and now... my constant pulling isn't as noticeable... go figure. but now i do notice that it pulls based on grooves in the road and stuff, which i'm sure is normal for a 14" wide tire, haha, but the constant pull is gone. i've heard some people adjust their toe-in differently with 35" vs. 37" tires, so maybe my toe-in was off?

also measured today and my adj. track bar needs adjusting, my front axle is a good full inch further to the driver side. but i don't see how that would affect it any. or could it??

[blthomas]

My rear axle is out of place by about 3/4". I'll tell you it sure seems to make it pull some compared to when it was centered.

How is the castor like we talked about above? Maybe it's still a degree out or something.

Or it could be those big fawkin' tires. :tinysmile_aha_t: :tinysmile_fatgrin_t

[ThinkMud]

haven't adjusted my castor yet... figured i'd wait to put the control arms on when i take my axle off to weld in the c-gussets and axle sleeves. gonna adjust my track bar this weekend to see what that does.