wondering defender

**stig0000** · 27th April 2009, 05:48 PM

hey all,, im all out of idears, my mate has a defender 04 like mine an after we went 4wding, his car wonders realy bad at highway speeds, its allover the place, if your not paying attention you will end up in the next lane,

, he has jiven it to me for a colpe of days to sort it out an iv had a look at all the balljoints an ther fine, he also has had a wheel alingnment if that would fix it,

it dident, so iv tightend up his steering box an thats now perfict, but it still wonders realy bad??

any idears what it could be?

**justinc** · 27th April 2009, 05:58 PM

Is it steering from the rear?
I have had several later 110's with loose upper A frame bracket bolts and even 1 with lower trailing arm bolts loose. Never been tightenend since manufacture and missed the PD, as some had REALLY flogged bushes and couldn't be tightened enough

Another culprit is the panhard rod bushes, I bet those are loose aswell...

JC

**stig0000** · 27th April 2009, 06:02 PM

Originally Posted by justinc

Is it steering from the rear?
I have had several later 110's with loose upper A frame bracket bolts and even 1 with lower trailing arm bolts loose. Never been tightenend since manufacture and missed the PD, as some had REALLY flogged bushes and couldn't be tightened enough

Another culprit is the panhard rod bushes, I bet those are loose aswell...

JC

yer thanks mate, he has had the A frame bushes replaced an the balljoint replaced about 15000km ago, along with a panhard rod

, but it has happend very fast, only since 4wding, an its defenetly coming from the front end,

**Blknight.aus** · 27th April 2009, 06:04 PM

assuming its properly aligned, its got decent and correctly inflated tyres and the swiv pins are correctly set.

its the suspension bushes or the panhard rod bushes.

***on the edit***

if hes bumped it onto something like a tree stump he may have punched the radius arm bush at the chassis.

**stig0000** · 27th April 2009, 06:07 PM

Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

assuming its properly aligned, its got decent and correctly inflated tyres and the swiv pins are correctly set.
.

thats exacaly what it feels like, running with very low almost flat tyres, but they are set right, idk tho about the swivel pins

, how do you cheak them

**justinc** · 27th April 2009, 06:14 PM

Originally Posted by stig0000

yer thanks mate, he has had the A frame bushes replaced an the balljoint replaced about 15000km ago, along with a panhard rod

, but it has happend very fast, only since 4wding, an its defenetly coming from the front end,

15,000km? Definately time to recheck the bolts. TIGHT, TIGHT, TIGHT.
Also, I forgot to mention the steering column unis, is there excessive play in the steering aswell at rest?

JC

**Blknight.aus** · 27th April 2009, 06:16 PM

jack it up and give it the rim rock test as if you were doing a bearing play check.

IF thats all good jack the wheels up and drop the rods off the arms and try to turn the wheel if they dont twist smoothly and evenly then the preloads out.

tho Id consider it odd to find the swivs out on something thats only of 04 vintage unless its been fairly well abused or used on lots of corrugations.

my moneys on a collapsed bush somewhere..

as a side,

is it lifted?

**shano79** · 27th April 2009, 06:30 PM

I would also be checking to see if the track and steering rods havent been damaged. On military vehicles this is a very common and a small bend can be cause similar problems.

**stig0000** · 27th April 2009, 06:37 PM

Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

assuming its properly aligned, its got decent and correctly inflated tyres and the swiv pins are correctly set.

its the suspension bushes or the panhard rod bushes.

***on the edit***

if hes bumped it onto something like a tree stump he may have punched the radius arm bush at the chassis.

no i was with him the hole time, an it wasent very hard stuff we were on, there was one bit that was rutted an you had to hit it sorta hard cos the diffs were touching, it was all soft mud tho so nothing hard we hit,

no its not lifted, it has never done this befor an has come all of a suden,, its been uesd but not abused,,

**JDNSW** · 27th April 2009, 06:54 PM

As above plus a couple of extra points.

It will be something allowing the wheels to move independently from the steering wheel, or possibly a bent tie rod. Things to check:-

1. tie rod ends - no play on any, including on the pitman arm.
2. Panhard rod - use a lever to try and move them or watch them while steering is moved with the wheels on the ground and engine running. Bolts should be tight, clamping the centre tube. Check the mounting brackets are not cracked
3. Steering box secure. Check all bolts.
4. Pitman arm secure on pitman shaft.
5. No free play between steering wheel and box.
6. Front radius arms. Check for free play on axle bushes with a lever. Ensure bolts are tightand brackets not cracked. Check free play on chassis mounts using a lever. Check for cracks on the outrigger, and ensure the nut is tight.
7. Swivels. Jack both front wheels off the ground and put on axle stands. With brakes held on by a helper, check for any vertical play. If there is any at all, swivels need attention. While doing this, sideways play will check tie rod ends and pitman and steering box mounts, possibly even panhard rod problems. Any increase in free play when brakes are released indicates a wheel bearing problem. While you are at it check for loose wheels or cracked wheels, and also look at the possibility of a fractured tyre carcass. The actual swivel preload is checked by disconnecting the tie rod and drag link, and checking that the swivels turn smoothly and with steady resistance. Should need about 15lbs pull on the tie rod eye to move them with the seals installed - if it is something like that this is not the problem. If it just flops as soon as the tie rod and drag link are off, you need to adjust the preload, even if it is not the only problem.
8. Axle housing. Inspect for being bent or cracked or loose or broken bolts attaching the swivels.
9. rear axle. Check lower links both ends for worn bushes or loose bolts or cracked brackets. Use a lever or have the vehicle rocked back and forth with the handbrake on, looking for movement. Most likely problem is the rear end of the lower link onto the axle.
10. A-frame. Check ball joint and bushes, again, looking for movement with a crow bar.

The problem could be any of the above, or a combination of several of them.

John

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