Thread: HELP PLEASE!!! Serious steering issues

ace,
had the same problem with mine and it turned out to be the king pin preload as mentioned earlier. don't just do one, do both. it's not a big job.
the spacer at the bottom is fibrous and wears out, this is to maintain friction on the pivot joint and to protect the surface of the king pin.
there's two bolts on top of the retainer, jack the front axle up, take the wheels off, put an ice cream container under the swivel housing, and undo the two bolts and pull them out.
lift the cap off and take out all of the shims, work out which is the thinest and put the rest back on. if you have both wheels off, you should be able to move the hubs back and forward after you've tightened the bolts back up without too much binding. put it all back together and do the other side.
easy
if you find the wobble is still there, you may have to pull out a bigger shim,
have fun

Hi Phil, i have my good tyres on and they are all fine checked those first, checked the tyre pressures yesterday before i took it in, all are at 40psi

Mahn, i set the damper up so that is was parralel to the rod but will fiddle with it some more, it might be twisted to far around the drag link meaning it doesnt line up properly.

Barney, i will do that mate, thanks. Do those tomorrow and fit the new damper on friday when it arrives. I will report back to morrow. Matt

Hi Ace
Terry 1300881481, www.4wddirect.com.au/ ,he is a top guy to talk to and an ex Disco owner.Has all the top brand names,Billstiens,lovells,OME,EFS,4Ways,TJM snorkels,winches ets.
Plug AULRO to him,he knows about us,Im sure we can talk him into advertising here.
Andrew

Loose Panhard Rod.
Rock chassis side to side and you'll hear/feel it clunk. Check all bolts/fixings and bushes on the Panhard Rod. Otherwise swivel pin pre-load.
BTW, wheel alignment is 0-2mm toe out.

Matt how much play is in the steering wheel? is it adjusted at the the box correctly to have a steering wheel buck like that shows that some thing is dangerously wrong..how are your bushes on your steering gear.
Have you put the front on jack stands and done a physical check trying to track down the looseness?

I have heard of a number of cases similar to this with a variety of Landrovers - and in nearly all cases the answer has been swivel pin preload.
Mind you, one that wasn't was about forty-five years ago - turned out one of the front wheels was 26oz (nearly 1kg) out of balance - and it nearly disappeared when the swivels were set up properly.

If everything else is spot on you can sometimes get away with no preload, but then a very minor change is made, such as your new tie rod, and it starts wobbling. As someone said, the upper swivel bearing is a fibre bush that does wear, and from time to time you need to adjust it.

The later Defenders and Disco 2s I believe have roller bearings top and bottom - I don't know how they manage to avoid the need for damping at the swivels, probably rely more on the damper, possibly rely on friction from the seal.
John

I know you've said you're shocks are OK, and everything else appears OK;

If, after the re-alignment you still get the shakes at 80-90k either with or without the damper on, then think about the tyres - as in round or not. I say this because I've just been through it myself. Same deal re new track rod and alignment - checked operation of swivels, no missing rim weights, all joints to spec ( ps How are the ball joints and clamps on the rods?). So, I whip the wheels off and go for re balance, lo and behold my Pirelli's with only 40k on them now are bulging and scalloped. I couldn't tell except on the balancer when it spins up to speed. In the end, came to the conclusion that the 4 year old Monroe Gas magnums were on their way out. Replaced them with OME Nitrochargers, and on taking the old ones off, found that only one had depressurised. Still it was sufficient to do the damage.

PITA huh!

Originally Posted by LandyAndy

Hi Ace
Terry 1300881481, www.4wddirect.com.au/ ,he is a top guy to talk to and an ex Disco owner.Has all the top brand names,Billstiens,lovells,OME,EFS,4Ways,TJM snorkels,winches ets.
Plug AULRO to him,he knows about us,Im sure we can talk him into advertising here.
Andrew

What you up to Andrew..part time commission salesperson.. or a store credit for spotters fee.. and has Blackbetty got her new legs yet as the 12th is comin up fast.