Steering wobble while turning

[prerunner1982]

I recently put 30" Mud Kings all around. Since then when I am turning regardless of how fast I am going the tires wobble side to side, I can feel it in the steering wheel. It reminds me of a slow speed death wobble, obviously not as violent but the same motion.

It is not locked in 4wd and happens regardless of how tight I am turning so I do not think it is the axle shaft ujoints that are binding.

I was having DW issues due to mismatched front tires and putting matching tires on the front has helped significantly, except as the speed goes up it because more unstable and DW increases.

To reiterate, had DW, put on matching tires, DW goes away mostly, but slow speed wobble while turning appears.


I also have noticed when driving down my road (1/2 mile dirt road in poor condition) that when I go over a bump my tires wobble. This happened even before I put the new tires on. I typically don't recommend a steering stabilizer for a front suspension/steering issue, but in this case I think I may need one.

When I was putting the new tires on the wheel bearings and tie rods seemed fine and there did not appear to be any slack in the steering box though it does appear to have a small seep around the shaft the pitman arm attaches to.

What do you guys think?

[cantab27]

lift ya wheels and grab em at 12 and 6 and see if there is any movement.. last time i had that was bad hubs,,good way to check

[prerunner1982]

Did it when I was putting the new tires on and didn't see/feel any movement.

[cantab27]

get under her why someone moves steering wheel from side to side........see if anything moves that shouldnt.....

[prerunner1982]

get under her.....

:thumbsup::drinking:

I do have a very loud popping sound that initially sounded like it was coming from the steering shaft, but the more I hear it i think it may be the upper track bar joint....again.

I don't doubt that a bad track bar mount could cause the problem, but for it to happen at such a slow speed I would think it would cause problems in other areas as well. But right now I just have the slow speed wobble while turning and the unstable wanting to wobble feel at 45mph+.

I have had weirder things happen though.

[cantab27]

lets us know how ya go jon....

[nickxj94]

Check the trackbar frame mount for movement when turning the wheels, see if the bolts are tight too

[XJ Wheeler]

Might want to check the steering box bolts for tightness and its mounting location for cracks.

[4.3LXJ]

I had the same issue with some well used BFGs. I had a belt separating, but did not cause a bubble. It went fine straight, but in a slow turn you could hear it squeaking and the front end would shift. Sounded like a cheap pair of sneakers. I put it on the rear and it solved the problem with the steering until it finally got bad enough I had to replace a pair of tires. You might try rotating your tires and see if it helps.