My steering is loose, why?

[88AMCOMANCHE]

Ive been driving the jeep for 2 & a half days now (kinda keeping track ) ....and when i first drove it,I noticed something about the steering feels "different". So my friend wanted to drive it. After he did, i asked him what he thought about the steering, he said it felt a little loose.
After that Ive paid close attention to how it steers. On a 5 miles straight road,I have to focus comepletely on staying straight. My left hand,while holding the wheel....will have to move about 2" left or right give or take as im driving. My old car...there was only about 1" maybe if that.
What would cause a bit of play in the steering? Its NOT the column,The entire tilt mechenism was rebuil & torqued with ThreadLoc. Someone said the steering damper could be worn out ? im gonna look maybe & see if the steering shaft has any play where it connects to the lower section of shaft under the hood. Looks like its 2 different pieces that connect.

]PS- I feel like im the only person asking questions here. Sorry,its just I dont know a lot about a lot of things on a Jeep. Learning as I go and I thank everyone for any help you might give.

[Firemanray]

Check tie rods, track bar, drag link, and if all is tight it could be the steering gear. That can be adjusted somewhat to tighten it.

[cantab27]

what ray said,,,,,plus the more questions the better

[88AMCOMANCHE]

can u tell me sorta where the steering gear is located? maybe thats the prob.

[Firemanray]

can u tell me sorta where the steering gear is located? maybe thats the prob.

Thats the mechanism at the opposite end of your steering column from the steering wheel, bolted to the frame rail.

[88AMCOMANCHE]

oh, so where the shaft & gear goes onto the steering box? which attaches to the frame?

[hookedonxjs]

The gears are inside the box and there is a set screw and locknut on the top that you can tighten the slop up if the slop is in the box like what other people said there are a number of things that could cause that. Turn the wheel back and forth looking at your tires to see if they move in relation to turning the wheel and have someone watch your steering system for things that look wrong. By the time your done with everything you'll be a real pro. It's cool to watch as you have tackled every thing that has come your way with your commanche. :congrats:

[hookedonxjs]

88 I saw your mj has 191,000 on it, so your stabilizer could be shot plus the bushings in the control arms and trackbar might be as well or it could be something as simple as a part that came loose. In the end it's all about the process of elimination. Make a note xjs and mjs are not known for their on road handling.

[88AMCOMANCHE]

it started with replacing a fender, then onto the whole front clip, then the front bumper,then repairing a slightly mangled hood,then replaced it with a good one later,then rebuilt the steering column (was a nightmare going in,coming out was a breeze) ,then replaced the heatercore,then removed the interior & began cutting out the drivers floor & a small section of passenger floor,then purchased a smalll welder & practiced welding for the 1st time in the small area of the passenger floor in an 8x4 area that was bad, Replaced both front rotors & calipers, replaced rear shoes,flushed the cooling system. Replaced all the small lights in the dash (roughly 12 of them),replaced ignition tumbler swicth ,replaced ignition starter switch on the column. ....still work to be done.

[bigjim350]

My steering has been loose a few times. Every time on mine it is either the pitman arm rocking slightly on the steering box shaft or a loose tre on the frame end of my track bar. Get some one to turn the steering wheel back and forth while you check things out underneith. If you don't see any loose parts then it will most likely be your steering box. There are a few write ups on the net on how to adjust the box if its that.

[88AMCOMANCHE]

think i will attach a string of muletape to the steering wheel about 6' long or so and get underneath.I should be able to pull the top of the steering wheel where it rocks back n forth,maybe enough to see . Thanx. I adjusted a steering box long ago on a 69 mustang. sounds similar. Loosened the nut & turned this big screw slot in about a 1/4 turn.

[LizardRunner]

you know how to adjust the steering box, good on ya there. The first car I learned on was my 66 GTO. I had to do all the work on that one by myself it was part of the deal to get it with my dad. Now I'm learning about XJ's and it's great. By the way, you can not ask to many questions, that just isn't possible.

[88AMCOMANCHE]

All I had to do was remove 2 8mm bolts for the E-fan & set it aside & the Bolt was in plain view. I actually got a half a turn out of the little center allen head screw. Now my steering feels pretty normal. Maybe a 1/2" play,if that.

[steph74]

good job and thanks for keeping us updated on your progresses.

Another thing, if you have a tilt column, you may want to check if the bolts are tigh. I retightened min and it make a good difference.

[88AMCOMANCHE]

thanx. I made sure to tightened those 4 lil screws Extra good and Also have a nice coat of Loctight on them also. I made sure it would be atleast a decade or so before they cause a problem :p

[4x4Dalton]

Good to hear man. You sure have came along way with yer 88. Only better times in it are ahead for ya.

[88AMCOMANCHE]

I dont really see it I guess. Probably because i see it everyday. I remember the night I bought it .....sight unseen,at night . Steering wheel just wobbled in your hands as I idled around the yard,front drivers corner clip had an "ouch" which evolved into replacing the Fender and bumper and eventually the whole front clip. It was leaking fluid from everywhere a vehicle can leak from ....she didnt even have a cap on the PS reserviour and was driving it like that. The only thing it wasnt leaking was Oil. 6-7 months into it I decided ok,mow im all done...time to take care of that tiny lil rust hole in the drivers floor .....which once the carpet & padding comes out,its a whole new ballgame lol That ended up being an entire flooorpan plus a 4x8" on the passenger side too. Rear bumper was pushed in against the body on both sides,so using 800 pound Muletape doubled up & a big oaktree,I managed to pull both ends of the rear bumper out basically straight again. ....they had a Kill switch between the battery pos. and the starter to prevent the dashlights fromkilling the batttery since they had the dashlights wired directly into an all time hot fuselink in the fusebox,rather than simply running the lighst where they actually go. So you had to open the hood,turn on the switch ,close the hood,get in & start it ...each time you wanna start the truck. ....amazing the shortcuts some people will take sometimes. Every single project on it ive tried to fix has went on to become a much bigger problem waiting for me seems like. Now a year later ...when i see it sitting in walmart parking lot for example....It appears to be in "mediocre" condition.But its taken a lot of blood ,sweat And ALMOST tears lol to get where it is now.. ....just wish I had put alll that effort into the drivetrain. But it feels healthy & no smoke and no overheating so ...I keep my fingers crossed.

[lmc719xj]

My 2001 jeep cherokee has the same issue, the original gear box got trashed when I got stuck in a creek and mangled the front end. I replaced it with a reman from o'reily and I had alot of slop in the steering wheel, I then found that it was defective so took it back and got a new one, same issue but this one you could move the gears by hand and the seals were blown out, so today I returned it and got yet another gear box, nothing is leaking yet but it still has alot of slop in the steering, iv checked everything else and I see no issue or problems with anything, I tried to tighten the set screw on top of the gear box and it did nothing for the slop, just made it harder to steer. It's driving me crazy and it's pretty scetchy driving on the highway or going above 45, but it's not death wobble. I never had any issues until I went in the creek. Any help is very appreciated Thanks

[XJ Wheeler]

Could be inferior parts used to reman them from where you're buying them, but a couple suggestions to rule some things out.

Check your "frame rail" by the gear box for cracks. This could be allowing the box to flex more, giving you the slop you mentioned.

Have you checked the joints in the steering shaft?

Also, watch the front end steering components with someone steering the tires left and right while stationary, tires in the ground to look for anything moving that shouldn't. Track bars and brackets and be a harder to notice issue that might go unsolved, but this should help narrow it down some.

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[lmc719xj]

Frame rail has no cracks and I replaced joints, steering stabilizer, and track bar, when I disconnect the pitman arm then turn the wheel it still does the same thing, iv never trashed a clock spring but could that be an issue? Thanks for the help I appreciate it.

[XJ Wheeler]

Frame rail has no cracks and I replaced joints, steering stabilizer, and track bar, when I disconnect the pitman arm then turn the wheel it still does the same thing, iv never trashed a clock spring but could that be an issue? Thanks for the help I appreciate it.
The clock spring just sends the electrical current through for the horn, airbag, and cruise on the wheel. No control over steering.

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