2002 Sport Handling and Control Help Needed

[cjhelver]

Help needed here please... I have a 2002 sport 4wd and the handling control of it sucks. I recently put on 16x8 rims with 255/70/16 aggressive tires as i visit the snow quite often. I am experincing a lot of loss of traction, hop, and just really "mushy" feeling steering.

Thank you in advance for your help.

Cheryl

 

[X24]

Has it happened just since you put the new rims and tires on it or has it always been that way?

 

[SiLenZe]

is this all the time? in 2wd? 4wd? describe the road conditions

 

[jimbo74]

if you put on mud tires, that is why, mud tires exhibit very poor street manners, and if you arent careful in the snow, can easily lose traction especially if there is any ice present

 

[cjhelver]

I haven't tried it in 4wd to see how it handles. Before putting on the new tires and rims it had some sway, but nothing like it does now. The tires are not mud tires, they just have med. aggressive pattern.

Thanks,
Cheryl

 

[cjhelver]

Road conditions are normal. One thing I have noticed is going over railroad tracks or bumpy pavement is when it's really bad with the control.

Thanks again,
Cheryl

 

[JOHN V.]

We have the answer at Explorer Express!

There are two simple answers to your Sport problems. Shocks and sway bar will solve the problems you have. The Edelbrock Shocks will smooth out the bounce over bumps and our X-Spec Rear Sway Bar (ZD5622 $179.95) will help stability and handling while reducing body roll. The sway bar is one of the best things you can do to your Sport.

www.explorerexpress.com

 

[SiLenZe]

i agree the sway bar is a great upgrade. in 2wd the explorer is rear wheel drive. so taking turns under slippery conditions can cause the backend to fishtail easy.
i would have your front end allignment checked if you have problems driving over bumps. does it jolt to one side when you take a turn over a bump?

 

[cjhelver]

Haven't been driving under slippery conditions. And yes, it jolt's to one side when you take a turn over a bump. Thats the best way to describe it. But it's the rear end that moves over.

 

[RickOTR]

What you are experiencing is what is known as "Bump Steer". This happens when the tie rods are not the same height, and therefore one of the tie rods is not parallel to the lower control arm (uneven). I fixed this by having a first class wheel alignment and making sure each tie rod was same length on each side. Take it to a good body or alignment shop that deals with trucks because they usually have the best equipment and experience.