Front End Wanders // Steering is Fine.

[Cranmaro99]

Hey all,

So my mechanic friend and I are going to be looking into my 2001 5.0 AWD Limited Explorer today.

The Front end is wandering a lot and it started just this week. It's dangerous.

The thing is, I don't think it has to do directly with the STEERING. There is NO slack in the steering wheel or steering. If I turn the wheel just a few millimeters to the left or right the SUV responds. The steering acts like if it were brand new, which I am thankful for.

But the Explorer will wander over the road at all speeds, WITHOUT effecting the steering wheel. I dont feel a pull in the wheel at all, and when the Explorer wanders, the steering wheel stays straight. Considering there is no "slack" in the steering wheel itself when turning, and the fact that the car wanders around while the steering wheel is pointed STRAIGHT, it doesnt seem to be a direct steering issue to me.

All 4 balljoints are fresh Moog parts. We are going to look at obvious things like sway bars, tie rod ends, etc.

Anything else that can cause this? Bad wheel bearings/HUBS? Other than the wandering, the car is running fine with no other symptoms.

 

[Kevlar7R]

Hub is a possibility, but worn tires and/or bad shocks are another likely culprit.

Really stretching, but worn rear leaf spring bushings could potentially do that, by allowing the rear axle to shift around, and be pointing a different direction than the front tires.

 

[Cranmaro99]

Hub is a possibility, but worn tires and/or bad shocks are another likely culprit.

Really stretching, but worn rear leaf spring bushings could potentially do that, by allowing the rear axle to shift around, and be pointing a different direction than the front tires.

Yeah we are going to look at the rear suspension, too, as that can push the front end around if there is slop. I live in the NW so there is NO rust on this car AT ALL which is awesome! Will look at the rear leafs.

I dont think it's the shocks, even though I want to replace them, as this occurs on very flat roads at random times, too.

Thanks for the tips. I'm writing all of them down.

Tires are also new as of last year.

 

[koda2000]

i'd start by checking the tie rod ends (inner and outer). sway bar bushings/end links and worn shocks shouldn't cause wandering, but worn tie rod ends sure will. alignment caster out of adjustment will also cause wandering.

i had an unusual steering sensation, with wandering, with my recently acquired 2000 Mountaineer AWD. what i found was a badly worn outer tie rod end. replaced it and all seems good now. i will also get an wheel alignment this spring when i get new tires installed.

 

[Cranmaro99]

i'd start by checking the tie rod ends (inner and outer). sway bar bushings/end links and worn shocks shouldn't cause wandering, but worn tie rod ends sure will. alignment caster out of adjustment will also cause wandering.

i had an unusual steering sensation, with wandering, with my recently acquired 2000 Mountaineer AWD. what i found was a badly worn outer tie rod end. replaced it and all seems good now. i will also get an wheel alignment this spring when i get new tires installed.

Thanks for the tips, this is good to know.

 

[Cranmaro99]

UPDATE: Long story short, we cannot find anything.

My mechanic friend is the only person to work on my car and he's a real good friend of mine, and is honest/blunt with me when it comes to what needs fixing, that said, he also knows when to say "I don't know"

Tie rods are fine, rear suspension is fine, everything like sway bar bushings/links etc are all fine and connected. Nothing is shifted around, etc. Bearings are all fine. No leaks or tears in any boots in the steering shaft etc.

He said he's going to rotate the tires for ***** anyways, but he cannot find anything. Alignment bolts are all tight too. He said to get it aligned again to see if its gone out of spec, but we cant find anything but something is for sure wrong.

On the upside, he found out my thermostat housing is leaking and will fix that for me, haha.

------

Not sure where to go from here, however.

 

[corkey]

k, here it is, and it's not an easy one to get,,

my Explorer was the same way, and my alignment guy said it was "FINE"

i worked in an alignment shop a long time ago, so i know a few things about them,

i would say the toe is too straight, like with no toe in or out,,
i adjusted it so there was an just over 1/8 of toe in , and the wander went away,,
what happens is if there is no drag from either side, it will wander as it hits bumps or patches of ice and such,,

 

[Cranmaro99]

k, here it is, and it's not an easy one to get,,

my Explorer was the same way, and my alignment guy said it was "FINE"

i worked in an alignment shop a long time ago, so i know a few things about them,

i would say the toe is too straight, like with no toe in or out,,
i adjusted it so there was an just over 1/8 of toe in , and the wander went away,,
what happens is if there is no drag from either side, it will wander as it hits bumps or patches of ice and such,,

Thats what I was thinking; I have my "race car" spec'd to a zero toe for handling reasons and it wanders, but my Explorer NEVER used to do so.

So my mechanic and myself assume that the alignment has gone out of spec for whatever reason. I guess I'll have to get it checked out.

 

[Flash]

I would have said maybe a bit too much toe out. This can also cause bouncing which leads to more wander.

How much air is in the tyres? Because I prefer control over comfort I look to the tyre manufacturer for inflation pressures, not the tyre placard.
Same thing goes for shocks.
I don't feel very comfortable with soft shocks and a sloshy ride.

How old are the tyres? The belts could have lost their integrity allowing the tyre to be more like a balloon.
There's nothing like that brand new tyre brand new shock feel.

 

[jremington59]

Did you guys take both fronts off the ground to check the tie rods? I lifted mine one side at a time and everything felt tight, but when both were lifted there was a dangerous amount of play.

 

[koda2000]

the best way to check for play (tie rods or ball joints) is to jack the wheels off the ground while keeping the vehicle at ride height. to do this, the jack must me placed under the lower control arm, as close to the ball joint as possible. if you don't do this you can't check for play on the ball joints properly. one area that is very difficult to check is the control arm bushings. toe-in is necessary to compensate for the effect of drag on tires & suspension parts causing toe-out at speed.

 

[Cranmaro99]

I would have said maybe a bit too much toe out. This can also cause bouncing which leads to more wander.

How much air is in the tyres? Because I prefer control over comfort I look to the tyre manufacturer for inflation pressures, not the tyre placard.
Same thing goes for shocks.
I don't feel very comfortable with soft shocks and a sloshy ride.

How old are the tyres? The belts could have lost their integrity allowing the tyre to be more like a balloon.
There's nothing like that brand new tyre brand new shock feel.

I'll be getting an alignment soon I guess to check things out. Tires are 1.5 years old and the manufacture date is only 3 years old.

Did you guys take both fronts off the ground to check the tie rods? I lifted mine one side at a time and everything felt tight, but when both were lifted there was a dangerous amount of play.

Yes, the Explorer was on a hydraulic lift.

the best way to check for play (tie rods or ball joints) is to jack the wheels off the ground while keeping the vehicle at ride height. to do this, the jack must me placed under the lower control arm, as close to the ball joint as possible. if you don't do this you can't check for play on the ball joints properly. one area that is very difficult to check is the control arm bushings. toe-in is necessary to compensate for the effect of drag on tires & suspension parts causing toe-out at speed.

I'll update after I get an alignment. Hopefully thats all it is. I only worry what caused my 1 year old alignment to become out-of-spec if thats the case. (No offloading/pot holes).

 

[Sogsnakebite]

k, here it is, and it's not an easy one to get,,

my Explorer was the same way, and my alignment guy said it was "FINE"

i worked in an alignment shop a long time ago, so i know a few things about them,

i would say the toe is too straight, like with no toe in or out,,
i adjusted it so there was an just over 1/8 of toe in , and the wander went away,,
what happens is if there is no drag from either side, it will wander as it hits bumps or patches of ice and such,,

exactly what happened to mine

 

[Cranmaro99]

exactly what happened to mine

Good to hear, to the alignment shop I go.

 

[4rd Xplora]

A few weeks ago took the Explorer out and the steering wheel was crooked, I'd say about 15 degrees off center left. The wife who had driven it that day, knew nothing about it The truck drove good and except for the wheel being off, you didn't notice anything. The next weekend I adjusted the right front's toe in one turn inward and the steering wheel was perfect except now the truck was all over the road at highway speeds. I adjusted the wheel's toe in again, 1 1/4 turns out this time and it was perfect. The steering wheel is about 2 degrees off center, same as it always was. By the way, I did the right front only because I figured that the wife...errrr, I mean someone banged the hell out of the right front on a curb. Anyway that worked for me.

 

[RomeovilleIL]

I would not randomly try turning the tie rod adjustments. Best is to take it in for a professional alignment. If you have to do it yourself, with practice the string method can usually set toe fairly precisely.

 

[4rd Xplora]

^^ Sorry, there's a lot of DIY'ers here and I'm one of them. I wished I had read this before I did the ball joints on my Mustang.