Squirrelly 91 Navajo

[mike.dukes]

The suspension and steering on my 91 Navajo is real loose. Even the smallest bump in the road creates a lot of jostling and sway. Also, can be hard to keep in its lane. Seems to drift a lot. Its on the original shocks (235,000mi) which i'm sure is part of the problem. Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Has all new front brake components (Calipers, rotors, pads, clips, slides)as well as bearings and converted the auto hubs to manual. Was very meticulous about the installation due to the fact that i wasn't the first time and ended up redoing all of it within 2 years.

 

[SkanlaxJMO]

when was it last aligned?

 

[mike.dukes]

Its been about 30,000mi since its last alignment

 

[mike.dukes]

30,000mi since last alignment

 

[Spdrcer34]

Shocks. Tie Rod Ends. Balljoints.

Ryan

 

[ld50]

Jack it up till the front tires are in the air, grab each tire and pull it, shake it; see if it appears loose at all, if it`s loose there, it is your ball joints or bearings/ loose hubs

Get someone to jiggle (turn a few inches from side to side) your steering wheel while you look under the front, watch the linkages for excessive play, they should all be tight -no slop at all. There will be a slight dead spot between direction change, this is from your steering box and should not be excessive.

Remember to pull the tires forward and back, you wanna check your radius arm bushings this way, but they tend to make noise when they go.

If your toe has been knocked out of wack it can also cause steering wander when irregularities in the road are driven over. I know you said it has a recent alignment but...

Shocks can be bad, but I don`t think they would contribute to sway, just bounce.

Good luck

 

[mike.dukes]

Thanks Id50. After jacking and shaking, the wheels do seem loose and there is a little play in the tie rod linkages. I'm gonna assume its ball joints because the hubs and bearings are brand spanking new. Probably cant hurt to replace the radius arm bushings and the rest of the various bushings while im down there.




P.S. Took a look at all the mods you did to your 93 XL, nice work.