Unforgiving new suspension

[Gfdunn]

Hi all, 2 weeks ago I bought a 2015 jk w/128 k on it. Apparently I had buyers eyes when I made the deal as I soon discovered my shocks, suspension & 3” lift kit were toast. I took it to a local 4 wheel shop I had researched and left with a new 2.5 lift, and every thing related to the suspension replaced. The ride was really improved but then as I got doing faster I realized the steering wheel was just solid. No slack what so ever. Reminded me of a rack and pinion system. If I glanced left or right & my hands moved the slightest the jeep would practically change lanes. It’s really squirrelly. So much so I thought I was going to loose it at highway speeds. Literally scared me. I emailed my salesman with this news the next morning and told him I would keep putting local miles on it over the next 500 and then bring it back for my check up and scheduled re-torque at 500 miles. If I bought a new Jeep it would not me this tight and unforgiving I’m sure. So why in a retro fit like this would be this way. Just wondering if this rings a bell with any of y’all.

Thanks Much, Gary

 

[Mopar]

It sure what you mean about the steering wheel was “solid”. And, shocks and moving parts wear out eventually but what about a lift kit wore out?

What lift kit did you replace it with?

 

[Gfdunn]

I went back with the upgraded Rough Country. I’m told the RC that was on was discontinued a couple of years after it was released due to issues.

 

[Yittzy]

yeah new suspension always feels weird at first. what setup did you throw on? some of that stuff rides harsh out of the box till it breaks in a bit. my JK was pretty stiff when i first installed the new shocks, smoothed out after like 500 miles or so. also check your tire pressure and make sure everything's actually torqued down proper, loose stuff makes the ride way worse than it should be.

 

[Gfdunn]

yeah new suspension always feels weird at first. what setup did you throw on? some of that stuff rides harsh out of the box till it breaks in a bit. my JK was pretty stiff when i first installed the new shocks, smoothed out after like 500 miles or so. also check your tire pressure and make sure everything's actually torqued down proper, loose stuff makes the ride way worse than it should be.

Roger that. Thx

 

[JeepJeezy]

Tire pressure does do weird things! Do the chalk test to make sure you got the correct tire pressure for YOUR setup. Don't let know it all Allen tell you he's got 40 psi in his tires and you should too. I'm running 37's with 30 psi. Joe Schmo next door has 37's too but he is running 38 psi. Also, did your setup come with adjustable control arms to fix caster? Did the shop do an alignment after the lift?

 

[WSS]

Odd addition to the conversation, but check your steering link/arm from the steering wheel to the steering box, make sure nothing is touching and binding. I had some issues when I swapped in the J8 brake booster touching the linkage just slightly but I could really feel it in the steering wheel. If they did not properly adjust the track bar, it could drift the linkage into a bind. Just a thought, it's an easy check, all visual.

 

[WSS]

Tire pressure does do weird things! Do the chalk test to make sure you got the correct tire pressure for YOUR setup. Don't let know it all Allen tell you he's got 40 psi in his tires and you should too. I'm running 37's with 30 psi. Joe Schmo next door has 37's too but he is running 38 psi. Also, did your setup come with adjustable control arms to fix caster? Did the shop do an alignment after the lift?

I run 30psi on 40's. When I had my new mickeys installed they left the shop with 40psi. I could tell it was a psi issue and not a mickey issue. I bled out the extra 10psi and was (am) very happy.

 

[Gfdunn]

Tire pressure does do weird things! Do the chalk test to make sure you got the correct tire pressure for YOUR setup. Don't let know it all Allen tell you he's got 40 psi in his tires and you should too. I'm running 37's with 30 psi. Joe Schmo next door has 37's too but he is running 38 psi. Also, did your setup come with adjustable control arms to fix caster? Did the shop do an alignment after the lift?

They did align it, running 35’s and pressure is 35. The ride is good just the steering is so tight and I believe control arms are adjustable. Feels almost like I lost my power steering.

 

[WSS]

They did align it, running 35’s and pressure is 35. The ride is good just the steering is so tight and I believe control arms are adjustable. Feels almost like I lost my power steering.

When you go full lock, do you get an even squeal? Check both driver and pass.

 

[JeepJeezy]

They did align it, running 35’s and pressure is 35. The ride is good just the steering is so tight and I believe control arms are adjustable. Feels almost like I lost my power steering.

Can you post your results on here?

 

[Gfdunn]

When you go full lock, do you get an even squeal? Check both driver and pass.

Don’t know about full lock but last night I was on the freeway & ran over an area of dips in the pavement and the jeep kinda duped & the traction control light flashed steering jerked a bit left as I slowed down. I turned the traction control off and I think it got better. I was close to home so I didn’t have much time to confirm it better. Will drive again with traction control off to see how it does. Will research TC this morning to see if it’s the culprit. My first 4WD so I am learning everything

 

[Baja-D]

Does your steering return to center and straight after letting go after a turn? Toe out can cause some weird drifting issues...I like mine set with just a small bit of toe in so I do not have to pay so much attention.

 

[Gfdunn]

Does your steering return to center and straight after letting go after a turn? Toe out can cause some weird drifting issues...I like mine set with just a small bit of toe in so I do not have to pay so much attention.

It is slightly off center. More than it was. I made the shop aware of that and we were going to address when in for the 500 Mile check up, thanks for all the input input.

 

[WSS]

Don’t know about full lock but last night I was on the freeway & ran over an area of dips in the pavement and the jeep kinda duped & the traction control light flashed steering jerked a bit left as I slowed down. I turned the traction control off and I think it got better. I was close to home so I didn’t have much time to confirm it better. Will drive again with traction control off to see how it does. Will research TC this morning to see if it’s the culprit. My first 4WD so I am learning everything

next time you jump in it, srart it and while in park, turn steering wheel all the way both left and right. you should hear an even or solid squeal when you hit the stops. if it is spongy or intermittent, you may have air in the lines.

 

[JeepJeezy]

When your driving straight, is your steering wheel centered?

Never mind. I just seen it is not straight. Having your steering wheel off center will 100% kick on your traction control when you hit a dip or bump in the road. It might not do it every time but that's 1 of your culprits.

 

[WSS]

When your driving straight, is your steering wheel centered?

Never mind. I just seen it is not straight. Having your steering wheel off center will 100% kick on your traction control when you hit a dip or bump in the road. It might not do it every time but that's 1 of your culprits.

Ya, it only takes a few degrees too. Cruise control might stop working too. I had a unit bearing leak grease on my abs ring and wow! What a ride lol.

 

[Gfdunn]

When your driving straight, is your steering wheel centered?

Never mind. I just seen it is not straight. Having your steering wheel off center will 100% kick on your traction control when you hit a dip or bump in the road. It might not do it every time but that's 1 of your culprits.

Thanks man. I will have them adjust that when I go in for the 500 mile check up. I also determined last night the steering does not want to return to center even in a turn. I took my hands of the wheel for a second while in a turn and it just stayed in the turn. Did not naturally want to return to straight as per normal. Something must be too tight

 

[WSS]

You have a “safety issue” now. I would not wait until 500 miles to find the problem.

 

[Gfdunn]

You have a “safety issue” now. I would not wait until 500 miles to find the problem.

Agreed. Thanks.

You have a “safety issue” now. I would not wait until 500 miles to find the problem.

I have an appointment at 8:00 tomorrow am at the shop that did the work. Will report back their findings & action taken.
Thanks all for the input.