4" lift, TJ is squirrely

**AROSETO** · 03-27-2008, 12:33 AM

So I just put brand new Superlift adjustable track bars, front and rear, in tonight after I put OME 4" springs and shocks in. I still haven't received my sway bar disconnects, they should be arriving any day.
My jeep is very squirrely driving down the road, I have to be careful steering. When I turn tight going fast or slow it acts and feels like it is in 4wheeldrive but it is not. It also seems to have very slight bump steer, which is what I am guessing it is. I have never experienced bump steer but this would seem to be it.
I had read a pitman arm is only necessary if it is being lifted over 4". Is this true? Should I install a 4" lift pitman arm?
Also will the squirrely driving cease once I get my front sway bar connected?
I know I need to get it all re-aligned, I plan on doing that once I get all the components in but I was hoping the suspension/steering would be a little tighter than it is right now.
What am I missing?

**AROSETO** · 03-27-2008, 12:34 AM

Oh yeah this is on my 2005 TJ Rubicon

1CleanTJ · 03-27-2008, 01:27 AM

only time ive had my jeep feel squirrelly is when the rear trackbar was loose

**bman9089** · 03-27-2008, 01:35 AM

so you're still using stock sway bars?

get those new units on and see how it works then. They should be longer, and should help bring the swaybars back to the factory angle they're supposed to be at.

MeltdWhiskey · 03-27-2008, 07:54 AM

give it time to settle. .....mine did the same thing for the first few hundred miles after putting my lift on. ...it became much more predictable after the frist week or so..

hazmat · 03-27-2008, 09:49 AM

Get your swaybar connected and your jeep aligned and go from there . Also make sure all your bolts are tight!

krawler510 · 03-27-2008, 10:18 AM

Stock without sway bars the jeep gets a little squirrelly when you are going fast. Once it is lifted that magnifies and can be pretty scary. I'm sure that is your problem, I had to drive 10 miles on a highway in PA with mine unhooked(lifted) and it was pretty nerve racking.

Definitely be careful, you might run into trouble if you have to make a quick move to avoid an accident. And check out that 4x4xplor site for steering alignment. It will take you 10 minutes to get the steering wheel centered and a decent toe in. I've had mine driveway aligned for 6 months and its almost 100%. Pulls slight right but not worth $100 for someone to fix.

**Jerry Bransford** · 03-27-2008, 11:40 AM

Steering problems are usually caused by a couple things; improper front-end alignment primarily, disconnected antiswaybars, and uneven tire pressure. You can do your own alignment very quickly and easily by following the instructions at http://www.4x4xplor.com/alignment.html Also, have an alignment shop check what your Caster angle is. That's the one alignment thing that is not easily checked at home. Don't ask them to set the Caster angle, just have them tell you what it is. Anywhere from 5 to 6 degrees is fine assuming you're running 33" tires. The factory specified 7 degree Caster angle is only for when you're running a stock Jeep with stock size tires.

**AROSETO** · 03-28-2008, 12:03 AM

So I took y'alls advice and did my alignment myself, It was about 1 and 3/4 inches off. Well I adjusted my toe-in after that and my swaybar disconnects arrived so I installed them. Then I straightened out my steering wheel and it rides sweet, very tight and closer to stock height feel then I would have ever expected. I'll just get it professionally aligned this weekend so it is dead on and I don't wear out my tires oddly or prematurely. So thanks for your input it helped a great deal.

Next question:
I have a very slight driveline vibration which I assume is because of the angle of the driveshaft. Now I know my 2005 TJ Rubicon does not have a Slip yoke but is it recommended at 4" that I get a CV style driveshaft?

krawler510 · 03-28-2008, 09:08 AM

Definitely, but you'll need adjustable upper rear control arms as well to change the pinion. If you don't have a few hundred to blow on all that right now, a 1" or so transfer case might hold off some of the vibes. Works decently for me.

**Jerry Bransford** · 03-28-2008, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AROSETO

So I took y'alls advice and did my alignment myself, It was about 1 and 3/4 inches off. Well I adjusted my toe-in after that and my swaybar disconnects arrived so I installed them. Then I straightened out my steering wheel and it rides sweet, very tight and closer to stock height feel then I would have ever expected. I'll just get it professionally aligned this weekend so it is dead on and I don't wear out my tires oddly or prematurely. So thanks for your input it helped a great deal.

Next question:
I have a very slight driveline vibration which I assume is because of the angle of the driveshaft. Now I know my 2005 TJ Rubicon does not have a Slip yoke but is it recommended at 4" that I get a CV style driveshaft?

If you got your toe-in set to between 1/16" and 1/8", you do NOT need to pay someone else to re-set it "professionally" as it won't be any better than what you did. The couple times a tire store offered to check mine and I agreed, they always came back and said it was "fine". They cannot even adjust the camber angle and with a 4" lift and bigger tires, your Caster angle is likely fine too, especially since they can't adjust that either. I would not bother paying an alignment shop as you've already done what they would do.

Yes that vibration is caused by the steep angles at the u-joints, the u-joints vibrate when they must cycle through an excessively steep or mismatched angle since the front and rear u-joints on a non-CV driveshaft must be the same. So yes at 4" of lift a SYE and CV driveshaft is strongly recommended.

**AROSETO** · 03-29-2008, 03:28 PM

So any specific brand recommendations for CV driveshaft for a 2005 Rubicon? Tom Woods?

**AROSETO** · 03-29-2008, 11:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thedirt

In a few years when I do my modifications (when I'm out of college and my warranty is expired) that's who I plan to go with. His drive shafts have the reputation of being high quality, and reasonably priced.

He makes a bolt on rubicon drive shaft for $299: http://www.4xshaft.com/rubicon/rubicon_rear.html

Yeah that's the one I was thinking of going with. Ummm...yeah my warranty is still ineffect also but I needed it lifted. I gotta get out and fourwheel been scraping bottom too much. Sad thing is I had included the 8yr/80000 miles warranty when I bought the Jeep brand new in 2005. Yikes. oh well gotta bite it sometimes.

M.DURITZ · 03-29-2008, 11:39 PM

no mention of an updated steering stabilizer?

**02tjsport** · 03-30-2008, 12:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by M.DURITZ

no mention of an updated steering stabilizer?

You dont need a steering stabilizer if all is good. It only makes problems less of problems. So if you have no problems, you should be good.

Unless you have a rubicon, when you get a CV driveshaft, you will also need a Slip Yoke Eliminator (SYE) also called short shaft kit. It changes the output shaft style on the transfer case.