Outer Limits 4x4 Board

hi guys...

i have had this issue for a while now and while it doesnt appear to be anything major im still keen to get it resolved. I would hate for it to be something major, let go and cause injury or damage to other people while on the road.

The problem is a wierd feeling/vibe in the steering wheel when turning left.. this is a intermittent vibe, occurs at various speeds and only when turning left..

I have checked the steering linkages and the steering box mount to the chassis. This steering box came from my other 40 (swapped across) at which time it didnt exhibit these symptoms.

I suspected wheel bearings but have only checked/replaced them on one side (the right side). The theory being, while turning left there is additional forces on the outside wheel which could cause the vibes. The bearings that came out appeard to be fine (no wear on the races, etc). There was a slight wear on the inner bearing retainer/oilseal of the hub (the one closest to the brake backing plate)..

I will have check out the other wheelbearing on the other side on the weekend. the front end was overhauled in september last year and it hasn't seen any more than 15,000kms at most.

I am running 31 AT's but haven't rotated the tyres yet to see if they contribute to this wierd steering vibe. I will also do this on the weekend. The only change I can think of that occurred before this happened was spacing out the shock on the drivers side.

Those familiar with the 40 steering setup will note the drag link goes past the shock to the bellcrank at the front crossmember. Due to my re-positioned front diff (its been moved forward slightly) it meant that the shock rubbed on the drag link when using the stock shock mount. The bracket I made spaces out the shock 50mm so it no longer rubs on the drag link. I can't see how this would affect the steering vibe if the draglink is now clear of shock..


I would appreciate any ideas the collective outerlimits brains have to offer as to ideas of what could be the go.

thanks,

Andrew

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fullmetaljacket: thanks for the suggestion but I just checked and there is no rubbing (bare metal or wear on that part of the tyre)..

any other suggestions?

shackle bushes worn or shackle pins tight? it will give you a "clunk, clunk" noise and feeling through the s/wheel

will check again but pretty sure i checked them..

the vibes occur thru the entire range of left hand turn.. from slight to full lock

Very wierd Andy, its got me a little stumped. Try disconnecting the steering dampener and see what happens with it disconected. Is it very old?

jack up the front axle an turn it lock to lock, you may be able to turn by pushing on one of the front wheels. you may be able to pin point the fault

My first thaught would be L/H wheel bearing, as when u turn left that wheel unloads (as you said), and this might allow the the bearing to shimmy.... id also check the tie rod ends, as if one is worn your toe in/out could change through a turn.

fullmetaljacket wrote:jack up the front axle an turn it lock to lock, you may be able to turn by pushing on one of the front wheels. you may be able to pin point the fault

Did this but didnt find anything unusual..

left wheel has no play (haven't taken the hub off yet) whatso ever
all tie rods appear to be find (i know 2 of the 5 are not so old)
steering dampener appears to be ok ,doesnt bind at all, haven't tried driving with it removed (might try that this arvo and see how we go, unsure of age)
with it jacked up i can spin wheels and steer and i dont feel or see anything wierd
both front tyres are now different (different rims) and it still appears to be there..

its less noticable at slower speeds but moreso around 50kph+

any progress?

had a thought......by chance is one or both hubs locked in??

no progress yet..

haven't removed the steering dampener..

both hubs are unlocked...

went for adrive the other night.. some wierd vibes in the enitre front end, not just steering.. i'll check the ubolts tonight and make sure they are ok.

I'm stumped....sorry....will keep thinking

my zook had this same issue for the past week. i checked my pressures the week previous and all was fine. within one week my front left tire went down 10 psi.. caused all sorts of wobbles etc.. pretty scarey.. all sorted now.. i know thats a simple fix but sometimes its easy to start simple eh?

thanks.. i've taken the hardtop off and put some rust convert on the front end over the weekend.. i paid a bit more attention to the vibe on the way home this evening and noticed it wasn't as great as before..

i'll keep trying to pinpoint exactly when it occurs...

oh.. and i've swapped both front tyres now.. (replacing rims).. maybe this had something to do with it?

my cruiser converts to rust all by itself........no need to encourage it

another thought.........check the center arm (steering idler thingy / bell crank) the splines on the tapered pin may be worn one way hence only happens during left hand turns...........just grabbing at straws sorry......

are your u bolts tight ?

putting the 33 JT2's on over the weekend so that should amplify any issues.. I'll check the ubolts at the same time.

just checked the front ubolts, everythings good.. would of got barely half a turn out of 1-2 nuts..

the 33's are on and to be honest i cant feel the vibe over the knobs on the JT2's..

there doesnt appear to be too much wonder in the front end, maybe i could re-adjust the castor plates as they have moved forward out from between the spring perch a little ,affecting caster.

we'll see how it goes i guess...

thanks for everyones ideas so far.

a bit of an update.. yesterday i replaced centerbolts on both front spring packs with ones that have a taller head say 25mm?, and new ubolts...

i have castor wedges and with the normal centerpin there isnt much meat that goes thru the spring perch on the diff, and at some point i think the wedges have slipped forward a bit..

anyway.. i did about 100kms in the 40 today and i reckon the vibe is gone.. i'll retension the front ubolts in a few hundred kms and hopefully that will be the last of the wierd vibes..

hopefully you have fixed it!!

cheers