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draglink question..??

987 views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  kjeeper10 
#1 ·
I have searched many old threads and have not found much information other than this is a very common problem on the JK.

This week I was on a very mild trail that did not require 4wd as it was really just a dirt road with a few trenches maybe about 10 inches deep. I was moving along at about 10 mph when my passenger front tire dropped down in one of these trenches.

Jeep took it fine and never slowed down and I thought nothing of it. I later reached the pavement and noticed my TCS light going crazy and the steering wheel was off center by about almost a half turn. I deactivated the tcs and limped home.

Next morning the alignment shop had it on a lift and I was watching him inspect the front end. Nothing bent or even scratched with zero signs of damage at all. The Jeep is new and has 14k miles with no off road action however I do have a 2.5 coil lift and 34 inch tires. The tie rod marks were still lined up and the draglink also showed it had not moved from the paint marks applied from the factory.....not sure if these paint marks were placed there by the shop after my lift or were factory align marks however it appeared the draglink was not moved at all.

Now my question is something had to move as the steering was off center and the toe was out. It aligned back to specs and the draglink was adjusted so 50 dollars later all is well. Is it possible the draglink was moved one complete revolution and just happened to land back up to the paint marks so it looked like it did not move?

This really kind of hurt my confidence with my Jeep as the trail was really mild and I had no idea the front suspension was so fragile. The shop checked all bolts and bushings with no play found and I asked the same question to the front end mechanic "can you tell me what happened". His reply was I have no idea but something had to shift or move but it seems fine now.

I read some old threads and think it is possible I was turning the wheel when the tire dropped down inside the trench. With the tire binding up the power steering could have shifted something however again no problems were found at all afterward.

So to sum up this long winded post what caused my steering wheel to be so far off center with no signs of draglink altered or anything else moved underneath and nothing bent or broken? Thanks for looking and if nothing else I may purchase a few upgraded front suspension parts just to feel better.
 
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#2 ·
I've heard of this happening before. I think it was mommymallcrawler on here who posted about it
Happening to her long time ago.....
 
#3 ·
jkuone I actually read over her last thread when I was searching for information before posting here. Sounded similar to my situation however her steering wheel was not moved enough to throw a trouble code with the TCS....My steering wheel was almost halfway off center and as such I assumed it would be easy to actually "see" what had moved underneath.

There were zero scratches or damage and again it looked like nothing at all had shifted underneath. I know something happened as the toe was out and the steering wheel was way off. Common sense says it was a tweaked tie rod however the alignment shop says it is not bent at all.

I am wondering now if the tie rod may be able to flex out of shape under a load and then later go back to its original shape rather than bending or breaking.

None the less I am now freaking out over the whole thing and looking through Quadratec now with intentions of upgrading my front suspension components. Sad thing is I hardly ever get off road and when I do it is never anything crazy. Jeep is 2.5 years old and has only 14k miles and stays parked in a garage.....only drive it on weekends.

The thought of such a weak front end just freaks me out and I am trying to educate myself now as to how each part works. It looks like when you upgrade one component it makes the other weak areas stand out. This means one usually ends up buying other parts trying to do away with all the weak links.....ughhhh my head hurts from reading all night.
 
#6 ·
I think you are correct about the tie rod and after hours of searching old threads online it is the only thing that makes sense. The alignment tech did not seem to know much about the issue and also told me my rear axle was off very slightly.

I asked him what would cause that and he said most likely it was off from the factory. Now it did not take me long to figure out by searching online that most all Jeeps rear axles will be slightly off after lifting. Seems to me he would have known that.

I asked him what I could do about it and he said not much however did say he thought there was an aftermarket bolt kit that would help it out a little but would not resolve it completely. Now again after looking online I see this is common also and that an adjustable rear track bar is all that is needed to center it up nicely.....again I feel he should have known that as well so maybe my problem was the tech after all.
 
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