steering

[Foul Al]

Hey folks, I have an issue that I just can't seem to get right with my 79 bronco. My steering/handling just absolutly sucks! When I drive at 40 mph and up, my Bronco wants to wander all over the road!! It feels like it wants to " find the groove " in the roadway but when it starts to find the groove it keeps tracking in whatever direction it is heading in to get in that groove. sometimes when the road is rather flat without a groove, it will just jut off either right or left without warning. I'm constantly fighting with her to stay where I want her to be. god forbid there are a lot of patches in any particular stretch of road and she's almost uncontrollable. Here is a list of what I have done with my Bronco over the past few years..

460 engine swap 2 yrs ago

2" suspension lift 1 yr. ago

35x12.5 tires 1 yr. ago

entire shock system replaced with rancho 5000 lift shocks and stabilizer shock 1 yr. ago

brand new rear springs 1.5 yrs ago

all steering linkag with new tie rods 1 yr. ago

brand new moog track bar bushings 4 days ago

new power steering pump and steering gear box with new hoses 3 weeks ago

new rag joint assy. 4 hours ago

tilt steering column swaped from another bronco 1.5 yrs ago as wellas a grant gt steering wheel

the only things that I have NOT replaced are the ball joints, bearings and swaybar link ends. PLEASE HELP!

 

[Rons beast]

Hey Al,

Check Ball joints are good and the bearings are adjusted properly. If all is good, Check your air presure. If it's too high it will cause the truck to wander. Try lowering the preasure by about 2 to 4lbs. but not below the minium recommended . Also it's a good idea to have an alignment shop check alignment. Sometimes with bigger,wider tires the toe setting has to be set a little higher, like 1/4 to 5/16 in.

Good luck, let us know how things turn out.

 

[muddrivermike]

Id have to say AL you pretty much took care of what would cause this. Id have to go along with Ron and say check what he mentioned.The only other things I can think of is make sure that track arm bracket on the frame isnt loose...Have someone move the steering wheel back and forth while your under there watching it. My truck likes to do the same thing,but I have 9 inches of lift and my tires are 17 inches wide. They dont fit into that worn groove thats made by everyone else with skinny tires. Outside of the alignment being off,which would definetly cause this. Think back to when this started.. Was there something you changed that this started after? Thats what I usually do is go backward to what Ive changed...

 

[Seabronc]

I had the same thing and it turned out to be ball joints, but like mentioned above it could be other problems of wear that are adding up together. My mechanic called that "Slot Car Steering". It is definitely aggravated by wide tires.

Good luck,

>-

 

[Foul Al]

I had the same thing and it turned out to be ball joints, but like mentioned above it could be other problems of wear that are adding up together. My mechanic called that "Slot Car Steering". It is definitely aggravated by wide tires.

Good luck,

>-

hey guys, sorry its been so long. My comp. has been in the geek squad for the last 2 mos..... good geeks? anyhoo,

I have since replaced the ball joints and the swaybar link ends and tightened the steering box 1/4 turn on the top set *****.

My problem still persists.... next step is to reinstall the factory steering wheel since its a lot bigger in diameter then off to the alignment.

 

[Foul Al]

hey guys, sorry its been so long. My comp. has been in the geek squad for the last 2 mos..... good geeks? anyhoo,

I have since replaced the ball joints and the swaybar link ends and tightened the steering box 1/4 turn on the top set *****.

My problem still persists.... next step is to reinstall the factory steering wheel since its a lot bigger in diameter then off to the alignment.

still doing it! go** da**it! I was thinking of my build and I came up with a possible cause... when I swapped in the 460 I used the power steering pump from the 351. I wound up siezing that and had to buy a rebuilt/new one from napa. I am wondering if the idle,or rotation speed is different from the 460 engine to the 351 engine...? I didnt swap any pullys, just some brackets and the factory pump from the 351. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

 

[Rons beast]

I don't think the pump,or pullys could have anything to do with your problem.

Questions"

What tires are you running? Size, type and at what preasure?

Are all 4 the same?

Did you get a ****** alignment?

What was the toe spec. that it was aligned at?

What was the caster spec?

When you swapped in the 460 did you change springs? ( does the bigger engine make the front end sit lower?

I had a friend with a motorhome, that had the exact same problem in drivability and control. The problem was overinflated tires!

I also had 2 differant brands of tires on The Beast for a short time. Same size and all, but it made the thing damn near undrivable. Would shift out or in a lane seemingly out of nowhere. Got all 4 Falken Zieks on it and the problem was solved.

Let us know.

Good Luck

 

[Krafty]

I was off roading with a guy who had a 78 bronc and half way down the trails he was complaining about bad steering. turns out on the drivers side parts of the steering components that mount on the frame either by bolt or rivet had sheered off and every time he turned the wheel you could see it flex hard before allowing the tire to turn. also bad bearings or loose hub retaining nuts can also cause loose steering. jack it up and give both tires the old wiggle test up down and everywhich way. if all joints are solid then there should be NO movement besides rotation and the normal range of steering.

 

[Foul Al]

I was off roading with a guy who had a 78 bronc and half way down the trails he was complaining about bad steering. turns out on the drivers side parts of the steering components that mount on the frame either by bolt or rivet had sheered off and every time he turned the wheel you could see it flex hard before allowing the tire to turn. also bad bearings or loose hub retaining nuts can also cause loose steering. jack it up and give both tires the old wiggle test up down and everywhich way. if all joints are solid then there should be NO movement besides rotation and the normal range of steering.

Hey folks, sorry I have been gone for so long. I am having the same issues as before but now I am eating gear boxes like its going out of style.. I am about to install my 4'th rebuilt power steering gear box in 6 mos.! I have considered almost everything with my rig then I came to the possibility that I do not have a drop pitman arm on my rig and the hard angle is causing the problem. I have since done my own alignment( the old school way) and the steering is correct but when I hit a rough patch in the road or turn a corner the rig wants to do its own thing... I have a lift that I scabbed from a donor bronco that I think is a 2'' lift. I think this because the blocks in the rear are 2'' blocks and the rear springs from the donor are the same arch as stock. As I have replaced the rear springs with new ones with factory arch as well as the 2'' blocks in the rear I am assuming that its a 2''-4'' lift from rough country. ( judging from the color of the parts ) I am left to believe that I need a drop pitman arm for my rig to stop this madness! anyone have any thoughts on this?

b.t.w.- all the tires are the same brand and the air pressure is 34 lbs across the boards.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Rons beast]

Sounds like your steering and suspension geometry is all wrong.

Any way of getting pics?

 

[Foul Al]

Sounds like your steering and suspension geometry is all wrong.

Any way of getting pics?

I can get pics. any particular angles that I should get to better help you help me?

 

[Rons beast]

I can't speak for others but for me, shots with the wheels on straight from the front showing the steering linkage would be good. Then with the wheels off, stands under the balljoints, pics form each side, both above and below.

Thanks

 

[Bully Bob]

Hi Al.,

I'll throw this out there... (food for thought)

My favorite saying; "For every 1 change in design/engineering...., 3 more are needed.!" <_< ALSO, "no two rigs are exactly alike.!"

There's a test you can do that costs nothing.

I only did my 'lil lift 'cause the poly radius arm bushings exploded. Just went up 2" because I had it appart.

After the lift, nothing serious but the steering seemed a bit diff. I also noticed the front tire scuffing on the outer edge.

Months later I decided to (THE TEST) flat tow my EB around the block. Unlike other tows, my EB wheels turned "left" in a "right" turn...! /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

2" lift calls for 4deg. "C" bushings (which I installed) however, the diff. never looked like it was sitting right. I installed 7deg "C" bushings & everything is fine now. (one-hand steering dirt, bumps, street, freeway)

I'm assuming the CASTER was off just enough to affect the steering.

You might try some flat tow turns, just to be sure your "C" bushings are correct.

Your stock pitman arm should have very little affect on the box. However there may be some added strain on the steering joint components (due to lift). A drop pitman arm would be a good move.

BTW., where are you gett'n these gear boxes...?