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steering help ASAP please. long drive tomorrow

1K views 14 replies 7 participants last post by  dieselnob89 
#1 ·
Hey guys.

Ive been having a bit of a vibration/wobble lately.

brought the truck in. they said my pass wheel bearing was bad and passenger tie rod end.

well I just had a yukon freespin hub kit installed 5000 miles ago or less, and its also capable of being tightened... had a buddy look at it, wheel bearing was fine.

tie rod was bad on the passenger drag link. so we replaced that. didnt/cant get an alignment so I know im a bit out... would that cause a vibration/wobble at 70-100 km/h? at 125+ it goes away. I kinda checked my U joints and dont think it was them, I could have checked them wrong (neutral, go under truck and wiggle it... no movement except internally, not U joints though)

anyways, I still got a vibration and cant figure out what it is. truck drives fine in town except for some creaking in the front end when turning very tight, but I got a DOR steering kit on the way.

I just wanted to post some pics and see what you guys think of the Rize steering set up.... I think the one piece is missing some balls in the bearing???? thats kind of worrying me.

I was hesitant on taking out the Rize steering stuff...but after seeing how easy it would be, and how much it would improve my steering... im ready to take the Rize stuff out of my steering.

What would I need to order so I can run proper steering on my truck with 13" lift and 40s????

thanks guys!!!

missing anything or what???






its the lower one on this joint:




which connects to my EMF heim joint (which is loose a little bit) which is attached to the steering box/pitman arm, and then to the drag link I believe:







I am also going to put new sway bar, sway bar end links, and dual stabilizers... lots of money!!!!
 
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#2 ·
WOW!! what a mess
so you have a vibe and you have loose tierods and worn out bearing thingamabob and you wonder where the vibes are coming from :doh:

what about the front drive line or rear driveline

looks to me that you got more then 1 issue going on really
 
#3 · (Edited)
no.


the tie rods are not loose, I said I had those replaced.

I thought front drive line should matter as I have a freespin hub kit, like I mentioned.

I checked read drive line, like I said. didnt find anything obvious, but maybe I was doing it wrong??

when looking under the truck while getting someone to wiggle the steering, it appears alright (I havnt looked at that rize bearing thing... maybe its supposed to look like that?)

I notice that there is still tire weights on my rims, even though I have tire beads in there... I doubt its them but well see.

I know its a mess, its getting fixed with dodge offroad stuff and getting rid of the Rize stuff. I just was looking for some advice and opinions that I didnt already know, like its a worn out, possibly dangerous mess.
 
#4 ·
With someone shaking the wheel, do they feel any clicks or knocks? Do you feel any clicks or knocks when they are shaking it and you're under the truck? Going by feel will get you much further than by sight.


That in mind, that bearing looks completely shot. It could be the rod ends on the fancy drop down bracket attached to the pitman arm that are clunking. It could be the "newer" tie rods you have on there as well cause they sure don't look like have been recently replaced.

Where is the other end of the bolt that goes though the pitman arm?
 
#6 · (Edited)
3 month ban for asking what the firepunk twins cost.

Craig: bolt? that is a EMF heim joint in the pitman arm. no I dont feel any clicks or knocks when someone wiggles the wheel.. but when turning the wheel fully cranked... I hear a bit of a clunking every 3/4 second or so for the duration of the turn. I only had the passenger tie rod replaced, the others were fine the shop and 2nd mechanic said. I got a full dodge off road kit on the way so trying not to dump any money into this for the next 2-4 weeks till the DOR steering gets here. already 300$ deep with that new tie rod end (180 + 100 install)

I just set the gopro up on the sway bar and filmed that bearing, and passenger tie rod and everything and went for a quick ride on a gravel road... turned back and forth, lots, sharpely, at speeds and slowly... did a 360 to the left, wheel fully turned, and 360 to the right, wheel fully turned. I will say one thing... the steering feels pretty tough, solid, and responsive, even with 40s. at the end, I drove over a curb, maybe a little too quick when the rear end hit.... but on the footage I seen nothing crazy. especially in that shot rize bearing.

if it doesnt take too long Ill put it on youtube... pretty boring stuff though.

still doesnt explain the vibration at highway speeds. every shop seems to be too incompetent to figure it out, to the point where I gotta do it myself and im no expert, thats just sad. dont any shops where I work and live in ab know what theyre doing?!?!?

brought the truck into a tranny shop and the old bag looked at my truck through the window and said "nope" with a jealous tone. a tranny is a tranny I told her, its just the bands I want looked it, youre not touching the giant lift, which is what she was scared of. the next place was booked for a month. the next place just had the whole shop come outside to gawk at the truck, tell me they cant do alignments on 40s, and recommended me to a shop an hour away. "if you want something done right, do it yourself" hasnt been any truer. I just wish I could do it!!!!!!!!!
 
#7 · (Edited)
if I can connect my drag link right to that pitman arm, and eliminate that pivoting rize arm out of the situation, it should make the steering a LOT better.

it would also correct the angle of the drag arm so it matches the track bar better, which would eliminate the bit of bump steer that I got, wouldnt it?

I am working closely with Danny of DOR and hes very knowledgeable and builds some sick stuff so I believe well be able to figure everything out in the end.
 
#9 ·
hmm, I was there when the heim was installed and I dont think it was drilled, not 100% sure though was 2 years ago.. I might need a new pitman arm, I cant see them being too expensive.

what do you guys think of replacing stuff before the pitman arm like the steering shaft, steering box, or anything else??
 
#11 · (Edited)
Yes,3/4 is a common size used for the pitman arm. There is no substitute for getting under there and putting your hand on each piece while someone really gives the steering wheel a workout. I like to do it with the engine running, and on concrete or pavement to get max strain on everything. Even if you recently replaced a part, it could be faulty or loose, so don't ignore the new parts.
 
#12 ·
180+100 for a pass side TRE? I did mind on the trail with OEM parts from maps in < 30 min. I would call around to shops within a reasonable distance and bull with people till you find someone that seems trustworthy and knowledgeable. Good luck, and ditch that hiem joint contraption to simplify things. I net new TREs and an alignment sorts it out. They aren't too bad, all ya need is a lug wrench, a BFH and the right wrenched.
 
#13 ·
so I talked to Danny from DOR.

I am ordering new everything, and getting rid of the Rize set up. going to connect a new drag link to the pitman, new stabilizers, new sway bar end links, and a steering box brace. I think there was something else too I was gonna order.

the TRE was the passenger outer, was 33" long and was like 180$ from napa. the guy adjusted my heim joint, checked the passenger side wheel bearing of the yukon freespin hub kit, and then installed the new TRE. not too bad for a 100$ bill I guess.
 
#14 ·
I'm running Thuren's extreme steering kit on my Ram with 12.5 inches of lift and 40's. Over 10k miles and everything is still nice and tight with no issues.
 
#15 ·
cool. thanks for posting Iron man... although 10k miles isnt that much, IMO... im curious to see how it is after 30 or 50k miles!!!! guess only time will tell.

lots done to your truck, especially for a 2012, bet that wasnt cheap.... looks/sounds pretty bad as though!!!

I drove 1500km since I posted this thread. steering feels fine still, I did a few runs down the gravel road, turning very sharp and quick... kinda hard on the ol girl but it felt solid, no flexing, no funny sounds... just got a vibration still.
 
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