If You Have Steering Problems
 

I have been fightin with front end and steering problems on my truck from the first day I bought it new. The dealer always said it was the heavy weight on the front end with the big tires just bein grabby and they couldn't find anything wrong with it. So through the years I've gone through spells of just ignoring it, then trying to fix it and back to ignorin it. In attempting to fix it I've change the Bearings, ball joints, Tie Rods and Ends, Pitman Arm, and shocks. I've had it alligned, rotated the tires, had the steering box checked and even checked all the bolts in the steering box area to make sure everything was tight. Still had the same problems. Not horrible to drive just annoying. The truck would wander here and there and depending on where I was ridin on the crown of the road would pull pretty good to either direction.

Finally had my fill a few days ago and put the front of the truck up on stands and started measuring everything thinking maybe the axles were out of alignment. So I measured fom points here and there corner to corner, side to side and from front to rear axle.

Right from the factory as a brand new truck came out off center. When I installed the DT Trac Bar some years back I used the sway bar to center it with thinking that the sway bar is attached in essence to both frame rails it was easier this way. Turns out my sway bar is almost 1 1/2 inches off center. So all these years my truck has been dog trackin down the road. When I'm rollin over the crest in the road the front and back tires are pullin against each other. So now I'm waitin on parts to get this fixed up with.

One more thing to check for now. Once again, I luv my Cummins :choochoo: but I hate this Dodge. I have yet to have a single problem with the engine but I have fought the hell out a the Dodge parts.:argh:

Good thing you got that problem figured out :U:

Thanks. Now I just gotta figure out all the fix for it.

You got that right the Cummins engine is tough to kill... But the Dodge body is a pain in the arse at times... :w2:

Since I got my truck, I have fixed many things, none on the engine. Let us know how it all works out.

As an update to this I have installed a set of massive extra heavy duty Sway Bar Links, Got the sway bar centered with new greasable bushings on it, Centered up the Trac bar and installed new ends on it. I still have a set of new Bilstein 5100, 2 inch taller and softer ride coils springs and rear helper springs to all get put on now. I'm being held up tryin to find the Polyeurathane fittings to replace all the rubber on these parts. I'm gettin rid of all the rubber as I replace parts.

Before I'm done I'm still gonna install a steering stiffener/stabilizer and a set of adjustable control arms. I'm still pondering the idea of a new power steering unit of some sort because the steering in mine is stiff and wares my arm on a long trip.

you will like the steering stabilazier .......mine sure helped alot


so you put new ends on yer track bar..........is on end adjustable?

Ya, I got the same Trac Bar as you show in yer signature. I put a rebuild kit on it and cranked the truck over about 1 1/2 inches to center it up. It's all been a chain reaction since then. I had to adjust the Trac Bar and the sway bar at the same time so they would both sit in the right places and line up.

For anybody that hasn't seen these new Sway Bar Links, these things are awsome. They do away with the flexible joint in the Dodge system that allows slop in the sway bar and make it a rigid fitting that holds the truck exactly where it's supposed to be.
Suspension Maxx: MAXX Links Improved design front sway bar links