HD Steering Upgrade for my Jeep

[lupinsea]

For your amusement . . .

HD TJ Steering Upgrade

For a fancier formated write-up on my website, click here.

After 5+ years of offroad use the steering linkage was damaged some how. The result was bent linkages that caused components to rub on the axle housing. This presented an opportunity to install stronger steering components as part of the repair.



1)VEHICLE SETUP

This upgrade can be performed on any TJ and does not require other modifications.



2) PERFORMANCE REVIEW

Overview:
The purpose of this upgrade is not simply to repair the damaged steering but to improve it and make it stronger. To that end a Crown Automotive HD steering kit was installed. Essentially it uses the heavier duty 1996 era Grand Cherokee (ZJ) V8 steering components from drag link, to tie rods, tie rod ends, and adjusting collars.

Crown Kit vs. Stock TJ Steering:
The Crown kit uses the same diameter and construction on the drag link as the factory unit so there is no upgrade here (however, the stock drag link is pretty strong). But the kit beefs up the tie rod and this is the core reason to go with the Crown kit. The factory tie rod is a thin (22.2mm), hollow tube and can bend easily. Where as the Crown tie rod is a 1” (25.5mm) diameter of solid forged steel. In addition to this, the tie rod ends in the crown kit are substantially beefier, too.

Crown kit on the left, old bent steering and point of contact on the right

Why Crown HD Kit vs Grand Cherokee Steering:
The same modification can be done by purchasing Grand Cherokee ZJ (1996 era) tie rod, tie rod ends, and the adjusting collar. All told those components are approximately $157 at 2009 prices with costs having gone up in recent years. But for approximately $160-190 from various internet retailers the Crown HD kit can be purchased. The difference is that with the Crown kit you also get a new drag link and drag link tie rod end. It then becomes a cost effective way to upgrade and freshen the entire steering system. To replace the entire stock steering system with stock components (TJ drag link and ZJ tie rod and rod ends) the cost climbs up to $350+. As you can see the Crown kit becomes ever more attractive at it’s sub-$200 price point.

Crown vs. Currie, etc.
Compared to a stock TJ steering system the Crown is a very nice upgrade in strength. But there are substantially stronger steering linkage systems out there such as the very well regarded Currie kit with even stronger components. However, these are more than twice the price of the Crown kit and if you don’t NEED the extra strength then why pay for more.

Additionally, the Crown kit sources “stock” Grand Cherokee rod ends and other components so it will be easier to source replacement parts in the future.

Two Crown HD Steering Kits:
Crown offers two different kits, one with a steering stabilizer and one with out. There is a $25-30 price difference between the two. Given that the Old Man Emu steering stabilizer that is currently on the Jeep is in perfect working order I opted for the cheaper kit:

Part No: HDSTRGCR1
This is just the steering components of drag link, tie rod, adjusting sleaves, and tie rod ends, plus hardware.

Part No: HDSTRGCR2
This is the same as above but also includes a new steering stabilizer.

Measurements:
Many people have wondered exactly what are the differences between the stock set up and the Crown kit. Below are the measurements. On the drag link and tie rod the measurement was taken mid-span on a uniform diameter section. The tie rod ends were measured on the threads (major diameter).

Drag Link Diameter
Stock = 25.7 mm
Crown Kit = 26.0 mm (essentially the same)

Tie Rod Shaft Diameter
Stock = 22.2 mm
Crown Kit = 25.5 mm (15% thicker)

Tie Rod End Threaded Shank
Stock = 17.2 mm
Crown Kit = 21.6 mm (23% thicker)

The stock tie rod end vs. the "HD" tie rod end

3)INSTALLATION

Remove Old Steering Linkage:
Set the front axle up on jack stands and remove the wheels. Remove the cotter pins from the castellated nuts on the ends of all the linkages and back the nuts off several turns (but do not remove). On the steering knuckles and tie rod-to-drag link connection you can probably pop the tie rod ends out by banging on the side of the kuckle housing next to the tie rod end with a mini-sledge hammer and/or the nut. If that doesn’t work, a gear or pitman arm puller or pickle fork (tie rod separator) is also helpful.

For the pitman arm link it’s a much tighter spot. A pickle fork or the right puller if it fits is helpful. I ended up using a combination of methods that included a a torch to warm the pitman arm and expand the metal, a vice grip for downward pressure, and banging on the pitman arm with the mini-sledge. Eventually it popped out.

Remove the steering stabilizer with a puller and finish removing the nuts. Now the steering linkage should come right out.

Left: Removing steering stabilizer w/ puller and (center) removing
pitmant arm TRE by any means necessary. Bent tie rod on right.

Match Old and New Steering Lengths:
Match the length of the new steering components to the old ones. The easiest way is to measure from zerk fitting to zerk fitting on the old linkages and transfer this measurement to the new parts. Don’t tighten the adjustment collars just yet.

Setting initial linkage length.

Install Linkages:
Install the drag link and then the tie-rod. By leaving the adjustment collars loose the rod ends will seat without biding. Tighten the nuts on the drag link ends down to 55 ft-lb. Tighten the steering knuckle end of the tie rod to 55 ft-lb. Tighten the tie rod-to-drag link end down to 65 ft-lb. Reinstall steering stabilizer and tighten tie rod bolt down to 55 ft-lb.

Set Toe-In Adjustment:
An easy and precise way to set the toe-in adjustment for the tie rod is to clamp two angle irons or straight edges to the front brake rotors. But first mark the width of your tire and the center point on the straight edges. This gives you two accurate straight edges to run a tape measure on. The front measurement should be 1/16” - 1/8” less than the rear measurement. Adjust tie rod by twisting adjustment collar. When toe-in is set, tighten clamping bolts to 36 ft-lb for the HD tie-rod clamp (it’s 20 ft-lb for the smaller factory tie rod).

Setting toe-in by using straight edges clamped to brake rotors.

Set Drag Link Adjustment:
Now set the drag link adjustment. Install the tires and lower the Jeep back down to pavement. If the steering wheel isn’t far out of whack tighten down the adjusting collar. Drive the Jeep approx 20-30 ft in a straight line allowing the tires to “center” themselves. Stop the Jeep and if the steering wheel is cocked a bit, loose drag link adjusting collar and twist to realign steering wheel. Tighten up adjusting collar again, drive another 20-30 ft to check steering wheel position. Repeat as necessary until steering wheel is dialed in.

That’s it, the new steering is installed and adjusted.



4)RESOURCES

Torque Specifications per Factory Service Manual:
Pitman Arm 185 ft-lb (not needed for this mod)
Drag Link Rod Ends 55 ft-lb.
Tie Rod End - Knuckle 55 ft-lb.
Tie Rod End - Drag Link 65 ft-lb.
Adjusting collar clamps 36 ft-lb.
Steering damper 55 ft-lb.






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[ZBB]

What's the resolution? Full 1080P?

[lupinsea]

Originally Posted by ZBB

What's the resolution? Full 1080P?

[ZBB]

Originally Posted by lupinsea

HD as in HDTV... "full HD" resolution is considered 1080p...

[lupinsea]

Ah.

In the world of Jeeps, "HD" is often "heavy duty".

[bren]

Hmm, so is this kit a direct bolt on for a ZJ? It might be worth looking into for mine.

[John V]

Neat advantage to a live axle that you can set the toe with the car off the ground and the wheels up.

It's not that easy on a car with independent suspension because you can't load the suspension with the wheels off the ground.

[lupinsea]

Originally Posted by bren

Hmm, so is this kit a direct bolt on for a ZJ? It might be worth looking into for mine.

Yes.

It uses the V8 ZJ steering linkages. So if you already have a V8 ZJ it's probably pointless unless your steering is worn out or damaged. But if you have a I6 ZJ . . . well, it's probably still pointless unless your steering is worn out or damaged.

Call me silly but I suspect you probably don't put your ZJ through its paced doing trail work where you're liable to whack your steering into rocks and logs. Nor do you probably have 33"+ tires on your Jeep.

So. . . if you have need for an upgrade / repair go for it. . . might as well. Otherwise, if you're stuff is working now why bother?

For the cost of this kit it's hard to even get close sourcing the steering parts individually from Napa or other parts stores. Napa came in at around $350 vs. the $160 you can find this kit for on the interwebz.

It so happened my cost was $145 sine a fellow in my club runs a parts business from his home . . . low overhead for club members.

[lupinsea]

Originally Posted by John V

Neat advantage to a live axle that you can set the toe with the car off the ground and the wheels up.

It's not that easy on a car with independent suspension because you can't load the suspension with the wheels off the ground.

Of course, the down side is having nearly 350 lb. of unsprung weight to control.

Still. . . . I love my solid axles on my Jeep.

I have an open mind to an IFS / IRS on a future Wrangler "if" they can do it right. And by that I mean, lots of ground clearance, lots of articulation, and ease of lift installation, very robust componentry.

Something like Ford's EX concept vehicle (drooooool . . . )


And to think, this was a 100% functional concept . . . including a twin-turbo 350 hp V6

[bren]

It would absolutely only be to replace worn out parts. One of these days I'm going to have to catch up on quite a bit of deferred maintenance on it.