2021 Mojave steering wander

[Florida Man]

Good morning! New to the Forum here. 2021 Mojave, Picked it up at the airport in upstate NY and drove it straight to FL, 1800mi gives you a lot of time to analyze issues and quirks... Noticed 300 miles into the trip that the rear would "kick" over some of the highway expansion joints = smoothest roads in NY state!! Anyhow, pulled off to fill MO's tank and grab a bite. Waited 30 minutes and checked tire pressures. Door sticker suggests 37psi, tires were between 43psi and 44 psi. 6psi makes a considerable difference on a large (relatively) tire! Brought all 4 down to 37psi. WOW!, now this is more like it! No more kicking, less wandering etc. Completed the trip without issue and loved the truck even more than my 2 previous JK's. That longer wheelbase does make a noticeable difference.

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[cleatus]

my only real complaint so far...steering. likes to wander
cant tell if bad steering hardware(steering box has been replaced) or driving a cube down the road throws it around due to poor aerodynamics.
either way--i think the steering could be "quicker" to be able to react to the swerviness.
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[Florida Man]

my only real complaint so far...steering. likes to wander
cant tell if bad steering hardware(steering box has been replaced) or driving a cube down the road throws it around due to poor aerodynamics.
either way--i think the steering could be "quicker" to be able to react to the swerviness.
-

Cleatus: Being a 2021, this one has the "Black" steering box, which seems to be the upgrade/solution to the previous gen steering gearboxes, but still has a slight wander (wider track and A/T tires can make this more noticeable on any vehicle), I would even cal it a bit twitchy (?). Last weekend I decided that I would make a very (VERY) slight toe-in change to the alignment; just slightly more than a half turn of the adjustment collar on the tie-rod, and almost the same on the drag-link to the steering box to keep the wheel centered.. I marked the original factory positions with 2 small paint dots; could go right back to them if it ended up being a disaster. Despite being so slight, This made a HUGE difference!! Truck is stable, no pulling when braking, no more wandering, steering is actually enjoyable now.

 

[cleatus]

Cleatus: Being a 2021, this one has the "Black" steering box, which seems to be the upgrade/solution to the previous gen steering gearboxes, but still has a slight wander (wider track and A/T tires can make this more noticeable on any vehicle), I would even cal it a bit twitchy (?). Last weekend I decided that I would make a very (VERY) slight toe-in change to the alignment; just slightly more than a half turn of the adjustment collar on the tie-rod, and almost the same on the drag-link to the steering box to keep the wheel centered.. I marked the original factory positions with 2 small paint dots; could go right back to them if it ended up being a disaster. Despite being so slight, This made a HUGE difference!! Truck is stable, no pulling when braking, no more wandering, steering is actually enjoyable now.

i did end up getting the black steering box thru jeep/TSB. honestly didnt change much....
they said they aligned it and did the software update

 

[HorneyBadger]

Cleatus,
Is this wondering from side to side or just pulling to one side constantly? Have you lifted it? Bigger tires?

 

[cleatus]

Cleatus,
Is this wondering from side to side or just pulling to one side constantly? Have you lifted it? Bigger tires?

stock truck
new steering box

just wanders the road
and since it wanders im always adjusting back and forth. not a huge deal, but seems like a much smaller wheel movement would be easier to keep it semi-straight. gotta move the wheel (more than expected) to get it to move, and then when it finally does, it seems to move too much--lol
not the end of the world, but seems like such a silly issue for a modern vehicle

 

[Florida Man]

Cleatus,
Is this wondering from side to side or just pulling to one side constantly? Have you lifted it? Bigger tires?

Stock Tires, no lift. It was the constant corrections that were required to keep it in a straight line that irritated me. Of course there is a small dead center in the middle which is normal, and having a wider track, high sidewalls and possible crowns in the road just make this more obvious. But I was really surprised at how much of a difference it made to give it that slight toe-in. The wheels/tires are no longer searching left and right at the slightest imperfection on the road.

 

[Gvsukids]

I just let the truck weave in the lane while holding straight onto the steering wheel. It's a game of give and take.

 

[JT Pilot]

My JT steering will wander with dips in the road. This was very noticeable in the first few miles of driving it. Even after I installed the Mopar 2' lift and had it lined up. I have to use both hands most of the time and drive it. I have seen reviews that tell me this is a characteristic of the solid front axle. This dose not bother me much but I could not tell anybody to buy one without mentioning the steering. My old 94 YJ had a nice solid centered feel to the steering even with super swampers on it.

 

[02sahara]

I picked mine up last Friday and 800 mi later this huge dead spot is my only gripe. Maybe for a 18k car but not a new 40k plus truck. I’ve had a f250 and 02TJ that had more on center and better steering feel. Both were solid axle aerodynamic bricks as well. I’ve got an inch and a half of dead space before my wheels start reacting. I’ve got a time next week for the “best guy” in the dealership to take a crack at it.

I’ve also noticed on my backup cam that the lines don’t move until the wheels actually move, in other words, whatever sensor that senses the wheel position actually recognizes that there is a large amount of dead space in the steering. Has anyone else noticed this? ,amber the off-road pages would show this as well. I haven’t played with them yet.

 

[cleatus]

i think that may be it-
-- a large dead space from center. Again, its not the end of the world, but a modern vehicle should not have this--or at least be able to programmed out as it seems these have electronics tied to them.
I am not getting rid of it of course, but just a gripe (my only real gripe)

 

[brianinca]

What color is your steering box? There shouldn't be any of the Al boxes left in the supply chain, but those were exactly my thoughts with my 2020 - WTF?

And my YJ is a 93, so I wanted to slap people telling me "that's just how Jeeps drive". Stupid effers.

Dealer visit to fix, in my view.

My JT steering will wander with dips in the road. This was very noticeable in the first few miles of driving it. Even after I installed the Mopar 2' lift and had it lined up. I have to use both hands most of the time and drive it. I have seen reviews that tell me this is a characteristic of the solid front axle. This dose not bother me much but I could not tell anybody to buy one without mentioning the steering. My old 94 YJ had a nice solid centered feel to the steering even with super swampers on it.

 

[JT Pilot]

What color is your steering box? There shouldn't be any of the Al boxes left in the supply chain, but those were exactly my thoughts with my 2020 - WTF?

And my YJ is a 93, so I wanted to slap people telling me "that's just how Jeeps drive". Stupid effers.

Dealer visit to fix, in my view.

Steering box is black. Maybe this issue is due to having control arms instead of leaf springs.

 

[brianinca]

Then you've got a bad steering box or something else wrong. Don't let anyone tell you "it's a Jeep thing" or anything like that.

I took my brand new JTR to my suspension shop (not 4x4 shop, they do the alignments for my 4x4 shop). They said the caster was insufficient, the steering was poor, come back in 10K miles maybe they could figure something out. I put longer LCA's from the Mopar lift on and went back to get enough caster to mask the issue.

A properly functioning steering box, as a result of the TSB, resolved all the steering issues. Not some over damped steering shock, not a brace - a properly functioning steering box.

I'd be on the dealer to fix the problem.

Steering box is black. Maybe this issue is due to having control arms instead of leaf springs.

 

[mmatthie]

Note to all about the steel (black) steering box...

My 2021 JT came with the steel one...part #: 68507576AA
...however there's a newer one, part #: 68507576AB

I still have wandering...which I hate...wondering if the new "AB" would be worth getting the dealership to swap it out. I mean...they made the "AB" for a reason right?

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