Is anyone else’s steering worse after the steering box upgrade?

[Geekjeep]

I had to have a second steel box replaced. First one was messed up.

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[Demetrius]

My truck's steering is wanders more and has a larger dead spot after the tsb was performrd . Jeep Cares has closed the case based on the dealer's claim that the vehicle performing within specifications I will be reopening the case with another dealer.

 

[Chaos]

Just had mine replaced last week. Dealer was great to work with and the alignment is dead on. The wander is gone and it drives true. Hope it stays gone.

 

[JeepTrucker]

I’m hoping it can be adjusted. Kinda scary when you are in a turn and it darts in the opposite direction you are turning. Did not do this before. Thinking they messed something up. Stability Control just failed also—saying it needs to be serviced. Related?

It would be worth checking the part number on your new steering gear. There have been many reports of dealers installing the JL gear on JTs. I had mine replaced last year and at that time the correct JT part # was 68507576AA. Lift the inner fender liner in the front drivers side wheel well and you will see it.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

My truck's steering is wanders more and has a larger dead spot after the tsb was performrd . Jeep Cares has closed the case based on the dealer's claim that the vehicle performing within specifications I will be reopening the case with another dealer.

Mine was "ok" after the TSB was performed the first time last fall. Through the winter it got worse to the point it was a lot worse than with the original steering gear. I took it in with the latest copy of the TSB in hand - the one that tells them they must do an alignment, told them to please do the alignment because that's what the TSB says to do now and mentioned that it wandered more now, not less - could be alignment issue, etc. - I didn't even tell them I wanted the steering gear replaced, just please do the alignment and that it wandered worse than before. 2 hours later I got a call "we need to keep your truck, we need to replace the steering gear". OK, keep it, go for it.
It was THEY who decided it was bad - I hinted it could be anything, alignment, something loose, some owners had reported problems with the new gear, whatever, please check it out and do the alignment.
It's great, now.

 

[MoparMadness]

I had the TSB done and it began pulling to the right afterwards. I rotated the tires and had the alignment checked to make sure they were not causing the pull before I went back to the dealer. I asked the service manager if they had any problems with the new boxes and he said no. He drove it and felt the pull. He said they would change the steering box again if I felt it was the cause. They replaced it and the pull is gone. Its probably not common, but there is a chance some of the new parts will be defective.

 

[93civej1]

I had the TSB done and it began pulling to the right afterwards. I rotated the tires and had the alignment checked to make sure they were not causing the pull before I went back to the dealer. I asked the service manager if they had any problems with the new boxes and he said no. He drove it and felt the pull. He said they would change the steering box again if I felt it was the cause. They replaced it and the pull is gone. Its probably not common, but there is a chance some of the new parts will be defective.

@JeepCares how hard would it be to have this as an option added to my ordeal I PM'd you about? I would not be opposed to trying a 2nd gear box since multiple others have had to have more than 1 before theirs worked correctly.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

@JeepCares how hard would it be to have this as an option added to my ordeal I PM'd you about? I would not be opposed to trying a 2nd gear box since multiple others have had to have more than 1 before theirs worked correctly.

Feel free to use my experience and how the dealer checked my truck and determined the new steering gear was the problem. Dewey Dodge/Ram/Jeep Ankeny Iowa.
I had the latest TSB with me that mentioned to do an alignment - I nicely explained the first couple of versions did not say that, the latest does, and I told them exactly how it went - wasn't too bad at first, got worse, please check alignment and you decide. That's what I told them.

There was a list of stuff to check so I left it with them - a couple of hours later they called me to ask if they could keep my truck because "we need to replace the steering gear".

If my experiences help anyone else at all i any way then my 'hassle' was definitely worth it.

 

[GRAN1TE JT]

Anyone else look at their steering box after it’s been replaced? I was under my jeep the other day and noticed the “new” steering box was surface rusted pretty bad. I know it’s steel but still didn’t expect it after only a few months

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Anyone else look at their steering box after it’s been replaced? I was under my jeep the other day and noticed the “new” steering box was surface rusted pretty bad. I know it’s steel but still didn’t expect it after only a few months

Typical of most vehicles. They put on enough paint to protect during storage, shipping, or for shelf life on a warehouse shelf. They aren't painted for long-term.
During restoring multiple vehicles over the years, I learned of some of the processes involved - often, the part comes from assembly, and is simply sprayed with cheap black paint - no cleaning, no degreasing, nothing done to ensure the paint adheres or even has a minimal thickness.
Bare cast develops that "patina" really fast. It's actually protective.
If you want to keep it nicer, clean it off, brush off any loose stuff and spray it with this - it will convert the surface rust to a nice black/purplish inert material -

then wait 24 hours, then paint it.

 

[GRAN1TE JT]

Typical of most vehicles. They put on enough paint to protect during storage, shipping, or for shelf life on a warehouse shelf. They aren't painted for long-term.
During restoring multiple vehicles over the years, I learned of some of the processes involved - often, the part comes from assembly, and is simply sprayed with cheap black paint - no cleaning, no degreasing, nothing done to ensure the paint adheres or even has a minimal thickness.
Bare cast develops that "patina" really fast. It's actually protective.
If you want to keep it nicer, clean it off, brush off any loose stuff and spray it with this - it will convert the surface rust to a nice black/purplish inert material -

then wait 24 hours, then paint it.

thank you, I’ll definitely give it a try! Just can’t believe how bad it looks for such a newer vehicle. Makes sense though!

 

[ShadowsPapa]

thank you, I’ll definitely give it a try! Just can’t believe how bad it looks for such a newer vehicle. Makes sense though!

I get it - you paid money for it - it's not even 2 years old (most likely) and it's visible on these trucks. I definitely get it.
I bought a tilt steering column to swap into my 73 Javelin. The car is far from pristine, in fact it's got a lot of issues under the hood and inside, and the underside because the prior owner was an idiot (but said he was a professional body man) - I should have just swapped in that steering column - it actually would have been one of the best looking things under the hood. But I could not..... I removed the flex joint, disassembled it, replated all of the bolts and nuts. I sanded and painted the lower column area - that you can't even see when in the car, and replated the bolts that hold the lower column seal plate to the firewall in a nice black zinc. Crazy, I know..... now it makes other stuff under the hood look even worse LOL

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