I’ve Mended Something!

[OhCrikeyTheRozzers]

And also, another (mild) rant.

So after last weeks’ soft roading, I noticed what seemed to be some sort of friction/metal on metal from the front passenger wheel at slow speeds (forward or reverse). Needless to say, I was a bit disheartened thinking I might have broken my Jeep the first time it’s been off road in a year or so, and I made an appointment to take it into the local independent shop. Highly regarded shop—switched out a radiator for me and did some other minor stuff on the Jeep before.

Well fast forward seven hours and I get a call that yep, they hear something, but nope, they don’t know what to do. Seems the axle is off center:

My call with the service advisor:

OCTR: “What do you mean you don’t know what to do?”
Service Advisor: “Well we don’t know how to fix that on Jeeps, and you said you have aftermarket suspension. So you should take it to a place that works on 4x4s.”
OCTR:
Service Advisor:
OCTR:
Service Advisor: “We won’t be charging you for this…we close at 5 if you can come pick it up?”

Anywho—pick up the Jeep and start to remember how the Terraflex Track Bar I installed three years ago had an adjustment for centering the axle. Maybe I’ll give that a try.

Four hours later, after dinner, bath and bedtime with three children, I’m lying in my driveway at the end of a long day with my trusty 15mm wrench, socket, and torque wrench. Measure the distance from the edge of the tire to the shock tower, and sure enough, driver side is an inch and half(!) further out than the passenger. Pull up the ole’ online instructions for the track bar and proceed to adjust a few turns:

40 minutes and some rust in the eye and everything is centered and torqued down. Go for a drive and everything is back to normal. I have mended a thing (or maybe just put a band aid on a bigger problem)?

In retrospect, I guess I could have saved myself the trouble of taking it to the shop, but on the other hand, I’m just a dude with no training who is marginally qualified to tackle minor automotive maintenance. Why was it on me to figure this out and fix it, and why did the independent shop with ten bays, ASE certified mechanics, and, you know, actual training, give it the ole ¯_(ツ)_/¯? I even told them the specific track bar on the vehicle when I dropped it off to the extent it had something to do with it.

*long sigh, end rant, cracking a beer

[Zaphod's Heart of Gold]

@OhCrikeyTheRozzers A Jeep will support itself without a track bar. Next time you can disconnect the bar, put the Jeep on the ground and the body should center itself on the axle. Then you can adjust the bar so it bolts right in.

At least that's how I did it when I lifted my TJ. Saves the hassle of doing it with everything weighted.

[OhCrikeyTheRozzers]

@Zaphod-s-Heart-of-Gold

That’s a solid tip—maybe the shop just didn’t want the hassle of wrestling the adjustment sleeve while it was bolted on.

[Zaphod's Heart of Gold]

@OhCrikeyTheRozzers Looks like that shop wasn't an offroad/4wd specialist and may not have known the specifics of doing the job. As you found it's pretty easy even attached and that's the way to get the final adjustment if necessary. I had a Metalcloak bar (most expensive part of my lift) and despite having to drill out the frame from a tapered connection to a straight bolt-through it was easy enough

[flatisflat]

@OhCrikeyTheRozzers said in I’ve Mended Something!:

Why was it on me to figure this out and fix it, and why did the independent shop with ten bays, ASE certified mechanics, and, you know, actual training, give it the ole ¯_(ツ)_/¯?

Because, similarly, sometimes it's on me (a non-degreed schmuck) to tell my team of mechanical engineer graduate coworkers how to interpret a pipeline construction drawing and that, no, a strength test assembly is not necessarily installed as-is. Read the weld map.

[oldmxer]

@OhCrikeyTheRozzers well done! as much mechanic-ing I've done over the last 50 plus years I may have wimped out on this