 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
Car Forum / Land Rover Cars / January 2008Landrover steering problems
Vehicle: Landrover Discovery N reg, 120K miles. 300TDI Hi group, I am having some problem with the above vehicle. When cornering, particuarly to the right, the right hand side of the car at the front drops but then fails to right itself properly until I turn to the left. I have replaced both front shocks and spring travel appears normal with and without shocks attached. The steering starts to feel very loose over part of the steering range, more so when turning to the right. Turning left gives a normal turning resistance but going right and it starts to feel loose. Have checked swivel preloads, could this be the steering damper? With the car stationary but running if I turn the steering wheel I can see, in the rear view mirror, the back of the car move side to side with the front staying still. Is this normal? Things I have replaced so far: Front swivel bearings and hub bearings (this was for another problem but may be related to the above) preloads are correct. Front shock absorbers Front anti-roll bar mounting rubbers, but not the links Rear anti-roll bar links. Lower trailing arm bushes to chassis (rear) Radius arm bushes to chassis (front) Haven't done the axle bushes on these are don't have the means to replace them. Steering link bar and ball joints Drag link ball joints. The car doesnt feel unsafe to drive and when traveling in a straight line it keeps going in a straight line and pulls up straight. But this corning problem is really starting to bother me. Hope someone can shed some further light on this regards Ben I have the opposite problem, the steering becomes tight when you turn it to a certain point on the left. I am fairly certain that the problem lies with the bearings on the steering column, with the possibility that the column itself may be bent. It's been like this ever since some idiot ran into me, and passed at least two MOT's in that state, though it is not likely to pass a third unless I do something about it before then.  SignatureLarry Series 3 Rust and Holes > Vehicle: Landrover Discovery N reg, 120K miles. 300TDI > [quoted text clipped - 47 lines] > > Ben look at the damper and check it if your not sure see if its tight or loose on the mounting brackets. I replaced mine and it was tighter. >I have the opposite problem, the steering becomes tight when you turn it to >a certain point on the left. I am fairly certain that the problem lies with [quoted text clipped - 54 lines] >> >> Ben > I have the opposite problem, the steering becomes tight when you turn it to > a certain point on the left. I am fairly certain that the problem lies with > the bearings on the steering column, with the possibility that the column > itself may be bent. It's been like this ever since some idiot ran into me, > and passed at least two MOT's in that state, though it is not likely to pass > a third unless I do something about it before then. Lubricate the UJs on the steering column. Check the steering damper. Steering ball joints at the limit of travel (i.e. incorrectly positioned on track rod/drag link)? Ball joints 'dry'? If the steering column is bent its probable that the chassis is, too. Were you hit that hard? I'd consider this the least likely possibility. What the impact did was crush one of the dumb irons that was badly corroded (unknown to me) forcing one the front wheels out of alignment necessarily impacting back on the whole steering system. It has had the track rod ends replaced since then and various adjustments to the steering box. I know the ballrace at the bottom of the steering column is a bit dodgy, wouldnt be surprised if some of the balls are actually missing. I really suspect this is where the problem lies. Anyway the steering problem is something I have been advised will need sorting by the time the next MOT is due, although it actually gives me no problems as I simply yank a bit harder over the stiff part of the turn. SignatureLarry Series 3 Rust and Holes >> I have the opposite problem, the steering becomes tight when you turn it >> to a certain point on the left. I am fairly certain that the problem lies [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > If the steering column is bent its probable that the chassis is, too. Were > you hit that hard? I'd consider this the least likely possibility. > What the impact did was crush one of the dumb irons that was badly corroded > (unknown to me) forcing one the front wheels out of alignment necessarily [quoted text clipped - 28 lines] > > - Show quoted text - Hmmm. An interesting thread. I agree about panhard rod and trailing arm bushes. Axle may be twisting or sliding during steering. Also check rear axle ball joint (on the self-levelling unit). Axle will slew side-to-side if this is shot, or rather the body will slew side- to-side, the axle will stay firmly on the ground!! Also, I've got 3 good discovery steering columns here which I presumed nobody would ever want. They're all from fully working vehicles which have been broken for spares (due to body rot!). Is it about time I put them up on ebay?? Cheers. Joe. P.S my E-mail address doesn't work. Reply on here! > Vehicle: Landrover Discovery N reg, 120K miles. 300TDI > [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > I have replaced both front shocks and spring travel appears normal > with and without shocks attached. Panhard rod bolt holes in chassis/axle bracket worn? Panhard rod bushes? (not on your list?) Shockers do nothing for height unless damaged and not allowing free travel. Broken front spring? Jack up chassis until the axle is held by the shocker. Inspect spring especially near an end for a break. It might not be easy to see. Are the springs identical? The clearance between the axle casing and the bunp stop rubber should be the same at both sides under all loads. Same tyre size/type/pressure? Steering box attachment to chassis loose? Drop arm loose on steering box output shaft? > The steering starts to feel very loose over part of the steering > range, more so when turning to the right. > Turning left gives a normal turning resistance but going right and it > starts to feel loose. Have checked swivel preloads, could this be the > steering damper? Presumably you've also done these checks with both wheels off the ground. You'll get a better feel for what's going on. Damper? possibly - they are prone to damage. If the obvious visual check doesn't reveal anything, take it off and check it by hand for even resistance in compression and extension. While it's off have a drive: does it make any difference? > With the car stationary but running if I turn the steering wheel I can > see, in the rear view mirror, the back of the car move side to side [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > Haven't done the axle bushes on these are don't have the means to > replace them. Have you checked them? They could well be totally shot. The front axle bushes should be one of the first things to eliminate. You can waste an awful lot of time/effort/money doing other things when the real problem lies here. The note about worn bolt holes applies here, too. The bushes rely on the centre tube being solidly clamped by the bolt. If it is loose the rubber is doing only a fraction of the work that it needs to. > Steering link bar and ball joints > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > Ben |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2008 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.