Steering Solutions?

[Dokatd]

I think it must vary from truck to truck based on rolling improvements throughout the year. My ‘24 fall build will literally track down a straight road with no hands and has very little slop in the wheel.

The return to center and turning radius still requires a lot of work in parking lots and other tight spaces. The little bit of extra rotation you get if you keep turning the wheel past when it first stops, helps shorted the radius by a few feet.

What confuses the heck out of me is when I have all the lockers engaged, the steering wheel returns to center with authority, like a “normal” car would on pavement. I first noticed this when I was driving down a gravel road and wanted to play around with the lockers and hi/low gears. Anyone else notice this? Does anyone know why it will return to center “normally” when the lockers are engaged (I'm assuming its the front one that matters) and/or why it won’t transfer over to when the lockers are disengaged

All vehicles with lockers do this. Front lockers are dramatic in their effect, but a rear locker will do it pretty efficiently as well.

 

[GN4HIR]

I think the last 3 pages of posts explain why there are so many low mileage IGs for sale. You either embrace it or run away from it. Not many people are on the fence. The analogy of the waxed canvas coat is spot on.

My IG was an impulse purchase after an inattentive driver took the front end off my GMC AT4 pickup. It took 6 weeks to repair. By the time I got the pickup back, driving it felt ordinary and the steering was vague and sleepy. I sold it and haven't looked back.

 

[Jiman01]

All vehicles with lockers do this. Front lockers are dramatic in their effect, but a rear locker will do it pretty efficiently as well.

I’ve not experienced that in the multiple Wranglers I’ve owned…maybe I’m not explaining it right.

 

[Dokatd]

I’ve not experienced that in the multiple Wranglers I’ve owned…maybe I’m not explaining it right.

Not sure I can explain it any better, but I can say it's not a vague feeling or opinion. It's purely fact that all trucks with lockers do this and the feeling is pretty dramatic. The truck wants to do nothing but go straight and adding steering input is fighting the truck. That's 100% why selectable lockers exist. Try driving around with a Detroit locker, they can be interesting to be sure.

 

[Tom109]

No offense, but for every dozen posts about fixing the steering, I have to post that I have zero issues. I’m comfortable driving with one hand, and last week heading to DC when a bozo decided it best to stop on an exit ramp, my Gren responded to emergency input without issue. This was my first split-second, avoidance and the vehicle handled amazing - complete confidence.

Oh, I don’t wear waxed cotton and never will.

 

[mcdoogs]

I’ve not experienced that in the multiple Wranglers I’ve owned…maybe I’m not explaining it right.

It makes sense though when I think about it. Normally, when turning, the outside wheel gets more power because it has to rotate faster to cover a longer distance than the inside wheel. When you lock the front diff thats impossible and so the outside wheel effectively drags against the steering input as the inside wheel pushes with it.

Maybe the slow steering setup in the Grenadier transmits this feedback more aggressively to the driver than the Wrangler does (im much too posh to set foot in a jeep), but this effect should be consistent across vehicles with front locking diffs. I mean, what you are doing when you steer side to side with front diff locked is fighting physics including the weight of the car. So maybe thats part of the answer actually. The Grenadier is a big gal, she's 1400-1500+ pounds heavier than the heaviest new Wranglers. I'm sure that gap only increases the older the Jeep you are comparing with. The more weight, the more force pushing the inside wheel forward and dragging the outside wheel back when diff is locked.