Steering issues

[1970CUDAAAR]

I have a 1970 CUDA with a 440 and power steering. When I drive the car it sometime goes to the left and then to the right. Last year I had several parts changed in the front-end. Then it went for a wheels allignment. Could this issue be related to bad whell alligment or others? Thanks!

 

[Chryco Psycho]

Well the factory spec for alignment was for bias ply tires , Radials are different , so you want to max the caster as far as the settings allow , then set camber about 1/2* in at the top & 1/16" of toe in

 

[1970CUDAAAR]

Well the factory spec for alignment was for bias ply tires , Radials are different , so you want to max the caster as far as the settings allow , then set camber about 1/2* in at the top & 1/16" of toe in

Thanks for your comments.

 

[moparleo]

Does this happen when going over a high or low point in the road ?
Bump steer, Make sure that the tie rods were adjusted to be the same length both sides.
Read up on the phenomena. Common on these cars.

 

[pschlosser]

I don't believe an "incorrect" alignment would cause this issue. that is, a small steering change as you drive.

when travelling in a straight line, with the steering wheel held more or less steady, if the car seems to turn slightly left or right, and requires steering correction as it moves down the highway, that can be worn front suspension parts. more specifically, worn upper/lower ball joints and/or tie-rod ends.

if the car drifts to the left or right, but then seems to return back to straight, without much/any steering correction, as moparleo suggests, i vote bump-steer, you may have uneven tie-rod lengths.

 

[Bret Schneider]

A sloppy (loose) power steering gear can cause the car to wander requiring constant steering to keep the car in a straight line.
What makes it even worse is if someone tries to fix that problem by turning the adjusting screw without following the service manual.
Really easy to make matters worse doing that.

If the car wasn't having this problem before the parts swap, check the lower ball joints if they were replaced for binding.

 

[cuda joe]

the stock wheel aliment specks particularly the caster was very low probably 1.5 deg positive that made for a squirrely handling with tubular upper control arms you can get a lot more positive caster that will make it track straighter ...on the cheap side .you can also get more caster with offset upper control arm bushings

 

[Xcudame]

Check the bump steer. It's not that hard and easy to fix. Mopar Action covered this in detail. You should be able to find tons of info on the internet.

By the way, the "Jeep death wobble" is basically a bump steer issue caused by people jacking up their Jeeps with inadequate or incompatible parts!

 

[heminut]

By the way, the "Jeep death wobble" is basically a bump steer issue caused by people jacking up their Jeeps with inadequate or incompatible parts!

That's only one reason for that, worn front end parts and caster angles can also cause that. I put a caster adjustment kit on my son's Wrangler to try and resolve the issue with it. I took it to a local guy who was reportedly really good at resolving these issues on Jeeps. My son's Wrangler originally had 4.5 degrees caster and he said it was too much. He took it back to 3.5 degrees and it solved the issue! It's starting to do it again now, but his ball joints are worn out.