enigma94 Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 Hello all, I have a 87 MJ with a 5'' lift and i'm having some issues with my track bar. Normally when you have a lift the axel should push to the driver side with the stock track bar correct? well mine is actually pushing to the passenger side. Its off by a good inch or so and the track bar does not look to be cut, and is not adjustable. I'm pretty sure its safe to assume I don't have a stock track bar so which one could it be, and what would you suggest doing to fix this usse? TIA! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWLONGSHOT Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 Not to be a smart arse.....but get a adj track bar. :roll: Unsure what could be happening...The factory one is too short @5" of lift. There is not enough meat in the factory bracketry to re-drill to compensate for that amount of lift..... Its likely safe to drive, its is something you should take care of next chance you get. BTW...WELCOME to COMANCHE CLUB!!!! :chillin: CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enigma94 Posted November 10, 2006 Author Share Posted November 10, 2006 Yea, but what I'm saying is that adjustable track bars are made to eliminate the axle from being pushed to the driver side by the stock bar being too short. Well my Track bar seems to be too LONG since my axle is pushed to the passenger side. I don't want to buy a adjustable one and have it be even longer than the current one on there. Does anybody have any length measurements on a stock track bar, and also one of a adjustable one all the way (as short as it can go)? So i have verify 2 things, 1 that i have a longer than stock track bar, 2 if the adjustable one will correct this problem or only make it worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87manche Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 an djustable track bar for your amount of lift will certainly fix the problem. Most manufacturers sell them for 0-3" and 3-6" of lift. It would be prudent to measure how much lift you really have. If you've not vut the flare then you can measure from the flare to the center of the wheel. Stock is about 18" IIRC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete M Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 18"? I thought it was like 20? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeepthing07 Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 I have the same problem after lifting my MJ. I don't even have my track bar on and its pushed out on the pass side. I think its because of the inverted Y steering linkage used on the coil sprung jeeps. I think after i lifted it it made the steering linkage from the steering gear to the pass side knuckle to long. I'm not sure though I'm going to adjust it and see if it brings it back to center. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87manche Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 18"? I thought it was like 20? might be, maybe 18" is for the XJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87manche Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 I have the same problem after lifting my MJ. I don't even have my track bar on and its pushed out on the pass side. I think its because of the inverted Y steering linkage used on the coil sprung jeeps. I think after i lifted it it made the steering linkage from the steering gear to the pass side knuckle to long. I'm not sure though I'm going to adjust it and see if it brings it back to center. If you don't have your trackbar attached then there's no way you can center the axle with the draglink. lifting the suspension will make your track bar and draglink SHORT. Simple geometry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeepthing07 Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 I have the same problem after lifting my MJ. I don't even have my track bar on and its pushed out on the pass side. I think its because of the inverted Y steering linkage used on the coil sprung jeeps. I think after i lifted it it made the steering linkage from the steering gear to the pass side knuckle to long. I'm not sure though I'm going to adjust it and see if it brings it back to center. If you don't have your trackbar attached then there's no way you can center the axle with the draglink. lifting the suspension will make your track bar and draglink SHORT. Simple geometry. It don’t make any sense to me either, but that the only thing I cold think of for mine being off. Being that I don’t even have a track bar on it right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87manche Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 you're not making any sense. Not having a trackbar is why it's not centered. Without the trackbar the front end is only kept under the truck by the control arms, and they can't locate the axle side to side, just front to back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWLONGSHOT Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 I am thinking maybe we have a problem with terminology going on here.. Here is a pic to straighten that out. Image Not Found CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeepthing07 Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 you're not making any sense. Not having a trackbar is why it's not centered.Without the trackbar the front end is only kept under the truck by the control arms, and they can't locate the axle side to side, just front to back. After re reading my posts I was unclear let me try and clear it up... I didn’t want to hijack enigma94's post making it all about my MJ so I posted what I *think* might be wrong with mine. Thinking more from my MJ's perspective than his. I converted my MJ to 4wd, my 2wd tube axle was visabley centered. (Even without track bar, on level ground with wheel straight) so it never was an issue. After putting in the 4wd axle with its original steering linkage it’s noticeably shifted to the passenger side. In my MJ's case sitting on level ground with the wheels straight and no track bar. It should sit fairly centered even with the track bar off. I wasn’t trying to center my axle with the draglink, I thought the draglink might be effecting how my MJ sat without a track bar. But in enigma94's case a 5" lifted MJ with a stock track bar his should be offset to the driver’s side like he said in his first post. And since he has a track bar the steering wouldn’t have anything to do with it, so I was wrong there sorry for the confusion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 18"? I thought it was like 20? This is for the front. "Stock" height in front, measured from the center of the wheel/hubcap/axle stright up to the bottom edge of the flare should be 17-1/2". Rear is 17" for an XJ and around 20" or 20-1/2" for an MJ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 It don’t make any sense to me either, but that the only thing I cold think of for mine being off. Being that I don’t even have a track bar on it right now. Mate, if you don't have a track bar installed, there is nothing locating your axle under the chassis. You can lean on one fender and push that truck sideways across the axle, then go around and push it back from the other side. You do NOT use the drag link and/or tie rod adjustment to center the axle. That is the function of the track bar. 87manche stated it exactly right. After the axle has been centered with the track bar, and can't move laterally because the track bar keeps it in position, THEN you can use the drag link and tie rod adjustments to set your toe-in and center up the steering wheel. You can't adjust or center anything with no track bar. You also can't drive the vehicle without a track bar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeepthing07 Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 I wasn’t trying to center my axle with the draglink lol this got out of hand fast, i thought i had cleared up my f-ups from not reading everyones posts thoroughly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feerocknok Posted November 12, 2006 Share Posted November 12, 2006 Hello all, I have a 87 MJ with a 5'' lift and i'm having some issues with my track bar. Normally when you have a lift the axel should push to the driver side with the stock track bar correct? well mine is actually pushing to the passenger side. Its off by a good inch or so and the track bar does not look to be cut, and is not adjustable. I'm pretty sure its safe to assume I don't have a stock track bar so which one could it be, and what would you suggest doing to fix this usse? TIA! Does your bracket on your axle look to be modified? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enigma94 Posted November 19, 2006 Author Share Posted November 19, 2006 sorry for the late response, I had forgot I made this post. Well i double checked my track bar to make sure i was indeed looking at the right thing. The mounting points of the track bar appear to be stock and there is no sign of the track bar being modified so i assume its the stock one. does anybody have a measurement of the length of a stock track bar? maybe that will help.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enigma94 Posted November 28, 2006 Author Share Posted November 28, 2006 Well, after looking at my track bar and comparing it to my friends stock track bar on his comanche we noticed that somebody(for whatever reason) decided to straighten the track bar where it normally bends. Which in turn made it longer and pushed the axel to the passenger side. :nuts: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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