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Alignment


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OK, so here's the deal...

 

I am working on the mule last night and I notice that the front end is way out of alignment.

 

What I mean is I can see it visually. :eek:

I just put 30X9.5's on it temporarily and notice that the drivers side tire sticks out from the flare about 1/4 inch.

The passenger is inboard probably 1/2 inch at the top. It seems to be leaning inward from bottom to top if that makes sense.

Probably from the 1st accident my son had with it a few years ago. I knew it was out of alignment because it ate a set of front tires.

Just didn't think it was bad enough to see. :ack:

 

So, my question is is this fixable with alignment or should I just put the front axle from the donor XJ in there and call it done?

:dunno:

 

I'm thinking swapping everything might be the answer.

 

How long does it take the average shade tree mechanic to swap axles? :hmm:

 

 

I just realized that the ratio's are probably not the same... Crap. :headpop:

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You can only adjust camber by replacing the ball joints. Napa sells joints with different offset angles at .5-2 degrees. Best if you had a shop give you an alignment with a precise measure of your camber. Then you could have them replace the ball joints with the proper offset, or you could go buy them yourself and install.

 

Its possible to just replace the whole axle for less than you'd spend on new ball joints, however, there's no guarantee the new/old axle won't have the same problem.

 

Also, ensure your front axle isn't bent as a result of the accident. If that's the case, then the ball joints won't help much.

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Your camber may not be an issue, sounds to me more like a track bar issue. The camber could be a visual effect and not really be bad, but you won't know for sure without a professional alignment machine. Assuming your camber is ok, and adjustable track bar might get the axle back to being centered up. I'm not sure what if any lift you have, but a combination of some lift, bad caster and toe in may cause it look and act like youre describing.... that or its bent from the accident.... get it checked out, and let us know what you find.

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  • 1 month later...

OK.

Had it aligned a month ago or so.

Helped, but the problem with the tire sticking out on the drivers side further than the passenger side was still there.

So, I looked into it and decided that the track bar must be the culprit.

 

 

Today, I pulled the track bar off the donor and then pulled the track bar off the truck and low and behold.

They were slightly different. It appears that the bend was sharper on the truck. Most likely due to one of the accidents this truck had in its past. So, I put the donor track bar on and it moved the axle over so now the tires stick out about equally on each side. :clapping:

 

Man, I love having a donor. jamminz.gif

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