Bent front axle or housing

A digital level along my rim showed more then zero degrees camber on the wheels. I think other have noticed up to 1 degree on new rigs.

One thing to note is, even with my axle that bent there were no codes or anything.

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Ok I'm thinking about pulling wheel changing or checking wheel sensor and taking to alignment shop go from there. I drove 6 miles this morning on and off freeway in and out neighbor hoods never got an ABS warning light? If axle shaft is bent or entire axle housing wouldn't be constant I imagine?


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If you find outs it's a bent axle housing I would use insurance. If it was on a fire road or you hit a curb it should cover it for your deductible. Just a thought.
 
Alkihaul said:
A digital level along my rim showed more then zero degrees camber on the wheels. I think other have noticed up to 1 degree on new rigs.

One thing to note is, even with my axle that bent there were no codes or anything.

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Factory specifications are 0.2 - 0.6 degrees. It's not uncommon to have more camber direct from factory on the stock housings.
Worn balljoints and unit bearings can amplify this as well, it's not the best way to measure a bent housing.

KCgunner said:
Ok I'm thinking about pulling wheel changing or checking wheel sensor and taking to alignment shop go from there. I drove 6 miles this morning on and off freeway in and out neighbor hoods never got an ABS warning light? If axle shaft is bent or entire axle housing wouldn't be constant I imagine?

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I drove a bent axle for quite awhile, and I never had issues with the ABS going off.
Is the differential leaking where the tubes are pressed in? Are any of the plug welds cracked?
 
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I'd hate to hijack but I'd also hate to make another thread about this exact thing. But I got into a car accident last week driver front wheel hit car bent rim busted tire And i just got my jeep back. Adjuster said it's fine just might need alignment. The front tires stick out and the steering wheel is to the right and the jeep pulls left. . I thought it might just be a bent tie rod so I went to my local 4x4 shop and they gave me a new take off i put it on and fixed the steering wheel. But the tires are still out. Do you think it's a bent housing. Or C's?

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Rb1boxer_3 said:
I'd hate to hijack but I'd also hate to make another thread about this exact thing. But I got into a car accident last week driver front wheel hit car bent rim busted tire And i just got my jeep back. Adjuster said it's fine just might need alignment. The front tires stick out and the steering wheel is to the right and the jeep pulls left. . I thought it might just be a bent tie rod so I went to my local 4x4 shop and they gave me a new take off i put it on and fixed the steering wheel. But the tires are still out. Do you think it's a bent housing. Or C's?

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Quite likely you bent the housing. Check the differential for broken welds & leaks.
 
Rb1boxer_3 said:
I'd hate to hijack but I'd also hate to make another thread about this exact thing. But I got into a car accident last week driver front wheel hit car bent rim busted tire And i just got my jeep back. Adjuster said it's fine just might need alignment. The front tires stick out and the steering wheel is to the right and the jeep pulls left. . I thought it might just be a bent tie rod so I went to my local 4x4 shop and they gave me a new take off i put it on and fixed the steering wheel. But the tires are still out. Do you think it's a bent housing. Or C's?

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Did you reset the toe with the new tie rod?
 
JKDream said:
Quite likely you bent the housing. Check the differential for broken welds & leaks.
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The only leaks i see is coming from the c's but it's been like for a while now. But now there's a puddle.
WJCO said:
Did you reset the toe with the new tie rod?
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No I didn't. I thought since it was a factory tie rod from a sport it would be the same. One thing I did notice right now is my axle is shifted to the passenger side about 1/2 or so. So what else could be bent ?

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Rb1boxer_3 said:
No I didn't. I thought since it was a factory tie rod from a sport it would be the same. One thing I did notice right now is my axle is shifted to the passenger side about 1/2 or so. So what else could be bent ?

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While it will be the same, it is adjustable. I would set toe first just to be safe. If axle is shifted you could have a bent track bar, TB bracket, or something going on with control arms. Frame could be bent but less likely. You should have a frame shop look at it to be safe though. Being that your axle shifted, this is likely why your steering wheel was off at first.
 
Insurance is a good idea alf if it comes to replace entire thing thanks. I'm gonna pull it apart on Wednesday put it up on some jack stands pull brakes maybe try and get a dial indicator on the hub to check axle shaft? That is the only way to tell if shaft is bent vs housing. Change speed sensor while I'm at it. See if ABS traction warning goes away.


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KCgunner said:
Insurance is a good idea alf if it comes to replace entire thing thanks. I'm gonna pull it apart on Wednesday put it up on some jack stands pull brakes maybe try and get a dial indicator on the hub to check axle shaft? That is the only way to tell if shaft is bent vs housing. Change speed sensor while I'm at it. See if ABS traction warning goes away.


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Hub is supported by the knuckle. So even if axle shaft was bent, I would think the hub would still spin true. You'd be better off running the vehicle in 4wd on jackstands or a lift and holding a screwdriver near the shaft where it goes into the tube to see if it isn't turning true. It's still unlikely a front shaft is bent. You'd likely have gear oil leaking if that were the case.
 
I called an alignment shop and they said they could check # s but wouldn't be able to determine which is bent or damaged. At this point I have the DLR who says axle shaft bent and 4 wheel parts shop who said they break don't bend (stock Dana 30) Axle housing will give and is most likely with confidence what is wrong.


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If the housing is bent, the camber should be off. Spend the money just to see. You could also park on flat ground and put an angle finder on the outside of the wheel hub on each side and see if they're the same. If you can't get a flat surface on the wheel, put a 3 foot metal bar against the tire's top and bottom (pressed against the sidewall) and measure the angle of that. Do the same for the opposite wheel.
 
I'll rip into Wednesday replace wheel sensor check as much as I can out. Thanks for help Jeep peeps. I'm a MTC mechanic/electrician by trade not automotive mechanic by any means tho.


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Another example of what a bent axle looks like...

20160820_180852-1.jpg20160820_180852.jpg20160820_180832.jpg

Depending on how bent it is, it may or may not be very obvious haha.
 
KCgunner said:
So you saying your picture is axle shaft or the axle housing bent. And wow yeah I see what guys mean by it should be easy to see what's wrong


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Assuming you're replying to SDG that's a bent housing. A bent axle shaft wouldn't cause camber like that.
 
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