‘11 JK Sport - steering wander during braking

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Predfan75

New member
Hey everyone! I’m brand new to the forum and have only been a Jeeper for a little over a year.

I have two issues with my Jeep but will post them separately for the sake of confusion.

So, I installed a 2.5” Rough Country lift right after buying this Jeep. Since then, while braking the steering starts to pull to the right immediately when the brakes are applied and regardless of how hard. It makes it crazy to drive and can’t figure out what changed.

Worth noting, during the lift install I did not use the brake line brackets mainly due to the instructions not lining up with my model. I’ve since checked the lines a few times to see if they had stress on them but they appear to have plenty of slack.
I also contacted RC and asked their opinion and they stated the brackets are “optional” depending on wheel/tire size. I’m running 285/70/17’s on 17x9 Fuel wheels.

Lastly, I don’t know if it’s my mind playing tricks on me but a couple of days ago my youngest daughter and her friend were in the backseat and I swear the issue wasn’t there. Again... could be my mind! LOL

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!!
 
MSJKU11

MSJKU11

Caught the Bug
Have you checked your left brake capiler to make sure it's working properly and isn't seized? Brake fluid low? Any residue on the rotors?

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Predfan75

New member
MSJKU11 said:
Have you checked your left brake capiler to make sure it's working properly and isn't seized? Brake fluid low? Any residue on the rotors?

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Brake fluid is good and rotor is good. I haven't checked the caliper per say but would assume if it's seized or hanging up I have brake pad wear and/or excessive brake dust on that wheel. I plan to check everything over again this weekend and possibly install those brake line brackets just to see if it makes a difference.
 
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Predfan75

New member
longarmwj said:
Did the kit come with control arms?? Did you get it aligned? There could be a bunch of factors in that. Is it a spring or spacer lift?


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No it didn’t come with control arms. It is a spring lift setup, so it was just front and rear springs and shocks. Now that you mention it, I don’t think I did get it aligned but can’t recall 100%. It just seems odd that it tracks perfectly down the road and only pulls to that side when the brakes are applied. I’m hoping to tear into it this weekend and check a few things since it’s been a while since I looked it over. Thank you!


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Predfan75

New member
BaddestCross said:
Blown shock? Low tire pressure? Steering links not parallel or torqued properly? Caster off?



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Build Thread - Adventures of Fiona - https://wayalife.com/showthread.php?t=47407
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Good suggestions! Shock appears to be good and tire pressure is spot on. I’m not sure on the steering links since I didn’t have to disassemble those to install the lift. I can check them though and as for the caster, I’ll have to get the alignment checked to know where I stand with that. Thank you!


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DWiggles

DWiggles

Caught the Bug
What tires are you running? My jeep has a slight pull to the right when braking with toyo open country MTs but the rest of the time everything is straight and true. I chalked it up to radial pull from the tires years ago.

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longarmwj

longarmwj

New member
Might sound crazy but have you tried getting your tires rotated?? I know when i has my MTR Kevlar they would do that same thing. Had them rotated and it stopped doing it


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MSJKU11

MSJKU11

Caught the Bug
I would think if it only happens when it's braking it has something to do with the braking system. If it pulling to the right, something is going on with the left side. Maybe you need to bleed it to see if there any bubbles in there also.

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BaddestCross

BaddestCross

Active Member
MSJKU11 said:
I would think if it only happens when it's braking it has something to do with the braking system. If it pulling to the right, something is going on with the left side. Maybe you need to bleed it to see if there any bubbles in there also.

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I bring up the springs and shock potential because mine does the same if I forget to readjust my shock tuning and leave them too soft.



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Build Thread - Adventures of Fiona - https://wayalife.com/showthread.php?t=47407
 
Bierpower

Bierpower

Hooked
It sounds like you may have gotten slightly more lift than the 2.5 advertised and it threw your steering geometry off. When you hit the brakes the nose of the jeep sinks and causes the pulling feeling. Just speculation but it may be a good place to start if it happened after the lift.

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Predfan75

New member
I want to say thanks to everyone who offer some suggestions and knowledge! I was able to diagnose the issue to a compromised left brake hose. Replaced it yesterday and bled the system and the Jeep brakes perfectly now!!


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MSJKU11

MSJKU11

Caught the Bug
Predfan75 said:
I want to say thanks to everyone who offer some suggestions and knowledge! I was able to diagnose the issue to a compromised left brake hose. Replaced it yesterday and bled the system and the Jeep brakes perfectly now!!


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Glad you found it.

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Billybob1178

Billybob1178

Member
I had a similar experience but with stock wheel and tire set up. For me one of the calipers was sticking so bad the disc was literally red hot and glowing. The next day I replaced calipers, discs and pads on the front end. With so many variables be sure to check everything over well so you dont spend money on parts you dont need.
 
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