Scota4570

Hi,

I just bought one. Pretty clean over all. I have repaired a couple of little things.

Handling is very poor. IT pulls right. It will climb the crown of the road. The steering wheel is over about 20* to keep it straight on the road. The previous owner installed aggressive mud tires. Not lifted. Slight damage to the driver's front fender.

I can not stand a vehicle that I have to fight to keep on the road. These rigs have a solid front axle. Adjustments are limited. I am thinking the frame is twisted. My first idea was to get it on a straightening table and see.

I have also noticed the body sways easier to the driver's side.

IF this is not it what then? Loose the mud tires? Have the front end rubber components and wear parts replaced? I was hoping to drive it on a regular basis but the dangerous handling is a bit of a deal breaker.

Thanks,

Scot

jakey poo

I'd take it to a reputable alignment shop and have them do an inspection and if everything checks out, do an alignment, then check the balance on all of the tires. Obviously a milder tread AT will have better road characteristics. I love my BFG AT KO2s.

Scota4570

Already did that. They told me there is nothing to adjust. The solid front axle poses unique problems.

akwheeler

where are you from? Pulling to the right and climbing the road crown sounds like you drive on the left side of the road? is your steering wheel on the right?
Please don't leave us guessing about what you already tried. did you try rotating your tires? is the pressure equal all the way around?

jakey poo

Can't know that unless you say it.

I would think that loose/worn steering components would be next.

I'm not entirely familiar with LCs, did it come from the factory with a front sway bar? A lot of people disconnect those for better off road capability. Those help to control "body roll" or what I think you're talking about when you say body sway.

Scota4570

California. It's regular left hand drive. Sometimes a road is sloped to the center. Even then it pulls right. On a normal road it pulls hard, down the crown. There is no combination of crown or wind that overcomes the right hand pull.

Tire pressure is equal...now. I did have the tire shop rotate the tires. They deflated the driver's front to 25psi, and left the passenger front at 40, they did not tell me, it helped, I inflated them properly when I figured it out.

I have not done much, I am trying to figure out what to do next. I have read up some, on these vehicles. They apparently have quirks because of the design. I was hoping somebody else has already been down this road and I could benefit from their experience.

jakey poo

Like I said check all of the steering components. I'd also jack the vehicle up and visually check all of the suspension bushings, it is a 25+ year old vehicle I'd be willing to wager some of them are shot and could cause some unwanted movement. Also the LC presence isn't huge on Yotatech. You may want to try IH8Mud forums too

akwheeler

Even though there are no camber or caster adjustments did you have an alignment done to set toe? if so they should have given you a printout showing what the camber and caster measurements are. which will tell valuable information about why it is pulling and it may show that you don't need a frame rack. the tire shop should have done a complete shakedown of your front end (they like to upsell repairs) If you have done an alignment please post the readings.

Scota4570

I got no printouts. They just threw up their hands.

A couple of days ago I took my 4-runner to a local shop. I got tires and an alignment. They gave be before and after printouts. It used to drive like an overloaded shopping cart, as "aligned" by a different shop. Now it rides smooth and handles great.

I'll take my Land Cruiser to them to get it diagnosed. No point in guessing.

akwheeler

You are right, no point in guessing. Tires make a big difference and toe is important (but does not cause a pull). The other shop should have at least set the toe and given you a printout to show what they were fighting (caster/camber/thrust angle). I hope you didn't pay them to give up and give you nothing in return.