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1999 front suspension rebuild

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Old Oct 29, 2016 | 05:40 PM
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Model: Cherokee
Default 1999 front suspension rebuild

I wish I had video.

We bought,
2x Front Stabilizer / Sway Bar End Links - K3174
1x Front Inner Tie Rod End (Connecting Pitman Arm) - ES3096L
1x Front Inner Tie Rod End (Connecting Steering Arm) - ES3095R
1x Front Outer Tie Rod End - ES3094L
2x Front Upper Ball Joints - K3134
2x Front Lower Ball Joints - K3161T
1x Drag Link Assembly - DS1238
1x Drag Link Assembly - DS1235
Shock absorbers

It was not gonna be pretty, we figured 2 days. Neither of had ever done anything like this before, we'd watched youtube... got a 30 pack.
Prep, Blaster on all nuts, bolts cotter pins, one week before. Repeat the day or two before work. Day before work go to car wash, get down on your knees and wash the undersides of the front half of the jeep.
Things went well at first, got it up, safe, tires off, calipers secured out of the way, axle nut, hub, axles, (universals were in great shape, so although we had also bought new ones we decided to forge ahead before doing those).
Tie rod ends we started to better understand the task, the task was beating back 16 years of corrosion, ended up having to sawzall 2 out of 3. Ball joints, rented tool, amature kit, not adequate to press out the ball joints. Borrowed real kit from friends son that works for Firestone. Got tops pressed out using lights, 12 hours...
9am, start lowers, 12 noon, still working on lowers, drag link assembly removed, the drivers end is a monster. Remove the entire 4 bolt bracket and put it on a bench to get it off, other end, up inside the channel tube will test you, then you will snap it off to long to get out, the bolt and special nut is $30 retail dealer available only. Lower ball joints are a bust, decide to begin assembly without doing lowers. begin reassembly, again, 12 hours...again.
Next morning finds our men jubilant at the revelation they had received overnight, the lower ball joint is pressed upward. Backtrack, do lowers, begin reassembly again. at the end of the third day still not drivable, close. Day 4 begin alignment procedure, two tapes and plates, get it real close, begin to adjust steering, get it real close, drive test, clunk when turning, retorque, still clunk, wheel not quite straight, at max adjustment there...
will have to disassemble that ball joint and re-thread to get a few more turns on adjuster flange...
Finally driveable, tight, wheel straight, steady as a rock, 2 days.

then 150 mile RT up canyon and back, clunking everywhere on all turns. Turns out the bracket on the drivers side had not been tightened to death like it needed.

3rd day after now, fishing tomorrow...

I rate this project as very hard. 2 full cases, two pizzas...Without a lift, without torches, plenty of air, impact sockets, pickle forks it's tough. As I said, we rented the 36 mm socket and the ball joint press, the press was not up to the task. Rust was the enemy, blaster, 3 cans total was what saved us.

If this job is done then there are a whole lot of new parts under there and it handles like new.
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