I can rock the steering wheel left and right about an inch on each side before the wheel would actually begin to turn. It's annoying.

Anyone know the remedy?

 

Hi,
There is an adjustment for the steering column.. A good mechanic can do it. Could also be your tie rods.. front end shop can deal with that.

 

Could be your gear box also

 

Ya, I think the adjustment is actually to the gearbox..

 

Ok guys, let's elaborate.....

I've already changed the inner and out tie rods so they're set.

How to I adjust the gearbox?

 

It should be described in the Manual.

 

If your absolutely positive it's your gearbox (thoroughly check all frontend parts first) i would recommend getting a new one. Even if yours has the adjustment screw i would not mess with it,it is tricky and the box is probably shot anyway. Also,check where the box is bolted to the frame,the three bolt setup is notoriously week and prone to breakage.

 

I don't have a manual, can someone say exactly where the gearbox is?

 

I just did a quick search and I think I know where it is. I'll check and let you know.

 

Follow the steering column down. It's at the bottom of the column.
And what year is your Grand Cherokee?

 

Is your track bar tight? mine came loose at the axle end (bushing has wallowed out), and allowed me to turn the wheel a good 1/8th of a turn before the jeep would start to turn. it made for some scary driving in the mountains before i figured it out. I also recommend staying away from the steering box adjustment screw. You can REALLY mess it up if you dont know what you are doing. How's the steering shaft look?

I'd recommend jacking up the front end, have someone sit in the jeep (engine on) and crank the wheel back and forth as you watch all of the steering components. That is the best way to diagnose where the problem is coming from.

 

Yes you should check the track bar first......with the wheels on the ground have someone rock the steering wheel side to side and look for excessive movement. They normally go bad on the driver side where it is mounted to the frame just above the diff. P.S. if you never adjusted a steering box before you could very easily damage the worm gear and end up replacing it.

 

I think the problem may be the track bar. The bolt came loose and broke on the wife. I went to a hardware store and got a replacement bolt but the diameter of it is not big enough for a snug fit.

Anyone knows the size this bolt is suppose to be?

 

Looks like the problem is the steering gear box. This should be a simple change right? Unbolt and remove the old and replace with the new? Anything else I should know about making this change?

 

After spending a small fortune fixing tie rods and a wheel agilnment only to find out my original complaint was keeping steering wheel striaght. ends up the steering geerbox needed adjustment which u can probly do urself there is a bolt which needs to be loosened and a nut with an allen key which needs to be turn opposite direction, it will take trial an error to adjust so its not too tight(the wheel) so u will have to drive it then adjust if too tight. Good Luck