Steering issues after 90% rebuild?

[KR66]

Here's the stance of the Yukon it's really level much better than with the Nivomats we're! (I put a Bilstein shock, coil spring conversation kit on the rear saved over $500 vs just the 2 oem shocks) I wish it had the air level would have been cheeper to fix since the Nivos cost +$400 each and the billstein kit (2 shocks 2 Coil springs (w/different sprung rate to compensate 4 the OEM difference) $290. It was a no brainier! Billstein makes good stuff! And all the parts I used we're Moog not the Budget Moog either!

 

[V30Crewcab]

I take it you don't have aftermarket sway bars? after doing everything else on mine, including a lowering kit, bigger sway bars fixed the wandering. completely different truck to drive now!

 

[KR66]

I take it you don't have aftermarket sway bars? after doing everything else on mine, including a lowering kit, bigger sway bars fixed the wandering. completely different truck to drive now!

Everything is stock except for the rear spring / shock conversion kit from Bilstein, the stock setup should work but I drove other similar SUVs like Tahoe’s, Escalades etc and they handle how I would expect! I’m missing something and it’s going to either be stupid and obvious or serious and expensive (not worth anymore of my time or money) I hope it’s not the latter my wife and I just decided to rent a car for a long coast to coast trip since. Can’t pinpoint the issue so we don’t get stuck or I. A serious accident because of whatever is wrong with the Yukon!

 

[DansOtter]

I almost hate to tell you this becuase of the money you spent... but I've had the same problem. I dropped most of my front end, replaced control arms, bushings, ball joints, shocks; the whole 9. Put it back together and suddenly had the same wandering steering you have. Read up on some threads here, added some bump stop spacers so the bumps rest on the lower CAs, thinking/hoping that would do it... still wandering.

The problem might be with your relay rod... connects your idler and pitman to the tie rods. Where the tie rods connect, it should be angled down and to the rear of the car. When I put everything back together, I had mine backward. Had to loosen 4 castle nuts and flip it around... and get it aligned of course. Problem was solved after that.

Anyway. Hope this helps. Good luck.

 

[KR66]

I almost hate to tell you this becuase of the money you spent... but I've had the same problem. I dropped most of my front end, replaced control arms, bushings, ball joints, shocks; the whole 9. Put it back together and suddenly had the same wandering steering you have. Read up on some threads here, added some bump stop spacers so the bumps rest on the lower CAs, thinking/hoping that would do it... still wandering.

The problem might be with your relay rod... connects your idler and pitman to the tie rods. Where the tie rods connect, it should be angled down and to the rear of the car. When I put everything back together, I had mine backward. Had to loosen 4 castle nuts and flip it around... and get it aligned of course. Problem was solved after that.

Anyway. Hope this helps. Good luck.

I have to look at it I am pretty sure it was all original before I touched anything but someone could have done something! The tie rods, Pittman arm, iflei arm we're most likely original? But that could be the issue I'll let you know what I find? I just replaced the driver side CV axle the small clamp suddenly gave out spraying grease all over the wheelwell! It was a strange failure I took the boots off and the insides we're still perfect?

Everything is stock except for the rear spring / shock conversion kit from Bilstein, the stock setup should work but I drove other similar SUVs like Tahoe’s, Escalades etc and they handle how I would expect! I’m missing something and it’s going to either be stupid and obvious or serious and expensive (not worth anymore of my time or money) I hope it’s not the latter my wife and I just decided to rent a car for a long coast to coast trip since. Can’t pinpoint the issue so we don’t get stuck or I. A serious accident because of whatever is wrong with the Yukon!

Are these the links you're talking about?

 

[KR66]

I have to look at it I am pretty sure it was all original before I touched anything but someone could have done something! The tie rods, Pittman arm, iflei arm we're most likely original? But that could be the issue I'll let you know what I find? I just replaced the driver side CV axle the small clamp suddenly gave out spraying grease all over the wheelwell! It was a strange failure I took the boots off and the insides we're still perfect?

Are these the links you're talking about?

View attachment 203929

I think it's called the center Link unless they renamed them since I went to aito Tech school back in the 80s? I had never heard it called that before.

 

[DansOtter]

Looks like there's a few different names for it. The relay rod/center link is a long rod that runs the width of the vehicle, and bolt directly to the pitman arm and idler arm, and on the end of that your tie rods thread into it. Based on that picture you just sent, yours looks oriented correctly. So there goes my theory.

Not sure if you were in the middle of a project when you took that pic, but the stabilizer bar link (or sway bar link) looks like it's missing something or loose maybe. The brass colored bolt with the blue bushings in the right of the pic... it should be tight on the stabilizer bar. Sway bar... whatever you wanna call it.

 

[KR66]

Looks like there's a few different names for it. The relay rod/center link is a long rod that runs the width of the vehicle, and bolt directly to the pitman arm and idler arm, and on the end of that your tie rods thread into it. Based on that picture you just sent, yours looks oriented correctly. So there goes my theory.

Not sure if you were in the middle of a project when you took that pic, but the stabilizer bar link (or sway bar link) looks like it's missing something or loose maybe. The brass colored bolt with the blue bushings in the right of the pic... it should be tight on the stabilizer bar. Sway bar... whatever you wanna call it.

It was disconnected I was changing the CV axle as you can see almost everything is new! I even put a steering stabilizer on it! That made no difference at all so I'm starting to worrie that it might have a cracked frame or something that I don't see yet causing the drift? It sometimes handles right like something went back into alignment? So the search continues

 

[M1Gunner]

Did you ever try snug up the gearbox...?

 

[KR66]

Did you ever try snug up the gearbox...?

Not yet it seems snug and that wouldn't explain the intermittent issue? There are times when it handles normal? I'm starting to think a cracked frame or something that can shift throwing a wrench into how it's supposed to handle! I looked pretty close but have to find a lift to get it in the air to really look closely.