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Moose · 02-13-2010, 08:46 PM

Hey everyone, first post here and I could really use some help.

So I just bought my first car ever, a 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo. Great story in itself...

Anyway I have had a few things done to it to pass the safety certification. One thing I was told that might be an area of concern was that the tracking bar was loose. He said it would pass the safety though which was good because I am a student so I wasn't willing to pay for what I didn't need to.

So recently, the car at low speeds, pulling into parking spots or making slow turns at red lights will start to jerk back and forth but if I give it some gas it'll waddle forward. The steering wheel doesn't move, but I was wondering if it had something to do with the tracking bar or something completely different.

Soon I will throw up some pictures as for me this is pretty damn exciting.

Any help is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Moose

nichole43 · 02-14-2010, 11:00 AM

hey man if you have any luck figuring out exactly what the problem is please hit me up cause it is driving me insane

89Heep · 02-14-2010, 11:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moose

Hey everyone, first post here and I could really use some help.

So I just bought my first car ever, a 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo. Great story in itself...

Anyway I have had a few things done to it to pass the safety certification. One thing I was told that might be an area of concern was that the tracking bar was loose. He said it would pass the safety though which was good because I am a student so I wasn't willing to pay for what I didn't need to.

So recently, the car at low speeds, pulling into parking spots or making slow turns at red lights will start to jerk back and forth but if I give it some gas it'll waddle forward. The steering wheel doesn't move, but I was wondering if it had something to do with the tracking bar or something completely different.

Soon I will throw up some pictures as for me this is pretty damn exciting.

Any help is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Moose

Do you have a tire out of balance? Flat spots on the tire? I know that a tire out of balance will make the car buck and jerk at low speeds and it gets worse as you go. May be totally irrelevant but it's one less thing to check off the list!

nichole43 · 02-14-2010, 11:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moose

Hey everyone, first post here and I could really use some help.

So I just bought my first car ever, a 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo. Great story in itself...

Anyway I have had a few things done to it to pass the safety certification. One thing I was told that might be an area of concern was that the tracking bar was loose. He said it would pass the safety though which was good because I am a student so I wasn't willing to pay for what I didn't need to.

So recently, the car at low speeds, pulling into parking spots or making slow turns at red lights will start to jerk back and forth but if I give it some gas it'll waddle forward. The steering wheel doesn't move, but I was wondering if it had something to do with the tracking bar or something completely different.

Soon I will throw up some pictures as for me this is pretty damn exciting.

Any help is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Moose

also do you find it doing it more so to one side than the other. mine does it on both but a little more to the left

4.3L XJ · 02-14-2010, 12:04 PM

Is it in full time 4X4 when this happens?

Moose · 02-14-2010, 12:39 PM

1) The tires themselves are fairly worn - still no ware bars though. I was thinking of getting new tires anyway so definitely more incentive now.

However, I'm sure the air pressure in one of my tires is a little low. But that's the rear driver side tire.

2) I find it happening more on the right side.

Thanks guys.

nichole43 · 02-14-2010, 12:59 PM

well i know my rear tires are bad but i have brand new front tires and thats where the jerking seems to come from

Moose · 02-17-2010, 08:59 AM

Alriiiiiiiiiiiiiight. We're making progress. So after having an umpteen amount of people's opinions this is what they came up with:

Wheel bearings, sway bar, tires, and it's normal for big old american SUVs to do that because of their size and balance.

However, I just got back from my mechanic who was nice enough to give me his time without cost and said all my u joints, ball joints etc are fine. And that the sway bar would not make the car do that. So we took it to a parking lot and just drove it in circles and he had a look under it and said.. You know what, it's got to be the 4WD because 3/4 wheels are locking. So he called up his 4x4 specialist and he said to come on down later but it could very well be the transfer case.

I have since played around and it only happens when I put the car in 4WD part time. I'm still going to have it looked at but I am okay leaving it in 2WD or 4WD fulltime until then.

Maybe that helps you too Nichole.

nichole43 · 02-17-2010, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moose

Alriiiiiiiiiiiiiight. We're making progress. So after having an umpteen amount of people's opinions this is what they came up with:

Wheel bearings, sway bar, tires, and it's normal for big old american SUVs to do that because of their size and balance.

However, I just got back from my mechanic who was nice enough to give me his time without cost and said all my u joints, ball joints etc are fine. And that the sway bar would not make the car do that. So we took it to a parking lot and just drove it in circles and he had a look under it and said.. You know what, it's got to be the 4WD because 3/4 wheels are locking. So he called up his 4x4 specialist and he said to come on down later but it could very well be the transfer case.

I have since played around and it only happens when I put the car in 4WD part time. I'm still going to have it looked at but I am okay leaving it in 2WD or 4WD fulltime until then.

Maybe that helps you too Nichole.

i wish it did. my jeep is all time 4wd. the only options i have are high, low, and neutral. would it still be the transfer case in my situation?

Moose · 02-17-2010, 11:34 AM

It could still be, yesterday I went and got all my fluids changed including the transfer case fluid. I'm going today at 2 to meet with the mechanic and his specialist so I'll give you an update then.

Cheers.

nichole43 · 02-17-2010, 12:57 PM

thank's youre awesome

Moose · 02-17-2010, 03:17 PM

So people I have the verdict, and it's apparently very common on these Jeeps so if you're like myself and Nichole and you find yourself having this problem it could be this.

So it is the transfer case. And in that transfer case there is a "viscous clutch" part of the viscous coupling system (read this for general info on it HowStuffWorks "Viscous Coupling") to engage the 4x4. So for now I have left my car in 2WD and it seems to be doing alright in 4WD part time. The specialist said $600 for a new one, and then $600 in labour (Canadian). So I said f that noise, threw it in 2WD and called it a day.

Hope that helps Nichole.

Cheers.

nichole43 · 02-17-2010, 03:20 PM

haha it does thank you, i had a feeling it was the VC but i didn't know what exactly was wrong with it

Prerunner1982 · 02-17-2010, 04:04 PM

Moose... in case you had not come across this info yet... do not drive on pavement in part time 4wd. The transfer case is locked and can not deal with the wheels trying to turn at different speeds. Only use 4wd when the conditions are slick... dirt, gravel, ice, snow, etc...

I have a similar problem but in 2wd, I however think it is my track bar but have not confirmed this yet.. Also, if your steering stops aren't adjusted out far enough your axle u-joints may be binding causing the wiggle wobble... I will also check this on mine.

cubanater · 02-18-2010, 07:34 AM

junkyard special and save some money easy to swap out