Excessive front end sway (wandering) in an f-250

[wushaw]

The steering damper is less than a year old. I went from 265 to 285 both were load range E. I did notice today that the play seems to be in the steering wheel. I can move it 3 to 4" in either direction with out a change in the wheels. So maybe the steering box?

Matt T.

If this is sitting still and nothing starts to move for 3 - 4" of steering wheel movment then you need to look at the steering gearbox for adjustment or replacement.

 

[GreatWhitehunter]

I don't appear to have any while turned off.

Matt

 

[wushaw]

Has the track bar been checked?

 

[wkpoor]

The problem id F-O-R-D. Hehehehehe Drive a Chev new then a Ford new. Ford might build a tough truck alright but they never quite perfected how they drive. My FNL has a Ford full size van that does that exact same thing. My Chev full size van goes down the road nice and straight with or without my 14K behind it.

 

[RobertN]

Has the track bar been checked?

how do you check the track bar?

 

[Builder]

Are the tires brand new, like less than 100-200 miles?

If so, all new tires take a while to "seat their beads" and will have a swaying/wandering feeling until they get a few miles on em.

 

[firemanpat2910]

check the damper again, there is a lot of talk on ford truck enthusiest web forum, about the ford "death wobble" I just got 40,000 miles on my 07 started to wobble and wander a little but I just had "mud in my tires" you might double check the ballancing on all four, it really made a huge differnence on mine when I pressure washed the mud outta mine.

I know you can picture Joe Pesci in "my cousin vinnie" saying how do you get mud IN the tires???????

 

[GreatWhitehunter]

I put a little more air in the tires and that helped. The wander is being caused by the deadband in the steering wheel. I can move it 3" back and forth without a change in travel direction. So when going straight down the road with the wheels straight the wheels can wander till they eat up the dead band of the steering wheel. Then I most likely over correct and it makes the situation worse. I'm going to have a shop look at the dead band of the steering wheel and go from there.

Matt T.

 

[wushaw]

how do you check the track bar?

Check for loosness in the bushings, bolts and see if it is bent. If it is loose it can allow the ft. differiental to move around.

 

[Ryan03]

If this is a 4x4 model, check the joint where the drag link meets the pitman arm. Get a large pair of channel locks, and try to compress the joint. If you can compress the ball/socket assembly 1/4 inch or more, replace it. Also, I have seen seized front universal joints in the front drive axles [the ones where the spindle meets the axle housing , between the upper and lower ball joints] on straight axle 4x4s cause some very eratic handling characteristics that can be hard to diagnose. Often the steering feels very numb on center, and once off center, will not return by itself comepletely to center. Also, as mentioned earlier, be sure the frontend is not toed out, as this will also cause the vehicle to wander. Good luck, Ryan.