A couple of maintenance questions

[ROADWARRIOR]

I have thirty-four thousand miles on my '99 now and I noticed that my steering wheel is off center and the truck has developed a pull to the left. Do you only get the front two tires aligned on a 4x4? Should I trust the dealer or go to a guy who supposedly has the newest and greatest alignment rack out, for 10 bucks more? Are there some specs listed in another thread that are suppose to be the magical numbers(I've never had the wandering problem)?



Also, I figured I better get my antifreeze changed. My local Cummins distrubutor doesn't carry the Cummins complete. He is trying to sell me Texaco. Is Texaco or the stuff that the DC garage would use as good as the Cummins Complete? Do these have an additive in them?



Thanks,

Dan

 

[Todd T]

I can tell you this: these trucks are he!! to align. make sure whoever you take it to, understands that you will be back until they get it right.



the way they adjust, it pulls one wheel out while you are trying to adjust the other. then the steering wheel will be off, so they try to fix that and it starts to pull again.



its not fun.



I would almost say take it to the dealer. just so you can keep them honest.

 

[Greg Boardman-RIP]

I have taken mm truck to the dealer for an alignment about ten times... ... . Still pulls to left and wheel is off center. My truck doesn't wander, just pulls to left. . Still

 

[zgordons]

I would try a tire rotation 1st, I had a pull to the right and took it to see if it was out alignment, there was nothing out they could see, and they felt the pull themselves, they went on to say the axle could be bent or some BS story. So off to my tire friend I went, he said lets rotate the fronts, did that, pulls to the left now. Well that saved me some $$$$$$$ turns out I had radial pull, which he informed me is more common than you think, well it sure is my wife had it on her truck when she had a new set of tires installed, went through the same hassles, until we got a new set of tires, problem solved. I sure hope this helps you, because it is a real pain in the a... ... ... .

 

[1tuffram]

ROADWARRIOR,



The alignment specs you want have recently been dug up again. Look for the post titled "alignment specs" on 1/11 in the 24valve section.

 

[LSMITH]

The most likely cause of your trouble is alignment, but you should take it to the dealer first and complain that you have "excessive play in the steering" and "steering wander". Tell them everything else that you can think of but those phrases will trigger a chassis diagnostic procedure that includes a check of all the ball joints, tie rod ends, steering gear, and the trackbar. If your trackbar is still good I would be surprised, and the rest of the stuff could be part of the problem. The dealer will also perform an alignment, but as mentioned earlier the dealer alignments typically leave a lot to be diesired. Unless you have an extended warranty you need to get it straightened out soon. Hope this helps.



EDIT: Forgot about the coolant question. The Texaco brand will be fine, use it if it is what is convenient to get. If it is not a pre-mix be sure to use distilled water to cut it.

 

[Phil Stuart]

ROADWARRIOR,

Going to change my coolant here in 2,000 miles. Bought the Fleetguard Compleat EG 50/50 mix. It is extended service coolant. I also bought the testing strips they call 3-Way along with the EC additive which brings it back to acceptable levels after the additives in the coolant have depleted. The test strips are real in that they tell you 1) freeze protection 2)Molybdate and 3)Nitrate levels all on one tiny strip about 1/4 of an inch wide. Just thought you'd want to know.



Phil

 

[The Sequel]

LSMITH is dead on with this one. I took my truck in awhile back and told them it was pulling hard to the right. They said, "That's an alignment problem and that's not under warranty. " Next time I took it back and said it was all over the road and hard to steer. They replaced the track bar assembly. This was at 33,000 miles. The steering wheel had been 3-4 inches off center to make it go straight, now it's straight and the truck tracks well. It does make me wonder how long it will last. Get it in before your 36,000 mile warranty is up. Hopefully you are still within your 3 yrs.

 

[ROADWARRIOR]

Thanks for the replies everybody. Unfortunately, my truck is past the three year mark. In my case, the pull gradually came on. It still steers and handles well.

I was at the dealer today asking questions and the Tech said a couple of things that scared me. First, he said that for the coolant, that they reuse used coolant out of a large tank that they recondition. On the alignment, he made it sound like they were very limited in what they could do. He made me loose my confidence on both issues.



One other thing, he drives a Cummins and has never heard about the TDR. Well, I helped enlighten him.



Thanks,

Dan

 

[Des]

Roadwarrior - First thing to do is check your track bar. I went through 3 on my '96 before 100K. I would definately take it to a good allignment shop. Forget Sears and the Dodge house. I tried both and they never got the steering wheel centered and it continued to pull and feather the edge of the front tires. I checked with the manager at the local Discount Tire for the best and worst allignment shops in the area. He sent me over to Midas of all places. I was a little skeptical, but the tech centered my wheel and the truck hasn't pulled since. All he did was adjust the toe in. The system he used alligned the front tires based on the rear axle position. The sears garage didn't do that. The front tires also wear even now. Ask around and see who the tire dealers use on their vehicles.

 

[ROADWARRIOR]

Well, my truck was on the alignment rack and we found both lower ball joints had play. The mechanic said that Dana makes lifetime ball joints for $80 a piece. Add 5 hours of labor and an alignment and that is roughly $400. I called my dealer and they said that there Rep. might let them take care of the problem for a copayment of $50 or $100 since I'm at 34,000 miles, but three months past 36 months. I am keeping my fingers crossed. They have always been good to me in the past. BTW, this isn't the same dealer that I referred to earlier in the post. The track bar still seems to be OK.



Thanks,

Dan