All over the road after new tires and alignment

[ProLean]

Hi Guys! I need some help/opinions...both of which I appreciate. I recently replaced my tires on my 06 mega 4x4 because they were wearing down...always pretty evenly. I had around 50K miles on them (305-55-20 Falken Rocky Mountain ATs) and they had lost all siping but still had the ribs. I guess this is quite typical of this tire. The new tires are the same size but thought I would try the Hancook ATM RF-10 that has been getting some good reviews. Anyway, got the new shoes and went over to have it aligned and the shop said I needed upper and lower BJs. I replaced them all with the Moog parts...I KNOW I KNOW! I know not to use them NOW....and we installed the non-adjustable BJ that my serial number denoted as OEM. Got them installed and went and had it aligned. They said at the alignment shop that the truck might wander a bit until the BJ got a little looser. ??? Anyway, I have put about 800 miles on it maybe 1000, and it wants to wander all over the lane. The old tires were rock solid. These new ones feel solid but they seem like you have to watch them all the time and it makes highway driving pretty tedious. The alignment shop said I am within the alignment specs from the factory. Is there something like toe that I should be adjusting to make this go away? What should I be looking at?
Thanks!

 

[SnoKing]

Did they sipe the new tires. Heavy trucks do not like the aftermarket siping!!!! Snoking

 

[ProLean]

No the new tires are as they come from the factory from Hancook. The old tires I took off had no siping left and were basically reduced to a highway rib. Still had lots of rubber on them but traction was not good anymore.

 

[Bob4x4]

Pull the steering linkage off both sides to see if the new ball joints are binding

 

[CBari]

I put about 5000 miles on a set of Moog joints and they never got better did the same thing you are experiencing. I replaced with OEM ball joints and problem went away. I took me six months to put the 5000 miles on the truck cause we quit driving cause it wondered so bad.

 

[ProLean]

Geez I hope it's not the BJs. How can that happen? Aren't they just like the OEM part? The BJ can make the truck wander? I noticed this prior to changing the BJ out though. On my way home from the tire shop I noticed this so I thought it might be the tires. ?? It cost me $250 in labor to have the BJs installed.

 

[sag2]

Have a friend you can swap tires with? Easy and free to find out if it is the tires, the alignment or the joints.

 

[mweiman]

sometimes new tires will feel that way until they have been heated up a few times to fully cure the rubber. I just put new tires on the rear of my 93 and am getting the same effect. Can't remember they are either hancook or hercules but have about 3/4 inch deep lug. Is the front of your truck lifted or leveled at all? Possible that the caster is not set correctly.
Matt

 

[TFucili]

My truck never drove right after Moog ball joints. However, follow sag2's wise advice in order to narrow it down.

 

[Ozymandias]

Me too, installed MOOGs and Truck never again holds the line I want to, however I set the toe-in.
Now installed CARLIS, a no brainer solution except the Price Tag.

 

[EDankievitch]

I went through he same thing with my 05 install Moog Bj's truck un drivable. Add steering stabilizer was a bit better but still not right. I even updated the truck to the newer 08 steering linkage. Again better but not drivable. Remove Moog's install Carli uppers and Dynatraxx lowers (carli lowers were not available at the time) truck drives like new. It seems the Moog Bj's can't handle the extra weight of the diesel engine? I really don't know for sure just know I'll never use them again. I've got a set of Senergy XRF ball joints on the shelf ofr my 2013 when it needs them. They are a really good copy of the Carli. I know I shouldn't waste my time with them but Carli's are a bit $$$$ The Senergy units were not too bad $$$ wise I'll report here how they are when I install them.

 

[AEdelheit]

"within factory alignment specs" is like saying the US is somewhere on earth, not nearly close enough, see if you can find out the actual specs.

 

[sag2]

"within factory alignment specs" is like saying the US is somewhere on earth, not nearly close enough, see if you can find out the actual specs.

That was one thing that made me crazy. I don't want it close, I paid you to set it perfect.

 

[brods]

You’ve made two changes at the same time so you’ll have to do as Sag2 suggested or give it some more time for the tires to firm up.

I don’t remember brand new tires being so squirmy in the past, but both the Nitto Durra Grapplers on the truck and some Generals for another vehicle were downright scary when brand new. The Nittos were so bad at first that a few blocks from the tire store I almost turned around and went back. They felt super mushy like they had very low air pressure in them so decided to just air them up when I got home. Nope, they were at 80 psi. They took a while to firm up and for me to get used to them (iirc like 2,000+ miles). Now they seem fine.

As for the Moogs, same old story as the others. Put them in and then chased the toe settings trying to get the truck to drive as it did before. They never did “loosen up”. Once the moogs were out of the truck, moving them by hand you could feel how they did not move freely or evenly. Kind of notchy if that makes sense. I’ve wondered if moog goofed on the tolerance range of the AAM axle bore and the joint body gets deformed during the install on trucks with bore IDs at the small end of the range. Who knows? Hope you get yours figured out.

 

[JR]

I guess I'm the exception and not the rule on the MOOG joints. The first 100 miles was squirmy to say the least, to the point I almost took the truck off the road because I thought I had done something wrong on the install. And then they just started getting better by the mile. I'm 30k+ into them on 34" tires and it still tracks straight as an arrow going down the road and my truck sees a lot of rough dirt roads and poor secondary roads.

Tires have a tendancy to feel squirmy but I would really think after 1000 miles the release agents would be worn off by now. If you paid a shop to create a problem you didn't have before I'd refuse to accept it. Take it back and insist they make it right.

If they absolutely refuse you should be able to tell if its the bj's or not by jacking the truck up and turning the wheel back and forth. Bobs got a great idea in dropping the linkage to check each side individually.

 

[Bob4x4]

That was one thing that made me crazy. I don't want it close, I paid you to set it perfect.

What percentage of the AAM 9.25 camber specs are Perfect off the show room floor ?

 

[cerberusiam]

What size of tire did you get and what are the ratings? You did not by chance get a d rated tire and trying to 45 psi in the tires are you?

If it did it before the BJ's it is likely the tires. There is no reason for that other than to soft a tire which is the normal problem. On an AT tire it should not be an issue. Have NEVER had an issue like that on any correctly rated tire on these trucks, even the deep lug ones. D rated tires on the other hand suck for those types of problems.

 

[Hoefler]

I would also look at your tire pressure for the load, could be low or high, depending on the load rating of the tire.

 

[Regcabguy]

What percentage of the AAM 9.25 camber specs are Perfect off the show room floor ?

I just had some Dynatrac BJ's installed and my camber was perfect the alignment guy said. He'd never seen one before.
They're always off a bit he said especially after some use and bj install.

 

[ProLean]

The tires I bought are "E" rated and are the same size as before 305-55-20. I will grab the alignment report and get back to you. Also...the Falkens I had felt really squishy (like using a long eraser on a pencil) but then I got used to them.
The crazy part of the BJ story is that even with the sloppy stock BJs, the truck would track straight. Could the new Moogs be worse than the sacked out stockers? That's hard to fathom.