I'm planning to adjust the steering box on my 2000 TJ 4.0L manual. Ill be looking for the exact size of the allen wrench need, but wanted to ask if there is anything to watch for after adjustment. Can adjusting your steering box cause other problems or steering concerns?
Steering box adjustment
- Thread starter Glenn Hodges
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Imapepper
TJ Enthusiast
Make small adjustment, then test drive.Do not over tighten. A sign of over tightening is the steering wheel will not want to re-center after making a turn.
Do NOT crank the adjuster down tight
Do NOT crank the adjuster down tight
If the steering needs a little help returning to center, would he make a small adjustment in the counter clockwise direction ?
Imapepper
TJ Enthusiast
Xposure
TJ Enthusiast
Since I was also looking for the allen wrench size I’ll just add it here....I’m sure you no longer need it but for future searchers. The nut to loosen is 5/8 and the allen wrench is 3/16. You will need to have a fairly low profile allen wrench or else take off the cover above it that’s attached to the bumper (at least for my 99). Also use a wrench (instead of a socket) to loosen the nut so you can hold the allen in place and loosen/tighten the nut at the same time. When I adjusted mine I only moved it about a quarter of a turn (clockwise tightens the steering counter clockwise loosens the steering) and it made a nice difference...just that small amount took up the slack and tightened up the steering nicely. If you move it too much it can cause it to not return to center or also to bind up, if that happens go back some to loosen it. Before driving to test my results I tightened the bolt back down (if you don’t it will leak fluid when the engine cranked and wheel is turned because the power steering pump will be active) and turned the steering both sides through its full range of motion to make sure it wasn’t binding anywhere. Id only turn the allen just enough to get the steering feeling good.
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What problem are you trying to fix? That adjustment is not something you can just tighten without problem, there's a lot going on with how it gets adjusted.
Remove the * between Jeep and forum in this URL address to get an idea.... https://www.jeep*forum.com/forum/f12/steering-gearbox-adjustment-writeup-498155/
TheGanzman
TJ Enthusiast
My experience with this adjustment over ~50 years - TINY increments, or HUGE problems will be your reward! If overtightened, you can turn a steering box into worthless toast in less than 1K miles...