Tie rod options
- Thread starter CasterTroy
- Start date
That style of steering is referred to as inverted T. It can not be run without any of several band-aids unless you are particularly fond of lots of wandering, no on center stability and a real handful in a cross wind. The tie rod rolls to the limit of the misalignment in the TRE's when it receives input from the draglink and doesn't impart steering force to the knuckle until the tie rod stops rolling.
It looks like Haltenberger, just really straight instead of any curves. Are they similar?
Not at all. Haltenberger has the draglink go from the pitman to the steering knuckle and the tie rod attaches to the near end point of the draglink.
Inverted T has the draglink go from the pitman to a near end point on the tie rod and the tie rod is knuckle to knuckle.
One has direct input to the steering knuckle, one has direct input to the tie rod.
A lot of back and forth on the merits of each has been bandied about a bunch on the various forums and it is typically tossed out there that Dodge moved away from Haltenberger to Inverted T therefore it must be better. Several things are wrong with that logic not to mention that a stock Dodge 1 ton has near parallel links due to the low ride height and you can sorta get away with inverted T in that scenario.
Now, as a Dodge 1 ton owner who had the OEM Haltenberger that got replaced with inverted T under a steering recall, I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt that even at low lift heights, it still pales in responsiveness, on center feel, and precision to the Haltenberger that was removed. So much so in fact that I spent a few months searching for New Old Stock to convert it back so I can go back to driving instead of herding it between the lines.
Now I see the differences. I didn't see them before until I looked at side by side photos and it became obvious.
I guess in my mind I keep wondering why some of these Jeep owners want to take a steering system that works really well (the factory style Haltenberger steering) and replace it with something different. I don't understand the reasoning behind that unless you're running full width aftermarket axles and huge tires.
My personal mantra is most of the answer. Knowledge does NOT equal understanding. Just because you have enough knowledge to cobble together some parts and get them bolted in place, does not mean you understand the ramifications of doing so. There has been no need for dropped pitman arms for normal lift kits on the TJ since it was introduced and to this day they are still being included even though it is well known they are not required. They are a carryover from leaf sprung rigs and the need to keep the draglink as parallel as possible.
That's what I think as well. People don't understand why they're doing something and often times they're looking for a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.
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