Rob, I disagree with one piece of what you said - steering systems are totally sexy
OK...I will agree with you there. I see the sexiness in a steering set up
01XterraPhilly: Steering slop and alignment has been my arch nemesis for 2 years now, and I only have 32" all terrains and a 3" suspension lift. I already have new Moog tie rod ends, a new Moog center link, Bandit4x4 idler arm bushings, Total Chaos idler arm brace, and 4x4parts.com HD tie rod adjusters. I still have significant slop in my steering system. As mentioned, I ended up sending my parts to Mac @PPEngineering so he could custom build/modify me a center link, idler, and pitman arm. If you are looking for more detailed info, I will explain to you what I have found and how I reached my decisions.
You really have 2 general options:
1) Upgrade individual stock parts with heavy duty/modified stock parts.
a) Tie rods and ends: The tie rod adjuster is a weak point as far as easy to break and leave you stranded. You can get
HD tie rod adjusters from 4x4parts or Calimini. These replace the threaded rod and use stock style tie rod ends/ball joints. Stock style tie rod ends don't really have an "upgrade" or "heavy duty" version. Check out RockAuto and you can get several different brands (I went with Moog). You can potentially run into clearance issues with a modified center link, but that is usually if they have a grease fitting that can clip the frame.
PPEngineering and Total Chaos also have a heim joint tie rod that replaces the tie rod adjuster and both tie rod ends, so no more ball joints on the tie rods. Be aware that heim joints may not be street legal.
b) Pitman arm: This arm is on the steering gear box (driver) side of the vehicle. The stock pitman arm is pretty substantial. No real need to upgrade this unless you are modifying it for use with a custom system.
c) Idler arm: The idler arm is on the passenger side frame rail. The stock idler arm is a weak point. You can upgrade the bushings to
bronze bushings from Bandit4x4.com. They actually helped my steering feel quite a bit more than I expected. You can also get a bolt on
idler arm brace from Total Chaos, 4x4Parts, or Calimini.
d) Center link: The stock center link is a weak point due to the way it attaches to the idler and pitman arms. It has a stud connection and a ball joint. Especially with lifted vehicles, the tie rods and ends are angled upwards, and it will cantilever the arms, and flex the center link, idler arm, and tie rods upwards. You can replace the stock center link with a
Grassroots4x4.com center link. They press out the stud and ball joint, and press in a spherical bearing and allow you to through-bolt the center link to the arms. This creates a rigid link with no ball joint slop.
You will have to modify your idler and pitman arm by drilling out the attachment point, since the bolt used will be larger diameter than the ball joint stud. When you modify the the center link, the thicker mounts on the idler arm can reduce clearance on the tie rod ends. This is why you see some people run different inners and outers. The outer tie rod end will clear no problem, but the inner has to clear under the frame and above a curved wall in a cross member.
If you get an aftermarket tie rod end that has a grease zerk, or a larger ball joint, you may have clearance issues. Most aftermarket tie rod ends should work. From what I have read, Deeza inners will not, but Moog or Duralast from Auto Zone will.
2) Upgrade your entire system with custom components that are designed to work together.
a) Custom/modified set up: If you have fabrication skills, or know someone who does, you can custom build a system or custom modify your stock parts. You can take your old center link and modify it similarly to Grassroots4x4. You can also weld gussets to the idler and pitman arms to double shear them to the center link (wrap around top and bottom of mount). If you modify the stock arm, you can still use bronze bushings and an idler arm brace. If you have skills, you can create one from scratch that has a brace incorporated into the idler arm body. You can go with heim joints if you want to replace your tie rod adjusters and ball joint ends (but be aware they may not be street legal). Once you have the capability to cut metal and stick in back together...the sky is the limit.
b) King Kong / Total Chaos: Total chaos has a complete kit with a custom built (not modified) center link and an idler and pitman arm. It also includes the Total Chaos idler arm brace. I believe you would also need to get the heim joint tie rods to work with their center link. Pricey at $700+ for the kit, especially if you already have money invested in idler arm braces or HD tie rod adjusters.
c) Calimini: They have a complete kit Which completely re-designs the center link, idler, and pitman arms. The center link, AND the tie rods directly connect to the idler and pitman arms. The stock set up has the center link connecting to the arms, and the tie rod ends connecting to the center link. It makes it stick out further which is why the stock set up gets so much cantilever action like a diving board. Not as pricey at only $600, but still a big purchase.
Now, as to how I decided on what I was going to do:
I already had the idler arm bushings, idler arm brace, heavy duty tie rod adjusters (plus trail spares), and new Moog tie rod ends. I wanted to fix the center link and arm connection for good, but wanted to retain the stock style tie rods and ends. After all, they were not causing me trouble anymore.
It basically came down to a Grassroots4x4 center link and keep the arms as is, or Grassroots4x4 center link and modify the arms to wrap around the center link. I was going to go for GR and modify the arms myself...but Mac @PPEngineering saw me b!tching and moaning about my steering and alignment and he offered to do the center link and arms for me. Their steering was still being developed, so I offered to box up my parts and trail spares for cores and ship it all to him so they could work on the development. Ultimately, I wanted to support an active and supporting member of the Xterra community. I could have modified the arms myself... and purchased GR or modified it myself, but I was excited to see their solution to this painful problem.
If I had a completely stock steering system, I would have gone with Total Chaos or Calimini most likely...Or just asked PPEngineering to throw in bushings and a brace and their heim tie rods, etc to complete the kit.
