Crossover steering w/ leaf springs?

[yossarian19]

OK, so, I think a Grand Cherokee beam axle is the axle for me.
Since I already have leaf springs on the truck, and I don't want the time & expense of a coil spring setup, I'll keep leaf springs.
No panhard rod - don't want the time / expense / effort & it just doesn't seem necessary as long as I have leaf springs.
Now, all the above being said, it seems to me that I can run a power steering box placed so the pitman arm is in line with the steering arm on the axle and call it a day. Obviously a shallower drag link angle is better but aside from a drop pitman arm or mounting the box lower, not much to be done there.
Anything else I should look out for, setting up a drag link perpendicular to the frame w/ no panhard rod?
Want to make the steering as tight / predictable as I can in the format described. Might add a track bar some day but unsure - depends on if I feel the need for more stability.

[mknittle]

drag link and tie rod should as parallel as possable to prevent bump steer. I tied the drag link in at the passanger side knuckle on my jeep and it handled really good.

[mr48chev]

I didn't know that two wheel drive Cherokees existed as the local dealers past and present may have never sold one. A car salesman would probably be run out of town if he tried to sell a two wheel drive Jeep of any kind except an old postal jeep in this town.

On the drag link angle, The four wheel drive rigs seem to have a fairly steep drag link angle and don't have a lot of issues as far as I know of.
Are you planning on running the Jeep steering box along with the axle? There may be dropped pitman arms already available through the 4X4 market for those. If my manager comes though where I am at again this afternoon I'll try to remember to ask him as he has a jacked up crawler Cherokee that has all the "good" parts on it. A Google search says that Dropped Pitman arms for a Jeep Cherokee steering box are pretty easy to get. https://www.google.com/search?q=drop...ient=firefox-a
Checking O'Reilly's website shows that the same box that goes on an S-10 fits an 84 Jeep Cherokee.

As far as the panhard rod. that can be added later if needed. It would be a bit harder to install but it's most likely going to be a bolt on setup anyhow.

[mknittle]

Originally Posted by mr48chev

I didn't know that two wheel drive Cherokees existed as the local dealers past and present may have never sold one. A car salesman would probably be run out of town if he tried to sell a two wheel drive Jeep of any kind except an old postal jeep in this town.

On the drag link angle, The four wheel drive rigs seem to have a fairly steep drag link angle and don't have a lot of issues as far as I know of.
Are you planning on running the Jeep steering box along with the axle? There may be dropped pitman arms already available through the 4X4 market for those. If my manager comes though where I am at again this afternoon I'll try to remember to ask him as he has a jacked up crawler Cherokee that has all the "good" parts on it.

As far as the panhard rod. that can be added later if needed. It would be a bit harder to install but it's most likely going to be a bolt on setup anyhow.

The 2wd cherokees are pretty rare around here too. but i see one once in a while.there are more down in the valley though!

[yossarian19]

Yep, Jeep did build a few soccer-mom 2wd Cherokees and Grand Cherokees. Not many but enough.
I'd bought a Speedway-sourced CPP Power Steering Conversion Kit a while back, which I plan to use, that would mount a C10 steering box on the truck. Not as many parts as the Jeeps get but should be a few pitman arm options.
If I ever get off the bench & in the game on this part of the project, I'll probably use heim steering for the drag link or tie rod or both.
I keep going back & forth on whether the additional cost of switching to WJ axles is justified by the benefits. Alot of the expense is in wheels to match the 5x5 pattern, most of it (650) is in front & rear ends. Then again, I'd be gaining a lot of brake performance + using ball joints instead of king pins.

[BlueJeep]

Ford Explorer 8.8 rear would match the Cherokee/Grand Cherokee 5 on 4.5 bolt pattern. Plus, they're cheap around here.

[55dude]

they built quite a few in SoCal since snow it kinda scarce.my daily is a 98 Grand Cherokee and the rear gearing on most is 3:73 but they have pinion bearing issues so go with the ford rearend.

[1project2many]

I'll probably use heim steering for the drag link or tie rod or both.

This is a case where "race" or "high performance" parts probably should not have been adapted to street use. Tie rods, ball joints, etc are designed with seals to keep out debris and with some amount of wear compensation to make up for changes over time. Spherical rod ends with this ability are few and far between and they are not cheap. Heim joints used in competition are inspected frequently, sometimes multiple times in a week, and any play is supposed to result in a joint being tossed out. You can often find piles of 'em in the dumpsters behind racing facilities. Vehicles used on the street generally aren't subject to such rigorous standards and cheap Heim joints in a street car can develop substantial wear without the owner realizing it. In this state (and others), where an annual safety inspection is mandatory, Heim joints in the steering or critical suspension areas will not pass.

If you are still compelled to use spherical rod ends, do some research. Please do not go cheap on these parts. A true quality spherical rod end will cost more than the tie rod end you're replacing.

Yep, Jeep did build a few soccer-mom 2wd Cherokees and Grand Cherokees.

2wd Jeep... A couple of years ago we came up to a busy intersection during a snow storm only to find a long line of cars and no one moving. Accident? Breakdown? Car in front was nice Jeep with Florida plates. Trying to go but only back wheels spinning. Rather than sit and be stuck like everyone else, we jumped out of the truck and ran up to the front of the line to help. Nice, young girl behind the wheel and looking very frustrated. "First snow?" I ask. Yes. "Trouble getting going?" Yes. "Is it in 4wd?" A look of total exasperation combined with a flash of anger and she says "As I've been telling my husband since we moved up here, it's only 2wd." I look at my co-worker with surprise. He's looking at me with surprise. A Jeep? In 2wd version? Really????? Well whoda thunk it. I ask "How far do you have to go?" She points to a house about three driveways up the hill. "That's our house. I've been trying to get back there for 20 minutes." Kids are crying in the back. Purse is dumped out on the passenger seat. Coffee in cup holder looks cold. No, definitely not happy. I'm betting that her husband is in for an earful when he gets home. We ran back and got the truck, hooked up our tow strap, and proceeded to pull the Jeep to her driveway. Then we spent a couple of minutes being grilled about the usefuleness of a 2wd Jeep in snow country. I did what I could for the poor guy but it's kind of hard to avoid the obvious.

You know, later that day the temperature went up and the snow actually started to melt. But as I drove past that house I swear I felt near arctic conditions.

[yossarian19]

Duly noted.
I will have to work out the drag link. I think the Jeep and Chevy parts use the same taper angle but am not sure if parts are actually compatible. Though now that I think about it, tapered inserts are available for Jeep guys to use Chevy parts.
Bingo.
Drill a 3/4" hole in the upper steering arm of the WJ axle, tap in the tapered insert, weld the lip & use Chevy steering all the way through. One thread size on the drag link adjuster sleeve / bar & off the shelf, easily replaced wear items.