Greetings,
I have a stock 1999 XJ Sport that has developed some pretty bad highway wobble/shake over the recent months when accelerating to 55-65 MPH. It is also in need of some new tires, which may be contributing to some of the wobble (I rotated and evened air pressure which seemed to reduce some wobble). My current set of tires have a little bit of uneven wear but lasted me 6 years. I am planning on getting the 29 inch Cooper AT3 S4 tires (235/75/15).

I considered doing a lift but think I just want to stick with the stock suspension as this is my DD with some occasional off-roading. My question is what suspension and steering parts should I consider replacing, particularly ones that may be contributing to the wobble? My jeep has 240,000 miles and all suspension and steering components are the OEM original parts. Currently, I am planning on doing an alignment and replacing the shocks, but I was wondering if there are other components that I should consider replacing? Also, FYI I have noticed that I don't get any wobble when my jeep is weighted down with people/camping gear.

Thanks,
HCL

 

I did the ZJ steering upgrade its a little stronger .

 

Take care of the known problems like tires and shocks.
Then, have someone turn the steering wheel back and forth while you observe the steering components looking for looseness.

 

When I looked under my '99, after buying it in June of this year, I decided to replace most everything. Here's what I bought from Rock Auto so far: Tie Rod and tie rod ends, drag link, steering damper, sway bar bushings, sway bar links, front shocks. I still want to replace the coils and have not decided on the lower and upper control arms. All the parts are reasonably priced and I'm doing the labor myself, except for the control arms. If your various parts are still factory, I'd suggest the same! I think mine are all original I will also be replacing the rear shocks and leafs as time allows.




This pic is prior to any steering or suspension work. Also, make sure to take a close look at your ball joints and steering knuckles

MrTodd

 

How is the track bar? First noticeable play I found on my '96 was the ball stud on the frame end.

 

I *just* did the same thing on my '99 XJ! I did a 2 inch lift from Iron Rock Offroad and figured I would replace everything anyway. I used a ZJ tie-rod and end. All parts are Moog/Oreilly brand. I replaced trackbar, all ends, shocks, sway links, sway bushings, ball joints, Timken hubs, inner oil seals, Grand Cherokee lower control arms and even a clean low mileage steering box from a local salvage yard. Front end is tight now. It's pretty simple to do except for the steering box. That was sort of a hassle. Ill replace the upper bushings next summer. Too much going on right now before the snow flies.