ago in Jeep by
Upon inspection of my '99 Jeep Cherokee (XJ), it seems that essentially all of the suspension needs replaced. Numerous boots cracked, caked with dirty grime, and the Jeep has a lot of noise when going over bumps.

Thing is, I also need an alignment. Shakes at 55mph then stops shaking at 60mph. I heard that with some parts you have to get an alignment at the same time you replace certain suspension parts.

So, my question is, where do I start? Ball joints? Sway bar? Control arms? What needs to be replaced at the same time, or should I just try to do everything at once? This may be a weird / dumb question but I don't want to mess it up. Thanks!

2 Answers

+1 vote
ago by
The alignment doesn't cause a shake, and randomly replacing parts is a pretty expensive way to do things.

A shake at those speeds is usually tire balance, but it can also be a tire that's separated or not quite round. Usually have a tire shop spin them up and check.

All the suspension parts you list might be fine, or not. They all have specs for play, wear allowances and so forth. The basic thing is to put the thing up in the air and check the suspension for play, and go from there.
ago by
I appreciate the feedback. Nothing seems to have too much play. I went through and checked the suspension parts using a video on youtube, and found nothing abnormal.

The only thing is the boots/seals on all the components are cracked and there dirty grease caked on them.
ago by
Grease on stuff doesn't mean much. Cracks on component's boots doesn't mean the components are bad, just that they aren't well protected. If you don't like the grime you could pressure wash it, though that can force water into stuff.

The front driveaxle joints at the knuckle are prone to problems on those, especially if the boots are torn: symptom would be noise in the front suspension on sharp turns.

The lower control arms on those are prone to hardening up with age and causing really crappy steering. Tie rods and ball joints are probably fine unless they have play, usually pretty reliable. Shocks you should be able to tell from driving it, if the front or back ends wallow around like a boat in choppy water, might need shocks. If there's clunking or hard engagement moving from froward to reverse, or vice versa, the differentials might need work.
+1 vote
ago by
If your Jeep comes to me for an inspection, I raise the vehicle off the ground and being a "shake down" test of the suspension and steering components. I grab the front wheels and move them in different directions to see if there's any play. I use a small pry bar to see if any bushings are worn out, allowing parts to move further than they should be moving. After that, I check the balance of the tires (and condition, of course).

Randomly replacing parts to nail down the cause of your shake is a waste of time and money. Get it inspect, or learn how to inspect it yourself, and figure out exactly what's causing it.

If you just want to replace suspension parts anyway, because of the condition you mentioned, yeah.. just do it all at once. Most of it's going to be taken apart anyway so it makes no sense not to replace parts that are already disassembled to replace a different part.

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