2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee swerves

RICHARD4948

MEMBER
2004 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE
4.0L
6 CYL
4WD
AUTOMATIC
10,500 MILES

When going along at 40mph or faster, when you give more gas it swerves, when you let off gas pedal it swerves again. Not such if vehicle actually moves one way or the other but certainly feels like it. The faster you are going the harder the swerve when you apply the gas.

Sunday, February 8th, 2015 AT 12:07 PM

4 Replies

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
34,330 POSTS

The most likely suspect is a deteriorated control arm bushing, but not at the mileage you listed. At such a low mileage I would sooner suspect something is loose and shifting under load. This will be impossible to diagnose over a computer. The best place to go is a tire and alignment shop. They're experts at finding the causes of noises, vibrations, poor tire wear, and this, which could be called "torque steer". One helpful observation is whether the steering wheel changes position when the pull changes direction.

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Sunday, February 8th, 2015 AT 3:43 PM

RICHARD4948

MEMBER
6 POSTS

May be doing it at lower speed, but not noticeable. However, steering wheel does move. It feels like one side of the vehicle is getting more torque, but hard to describe.

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Sunday, February 8th, 2015 AT 4:06 PM

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
34,330 POSTS

Dandy. When the steering wheel shifts position, something in the steering linkage is loose or something in the suspension is shifting and pulling on the steering linkage. The next clue the mechanic will look for is if the steering wheel shifts position on its own when you accelerate, AND the vehicle goes straight, or whether the wheel stays centered, but you have turn it yourself to counter-steer against the pull.

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Sunday, February 8th, 2015 AT 4:29 PM

RICHARD4948