Just did some front end work and this included upgrading to the Rovers North heavy duty steering rod set (STEERING ROD SET HEAVY DUTY DISCOVERY II PLS006HD, TF255 - Rovers North - Classic Land Rover Parts) which is *much* stonger and heavier than stock, OME nitrocharger front and rear shocks, OME steering damper, upper and lower ball joints on both sides.
I took it in for alignment this AM and the shop mechanic says he cannot get the steering wheel straight (12 o'clock position) because of the steering damper bracket is welded on and it is now in the 12:30 position.
I did not have time then to look into it but was wondering if there is any suggestions with how I could get my steering wheel in the 12 o'clock position?
NOTE: the Rovers North rods have tie rod ends that screw in on both sides...
1.) Could the track rod be adjusted to help this? i.e. adjust right side 1/4 turn and then compensate on left side 1/4 turn?
2.) Should I remove the tie rod joints on the drag link with the wheels on the ground, move steering wheel to center (12 o'clock) position, unscrew and adjust tie rod joint and re-install?

My wife uses disco for her daily driver and since my recent upgrades, new toyo open country A/T 2 tires and items mentioned above, the steering has been off. Hope I can get this fixed soon!

 

relocate damper?

 

I guess you mean get some u-bolts and remove the welded tabs on the drag link?

 

there are relocation brackets on the market. or one could make a bracket

 

Of course you can, that is silly. Remove the steering damper from the drag link and rotate it the correct way until the steering wheel is the same.

 

ZGPhoto - I should have added my shop mechanic told me he could not get the steering wheel in the 12 o'clock position when trying to adjust the drag link due to the welded tabs. I thought this was strange as factory drag links have welded tabs and the steering wheel was straight at the 12 o'clock position.

Any other ideas or maybe a walk through on how to replace the track bar and drag link?
I guess if the drag link is truly in a cocked position that with even removing the steering damper and rotating the drag link one revolution will not center the steering wheel, could I make 1/4 turns on the track rod left then right?
Or will that cause my alignment to be off?

 

Yikessss! I may be in the same boat cause Im also using a newly installed heavy duty track rod kit and Im getting an alignment next week. I cant wait to see what you guys come up with here cause Ill be following right behind ya. Certainly dont feel like relocating the damper though, not at this time of year.

Good luck man.

 

You won't have to relocate the damper. It takes a while to get it right, but the damper is a fixed location on every single stock & aftermarket drag link(even the Terrafirma version that is bolt on, you cant move it up or down, you can only rotate the rod).


Mine is off and on, I will often take the time to get it perfectly straight(I own the rods that you have purchased) and then I'll take it offroad and hit a rock hard enough and it is no longer straight.


Are you able to work on it yourself? If you can, try some different combinations of longer on the pass side vs. driver side regarding the threads on the joints.

 

Okay here is what I did to fix it, kinda wonder why the shop mechanic didn't try this.
So from earlier thoughts and also ZGPhoto's suggestion, I removed the tie rod end from the passenger wheel on the drag link and adjusted it (one full turn to be exact) and now the steering wheel is located in the 12 o'clock position. Easy enough right? I just loosened the nut til it was far enough down to protect the threads, used hammer to tap it loose, rotated it one full turn, checked steering wheel position, put it back together and test drove it to make sure. That was easy enough.

I also tightened up the steering box too, uses a 18mm to loosen the lock nut, then a 5mm allen wrench to tighten the adjuster. This helped eliminate extra play in the steering wheel. My 2000 D2 with 130,000 miles drives so much better now with new ball joints, Rovers North Heavy Duty steering bars (comes with free keychains in the tie rod ends boxes that look like miniature tie rod ends!), OME nitrocharger front and rear shocks, OME steering damper, and also new toyo open country AT2 tires. Happy LR owner.

As a note, I don't own the terrafirma heavy duty steering kit nor have I seen it in person, but it appears that to get the steering wheel in the 12 o'clock position you can loosen the u-bolt clamps on the steering damper and then rotate the drag link to get steering wheel in the 12 o'clock position easier than drag links with a welded steering damper bracket. More of micro adjustment feature that ones with welded steering damper brackets, just a thought. I'm happy with my rovers north heavy duty steering kit, and really like the grey powder coat finish.

Thinking next thing will be new front springs for lift, most likely 2 inch, and spacers for rear SLS.

 

Glad it worked out for you!

I understand that the U-bolt design allows for rotation, but I prefer the weld on design for the KISS rule.

You'll want to get springs sooner than later, as the new shock's lives will be shortened with the old worn out springs.