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Anyone encounter ram drifting at 60+ mph

4K views 24 replies 6 participants last post by  Kindanocturnal 
#1 ·
I have a 2010 dodge ram that started pulling into any rut in the road especially at speeds over 60+mph. Alignment is fine, tires have less then 12000 miles.
 
#2 ·
By your description it's a road condition issue, not your truck. If it's pulling into a rut, which are very common on well used pavement, then it's not the truck's issue.

However, if your tie rods are worn it may have a bit more give in the steering knuckle, which will move the front a round a bit more without steering rack input.

The tires may be low mileage, but they may be wearing unevenly, have you looked for cupping or uneven wear?
 
#3 ·
Owe it is definitely a truck issue, i am the original owner and am at about 46,000 miles. It will do this on any road. When I say rut in the road I mean the hi-low points within a lane or when you change lanes.

I originally noticed a week or so after rotating my tires, I figured I had waited too long to rotate and the had got conditioned (front vs rear). I put up with it for about 2000 miles then switched back. Problem remains and seems to be getting worse. Tires are very even wear and do not have any cupping. The alignment was done when I got my new tires a little over a year ago and I do not run off road and have not hit anything.

I run airbags in the back for when I tow and have a leveling kit with 2 1/2" blocks in the rear.

I do not have any play in the steering and it almost feels like it might be coming from the rear?
 
#4 ·
Not sure if related but, I crawled under it yesterday and my rear coils springs look like they have a bend to them. I jacked it up, pulled the wheel and dropped the rear end down. Both compressed and expanded, there appears to be a bend toward the back in the bottom 1/3 of the spring which I do not recall being there when I raised it 2 years ago.
 
#6 ·
I'm no mechanic, but no, that does not look normal to me.

I'd have the truck checked out by someone who knows what they're looking at.

good luck and keep us updated

Exco
 
#8 ·
I am at Les Schwab now putting it on an alignment rack & I have an appointment at the dealer on Monday. The dealer says that they have never heard of rear springs bending.

The good news is if it is the springs makes it an easier seller to do the 6" lift. The bad news is, I am not sure what would cause it other then maybe the the block changing the pressure point on the spring and the bags not letting them compress down forcing it to squirt sideways. I typically only put about 25-30 psi in the bags when I pump them up.
 
#9 ·
Well Les Schwab says that the springs aren't bent, that there is always a slight rotation in the rear end which can change the pitch that the spring intersects. Being that they are not Dodge dealers he does not know if this is within the "normal" perimeters. I also have a worn left upper ball joint which he says will not cause my problem. The tires and alignment are all good.

I have wait to see what the dealer says on Monday.
 
#10 ·
Seeing that spring makes me wonder the state of your panhard bar. If it's bent or the bushings are worn out then it would allow lateral movement of the rear axle and this would account for the feeling of the back end shifting around that you are wondering about.

Can you snap some pictures of your panhard bar? It's the one right across the rear diff above the sway bar.
 
#14 ·
I will try and crawl under it tomorrow and snap some more pics. I am not sure what they are called but there are two rods that go from the rear end forward that are designed to keep rear end from rolling, slight play in one bushing but not the other. I plan to have dodge look at those Monday.

Yes they are firestone airlifts. Immune +\- 20 lbs in them when I am towing otherwise keep them deflated which is where they are in the picture. I have test driven both with and without air to see if there is a difference. Not really possible to install improperly, the bags are made to fit these specific springs, pretty much put them in and run airline.
 
#16 ·
I will try and crawl under it tomorrow and snap some more pics. I am not sure what they are called but there are two rods that go from the rear end forward that are designed to keep rear end from rolling, slight play in one bushing but not the other. I plan to have dodge look at those Monday.
Those are the rear connecting rods you're looking at. They stop the axle from moving front/rear and rolling along the axle axis. There shouldn't be any movement in the bushings, so you'll want to have them looked at for sure.

Gotta say after having my truck on a lift today, and I have airbags as well, that doesn't look good at all.

It almost looks like the coil wasn't put back into place just right but that is kind of hard to mess up.

Interested to see where Kurtis is going as one of my weak points is knowledge on suspension items.

Good luck to you.
In a parallel 4-link system, you need a way to prevent the axle from moving side-to-side, and that's the reason for the panhard bar. If the axle has moved that much, then there's an issue with the panhard bar.
 
#15 ·
Gotta say after having my truck on a lift today, and I have airbags as well, that doesn't look good at all.

It almost looks like the coil wasn't put back into place just right but that is kind of hard to mess up.

Interested to see where Kurtis is going as one of my weak points is knowledge on suspension items.

Good luck to you.
 
#17 ·
So here is the update, after bing without my truck for a eight days and counting, Chrysler says that they have determines the drifting problem to be my tie rods. They have ordered them in but will not be finished until Tuesday or Wednesday. Of course this is not covered under power train.
The reason for being gone eight days is they finally addressed the rear end pinion bolt recall and I guess mine was less than 50lbs so they did a full rebuild. I also asked them to re-look at a rough idle problem I have been having for the last several years. After a round and round they have decided they need to rebuild one of the heads. The other head was replaced 6 months ago after the check engine light kept coming on. At least these are still under warranty.

This is my 4th Ram and by far my favorite, but I have never had so many things go wrong with a vehicle, especially being under 47,000 miles.

I'll let everyone know if the tie rods fix the drift, when I do.
 
#18 ·
Update to the update:
I know this will likely surprise everyone but, The Dealer was wrong! After replacing the front tie rods, there is no change in the problem. I met with the mechanic who did the work yesterday and he looked clueless when I asked him about the rear suspension, which I put on the original work order that I felt was where the problem was. He had not even looked at it.

After refusing to pay the $454 for the unneeded tie rods, I went home and took things apart myself. I am 95% certain my rear upper control arm bushings are shot. Of course the team assigned to my truck is off today so I decided to order some heavy duty aftermarket uppers and lowers plus the pan hard bar. (Might as well upgrade it all.). The new ones are adjustable so I should be able to add 1/2" and later increase it if I ever get my 6" lift.

If anyone is interested I will post pictures of the bad parts and what I am putting on to replace them.
 
#21 ·
Yep, not cheap but I they were great with responding via telephone to all my questions. I was concerned about the polyurethane bushings but at least these bushings can be replaced at $2.50 each and there is zirk fittings on the heads to grease with.

Do you have any good or bad experience with the product?
 
#24 ·
You won't need to realign the rear, the joys of a solid rear axle, the rotors are pretty much forced to stay at the same angle of attack. Now, unless you install them with very different lengths on your control arms, then you'd need to realign.

I used a lift myself, but that method will work just fine. You'll notice the axle will shift sideways when you drop the panhard bar, but start with the same length and when you reinstall it should keep everything in line. Just check your wheel gaps when you're done and your side to side fender/tire edge gap and make any adjustments from there.
 
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