KZJ78 pulling left, running out of ideas (1 Viewer)

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Nov 24, 2017
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Canada
Hey guys,
Here's the deal. I bought a KZJ78 prado in november with 265000km. It's always had a slight pull to the left.
I've replaced:
Wheel bearings (they were loose and factory originals)
Replaced tie rod and relay rod ends (also factory and worn)
Replaced left front caliper (slightly more brake wear on those pads then the right)
I have a 2.5 inch dobinson Lift and Dobinson shocks with the heavy duty steering damper, castor correction bushings installed.
alignment checks out fine with proper toe

What else could it be? Can kingpin bearings cause a pull? I don't think the PO was very on it with lubing the knuckles as they were dry and showing a bit of rust. Have a bit of the grease/gear oil leak but nothing desperate through the knuckles.

Rear brake pads seem the same so I don't think it's a dragging caliper on the rear.

I drove a pretty rough washboard road last night and now it seems to be pulling more to the left.

Only thing left would be the kingpin bearings but it's a big expensive job so I'm trying to see if that could be the issue before I drop big $$$

Any suggestions or troubleshooting tips would be appreciated. The frame is clear of rust and as far as I can tell it's never been in an accident.


Cheers

Lomo
 
Got an overweight friend to ride shotgun, see if it levels out, noticeable in 80 series.

Shock gate failure on front left, can you set it stiffer and see if it helps?

Rotate pass rear tire to front driver side, maybe rear tire is newer/ larger circumference, and is pushing you over.
 
Probably the first thing you looked at, but you don't mention if you've checked your tire pressure left vs right. If one is low, it'll pull to that side.
Sorry, I didn't mention that, tire pressures are the same. I've rotated tires side to side and front to back and no change in the pull. Thanks for your suggestion though!

Lomo
 
If you drive on the other side of the road, opposite camber, does it still pull to the left ?
Yeah, always pulls to the left, both sides of road
 
Got an overweight friend to ride shotgun, see if it levels out, noticeable in 80 series.

Shock gate failure on front left, can you set it stiffer and see if it helps?

Rotate pass rear tire to front driver side, maybe rear tire is newer/ larger circumference, and is pushing you over.

So the shocks are brand new, pulled before the lift and new shocks and still pulls after, I've rotated the tires front to back and side to side. No change. I've had passengers in the front seat and fully loaded, no change. Scratching my head.

Thanks, Lomo
 
Wheel Alignment?
Play in steering box?
Power Steering fluid full?

The wheel alignment is fine, No issues there, Toe and camber/caster are correct. Plus it's a solid front axle with connected tie rod so you can't bias one side.
How do I check play in steering box? Feels fine while driving.
Power steering fluid is full, I do have a small leak in my power steering pump, but it's like a drip every couple of days, level doesn't change at all.

Thanks for the thoughts.

Lomo
 
When I rebuilt my front axle 5 years ago I also replaced the kingpin bearings. They had basically worn oval. Made it feel like I was always driving in a rut, as the vehicle would want to track in a certain direction. The new ones made a world of difference. Steering became so neutral.

If your wheel bearings were never done before, it's likely your kingpin bearings have never been done. Guaranteed it's time. I'd bite the bullet and do them if I was you. Won't be expensive if you do the job yourself. Just a crappy dirty job is all.
 
When I rebuilt my front axle 5 years ago I also replaced the kingpin bearings. They had basically worn oval. Made it feel like I was always driving in a rut, as the vehicle would want to track in a certain direction. The new ones made a world of difference. Steering became so neutral.

If your wheel bearings were never done before, it's likely your kingpin bearings have never been done. Guaranteed it's time. I'd bite the bullet and do them if I was you. Won't be expensive if you do the job yourself. Just a crappy dirty job is all.

Thanks GTS I figured it was time anyways. I'll do the work myself, just don't have a garage so need to wait until June when the snow melts here.

I'll order the kit and start researching how to do it. Any special tools needed?

Cheers, Lomo
 
Thanks GTS I figured it was time anyways. I'll do the work myself, just don't have a garage so need to wait until June when the snow melts here.

I'll order the kit and start researching how to do it. Any special tools needed?

Cheers, Lomo

There are lots of axle rebuild 'how-to' guides on youtube. I don't remember all the details at the moment, as it's been a while since I did it. You will need a torx bit to get the electric hub apart if I remember correct. You'll need a brass drift to get the kingpin bearing races out. You'll need to retain the e-hub brushes when you put the hub/rotor back on. I'd also recommend lubricating the e-hub brushes with special slip ring electrical grease. Don't loose track of the shims when you remove the knuckle. Stuff like that..... Download RM183E to get details on rebuild of the Prado front axle.
 
There are lots of axle rebuild 'how-to' guides on youtube. I don't remember all the details at the moment, as it's been a while since I did it. You will need a torx bit to get the electric hub apart if I remember correct. You'll need a brass drift to get the kingpin bearing races out. You'll need to retain the e-hub brushes when you put the hub/rotor back on. I'd also recommend lubricating the e-hub brushes with special slip ring electrical grease. Don't loose track of the shims when you remove the knuckle. Stuff like that..... Download RM183E to get details on rebuild of the Prado front axle.

Thanks! I've rebuilt my hubs and wheel bearings so I'm pretty comfortable with all the insurance and outs of the e hubs. I have the kzj78 shop manual as well so should go pretty smooth. Just waiting until summer and wanted to make sure I had eliminated all the options.

Cheers

Lomo
 
Sorry to dig up an old thread! But did you happen to find the issue? I’ve got a kzj78 that’s doing the exact same thing. Pretty much same set up suspension wise that you are running. Cheers
 
Sorry to dig up an old thread! But did you happen to find the issue? I’ve got a kzj78 that’s doing the exact same thing. Pretty much same set up suspension wise that you are running. Cheers
Honestly I haven't figured it out. I replaced tie rod and relay rod ends, rebuilt my wheel bearings and replaced my calipers and it's still there. The only thing left is to rebuild my knuckles. Honestly I just ignore it mostly now.

Cheers
 
They are called trunnion bearings in the Cruiser world folks.

:)

Camber is not adjustable on a Cruiser with a SFA. It is built into the knuckles. Although you can get caster adjusting bearings for the trunnions, however caster is not camber.


Yes you should do them but some of what people are saying here has me scratching my head.

Oval trunnion bearings? Oval race? How is that even possible? Play in the trunnions? That is possible due to poor shimming or loose steering arm-trunnion bearings caps but unlikely because if that is the case you are going to be broke down on the side of the road real fast if the trunnion bearings are falling apart.


Worn leaf spring bushings can make it pull too.

Steering box out of adjustment which has already been mentioned will cause a pull too.


The thing not mentioned so far, RHD vs LHD. On ALL Cruisers Toyota built in roughly .5* of more caster on the crown side of the road. In a LHD country like the USA this will be the LHS that has the stronger caster. In a RHD country it is the opposite. This is so the truck tracks straight and true with a crown in the road.

Crowns are built into our roads for runoff purposes.


It is unlikely you would notice .5* but with a RHD Cruiser on a LHD road it can-will be amplified.

If everything else checks out and you have a sheet from getting it aligned telling you exactly what is going on, try compensating by adjusting toe. Other than that, as long as everything else is dialed in, there is not much you can do.


You are not the first to post about this issue with a RHD Cruiser on LHD roads. Some places in the country the crown will be more or less. Heavy crown vs flat surface the pull will vary so try to experiment with that as well. Meaning driving on different surfaces and seeing if the pull is more or less.


Cheers
 
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Not sure about OP, but I’m in Australia. I’m fairly sure that the camber of the road has nothing to do with it. As mine tracks left regardless of what side of the road I am on. Will look into swivel hubs.
 
I've also driven on the other side of the road to make sure it's not crown related.
 

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