AWD caster available?

[t walgamuth]

I am not happy with the way my car tracks on the highway. It feels like it needs a lot more caster. Does anybody know how much is stock and how much caster is available with aggressive adjustment. I would like to get six or seven degrees like the usual amount in its cousin the mercedes.

Tom W

[fnkychkn]

specs in TSB 02-002-05 (http://www.wkjeeps.com/misc/LX/TSB/TSB_0200205.pdf).

[t walgamuth]

Thanks, mr. Funkychicken.

I read through it all and I am not sure what it means. It recommends only 4 to 5 degrees caster for the awd, and 9 to 10 in the rwd. I still do not know if more caster is available in the awd. Can you translate for me? And is the recommendation offering more or less caster than my car has from the factory?

Tom W

[fnkychkn]

AWD front propshaft cannot handle 9-10* of caster. differential pinion shaft angle would be too great and a vibration would result.

EDIT: kindly disregard this post. the information contained herein is completely inaccurate. as a matter of fact, this member should be publicly ridiculed for spreading such falsehoods.

[t walgamuth]

so you are saying that the only way to change the caster is to tilt the entire subframe assembly including the diff?

seems kindof silly. do you know why they would have done it that way?

Do you know what the caster is set at from the factory? and what is the max I could reasonably expect to achieve if I had it maximized?

Thanks for the responses. YOu sound very knowledgeable.

Tom W

[Turf]

im interested in knowing what your complaint on the way the car tracks on the highway is. my car seems nervous and twitchy, and ive wondered if caster adjustment would help. the dealer has checked the alignment and says its within specs, but i didnt think to ask him what the actual numbers were.

im not looking for sportscar suspension tuning, i want it to feel stable. as it is, 1mm wheel adjustment either way and im going across the lane. what would be a recommended caster setting for a more stable track? plus or minus side of the range?

[LowGo]

im not looking for sportscar suspension tuning, i want it to feel stable. as it is, 1mm wheel adjustment either way and im going across the lane. what would be a recommended caster setting for a more stable track? plus or minus side of the range?

I'm a little confused by your statement. It sounds like what you want is a less responsive system. I don't think a caster adjustment would affect that in any way, unless you're having other steering issue. These cars do have a very unforgiving steering system. I find it to be very stable and preditable and personally like the way it functions. But, if you get distracted and move the steering wheel the least little bit, you're going to be moving in that direction! :wink:

[fnkychkn]

so you are saying that the only way to change the caster is to tilt the entire subframe assembly including the diff?

seems kindof silly. do you know why they would have done it that way?

Do you know what the caster is set at from the factory? and what is the max I could reasonably expect to achieve if I had it maximized?

Thanks for the responses. YOu sound very knowledgeable.

Tom W
sorry Tom. must have worked on nothing but Jeeps that day. guess i had solid axle on my mind.

[Turf]

I'm a little confused by your statement. It sounds like what you want is a less responsive system. I don't think a caster adjustment would affect that in any way, unless you're having other steering issue. These cars do have a very unforgiving steering system. I find it to be very stable and preditable and personally like the way it functions. But, if you get distracted and move the steering wheel the least little bit, you're going to be moving in that direction! :wink:

yes, im asking for a less responsive handling at highway speeds ;). i find it not so stable though, hit a bump on one wheel and the wheel jerks in your hand and if you dont have a good hold, it'll pull you that way. variable power assist would be great, it feels like it is over-boosted, great in a parking lot, not so great at speed.

sorry to hijack! ;)

[t walgamuth]

no hijack.

my complaint is the same. i have had as my daily drivers nothing but old mercedes for about 15 years.

i drove a 300 rwd a thousand miles as a rental a couple of years ago and found the handling very mercedes like. so i bought this '05 awd maggie thinking it would handle pretty much like the rwd car and found after driving it a bit that the steering requires much too much attention on the highway. as you say, the slightest movement of the wheel has the car heading off where you dont want it.

more caster is what a merecedes has, what a rwd maggie has and also what a race car has.

so I would love to figure a way to get more caster in my magnum.

i used to do this with my old suburbans. it made them a lot more forgiving on the highway at the very acceptable trade off of less sensitive steering.

So my question is how much caster is built in, how much adjustment is available?

I am hoping to tap some expertise of a knowledgable alignment guy who has familiarity with the awd magnum.

Thanks for the responses so far.

Tom W

[LowGo]

Since I'm no expert on suspensions, I did some reading on the subject to get a better understanding. I didn't realize before that there was such a big difference between the AWD and RWD. While I don't personally have a problem with the AWD, I haven't driven a RWD enough to really know the difference in handling.

From what I've read, it doesn't look like there's a whole lot of stock adjustment capability for the caster. I wonder what the reason was for not making it the same as the RWD. Hopefully someone with more knowledge will chime in with some info.

[t walgamuth]

i think maybe the suspension for the awd is from the m class mercedes... hence the wider hub situation dictating the different offset wheels and the huge brakes. necessary for the awesome power of the hemi.

i don't have a good idea as to why they build them with such a small amount of caster.

Tom W

[fnkychkn]

checked with our alignment tech today. he said the only way to adjust caster is by moving the cradle, which will also change the camber.

[t walgamuth]

So if i have the cradle moved can i increase my caster, and then have the camber readjusted so that the car tracks better and is more relaxed on the highway?

Thanks for the responses so far.

Tom W

[Turf]

and i wonder if LowGo maybe has the cradle on the high end of the adjustment, and if we who feel its too sensitive are at the low end?

[LowGo]

and i wonder if LowGo maybe has the cradle on the high end of the adjustment, and if we who feel its too sensitive are at the low end?

Or, maybe LowGo just doesn't know what a more stable highway ride should feel like! :mrgreen:

[Turf]

Or, maybe LowGo just doesn't know what a more stable highway ride should feel like! :mrgreen:

hehe, lowering it may have helped too ;)

[LowGo]

hehe, lowering it may have helped too ;)

It definitely helped the cornering! :)

[t walgamuth]

Lowering is not an option for me. It is already too easy to hit curbs and drag on irregularities for my taste!

Tom W

[t walgamuth]

Anybody know about the caster adjustability? and the factory settings?

Tom W

[t walgamuth]

bump?

tom w

[LowGo]

Anybody know about the caster adjustability? and the factory settings?

Aren't all the specs you need contained in the TSB that Fnky attached to post #2? Have you had your caster checked to see if you're at the high or low end of the specs?

My guess is that you are treading territory that is not well known here. Have you talked to your dealer's alignment person? Or, someone at a good alignment shop in your area? It looks like you are going to be the pioneer for this. I will be watching to see what you can find out. And, I'll let you know if I discover anything.

[t walgamuth]

yeah, I guess you are right.

It seems to say that the factory setting is from four to five degrees of caster for the awd car and nine for the rwd cars.

NO wonder the rwd car drove like a benz. That is a benz like caster setting.

It looks like the max caster available is about 6 degrees.

So I doubt that another degree or two will make that much difference.

But I guess it won't hurt to try it.

Tom W

[LowGo]

yeah, I guess you are right.

It seems to say that the factory setting is from four to five degrees of caster for the awd car and nine for the rwd cars.

NO wonder the rwd car drove like a benz. That is a benz like caster setting.

It looks like the max caster available is about 6 degrees.

So I doubt that another degree or two will make that much difference.

But I guess it won't hurt to try it.

Tom W

My guess is that a dealer isn't going to want to mess with it if it falls within specs. You may have to find a good alignment shop (one that deals with custom cars) that would be willing to try to squeak every ounce of caster available from your car. :wink:

Keep us posted if you decide to pursue this route.

[t walgamuth]

OK.

Thanks for chatting with me about this.

Tom W

[LowGo]

OK.

Thanks for chatting with me about this.

Tom W

Anytime! :thumbs_u: I didn't get this many posts by keeping quiet! :)

Yours is the first post on this subject that I've seen. I find it interesting, and have learned some things. I hope you will share any knowledge you discover on this.

[Turf]

keep us updated on what you find out, i would love it if the car wasnt as twitchy...

[gimley69]

I Just Bought An 05 300c Awd For My Wife To Replace Her Grand Prix Gtp. The Steering Does Feel A Little To Quick, And It Even Seems To Have A Little Bumpsteer. I Had It Lined Up At The Chrysler Dealership I Work At. It Didn't Help, So I'm Gonna Try To Slide The Cradle Forward And Line It Up Myself With A Little More Caster. I'll Update You Guys On Whether It Helps Or If I Just Screw Up My Wife's Cool New Car. I'd Also Like To Know If Anyone Knows Of A Torq-thrust Type Wheel That Will Fit The Awd? Thanks.

[Turf]

sounds great gimley, im looking forward to seeing a follow-up when you can....

[Bubba's Dragon]

are these settings for all makes of LX in the TSB?