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Bump- steer on !995.

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Old Jun 24, 2014 | 11:57 PM
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Default Bump- steer on !995.

I have searched the forum, but have not found a thread that is quit on point. I have a 95' base C4 coupe. When the car hits broken surfaces, I get some pretty good bump-steer. If I am in a turn, I get real serious bump-steer...front end wants to walk to the outside big-time! You can feel a real wiggle in the steering wheel when this happens. The result is a real sense of "not fully in control of the car's future".
New tires, 85,000 miles. Car tracks and handles perfect otherwise. No clicks or catches in the steering. No slack in steering, and no rack leaks.
The only "play" I can spot appears to be the rack end bushings going to the tie rods. It appears to be equal to both sides, but is only felt when hitting bumps (the bigger, the worse, and in turns even more so).
Replacing the rack looks like a $750 repair, so I am looking for any input I can get before I pull the trigger on that deal. HELP.
I have also tightened up the ends on the steering shaft, which was a large improvement! But the car feels so upset on bumps in turns, there has to be more. Any help would be Very appreciated.This is my first Corvette, but I have to believe this is NOT how they handle. If this were a normal car, I would think the steering damper was defective.
Kelly
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Old Jun 25, 2014 | 01:47 AM
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Originally Posted by Mortsciguy
I have searched the forum, but have not found a thread that is quit on point. I have a 95' base C4 coupe. When the car hits broken surfaces, I get some pretty good bump-steer. If I am in a turn, I get real serious bump-steer...front end wants to walk to the outside big-time! You can feel a real wiggle in the steering wheel when this happens. The result is a real sense of "not fully in control of the car's future".
New tires, 85,000 miles. Car tracks and handles perfect otherwise. No clicks or catches in the steering. No slack in steering, and no rack leaks.
The only "play" I can spot appears to be the rack end bushings going to the tie rods. It appears to be equal to both sides, but is only felt when hitting bumps (the bigger, the worse, and in turns even more so).
Replacing the rack looks like a $750 repair, so I am looking for any input I can get before I pull the trigger on that deal. HELP.
I have also tightened up the ends on the steering shaft, which was a large improvement! But the car feels so upset on bumps in turns, there has to be more. Any help would be Very appreciated.This is my first Corvette, but I have to believe this is NOT how they handle. If this were a normal car, I would think the steering damper was defective.
Kelly
Try higher tire pressure that helps reduce the wandering effect on uneven road surfaces, I run my tire pressure at 38 psi because of that and the car is much more pleasant to drive on the poorly maintained highways our taxes pay for.......

Keep the camber settings standard but you can help counteract wandering by more positve caster, I run 6 deg positive caster and that has helped too.

Here is a link for you.

http://www.ecklerscorvette.com/corve...4.html?reset=1

Last edited by gerardvg; Jun 25, 2014 at 01:50 AM. Reason: Added link
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Old Jun 25, 2014 | 07:42 AM
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You might also take a look and see if your shocks are bad.

When they go, they can make it feel really bad over bumps (unstable, skipping/hopping on bumps, vibration, steering wheel oscillation, etc) . If shocks, you may also see some cupping on the tires.
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Old Jun 25, 2014 | 09:17 AM
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What's a steering damper?
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Old Jun 25, 2014 | 11:50 AM
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Originally Posted by Mortsciguy
I have searched the forum, but have not found a thread that is quit on point. I have a 95' base C4 coupe. When the car hits broken surfaces, I get some pretty good bump-steer. If I am in a turn, I get real serious bump-steer...front end wants to walk to the outside big-time! You can feel a real wiggle in the steering wheel when this happens. The result is a real sense of "not fully in control of the car's future".
New tires, 85,000 miles. Car tracks and handles perfect otherwise. No clicks or catches in the steering. No slack in steering, and no rack leaks.
The only "play" I can spot appears to be the rack end bushings going to the tie rods. It appears to be equal to both sides, but is only felt when hitting bumps (the bigger, the worse, and in turns even more so).
Replacing the rack looks like a $750 repair, so I am looking for any input I can get before I pull the trigger on that deal. HELP.
I have also tightened up the ends on the steering shaft, which was a large improvement! But the car feels so upset on bumps in turns, there has to be more. Any help would be Very appreciated.This is my first Corvette, but I have to believe this is NOT how they handle. If this were a normal car, I would think the steering damper was defective.
Kelly
What you are describing is not the definition of "Bump-Steer". What you are experiencing is a damping issue w/the front of the car.



Originally Posted by QCVette
You might also take a look and see if your shocks are bad.
Bingo.

Additionally, I added an RD Cross Brace to mine to help reduce front end "Jitters" when encountering a bump during turns. It helped.
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Old Jun 25, 2014 | 07:51 PM
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Originally Posted by Mortsciguy
I have searched the forum, but have not found a thread that is quit on point. I have a 95' base C4 coupe. When the car hits broken surfaces, I get some pretty good bump-steer. If I am in a turn, I get real serious bump-steer...front end wants to walk to the outside big-time! You can feel a real wiggle in the steering wheel when this happens. The result is a real sense of "not fully in control of the car's future".
New tires, 85,000 miles. Car tracks and handles perfect otherwise. No clicks or catches in the steering. No slack in steering, and no rack leaks.
The only "play" I can spot appears to be the rack end bushings going to the tie rods. It appears to be equal to both sides, but is only felt when hitting bumps (the bigger, the worse, and in turns even more so).
Replacing the rack looks like a $750 repair, so I am looking for any input I can get before I pull the trigger on that deal. HELP.
I have also tightened up the ends on the steering shaft, which was a large improvement! But the car feels so upset on bumps in turns, there has to be more. Any help would be Very appreciated.This is my first Corvette, but I have to believe this is NOT how they handle. If this were a normal car, I would think the steering damper was defective.
Kelly
Sounds like your car may have shock issues. Check out the thread I started the other day. I am going to go with the Bilstein Z51 B8's on all 4 corners for my base model. They bolt right in and are much stiffer than the B6's (non Z51). I'm sure if I replaced the shocks with B6's like the factory installed, I would feel an improvement. The stiffer shocks will give the car that much more handling performance at the sacrifice of a 'softer' ride. Look at the specs QCVette posted. Post your results....

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c4-g...-c4-vette.html

Last edited by Ozzstar; Jun 27, 2014 at 09:51 PM.
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Old Jun 26, 2014 | 10:49 PM
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Checked system today. Front actuators act as should when tested off-shock. I failed to mention that I have the FX3 set up. Some evidence of oil leaks, and no codes. Found a pair of fronts in stock (all the pain I want to deal with right now), and pulled the trigger at $190.08 each, free shipping. Should have them on beginning of next week. Also added a small bottle of Lucas Steering Rack product as an abundance of caution(steering already feels much better). I will let you know how things work out. Thanks for the feedback.
Kelly

Last edited by Mortsciguy; Jun 26, 2014 at 10:58 PM. Reason: FX3 update to info.
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Old Jun 27, 2014 | 02:01 AM
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Originally Posted by QCVette
You might also take a look and see if your shocks are bad. When they go, they can make it feel really bad over bumps (unstable, skipping/hopping on bumps, vibration, steering wheel oscillation, etc).
Look for signs of leaking seals or ID the shock type/brand.

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Old Jul 5, 2014 | 09:17 AM
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Thank you all for your input. When the old Bilsteins were removed, they proved to be absolutely worn out! Installed new selective ride control Bilsteins. Wow! All is well, once again.
Kelly
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Old Jul 5, 2014 | 09:22 AM
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Originally Posted by Aardwolf
What's a steering damper?



Here is one.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/Steering-Stabilizer-Dampener-GM-Van-Motorhome-DSC10329-Front-with-warranty-/271082914036?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3f1dcd00f4&vxp=mtr
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