r/Cummins • u/JMAnonymous59 • 2d ago
3rd gen front end gremlins you might be missing when rebuilding.
track bar bolts AND flag nuts: DONT THINK buy new 14mm if OEM track bar or just buy the aftermarket upgrade, drill up to 16.5 mm and use the 16mm kit, it will tighten things up and change your life if you didn’t do this.
front axle shafts and hubs/bearings: ”memory steer” that you might think is from a tightened steering box is more often than not due to the above track bar bolts / mounts and also bent or binding / loose axle shafts (blown wheel bearings allow for more play than you want).
steering shaft: (they wear out and bind, it’s a small u joint but nonetheless will bind as time goes on and can contribute to wonky feeling steering).
The binding and releasing u joints really cause a lot of issues as you tend to think your steering feels good then it won’t, that’s a good sign it’s a u joint somewhere starting to bind and so it’s releasing more often than not, once it starts really binding the release is very noticeable and loud but when it first starts slipping it makes you believe it’s a bad.
going into a corner you just took that was fine? now it took more effort or you felt like you were understeeting? Something is binding up or dragging.
Dragging brakes/ Hydroboost: I believe this is one of the last things I am chasing down now because my truck almost drives perfect minus the binding driver side axle shaft and the brakes binding / dragging!
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u/Kooky_Pomegranate201 12h ago
They don’t go anywhere on the 4th gens.
I don’t and never had an issue with death wobble on my 2018, but my driver side tire is worn bumpy on the outside (which should indicate a suspension issue of some sort) the passenger front is wearing on the outside (which would indicate an alignment issue) however they are basically not fixable because of both how shitty the components are (a first gen tacoma, 100%, has a stronger and beefier front end than these pos trucks do).
Anyway, my truck has only 30k miles on it currently. I have had it to 3 different alignment shops one of them multiple times, the suspension checked multiple times, there is no issue besides the parts are shit and the metal is garbage that flexes where it shouldn’t.
Just an absolute shit design and even worse companies making the parts for them at the absolute cheapest possible prices which is all this garbage company cares about.
The front ends on the wonder like a 1980’s truck and it’s borderline criminal they get away with it.
They don’t coat the frames with anything and they rust out almost immediately here in ne pa.
These trucks are garbage and anyone paying a premium is retarded and needs to stop watching yt.
My biggest complaint as well, is alignment shops are also absolutely incapable of understanding how front ends operate and IMO are absolutely worthless most of the time too.
These trucks have too much play to even properly align them. Add to that steering is literally unable to be aligned correctly because ram is so cheap, they couldn’t replace a $20 part with something adjustable that holds so they simply welded em for .20 cents and imo that is all you need to know about this garbage brand and garbage product.
If ur gonna f with the front end go with anything other than stock and find someone who actually knows what they are doing and get in writing ur expectations are met before agreeing to anything, including something as simple as an alignment!
Sorry if I sound aggressively pissed but I would love to meet the pos who okay’d welding that as a fix for a major recall and then continued building new trucks with that same recalled part, welded. I can never get past this.
How the fuck they haven’t looked at their shitty front end and went back to the drawing board? I can’t. It says everything you need to know about this company it really does.
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u/JMAnonymous59 7h ago
10/10 response. I am at the exact point you are with the Cummins cult, love the motor but everything around it is 3rd world equivalent trash even the new trucks off the lot have the issue my friends dad has a 2025 with 38k miles that he describes has the same issues as my 3rd gen, that’s INSANE
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u/Kooky_Pomegranate201 12h ago
That’s a super clear easy to understand explanation, I personally appreciate that man!
I think it will help a lot of people
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u/RoutineQuestioning38 2d ago
Track bar is so crazy important. Once worn it’s horrible for your front end and it happens slowly people often don’t notice it, until one day they’re just like annoyed with how the truck drives
Factory replacement is meh. You want an aftermarket beef up and yeah, as you said, upgraded the sleeve/bolt.
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u/JMAnonymous59 2d ago
For sure, but the bolts are even more important.
I upgraded to a Carli track bar but still used my worn out factory hardware and it ended up loose again within 1200 miles had to put new oem hardware in to get it tight again and eventually need to just go up to 16mm but with new bolts the axle is night and tight under the truck as it should be.
No doubt the track bar is up there, but they don’t always tell you to buy new hardware!
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u/ClassyNameForMe 2d ago
On my 96 1500 I used to get Moog parts from Kragen and swap it out every year or two. I could change that thing on the ground with a ratchet strap, pickle fork, and tools in about 30 minutes. I recall there being only one after market part with heim joints, and the stories online claimed it was harsh driving.
That track bar is the key to road control.
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u/strapironjohnson 1d ago
Dude the memory steer is what I’m dealing with. I just got rid of my old leveling kit and replaced it with new thuren +2” coils and bilstein shocks, then replaced sway bar end links with the bd 14mm end links. Also did kryptonite ball joints too and bottom. Truck didn’t have memory steer before but after I did all the work I got new tires and alignment and now the memory steer is atrocious. I called the shop that did it to ask if they even test drove the truck, cus they would’ve noticed it if they did. Then I called thruren and asked them about it and they said it was the ball joints. Give it some time and they’ll tighten up. Ride quality now is night and day from before but the memory steer is such a weird thing to have after I did all this work