Heavy-duty sucker, too.
And as somebody pointed out, it may not be working. The bracket isn’t just ripped off the axle, the part still attached to the strut/arm/shock is torn nearly in two. Something pretty stressful went on under there: I was bouncing around on the Bumpy Road but not in a rock-climbing competition. Probably it’s been ready to go for quite some time.
Also – as somebody pointed out – the axle situation may not be a dire as I made it out to be. There’s a solid upper strut connecting the axle to the frame, so the axle can rotate slightly on this shock absorber to absorb severe jounces but it shouldn’t be able to actually leave its normal conformation. Which is what I’ve been expecting it to do since Wednesday morning.
https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/jeep,2001,wrangler,2.5l+l4,1373712,suspension,shock+absorber,7556
They ^ frequently have the best prices on a range of quality…
Email sent.
Dude, I won’t get it. My email server is FUBAR. Try me at interimvariable(at)yahoo(dot)com. That’s my stand-in addy.
And anyway I’m going to let the shop buy the part if it needs replacing. I’ll supply them with the bracket, which I’ve already ordered, so they can go ahead and fix the axle. But I won’t speculatively buy an expensive (and possibly wrong) part I don’t know is broke.
It’s not a shock absorber, it is an aftermarket lower control arm, looks the ones in this kit https://www.quadratec.com/products/16190_009_07.htm
It is likely 2 pieces threaded together so the length can be adjusted, the center grease zerk is for those threads, they also let it pivot a little as the jeep flexes to take strain off the axle bracket. The factory arms were stamped steel with large rubber bushings to deal with the twisting when one side of the axle goes up.
Look carefully at the uppers arms, and the other lower arm to see if any of the brackets look like they are cracked or the arms are damaged, if you lose another one the axle isn’t going to stay in place if that happens best case is it needs to be towed to a shop with a welder, worst case is it breaks the transfer case, the front drive shaft and punches a hole in the oil pan.
Is there any chance you hit the bracket or the arm it’s self on a rock recently? that might also explain why it’s now broken.
Joel, the earlier picture you posted shows a rusted out segment hanging onto the strut, then the shiny parts where it fractured and tore off the axle. Check the other mounts for rust and cracks as mentioned above.
Now the good news, you do not need to drop the axle from the jeep, the old bracket remnants on the axle can be cut off with a sawzall (with care to not actually cut the axle tube) then ground flatish. new bracket welds right onto the old profile trace that remains. Have the welder guy do short beads alternating sides, that way the axle tube does not overheat as there is oil inside. Prolly won’t be an issue but care never hurts..
The struts appear to be in good enough shape, would not mess with those.
Excellent info, thanks.
All the above cover my email quite nicely.
I love the internets, its the steering stabilizer.
It’s not a control arm, or a strut.
If your front end is in decent shape its optional
https://www.jkowners.com/forum/modified-jk-tech-dept/36360-driving-without-steering-stabilizer-dampner.html
Respectfully, I don’t believe that’s correct. The steering stabilizer actually is a shock absorber located on the steering linkage, and the Jeep’s is right where it belongs. What I removed yesterday is a strut or arm – screw-adjustable according to one opinion – between the frame and the bottom of the front axle on the left side.
A steering stabilizer runs parallel to the front bumper and looks like a shock absorber because it is a special one. All it does is dampen sudden hits to the wheels from rocks or ruts (side to side motion), otherwise you would feel every hit at your fingertips on the steering and could conceivable lose control.
The item Joel pulled off the Jeep is a swing arm that keeps the front axle in the right position (arc of motion up/down) and is a necessary part of the suspension, especially if you run headlong into a boulder in the wash. You can drive the Jeep gently without it but I would not do so for anything beyond absolute necessity and get it fixed as quickly as possible.
I’ll have the job finished at around the same time I have the money sorted out – one week from today. Till then I’m driving very gingerly and only on graded roads.