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Old 05-02-2014, 07:31 PM   #1
Jmax207
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Default 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha Front End Issue

I have had this cart for three years. Except for some issues I worked out in the beginning it has been a great cart. Here is a link to my original issues and cart info when I first posted three years ago:

http://www.buggiesgonewild.com/gas-y...ns-issues.html

The cart has always had a front end wobble if I am going fast enough and hit a decent sized bump which would cause the cart to front end shake. I could end the shaking simply by slowing down until it stabilized and then I could continue on as normal. I have had this thing moving with no problem. I have taken it on the beach, roads and in the woods. Great cart overall.

Here is the current issue. At the end of last season I had a low front tire, which happened a few times a year with that tire, so I filled it up normal. I then went around and filled all the tires nice and tight. In retrospect I have a feeling the guys who sold me the cart told me not to fill each tire full because of the lift kit. Well I did:( I then drove it down to the beach and it did not steer easily. It was very tight. I then drove it back home up a hill and by the end it was moving very tight and slow, almost like one tire is going one way and the other another.

I let it sit over the long winter and am now dealing with it.

I took this video today of the cart backing up and moving back forward. You can definitely see the tires toe one way and the other, prob not a good thing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2z-...ature=youtu.be

I am looking for any advice on what the problem may be and also some info on how I tighten or loosen the front tires to toe them one way or the other.

Then after we tackle this problem I have a dozen more to work on. I'd like to turn this cart into a champ.

Thanks for the help in advance.

JMax

Last edited by Jmax207; 05-02-2014 at 07:46 PM.. Reason: Need more in title
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Old 05-02-2014, 07:41 PM   #2
1989Marathon
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Default Re: 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha

Check to see if the riser blocks between the tie-rods and the spindle brackets are able to move or flex. That's a very long drop.
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Old 05-02-2014, 09:44 PM   #3
Jmax207
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Default Re: 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha Front End Issue

They seem to be pretty solid. This is the piece that goes from the end of the tie rod down to the inner wheel, correct?
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Old 05-02-2014, 09:53 PM   #4
1989Marathon
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Default Re: 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha Front End Issue

Correct.
Try this... Back the cart up and stop when the wheels are pointing inward. Take a measurement between the top of the risers(at the center of the ball joint), and another measurement between the bottom of the risers. Then drive forward until the wheels are pointing outward. Take the same measurements. Post the measurements.
The bad camber(wheels pointing in or out) is usually caused by weak shocks.
The tow-in/out is usually caused by loose components.
You have both.
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Old 05-03-2014, 09:44 AM   #5
Mike Mac
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Default Re: 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha Front End Issue

One of the S brackets is bent. Need to straighten that out. Then search or google "setting the toe". Toe needs to be 1/8" in to start, then experiment from there. Some here say they have the best performance at zero toe.

What 89 said about loose or worn componets!
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Old 05-03-2014, 10:32 AM   #6
Cvans
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Default Re: 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha Front End Issue

Hope you get some information on the correct toe in. Tried setting the toe-in on my four wheeler to 1/8" and the steering was terrible. So I checked the service manual and it said 1/8" toe-out. Made a huge difference and it steers nice now. I had always thought toe-out was a bad thing.
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Old 05-04-2014, 06:24 PM   #7
slonomo
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Default Re: 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha Front End Issue

This is the problem with single a arm suspensions. If the toe is not set properly and you drive on pavement, the tires "grip" the pavement and want to follow the direction of the tire. In other words, if the tires point inward toward the front (toe in), the tires want to follow that path. Going forward the tires will want to move toward each other, with raises the suspension.

You actually have the opposite. I think your toe is closer in the rear (toe out). When you back up, your tires are pointed inward toward each other, thus the suspension moves up to allow the tires to travel toward each other.

Try this: Take a long straight edge, as long as you can find. I used a 10' piece of square steel tubing. Place it on the side of the front rims. This will allow you to see how angled the wheels are. Adjust your toe so that they are as perfectly straight as possible (zero toe). Then move your cart forward and reverse like in your video. Post your result.

I had this problem with a Jake's kit installed. When I backed up, the suspension would squat almost all the way down, like two people were standing on the front bumper. Yours is just the reverse of this. The only way I could get that setup to work properly was to use the stock G1 shocks, even then there was still "squat".

1989marathon is correct about "soft shocks". Many people use atv shocks to increase travel but get into this kind of a problem because the shock is too soft and allows too much travel. Stiffer shocks will "resist" the tires from moving away/closer to each other. And yes, loose parts are also not good.
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Old 05-04-2014, 07:08 PM   #8
sho305
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Default Re: 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha Front End Issue

Slonomo is right, its toe'd out. It has to be perfect to work right and even then its not perfect because the geometry factory is not right for the arms to be angled. Stock the arms are flat so are the rods, and it works fine. When the arms are angled like mine (that I welded up long before lifts could be bought) then the front can push up/down with the toe being off. Even then the geometry is wrong when you turn mine will not turn sharp I need to make a bracket for the steering arm, however it works well enough I never bothered lol.

Now if the risers are at the same place as with the arms factory, it should work ok, but will still hump up/down with the toe being off because the spindle is now below the end of the arm with a drop like that. Yes, dual arm lifts are way better lol, though can still be strange if the toe is way off but the geometry will work right.

I rode down an empty road at moderate speed with the tie rods loose. I turned them each a turn in or out and rode it noting what it did. Toe out it wanders and is not sensitive to input. Toe in and it gets hairy and jittery and darts around at higher speeds, it wants to hump the front up in the air if you have angled arms. I ended up with a slight toe out because jittery is not something I want. Cart has a short wheelbase so that is why they get really strange with toe in and jump all over the place. I ran 37gps last summer down the road it was ok, but I'm not real trusting of it at that speed lol. I only did that to see how fast it would go. Also centered my steering wheel at this time, then locked the tie rods and did a final test. In fact with a cart to find your toe you can drive at 20mph and just sit on one side of the cart or the other, and the tire with most weight on it will steer the cart. If you hold the wheel still you will find out where they are pointing. Also remember that changing the weight on the cart can change the alignment with the single arm setup.

Note that if you have some other loose parts, that may be why they toe'd it way out. The more play the more you have to toe it out to keep it from acting strange.
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Old 05-04-2014, 07:12 PM   #9
1989Marathon
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Default Re: 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha Front End Issue

Something is loose/flexing, and the shocks are too weak. Tow is definitely not set correctly.
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Old 05-04-2014, 10:30 PM   #10
Mike Mac
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Default Re: 1990 Lifted G2 Gas Yamaha Front End Issue

Slo, Yamaha's are built in a wedge shape. They won't track down a straight line like that.

Have to rely on the proper toe. Again, I'm with 89, proper toe.
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