2001 Jimny Steering and brake issues

Hi All, new to the forum and looking for some help/advice!

Have a 2001 Jimny that's had a 2inch lift, front winch and steel front + rear bumpers, running 215/74/r15 AT tyres which was all done by previous owner(s)

The main issues i'm experiencing is that the steering is quite heavy but can hear the power steering working, feels better when ive got the front off the ground. looking at the kingpins and its looking like they've been done at some point. no play in the wheels when giving them a wiggle off the ground. Also when driving and you turn the wheel there's no return to center (but read mixed things if its meant to?) 

To go along with this, whilst I've got brakes, i don't feel like they're very good, they are a bit spongy but i've had new front and rear brakes done/serviced along with changing the booster/servo which has improved it a bit but still not amazing but not sure what is next to try and improve this

Any thoughts or suggestions greatly apprectiated!
 

Not returning to centre can be to do with geometry, but I'd start by seeing if someone has overdone the kingpin bearing preload when they changed the bearings to try and prevent wobble..

Take the knuckles out of the arms on the hubs and see how easy it is to move the hub with the wheel off- it should take a force of less than 4.5kg to start the hub moving if you pull with a spring balance in the hole.

Will keep that in mind and add it to the list of things to try

What makes you think the king pin bearings have been changed recently? It is possible to have zero wobble with seriously worn king pins if the corrosion debris has jammed the roller races. This could account for the heavy steering. It is not a big job to remove a king pin and then you can inspect them for wear and corrosion. Once off you can take photos and put them on the forum.
Soggy braking requires the hoses, 2 front and one rear, to be clamped off. Then the brake pedal should feel solid. If not, remove each clamp in turn and retry the pedal. If it is a front clamp that gives you a soggy brake, bleed that brake and try again. If it is the rear clamp I would bleed both rear brakes and if that doesn't work strip the rear brakes and clean and reassemble. It's a matter of elimination. Do one thing at a time or else you wont know which one cured the problem. If when you clamp the hoses the pedal is still soggy then investigate the master cylinder.

Roger

ps Don't use clamps on stainless steel braided hoses. It will damage them.

I would want to investigate the work done by the previous owner - how much lift does it actually have and has it been caster corrected. Larger, heavier tires can also cause the brakes to feel quite ineffective.

Spongy brakes can just need bleeding- there is a nipple on the compensator above the rear axle that bleeds the front circuit that gets overlooked when work is done at the front.