Death wobble after replacing wheel bearings

[bobthetj03]

Have you tried rotating tires front to back and see if anything changes?

 

[Robert Gessler]

I believe they do make replacement bushings; energy suspension, moog, and crown come to mind. The old can be removed with a lot of elbow grease, a torch, and some patience. The new will need to be pressed in

Speaking of crown https://www.quadratec.com/p/crown-automotive/steering-kit-97-06-jeep-wrangler-tj-unlimited-lhd I was thinking I might aswell just throw this on aswell as doing the track bar, just to eliminate the possibility of any of those parts?

 

[bobthetj03]

If you going to go that far into it, you might as well do the ZJ upgrade.

https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/zj-tie-rod-conversion.2373/

 

[Robert Gessler]

If you going to go that far into it, you might as well do the ZJ upgrade.

https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/zj-tie-rod-conversion.2373/

Thanks for showing me this! Yeah I think that's exactly what I am going to do.

 

[BendLarry]

What makes these TJ so susceptible to a death wobble? I have had it happen once and don’t ever want to have that experience again! I also worry about what a death wobble would do to the suspension if it happened when I’m towing it behind my motor home.
I have owned many other kinds of cars and trucks and many hard worn out suspensions and never felt anything close to a death wobble.
These Jeeps seem to have a lot of unique and weird problems.


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[tworley]

If you going to go that far into it, you might as well do the ZJ upgrade.
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/zj-tie-rod-conversion.2373/

Thanks for showing me this! Yeah I think that's exactly what I am going to do.

X2. This is what I would suggest

 

[tworley]

What makes these TJ so susceptible to a death wobble? I have had it happen once and don’t ever want to have that experience again! I also worry about what a death wobble would do to the suspension if it happened when I’m towing it behind my motor home.
I have owned many other kinds of cars and trucks and many hard worn out suspensions and never felt anything close to a death wobble.
These Jeeps seem to have a lot of unique and weird problems.

Its prevalent in any solid front axle vehicle, not just jeep.

 

[BendLarry]

Its prevalent in any solid front axle vehicle, not just jeep.

My F150 4x4 has a little over 200k. It’s been worked hard and it’s ball joints and shocks are shot. The whole front end has steering play and it never has any weird wobble or shake in the front end. It seems to me that these TJ’s have a flaw in the front end design. I have read every thread on this topic over the last year and a half and my takeaway is that every thing has to be nearly perfect or you get this awful outcome.


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[MaloStapalo]

I believe they do make replacement bushings; energy suspension, moog, and crown come to mind. The old can be removed with a lot of elbow grease, a torch, and some patience. The new will need to be pressed in

Ive pressed bushings in before using a floor jack and the weight of the jeep by the frame. Works in a pinch.

 

[tworley]

My F150 4x4 has a little over 200k. It’s been worked hard and it’s ball joints and shocks are shot. The whole front end has steering play and it never has any weird wobble or shake in the front end. It seems to me that these TJ’s have a flaw in the front end design. I have read every thread on this topic over the last year and a half and my takeaway is that every thing has to be nearly perfect or you get this awful outcome.

I am not to familiar with an F150 suspension but isnt that an independent front suspension system?

 

[BendLarry]

I am not to familiar with an F150 suspension but isnt that an independent front suspension system?

Not my 96


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[BendLarry]

Correction, yes it an independent front suspension.


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[tworley]

Not my 96

Perhaps you are lucky then! Ive seen and had a dodge ram that experienced dw. The track bar was the issue on my ram. Ive had it once in my jeep but I swapped out front end parts that same weekend, so I am not entirely sure what contributed to it

 

[bobthetj03]

It's a design of compromises. Jeep isn't the only company that does it. Larry is right in that the steering and suspension components need to be frosty all the time to keep things smooth, IMO. One little component gets out of spec and it's like a tidal wave coming to shore.

 

[BendLarry]

It's a design of compromises. Jeep isn't the only company that does it. Larry is right in that the steering and suspension components need to be frosty all the time to keep things smooth, IMO. One little component gets out of spec and it's like a tidal wave coming to shore.

Jim since we both tow our Jeeps, have you thought about the outcome of a death wobble when no one was holding the steering wheel? When mine happened, it was all I could do to control the steering and it felt to me like my fighting it was required to keep it from getting even worse.


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[bobthetj03]

Jim since we both tow our Jeeps, have you thought about the outcome of a death wobble when no one was holding the steering wheel? When mine happened, it was all I could do to control the steering and it felt to me like my fighting it was required to keep it from getting even worse.


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It scares the crap out of me to think of that even happening whilst a toad! I know what DW feels like, and agree, it's all you can do to hang on to the steering wheel long enough to slow down and out of it. With nothing holding on to the wheel it would undoubtedly snap the tow bar arms like twigs. At that point, all you can hope for is strong safety cables keeping your jeep from becoming a projectile!

 

[BendLarry]

It scares the crap out of me to think of that even happening whilst a toad! I know what DW feels like, and agree, it's all you can do to hang on to the steering wheel long enough to slow down and out of it. With nothing holding on to the wheel it would undoubtedly snap the tow bar arms like twigs. At that point, all you can hope for is strong safety cables keeping your jeep from becoming a projectile!

I share your terror! I’m not sure I could stop the coach fast enough. I’m glad I have a receiver type tow bar, I think it would have a better chance of surviving than a ball type tow bar.


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[Robert Gessler]

It scares the crap out of me to think of that even happening whilst a toad! I know what DW feels like, and agree, it's all you can do to hang on to the steering wheel long enough to slow down and out of it. With nothing holding on to the wheel it would undoubtedly snap the tow bar arms like twigs. At that point, all you can hope for is strong safety cables keeping your jeep from becoming a projectile!

And it would be difficult to tell if its got the wobble until it's too late.
But as said above the death wobble only affects vehicles with solid front axles.

 

[BendLarry]

It scares the crap out of me to think of that even happening whilst a toad! I know what DW feels like, and agree, it's all you can do to hang on to the steering wheel long enough to slow down and out of it. With nothing holding on to the wheel it would undoubtedly snap the tow bar arms like twigs. At that point, all you can hope for is strong safety cables keeping your jeep from becoming a projectile!

Another reason I worry about this is mine happened at 55 mph. From what I have read that’s about the speed it usually happens, that’s also the speed I drive my coach while towing most of the time.


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[BendLarry]

And it would be difficult to tell if its got the wobble until it's too late.
But as said above the death wobble only affects vehicles with solid front axles.

I’m not sure you are getting what we are saying. We are not worried about our motor home getting a death wobble, we are worried about the Jeep we are towing having one while being towed.


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