Death wobble makes the news
- Thread starter tomtaylz
- Start date
Lol...nothing in the article was particularly untrue. Wranglers require Perfect. Tire. Balance. to avoid death wobble. Especially with larger tires. Saw 12 new JL's on a dealer lot this weekend and the smallest tire I saw fitted was a 35x12.50, with all of the Rubicons having 37x12.50 tires on them. Someone, somewhere, is gonna experience death wobble out of that pack. It's just the law of averages at work.
Oh, the '03 Rubicon I looked at for $14k had the crappiest lift imaginable on it. Poor thing. Needed a 1" skid plate drop to keep from getting drive train vibrations. Stock uppers, and non-adjustable lowers. Perfect frame though. Didn't make an offer on it. To much to fix in the suspension and under the hood.
Oh, the '03 Rubicon I looked at for $14k had the crappiest lift imaginable on it. Poor thing. Needed a 1" skid plate drop to keep from getting drive train vibrations. Stock uppers, and non-adjustable lowers. Perfect frame though. Didn't make an offer on it. To much to fix in the suspension and under the hood.
Aww, come on now Chris. You can't tell me you've never looked at a pretty woman besides your wife? I didn't test drive it, so technically I'm still faithful to my SE! :meparto:Oh... someone is Rubicon shopping now I see
I must say, I've never heard of death wobble on a brand new Wrangler, stock from the factory. I guess I've been out of touch. Doesn't say much for the JL engineering...
"Person, 44, called his Wrangler an “overall pretty stock Sport model with some basic comfort and convenience options,” which he purchased this year at Colonial Dodge Chrysler Jeep in Hudson, Massachusetts, for just under $38,000."
"Person, 44, called his Wrangler an “overall pretty stock Sport model with some basic comfort and convenience options,” which he purchased this year at Colonial Dodge Chrysler Jeep in Hudson, Massachusetts, for just under $38,000."
My death wobble has been gone for a few years now, but it didn't just do it at high speeds. Sometimes it would start as low as 45mph. The first time it did it though was the scariest thing that I have ever experienced. I think it is funny that the NTHA has never seen it and the Fiat/Chrysler spokesperson described it as a vibration.
My guess is they know it is more than a vibration. If no accidents have happened because of it then someone needs to buy a PowerBall ticket. It happened to my Jeep a total of 6-7 times and I was just lucky that I wasn't on an Interstate.
It was a huge pain to get rid of, but it is gone now. We changed everything multiple times before it was repaired.
35's and 37's are big, heavy tires. Maybe we're running into the upper limits of what the JL suspension will handle sooner than expected. I don't know for sure but wouldn't be surprised.
If he had 35s or 37s, I agree. If he did, that's a little more than 'pretty stock with some comfort and convenience options'. Unless the guy has no idea what's stock and what's added...
The Fiat Effect beginning to show up sooner than later?
I wouldn't own a newer Chrysler product if you paid me. I'm not just talking about Jeeps either, I'm talking anything from Fiat Chrysler. I hear nothing but bad things about the build quality and reliability of their vehicles.
The only exception would be a Dodge Cummins truck. But then you're not relying on Chrysler for heart of the vehicle.
The only exception would be a Dodge Cummins truck. But then you're not relying on Chrysler for heart of the vehicle.
From the article:
"The email from FCA said that “any manufacturer vehicle equipped with a solid axle can experience steering system vibration and, if experienced, it is routinely corrected."
I don't think they are telling the truth for two reasons.
First, my solid axle experiences in the last 46 years included 12 years of riding in school buses (2 of those years on the freeway), my CJ5, a friend's Scout, another friend's blazer, 2 years working on semi trucks and now driving my TJ. My son's solid axle experiences are 10 years riding school buses, 3 years with his 175000 mile YJ, two years working on semi trucks and the last 9 months working on school buses. All of those vehicles except 1 had/have leaf springs but the TJ was the only one with death wobble.
Second, based on how many different things get tried before DW is actually fixed I don't know how anything could be considered "routinely". FWIW, I do believe balanced tires are needed but the more times the DW happens the more the other stuff wears out. Maybe randomly would fit better than routinely.
"The email from FCA said that “any manufacturer vehicle equipped with a solid axle can experience steering system vibration and, if experienced, it is routinely corrected."
I don't think they are telling the truth for two reasons.
First, my solid axle experiences in the last 46 years included 12 years of riding in school buses (2 of those years on the freeway), my CJ5, a friend's Scout, another friend's blazer, 2 years working on semi trucks and now driving my TJ. My son's solid axle experiences are 10 years riding school buses, 3 years with his 175000 mile YJ, two years working on semi trucks and the last 9 months working on school buses. All of those vehicles except 1 had/have leaf springs but the TJ was the only one with death wobble.
Second, based on how many different things get tried before DW is actually fixed I don't know how anything could be considered "routinely". FWIW, I do believe balanced tires are needed but the more times the DW happens the more the other stuff wears out. Maybe randomly would fit better than routinely.
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