How can I can cure my death wobble?

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Knemeth

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Apr 30, 2019
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Michigan
G'day,

Looking for some insight on how to cure death wobble. I have a 2005 TJ with a 4" lift. Unfortunately the thing has death wobble and I have replaced almost everything for the front suspension and steering but to no avail. At this point it looks like it may be time for a new steering gear box. So far I added new currie currectlync steering, I was running a rusty's front track bar but just installed the JKS HD track bar, new control arms, new ball joints, new hubs, but it still wobbles. Before I go getting a new steering box just wanted to hear some other ideas on what could be causing it.

Thanks
 
Had the same problem on my son’s TJ. Installed a 4” lift and inherited death wobble that was initiated by bumps in the road at 45+. Through our process of elimination we replaced all steering ends, ball joints, unit bearings, track bar and control arms were new. New wheels and tires were road force balanced but still had death wobble. Not all the parts we replaced needed to be replaced but some did have excessive play. The front upper control arm bushings on the axle didn’t look bad but when we put a long punch through the bushing and moved it around the rubber bushing was very soft with a lot of movement. We replaced both bushings on the axle and no more death wobble. The cure seems to be different for each case but that ended up being our fix.
 
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Death wobble is almost always caused by an imbalanced tire. Just for the hell of it, you wouldnt happen to have a dropped pitman arm would you?
 
Drop Pitman arm?
Drop track bar bracket?

If the answer is no to both or yes to both

You need to do a stationary steering test. Just a few inches will do.

Most DW we encounter at the shop are track bar related. You say you have a new jks but what about where it mounts? Are the holes in bad shape?

Do the KOEO steering test of just a few inches back and forth. Weight of vehicle on the tires on the ground.
Look VERY carefully at each steering joint including the pitman arm itself on the box (it's softer material than the box splined shaft) track bar and it's mounting locations.

This is not a race.

I'm willing to bet you see slop somewhere in the daisy chain of components

Good luck
 
I'd ask what the OP's actual symptoms are before I started throwing solutions around. The term "death wobble" gets tossed around so much in Jeep forums, but it could be anything from out of balance tires to actual death wobble (a violent uncontrollable shaking event after hitting a bump at a moderate speed is what I consider it to be) itself. Without knowing the symptoms, I have no idea what the OP is actually experiencing.
 
https://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f9/...g-non-dw-shimmies-wobbles-tj-version-2359089/

DW meme.jpg
 
What is your definition of "death wobble".

Tell us exactly what it's doing.
 
RobertJ said:
I'd ask what the OP's actual symptoms are before I started throwing solutions around. The term "death wobble" gets tossed around so much in Jeep forums, but it could be anything from out of balance tires to actual death wobble (a violent uncontrollable shaking event after hitting a bump at a moderate speed is what I consider it to be) itself. Without knowing the symptoms, I have no idea what the OP is actually experiencing.
Click to expand...
That's a great point you make...

DW...true DW is like the front end instantly turned into a demon paint shaker and won't stop until you actually stop.

It's not just an annoying vibe.

There are vibes and rattles and then true DW.

Great point!!
 
Rubicon88 said:
Drop Pitman arm?
Drop track bar bracket?

If the answer is no to both or yes to both

You need to do a stationary steering test. Just a few inches will do.

Most DW we encounter at the shop are track bar related. You say you have a new jks but what about where it mounts? Are the holes in bad shape?

Do the KOEO steering test of just a few inches back and forth. Weight of vehicle on the tires on the ground.
Look VERY carefully at each steering joint including the pitman arm itself on the box (it's softer material than the box splined shaft) track bar and it's mounting locations.

This is not a race.

I'm willing to bet you see slop somewhere in the daisy chain of components

Good luck
Click to expand...
I was running a rusty's track bar when I first got wobble so and switched it out for the HD JKS, drilled out the holes to accommodate the bigger bolts.
 
To simplify things... DW is most commonly triggered by a tire problem. Imperfectly balanced or plain and simple a bad tire. I say 'imperfectly' because few tire shops take enough time to get them perfectly balanced as is required by the type of front-end the TJ and many trucks have. Most tire shops will only give their guys enough time to get the tires balanced to what they consider "good enough" which is seldom good enough. I had to get my tires balanced three times in one day by my local Discount Tire store. Their first two attempts had me on the verge of DW.

Based on you having a fairly recently installed JKS track bar installed with the bigger hardware on the driver's side (assuming both bolts are TIGHT), my bet is your DW is tire related.

And to be sure, true fully developed DW is beyond VIOLENT. It's so violent that drivers around you will notice and your vision will actually blur... you'll feel like a giant hand has picked up your Jeep with you inside and is shaking it like a pepper shaker. It won't stop until you come to a stop or at least nearly to a stop. If it's not all that it's not DW.
 
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Death wobble usually requires you to come to nearly a complete stop to get it to quit.
 

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