Arizona Need capable shop / mechanic in East Valley

ViperDriver

ViperDriver

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Supporting Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2022
Messages
24
Location
Queen Creek, AZ
Greetings

I've been chasing death wobble in my 97 TJ for almost two months. Took it to a local shop in Queen Creek that identified the control arm bushing where the control arm mounts to the front axle near the diff that was severely deteriorated. After replacing that they did an alignment and said everything was within spec. Still had DW. Next shop here in QC said the steering box had more than normal play and that could be the issue - I had swapped steering boxes probably 8-9 years ago to a used Durango box and it had developed a fair amount of slop around the neutral position. So I replaced that this weekend and it steers much better with very little play but when we went over a RR track the DW started again. Not as severe but still DW and needed to slow down to get it back under control. I am truly at a loss of what else to check and disappointed that 2 different shops have told me everything was good to go. Looking for someplace/somebody that knows Jeeps and the DW and is trustworthy. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Bart
 
Letzroll Offroad in northeast Mesa. Well regarded; I and others here have had work done there.

Before taking it into another shop though, you may search the resources/how to sub forums (lots there on the topic), as well as starting a new thread in the general discussion forum.

There are many very knowledgeable folks here who may be able to help you sort it out without going to a shop and/or throwing potentially unnecessary parts and $ at it.
 
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ViperDriver said:
Greetings

I've been chasing death wobble in my 97 TJ for almost two months. Took it to a local shop in Queen Creek that identified the control arm bushing where the control arm mounts to the front axle near the diff that was severely deteriorated. After replacing that they did an alignment and said everything was within spec. Still had DW. Next shop here in QC said the steering box had more than normal play and that could be the issue - I had swapped steering boxes probably 8-9 years ago to a used Durango box and it had developed a fair amount of slop around the neutral position. So I replaced that this weekend and it steers much better with very little play but when we went over a RR track the DW started again. Not as severe but still DW and needed to slow down to get it back under control. I am truly at a loss of what else to check and disappointed that 2 different shops have told me everything was good to go. Looking for someplace/somebody that knows Jeeps and the DW and is trustworthy. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Bart
Click to expand...

I agree with Dave. If you are not confident at all in doing some work yourself take it to Letzroll. If you can wrench (even just a fair bit), I would post up the issue in the General Discussion section with pics of all front end components and they will set you straight.

Once you get your TJ in good working order, join us for a run sometime. There is another thread that will let you see what the other AZ TJs are doing.
 
one quick thing to check out is balanced tires/ damaged tires or different pressure on each side. You can:

1. ensure that your tire pressure is the same on each side (26-28lbs)
2. Swap the front and rear tires and see if it goes away.

Then again, posting up something on the General Discussion thread if this does not help.
 
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Why are we pushing shops? We should be helping this guy.

I live in W Chandler and would look at your Jeep for a 32oz diet drink.
 
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Any time i have experienced death wobble in my TJ it was caused by the lower trackbar mount on the axle. I replaced my trackbar entirely when i bought the jeep, IT developed DW around 55-60 MPH and the new bar eliminated it. I drive my jeep to work as well as wheel it and i noticed a bit of shake when at the same speed, did a few ugga-duggas on that bolt again and its has tightened up.

I just posted a thread with pictures of my front end and the wiser gents here quickly found how fucked up it was from the last dude.
 
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Thank you for all the replies. Followed the given advice and had my son turn the steering wheel back and forth with the Jeep on the ground, engine off, and watched/videoed the steering linkage. As several of you pointed out there was a decent amount of movement/slop in the lower track bar mount. I replaced the track bar with a RE1600 track bar. Bad news is when I took a look at the lower track bar bracket the PO had used a bolt on lowering bracket which I assume developed slop/movement so he then had that bracket welded in place - pics attached. I'm stuck with this bracket for now which means the track bar and drag link are not parallel which I understand will result in bump steer. I'll find that out shortly when I take it for a drive. The power steering pump hose started leaking while working on this so that's next. My question is - if the bump steer is unacceptable, and given the welded in bracket, is the remaining option to get the geometry right a dropped pitman arm? Thanks again for the help. Cheers



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I've got a cut-off wheel you can use if the upper bolt/mount is still usable.
 
Took it for a drive - hit a section of slightly rougher road on a side street at about 40mph and DW..........@#$%. I ordered a drop pitman arm to get that geometry correct but I'm about as frustrated as can be. Letz Roll has been recommended by a couple folks but they are booking appts more than a month out. This isn't my daily driver but I do need it running to have vehicles for our kids to drive. This last drive I also noticed a buzz at about 45 mph - felt like underneath the driver's seat. Maybe a driveshaft u-joint or maybe out of balance? I replaced both front and rear driveshafts this year with Tatton driveshafts. That was an exercise in patience - took 2 months to get one of them - shoulda gone with Tom Woods.

Thanks for all your suggestions - they are greatly appreciated.

Cheers
 
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xXDavidCXx said:
I've got a cut-off wheel you can use if the upper bolt/mount is still usable.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the offer. I don't think it is based one where it was welded. I think a new trackbar mount would have to be fabricated, the existing stuff cut off, and the new stuff welded in place. I think I'm stuck with that lower mounting point and getting a dropped pitman arm to fix the geometry. My biggest issue is the death wobble.
 
ViperDriver said:
Thanks for the offer. I don't think it is based one where it was welded. I think a new trackbar mount would have to be fabricated, the existing stuff cut off, and the new stuff welded in place. I think I'm stuck with that lower mounting point and getting a dropped pitman arm to fix the geometry. My biggest issue is the death wobble.
Click to expand...

I had a similar problem, and looking at your photos there is the original track bar bolt up and to the left of the current bolt. That's the OEM mounting location. Do you think you could fit the track bar there right now without cutting?
 
Thanks much for the reply and suggestions. I don't think I've struggled with such a persistent issue in the 15+ years we've had this Jeep............
To your point I don't think I can fit the trackbar in the original location anymore. I thought the same thing but the way they welded it on both front and back sides there isn't a clean path to get the trackbar end in. I even question if it is wide enough, front to back, to get the end in. Where the trackbar is now it was a very tight fit and the pocket for the original location looks tighter - I'll measure tomorrow. Then, I don't think I can even access the nut for the trackbar bolt. And there is a bolt head to the right in the picture that might get in the way. Since I'm stuck with nothing to do until I figure out the death wobble I might take some more precise measurements and see if it somehow will fit. First step is to see if I can even get the torx head bolt out. PB Blaster to the rescue.... The current geometry with the different angles for the trackbar and the draglink isn't helping my death wobble. Every bump I hit induces bump steer which is kinda what it felt like today when I triggered the death wobble...... Again, thanks for the reply.
 
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Back from a work trip and back under the Jeep. No way I can use the original mounting location for the lower trackbar mount. PO welded plates around it and as you noticed the original bolt is in there and the blind nut as well. I couldn't get that bolt to budge - might have welded that too. If I could use that location that would solve my geometry issue. Also, I misspoke previously - a dropped pitman arm only makes the geometry worse. The only way I can think of to get the trackbar and drag link to run parallel to each other is to use a flat pitman arm. Never seen one for a Jeep - never looked until a couple hours ago. Every heard of that? Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Good thing there aren't any cliffs nearby....... :)
 
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Greetings..... Just wanted to post a quick update on this since folks here have been so generous sharing their knowledge and recommendations. Still have DW after 3 different shops. I cannot find any loose components - but I'm sure there are - if there wasn't before, after all this DW there is now...... :( Fortunately when this issue started I called Letz Roll Offroad and made an appointment - the earliest of which was 3 months out - well we're there now... so I dropped off the TJ at their shop tonight. Hoping they have the expertise to find the issue. My appointment was a week ago but my work schedule prevented me from dropping it off at the original date/time but they were kind enough to tell me that since I'd made an appointment that far out and waited, they would happily take my Jeep. I"m impressed with their customer service so far - here's hopng they can nail down what the issue is. If not, there might be a charred heap of a TJ found in the desert in the next couple weeks....... Cheers
 
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