Jeep Wrangler JL Death Wobble Lawsuit

I have have heard of JL owners with stock rigs, at least that's what they claim, getting DW. If that is true, I'd be quite pissed off, after paying $50k (which I'd never do) on a Jeep and have it. If their stories are true, they have a legit beef.

My 19 year old TJ has never even had it, except when I grossly adjusted my toe in wrong.
 
I wonder what (if anything) the electro-hydraulic steering has to do with this.

Perhaps nothing, but I've heard of a number of JL owners complaining about the electronic steering for whatever reason or another. I haven't looked into it enough to know much though.
 
Looks like problem is non modified

The NHTSA currently lists 305 complaints for the 2018 Jeep Wrangler, with 220 devoted just to steering. We didn’t look at every single complaint, but those we did see mentioned two problems – stiffness in the steering and the death wobble. The majority of those complaints also specifically stated the vehicle was stock and under 10,000 miles
 
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This thread makes me want to just go right out and get in my TJ, drive it around, and enjoy the undeathwobbleness it provides...
 
Starrs said:
Pretty sure it’s happening on non lifted JLs also. Wow I hadn’t heard/seen anybody put 37s on the stock suspension. Not sure that would even be possible. Hmm
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It is possible because it’s happening to me. I have not altered, changed or added anything. Yeah I’m pretty PO’d the dealer can’t fix the darn thing! Pretty sure they are buying it back 😞
 
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Davidtj said:
Looks like problem is non modified

The NHTSA currently lists 305 complaints for the 2018 Jeep Wrangler, with 220 devoted just to steering. We didn’t look at every single complaint, but those we did see mentioned two problems – stiffness in the steering and the death wobble. The majority of those complaints also specifically stated the vehicle was stock and under 10,000 miles
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Yes! Exactly! Now what?
 
Jennifer C said:
Sorry, didn’t didn’t follow instructions with my profile. I will get to it. Beaumont
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It is a bit of a hike but we sure wouldn't mind taking a look at it and seeing if they are missing something obvious if you are interested. Won't cost you anything but fuel and some time. We are near Lake Elsinore.
 
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I am curious to how this system works. From what I have read, it's a hydraulic pump driven by an electric motor. If the electric motor just runs the pump at a constant rpm to maintain system pressure, should be like most DW problems( mechanical).

If the electric motor just runs the pump when demand is needed, I think it's going to be a pain in the ass for Chrysler to sort this out. I think once DW starts, if the driver gets a super grip on the steering wheel, the hydraulic system will see a demand, boost pressure, then it starts a cycle of back and forth till the DW stops. Just an opinion, based on the stuff I do at work.

We have servo driven hydraulic units on the some of the machines we build. The pump is positive displacement. When nothing is moving hydraulically, the servo motor turns the pump at about 5 rpm. When demand is sensed, the servo spins the pump to keep up with demand. It will go from 5 to 1500 rpm in a second if needed. It seems like a good idea ( saves energy) but we have problems keeping the servo motor "tuned" to respond fast enough.

I hope that isn't the problem with the JL steering problems. I can see a company offering a engine driven pump conversion soon if it is.
 
Davidtj said:
In the state of Florida the dealer has three times to fix the same problem on a new car If the problem persists at that point you can inact the lemon law and dealer must Buy back
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It can be as simple as that or far more complex in CA. I had a Dodge 2500 with a door rattle over bumps. The dealer tried about 4 times to fix it and then offered to do a buy back complete with getting the District manager involved, terms laid out and everything done in my favor. The other side of that is I had a 2001 Ford F-250 that a local dealer destroyed doing an after purchase detail. Their detailer burned all the plastic, wiper trim panel, tail lights, door handles, etc, along with the paint and bumpers. They tried for over 30 days and 10 or more repair attempts to fix it and even with massive amounts of bullshit from me and meeting with a lemon law lawyer, the best they would do is let me trade it in with a almost correct amount of customer cash to do the deal. Not nearly enough to cover the truck being out of my possession for over 30 days and the continual aggravation of dealing with them.
 
I have a friend with a 2018 JL. He has had it for a year. It has been back to the dealer several times for steering issues. He didn't have the DW, but the steering was vague. His Jeep is in stock trim. Regarding the snarky remarks about our friends, the mall crawlers.....The current trend with Jeeps reminds me very much of the Harley Davidson market. Harley was a performance MC a long time ago. Harley evolved into a image buy with endless variations of aftermarket goodies. Jeep (FCA) is playing to this crowd. Jeep needs to produce a vehicle that can carry the load.
 
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For what it's worth, I've had my JLUR for over a year now. 10k trouble free miles. I use it to run a small tour company and take photographers and their clients to remote places for engagement photos, weddings etc. About a third of my 10k miles are off-road. The JL has been flawless. Steering is not as precise compared to a car or unibody SUV with independent suspension but by no means unacceptable. I think a lot of the steering "vagueness" is drivers over-reacting and they start sawing the wheel back in forth. I also question how many of these new jeep owners are experiencing "death wobble". I think its a grossly overused term for any kind of vibration or imbalance. The term gets thrown around a lot and inexperienced users think that's what they have.
 
Should have bought a Chrysler instead of a Fiat. I made that mistake once. My 2013 JK was a lemon (Bad TPM and 3x water pumps) that FCA had to repurchase. It took about 4 months to get a dime out of them after they took the vehicle from me.
 
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