UGH! Death Wobble AGAIN!

[gardengirl38]

Had the problem last year... ended up being alignment issues. Then I lost a wheel weight and got it again and last night I was cruising home on the interstate at about 65 (ish) ha ha and hit a ridge bump in the road and oh my gosh I thought I was going to DIE! I literally had to stop completely and I thank heaven there was not heavy traffic. I know what to check and all but I am telling you that is one of the scariest things EVER! I am so thankful that I now know what the heck it is and what to do when it happens, the feeling you get when that happens for the first time is just terror...

 

[gardengirl38]

OK now comes the question. It is definitely the alignment again and it looks exactly the way it did last year same side tire same toe out look...... Could there be a reason this has happened this way again? Could there be something bad in the suspension I should check or have checked or is this just the way it goes ? I have put 21k on the jeep since then... wow. Any advice would be greatly appriciated. You all have always given me great advice.

 

[abe]

ONLY thing i could suggest is a new stearing upgrade. like a better dampener, or tierod ends somthing with a little grunt behind it. U dont have to go full offroad but its worth a shot at helping that problem.

 

[TerryMason]

Since you haven't lifted your Jeep, I'd bet that one of your steering components is loose or worn. Have the shop look for worn bushings (namely the control arm bushings), a loose trackbar, worn tierod ends, as well as worn wheel bearings

You can read my full writeup here
http://www.jeepz.com/forum/suspension/29510-wrangler-death-wobble-what-causes-how-fix.html

 

[gardengirl38]

Thank you I appreciate the ideas and help. That is a great article. I am off to Kramer tire today to get this done. Are control arm bushings something you can visually inspect without taking anything apart? I ask this because I can see the bushings on mine and the look fine to me.... I compared them to photos of new and worn online and mine look new...

 

[TerryMason]

You can tell if they are bad by just looking at them, however you have to remove the control arms in order to see them. Here are your control arms



And here's what the control arm looks like off the Jeep. The rubber bushings on each end pop out. and can be replaced. I bought the bushings from the local parts shop for $40 a side.

 

[gardengirl38]

I actually have a brand new set of those lower arms in a box, someone ordered them and didnt need them and gave them to me we had the same jeep. Do those basically just unbolt? I could change those just be cause I have the parts if its not a hard job.
So- I took it to Kramer Tire and the alignment was different than what the adjusted it to but not off enough to be out of specs... the steering wheel was not centered for some reason.... they tightened up the alignment and adjusted the steering wheel for free. They found a leaking axle seal and a bad Universal joint on that side. They also suggested that I replace the Steering rod thing... whatever the name is ha ha. looks like a little sideways shock. Said the tie rods and ends were good. everything else looked good. Oh and see now in your article you tell how to replace control rod arms... thanks!!!

 

[TerryMason]

I don't want to make any un-needed work for you, if your problem isn't the control arms, but if you have them laying around then it shouldn't hurt. You're right that it is just a unbolt the old ones and bolt up the new ones job, however you'll probably have to wrestle the axle forward or back some to get everything to line up. Once you get the new ones on then you'll have to get an alignment again (so there's another $80).

Did they give you a printout with your alignment readings? If so, what did it say for the caster angle?

The sideways shock is a steering stabilizer, and it's only $50 or so for the part (from somewhere like here). It's not the cause of your problem, but it can help prevent your problem. Essentially, something is out of balance, or has too much slop - this shock is supposed to absorb that vibration without passing it up the steering wheel. Whatever is out of whack will still be causing problems, but you won't notice it. It's not a bad idea to replace it, but it is not the cause of the problem itself.


How long has your steering wheel been off? Did the DW start about the time it moved? You normally have to hit a curb or make some changes to the steering to get the wheel to be off like that.

 

[gardengirl38]

I knew the steering stabilizer wasnt causing it and I told the guy that strait up. But we discussed it and he said it would absorb some of those bumps etc.
I hit a curb last year a year ago.... pretty hard with my passenger front tire.
AFTER I got the alignment done and even went back and they checked the alignment for free and it was fine.... and when I say pretty hard I mean hard. Other than that I have never hit anything with it. It could have changed the steering wheel then I guess I just dont know.

I will wait on those control arms because I am not going to get the alignment done right now since it was ok. UNLESS I get that death wobble again soon.
They did give me a print out on the alignment but I dont have it handy right now, I will come back and put it up when I can.

I am going to replace the steering stabilizer myself and they are fixing the worn Ujoint and axle seal. Thank you soooo much for your advice. I like being able to talk to someone who isnt trying to get my money about this stuff.

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

I would replace the control arms with the new ones, they are very easy to replace if you do them one at a time. You don't even have to jack up the vehicle if you do one at a time.

You can inspect the control arm bushings without removing them, use a flashlight and a screwdriver to inspect the bushings for tears.