death wobble

[fast_Z28_guy]

03 wrangler X
stock wheels/tires
20K miles

noticed it after it broke 10K miles...bought it with 7500.

most offroading it's done is a dirt parking lot.


has death wobble on the road between 50-55mph...mostly from 52-54mph.

doesn't seem to happen if you excellerate through the "bad" speed range. but if you hold that speed it shows up.

sometimes just a mild wiggle...some times it yanks the steering wheel around.


i think we'll try the alignment and tire balance first.

but any other parts to look at? seems like with that low of miles it shouldn't be worn out parts.

 

[Ken72]

I had the same problem. I also have a 03 Wrangler X. I took it to the dealer ship a couple of times to have them check it out. They couldn't find anything wrong. I got an alignment and had the tires rebalanced and it was still happening. Finally I broke down and bought new tires and the wobble was gone.

 

[jfrabat]

Do you have any lift? Have you checked for any loose steering components? How about the steering stabilizer? Is it the stock one? Try a new steering stabilizer... Dont know if it will fix it, but it should at least improve the situation. But this should not be happening with stock tires and wheels...

Felipe

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

I'd bet a loose component, like the trackbar.

The alignment and tire balance may help, the tires could be causing the DW. You will still have to address the loose/worn part that is allowing the imbalance to escelate into the DW.

 

[fast_Z28_guy]

checked the tires out today...

always seemed to have a noticable noice...rhythmic...coming from the front driver tire.

looking at it i see that the tread blocks are "stepped" one is worn down more than the one next to it.

any suggestions?

gonna rotate them today to help alleviate accelerated wear.

 

[Craig]

I had this problem on my 96 F-150. It ended up being unevenly worn tires caused by bad ball joints. After I had the ball joints replaced, the inner part of the tire that was more worn didn't sit flat and caused a bad wobble.

 

[TwistedCU]

checked the tires out today...

always seemed to have a noticable noice...rhythmic...coming from the front driver tire.

looking at it i see that the tread blocks are "stepped" one is worn down more than the one next to it.

any suggestions?

gonna rotate them today to help alleviate accelerated wear.

Referring to the tires, that is called "scalloping" or "cupping".

This can happen from lack of rotation, but if it is bad and the tires are not real aggressive mudders, then it's probably a misaligned front end.

Get an alignment, rotate and try to balance those tires if they are still salvageable.

 

[cewtwo]

I think that if an alignment and a tire rotation did not fix it, then you might want to check the steering componentry. Jack the front end off of the ground (both tires) grab a front tire and wiggle aggressively. If it moves vertically (up and down) you may need ball joints. If it wiggles horizontally, you may need tie rod ends. If it wiggles in both directions, check your unit bearings. You will actually see what is wiggling.

Steering components can drive an individual crazy!

A lot of people throw money at DW without fixing it.

Easy test to try without spending any money. Just some time with your favorite money pit.

 

[Utah_jeepster]

Cewtwo covered most of it but also lift the front end off the ground and brace the frame leaving your front axle floating as it where. This is where you can check the track bar for side to side movement and the upper and lower control arms for passably a bad joints, loose bolts and stuff.
Get in there and torque on them with a hefty pry-bar.
Four hours with a floor jack, jack supports and a pry bar can save you hundreds of dollars trying to chase down the cause of a DW.

 

[jeepitup07]

its mostlikly tire slap or cupped tires you should run your hand across the wobblly tire and if the tread is worn different from each lug theres your problem also rotate your tires and move that one to the back and rebalence all your tires