4 wheeling is like owning an old Triumph motorcycle...Ride, tighten, repeat. My wife bags on me and says I spend more time working on my Jeep than driving it on trips. Excellent points for everyone in this video my man.
Completely awesome video. Finally, someone that can speak confidently about death wobble and how to fix it. The emphasis on the alignment really hit home with me - thank you. Time to crawl under my Land Rover and get this sorted once and for all!
I used this info to cure mine..10 years (2014 JKU) lifted,no DW, this year it started…tightened up the front end, track bar bushings + alignment + new stabilizer 👍🏾 all fixed no low speed or high speed wobbling.
I consider myself somewhat of an expert on this subject and agree with everything you have said. I have had death wobble before because of one thing you didn't mention: a cracked frame where the power steering and track bar mount on an XJ.
Great video. I gotta say though, that after experiencing “death wobble” on both my motorcycle and my 4wd, in my 4wd, it’s just a minor annoyance. Wobble on the motorcycle at freeway speeds, that’s true death wobble.
When I hit a dip on the highway doing 60 and almost lost control of my Jeep Cherokee because of the death wobble I would say that's more than just a minor annoyance.
I never had wobble until I got some used 38.5 boggers. Turned out one tire had a bad cord. Almost an inch out of round! Great show. I have never seen you do drivelines.
Thanks man, appreciate the video. I just bought an F250 and went into a death wobble doing 75mph between 2- 18teen wheelers. I almost died. Gonna get this checked asap
I have a '96 ZJ project vehicle. I had all the front end pieces replaced. Including new shocks and steering stabilizer. Then bought new General AT2 255/70-15 tires. Drives real nice now. Has a Dana 44 with a Trutrac differential in the back. The 4.0L still powers the ZJ fairly good.
I never had a problem with death wobble on my '96 XJ when I had it and I don't have a problem with it on my '96 ZJ but I did have it on my '88 MJ. A new damper and new shock absorbers helped out a lot but new tires pretty well scotched it. A new track bar, tie rod and drag link afterward didn't hurt either!
Thank you so much for addressing this issue in a very “laymen’s” way. Im a lv2 alignment tech and I try my best to explain this to customers 2-3 times (at least) each week, only for someone to then tell me “well its never done this till yall put them tires on” after showing them blown out bushings/ball joints and separated wheel bearings.
@@ronv6637 shops dont pay you to tell people “NO, WE WONT TAKE THE CASH YOU ARE DEMANDING WE TAKE EVEN THOUGH WE ALREADY EXPLAINED THAT WHAT YOU WANT US TO DO WILL NOT FIX THE ISSUE YOU HAVE”
@@brianfulwood7827 and bottom line bro its like anything, once you replace one bad thing..it opens a can of worms people dont understand..simply putting new tires on something as you know creates a whole lot of new problems..the car simply wore together..people should understand mechanics dont screw them the route they choose does
@@brianfulwood7827 I've had a shop tell me that before. They refused to align a truck that I had until I fixed a few issues that were going on in the front end. That happened in 1998 and I still go to them to this day.
@@brianfulwood7827 that would be the last time i go to your shop. integrity goes a long way, even if someone is shoving cash down your throat. you don't do something that is wrong no matter the amount of money. it's called having good character. The customer will not give you a good review and spread the word, even if they are at fault for requesting the work. You're better off refusing the work. Good honest shops are never short on work, so they can always refuse something that will give them a bad reputation, even if it is not their fault. Its your shop's job to have a good office guy who has good customer service skills and can communicate well. They can show the possibilities of doing the work and what it can cause on other areas if everything is not addressed correctly. There is a reason people who can communicate well never have a hard time finding good jobs.
You didn't mention a steering stabilizer! haha. These are all great sources to check for your death wobble no doubt. I find that more often its a track bar or like you said, an improper angle from stock suspension components.
Another thing I do that might help diagnose Trac bar issues is shake the front of the vehicle with it on the ground and track bar issues will become very apparent if you have slop in the track bar
An update for anyone w/a Unlimited JL, Jeep has finally found a fix for DW in 2018 and up by upgraded the steering gear boxes, from aluminum to steel. Had this issue for 2 yrs, mainly b/c they didn't have a fix so they were putting a bandaid on it by replacing the steering stabilizer. A temporary fix for the real issue, which was the aluminum steering gear box and bolts. When looking at the JL's steering box, it moves slightly when turning the wheel. That slight movement is exaggerated when transfered to the wheels causing premature tire wear and involuntary wheel movement. Brought my Jeep back to dealer and they are set to replace steering gear box, steering stabilizer, track bar and both tie rod ends. The Jeep only has 20k miles on it. I suggest to anyone that still has a warranty and is driving a 2018 or newer, to head over to your dealership b4 the warranty runs out and explain that you're having DW and you would like the new steel steering gear box. They'll probably end up replacing more steering component once inspected.
FINALLY!! A thoughtful, thorough, descriptive analysis of the many possible sources of Death Wobble™ complete with ways to inspect for it! Thank you so much for this.
This is an awesome video. 97 Wrangler. 1st time I blew out the track bar bushing Wheeling it. I jumped on the side steps to figure out what was moving around. About twenty thousand miles later I had issues the second time. It seemed like bad tie rod ends and ball joints with 200k miles. I'd point out that anybody who goes with a high steer most places will not do an alignment. So like you mentioned 4 x 4 shops are the way to go.
One check I do is jack one wheel off the ground just enough to get a shovel under it. Use this as a pry bar to apply upward pressure on the ball joints. Look for movement in those. If they move they are bad. replaced mine and death wobble went away.
DL, Thanks for sharing your expertise and insights. My '01 XJ just started the death wobble shimmy a few weeks ago, and this is an invaluable guide for how to properly assess the point(s) of failure!
I recently bought a 03 TJ as my first car and the previous owner put on a 2.5" linch lift as well 32" tires this video was so helpful because I never knew to check to control arms with since it has a lift, thank you.
I do not know if it's applicable to off roading, but sometimes a higher grade bolt will mean the bolt causes something else to fail. In big equipment, certain hardware is lower grade so that is shears instead of breaking something more expensive.
Like the plastic layer in outboard motor propellers that breaks when you hit something solid with the prop, but saves you from snapping the far more expensive driveshaft.
I have a shimmy I'm trying to fix. So if I do the wiggle test, how do i know if there is an issue? If something doesn't wiggle..............too much play in a joint? The shimmy is annoying! Never had it on my JK, but I have it on my JL.
I appreciate your thorough approach to troubleshooting a death wobble. I'll follow each step tomorrow including torqing all bolts to spec and upgrading them if needed. Honestly I don't even think I have the dreaded "death wobble". Unless perhaps I'm at the beginning of what may become a more serious. I've had zero issues since having my JKU lifted two years and 30K miles ago... that is until I tried to run a rock garden that kicked my ass. Shortly after that I noticed a very slight but noticeable wobble in the steering wheel when one tire goes over a significant bump at speeds over 45 or so (doesn't happen so much when both tires hit bumps at the same time). But it recovers quickly on it's own without my having to slow down or make any other corrections. It's only because the Jeep drove so well before that I notice the wobble at all. My tie rod has a play when twisted but not side to side or up and down. The guys at 4Wheel Parts (don't laugh) said that's normal. My steering stabilizer started leaking after the rock pile run but everyone swears that is never the fix for steering wobble. So I suspect I may have jarred a bolt loose when I bottomed out on a bolder or five. I'll wager it's the lower control arm bolt on the passenger side as you suggested (that's the side that starts the wobble after hitting a pothole). I saw another TH-cam vid where that fixed the issue. Good call man. Thanks again!
Thanks for the great walk through. Just developed a case of death wobble on my TJU after a 3" lift and adjustable track bar install. Happens at different speeds and sometimes after a bump but not always. Time to put it on jack stands double check everything again.
Bought my little weekend "toy" back in 2011, it's a 2005 TJ Wrangler with 35K miles on it, brand new tires w/factory rims. Within two months, the death wobble appeared. Replaced shocks, steering stabilizer and put it on a wheel alignment machine (right on the money, repair shop didn't charge me a dime for alignment test) so I took it to a 4-wheel specialty store and they balanced the front right tire for free>>>>>NO wobble. Upgraded tires/rims anyway.
Excellent video No Doubt. I think it's more of a bump steer issue then death wobble. If I hit a decent bump make a turn it will start to oscillate. 14 jk Rock jock 44 Rock crawler lower arms 2" spacer lift . 0 offset 34.4 mickey mtzp3. Np at high ways speed even up to 100.
Purchased that torque chart because I was glad to see it was from The Black Book. Those reference guides are my favorite. I got a bunch of them for different trades.
First : Measure your Toe ensure when you measure to ensure you have always a ZERO or inside tow. Any outside tow meaning your tire face driving forward towards the left and right = death wobble. 2nd : Check your ball joint's, steering joints, sway bar links for any wear 3rd : SHOCKS Those are the 98% of death wobble factors. Now if you got BIG meaning lift and or bigger tire which we all LOVE to do. It results into any minor little issue to become a amplified issue. So your little steering shocks will work hard overtime so time you upgrade those to a much bigger set best with springs mixed into the mix so the system has zero play. I lifted trucks up to over 2 feet of lift and zero death wobble. So always think before you so if you done all those steps but not the double shock on your bigger shoe's than do it before you take it to a laser alignment job. Because you take it to them and they find a part been bad you been charged luxury part price plus labor plus taxes and profit margin. I hope this helps everyone to figure out before they need to let a shop do it for them.
Hey Nate! Its 2021 and I googles Death Wobble and clicked on a random video. It just so happened to be yours xD Ive been watching for a while. Keep it up!
Great video! I've had a dragging brake caliper initiate death wobble too. Ultimately it's stressing one of the other points you made enough to make it wobble. So in that case you have 2 things to fix.
Most of the ball joints were shot and not holding grease, I had a little bit of a toe in also. I re-greased and did a quick alignment while I wait on a heavy duty steering set up to come in. Drove about 5 hours straight after the quick fix and it’s gone away. You can still feel the vibration when you hit a bump, but at least I’ve figured out the culprit. ‘97 tj, front Dana 30 running 35’s. 2 inch terra flex lift Hope this helps
Update - I’ve replaced the drag link and tie rod with a heavy duty set up. Got a balance and alignment and it’s Mickey Mouse. Caster/pinion angle isn’t perfect so I’ll be looking into a short arm adjustable set up in the front. I figured, rather than replace bushings I’ll invest in some new goodies with better bushings. Hope this helps
In AMC Motors own memos from the 1970's they talk about "violent steering shimmy" being caused by the solid front axle combined with the oversized tires.
Thanks for the video bro you have eased my mind on the death wobble problem I have with my truck. Question. Are all death wobble problems fixable and if not what problems are unfixable?
Very informative and easy to understand! Thanks for the info! I’ve been fortunate enough to never experience death wobble, but I will reference this if-and-when I do. I do have 2 XJ’s!! 🤣❤️🐞
My old XJ would only death wobble after hitting a bump going 48-53 mph. After that, hold on! I regrettably sold it, but not because of the death wobble, but because of rust. My TJ has a small rattle when driving between 50-55 mph. I've been keeping it at bay by using AT tires and new shimmy dampeners when the old one wears out. I know I'll have to dive into it deeper to fix it as the years go on, but for now it's barely noticeable.
Christopher Sturm - Sorry about the rust! It’s hard to find XJ’s without any. We’ve been fortunate and found 2! Glad you seem to have a handle on your death wobble! ❤️🐞
Great video...I'll be going through these steps. I had the upper/lower bushing changed on my Jeep JK and the death wobble is actually worse now. I'm thinking the mechanic didn't tighten something correctly.
Thank you for the clear and precise information. Stumbled acros your channel and really enjoy your do it yourself style! I'm hooked keep doing what you do.
@@DirtLifestyle Pretty impressed that you seem to be a 1 man show doing the work and recording the videos. Can't imagine how much time that all takes. Hats off to you! Looking forward to catching up on some of your past videos as well as your future ones.
I'm in the tire out of balance death wobble crew. I had a stock 2007 JKU Sahara with 15k on it that started having really bad death wobble. It happened after I had a tire rotation so I rotated them back and the issue went away. I had all my wheels re-balanced and rotated back to how it was when I had death wobble. It went away. I put a 2.5" lift on my 2018 JL and didn't touch the steering geometry yet but zero signs of death wobble so far. I'm ready for it though if it happens.
Nailed it! Good video. If I can add something additional when it comes to balancing big tires.... Throw in balance bags when mounting the wheels. It's so easy to do, works great, and will take that extra unnecessary stress off the rig.
Have used the balance beads on semi truck tires and they work well until "wet" air is inflated then they can stick together or even freeze in cold weather. Will be experimenting with "slime" puncture sealant on next set of tires and see if balance is effected.
I bought a full factory 2013 JK 2D a few years ago that I threw on a AEV DS RS 4" lift, Fuel 18"x10 and 35x12.5 BFG TKO2's on and it ran "OK" for about 2 years (I could just feel something was strugglin under there in some turns) then one day super death wobble. it had 85K on it so I went on ahead and replaced the upper/lower BJ as well as new HD u-joints and hub bearings and that was a little help (and did need replacing) but I still got random super DW that I could not find. Turns out there was a chunk of rubber missing out of the upper track bar bushing (Very hard to see) that worked most of the time until it rotated around enough where that bolt through the center of the upper TB bushing would align just right and let the bolt slide out of it's center position. After that I went on ahead and installed the full SteerSmarts kit. HD Track Bar, Draglink, Steering rod and ends and OMG my steering stability went up 500 percent. like way better than factory. It now will cruise 70mph down the highway straight for a half mile + without even touching the steering wheel. If you have 35's you need to upgrade all the factory steering parts. They may last for a while but eventually they will fail especially if you drive like speed demon like me. So far I have 10k on the new parts and it still steers perfect. And my next upgrade right after the SS kit was the Dynotrack big brake kit on all 4's. I would imagine that the Upper lower BJ will fail again as they take the most hit since every thing else is now basically 1 ton when that happens I will use it as an excuse to get rid of the D30 and install a D44 and after that I should be good to go for a bit.
I enjoyed your Video. Im 58 years old and have driven Jeeps since i was 15 . Ive never experienced an actual "Death Wobble" until now. I bought a used and abused Grand Cherokee, it wobbled so bad that it made the headlight bulbs burn out and killed the motor. All this on the Freeway. Ill fix it, but this had been going on a long time and damaged a lot of parts. The Bottom line.....inspect it before you drive it. I sure didnt.
Thanks for the help buddy. My wife’s 03 rubicon is great but it’s on my last nerve. All o2 have been replaced bout to do the fuel pump. Runs like crap can’t figure out why. Replaced wheel bearing that was bad up front she still don’t like how it’s got a little play. Bout to do all tie rods and ball joints. Thank you sir
That's simply not true. The bolt is not a press-tight fit. The bolt only serves to provide clamping force. If the strength of the bolt can provide enough clamping force, then the diameter is irrelevant. On a JK, for example the torque rating is 125 ft-lb's.
@jrg10332 Waot, your saying any size diameter bolt will work? First a little background, we race Jeeps and have an enormous amount of experience how these parts shake down under all kinds of conditions. We run 120 MPH in our ZJ across Deserts and over Whoops in our XJ in other races. We have used off the shelf and customer built and i can say that size matters. Clapping is part of it, but clamping can only hold so much, then size matters. After you have run the Mint 400 with a small diameter bolt, get back to me.
Ive seen a very small deference in caster from driver side to passenger. Cause wobble on 4 links. They seem happy at a few degrees back on thier heels. But it can be hard to diagnose. Especially when its a combination of things.
Good vid Nate. Much needed for newbies to the lifestyle of dirt (see what I did there?). 😅 Seeing the Land Rover banging thru those rocks is affirmation that you'll build that instead of the Liberty. No way, no how could the Liberty be built tough enough to do that.
It's a tough call man. This rover is so damn capable out of the box and it has pretty much every desirable element you want in a 4x4. Stock straight axle, stock long arm, giant storage, v8 power, stock high steer ect. But I really enjoy the liberty. It doesn't have the same ability or looks or charm or power....but... maybe your right lol.
Yah, The wiggle test, I actually been doing that one like forever and works great, but you got one thing wrong about the test. DON'T ASK THE WIFE TO HELP YOU WITH IT!! For one, she hates laying on the ground and looking for something plus has no clue what the hell she is looking at. And two, if she is wiggling the steering she will do it for about 10 second before she starts complaining about doing it. Come on now, LOL.
I guess I got the best one here, she will help so much, I have to ask her to stop wiggling the wheel, she also knows what things do, I just don’t ask her to crawl around on the floor anymore, we’re both in our mid sixties, I even hurt after a day of wrenching on the jeeps, I’m glad she kept me around for 47 years, hopefully you guys will last that long, and give the wife a little more credit!
I fixed my wobble on my 2003 tj. BALANCE your tires! Make sure the weights are on the inside. I didn’t have any wobble before I put new tires on,and after, I had wobble. Brought it back and made them balance again and put weights on inside of tires. No wobble.
fyi a prybar under the tire lifting up on the tire while the weight is off of it and look for play in the ball joints /kingpins some time shacking the weel wont show a bad balljoint
Caster will feel much better and return the steering wheel way nice with 8° positive caster angle . If caster is set right the steering wheel always want to return to center . Egg shaped tires and bad shocks can set off death wobble most noted if a bump sets off the death wobble.
hey how about O2 sensors as a video topic.. seems to be alot of missinformation and conflicting info out there on them... i had my cats implode and plug off my exhaust so removed them and just ran pipe.. didnt bother reinstalling the downstream sensors as i was told the computer only uses the upstream sensor for engine control and the downstream were just to monitor the cats for emissions.. no emissions tests in my province but i think i need to reinstall some downstream sensors or look into dummy sensors.. rig is missing and stuttering under load
You may still have pieces of the catalyst in the exhaust, usually trapped in front of the muffler. In terms of O2, the upstream are critically important and help the computer understand fuel mixture issues as a result of a misfire, a faulty MAF/MAP sensor reading high or low, and vacuum leaks. The downstream are often, but not always, used to determine the health of the catalytic converters. Some systems will use the downstream to also impact long term fuel trims.
GoPro update: after 4 days of enduring freezing temps, mud and knee-deep water my GoPro has been recovered! As you may recall, it fell off while shooting the Defender vid. May need a new mount, though 😉.
When purchasing a four wheel drive with a solid live axle, always buy it with death wobble / death rattle. You can talk the seller down very low and death rattle is easy to fix. It is also not expensive to fix. For instance, last year I purchased a 2015 Jeep Wrangler Sahara Unlimited for £7200. The asking price was £10.000, which was a very, very good price as well. I fixed the death wobble with ease for about £200 and sold the Jeep for £20.000 which was still a bargain for the next buyer. Right now, I am looking for a pickup truck for work. I am trying to find a Ford F-250 suffering from death wobble. I guarantee it will be sold for an incredible bargain. Death rattle seems extremely frightening, expensive, and unmanageable. However, it is the opposite. It is unpleasant, but not frightening, usually very affordable to fix, and extremely easy to get rid of it. I have £5000 to buy my future F-250 4x4. I am sure I will find someone terrified of their pickup truck because of death wobble that I can pick up for that price. I acted slow on a great bargain last week and lost a great pickup truck because I did not want to spend an extra £1000. I found a 2010 f-250 Super Cab with the diesel engine for £6000. Instead of haggling, I disregarded it. By the time I came to my senses, I called and the pickup truck was sold. I should have bought it because f-250 4x4 pickup trucks are rare in this region. But I will wait patiently and find another.
Really hope you get a few extra subs from my post they have a lot of members it is an XJ group so not sure how it will go might get some backlash 😅 will also share on my Jeep group that has a lot of other jeeps other than xjs
Dude seriously I can't thank you enough! Growing a TH-cam channel is really hard, So your help in spreading the word Is very much appreciated brother 🤘
@@DirtLifestyle anytime man! Anything for the favorite channel on TH-cam!!! Hopefully I gets a few followers you are growing though I remember a good 2-3 months ago when you were at 8k subs I'll be here the whole time for the support!!!
![HIWWHEE | OHM [Official MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/OJJLtTLqLag/mqdefault.jpg)
4 wheeling is like owning an old Triumph motorcycle...Ride, tighten, repeat. My wife bags on me and says I spend more time working on my Jeep than driving it on trips. Excellent points for everyone in this video my man.
Completely awesome video. Finally, someone that can speak confidently about death wobble and how to fix it. The emphasis on the alignment really hit home with me - thank you. Time to crawl under my Land Rover and get this sorted once and for all!
Thank you! I'm happy to help!
Subscribed. Mans knows what he is talking about. Straight to the key points. Thanks!
I used this info to cure mine..10 years (2014 JKU) lifted,no DW, this year it started…tightened up the front end, track bar bushings + alignment + new stabilizer 👍🏾 all fixed no low speed or high speed wobbling.
I consider myself somewhat of an expert on this subject and agree with everything you have said. I have had death wobble before because of one thing you didn't mention: a cracked frame where the power steering and track bar mount on an XJ.
Great video.
I gotta say though, that after experiencing “death wobble” on both my motorcycle and my 4wd, in my 4wd, it’s just a minor annoyance. Wobble on the motorcycle at freeway speeds, that’s true death wobble.
When I hit a dip on the highway doing 60 and almost lost control of my Jeep Cherokee because of the death wobble I would say that's more than just a minor annoyance.
@Nick Foles Super Bowl 52 MVP had you been on a motorcycle you it’s not likely you’d be alive to type on the internet about it.
MINOR ANNOYANCE? - You dont have Death Wobble.
@Kodi isenguard You missed my point completely. Death wobble is much worse on two wheels.
I never had wobble until I got some used 38.5 boggers. Turned out one tire had a bad cord. Almost an inch out of round!
Great show. I have never seen you do drivelines.
Every perspective is Valuable. It amazes Me that out of all things this is what jeep is having a issue with the Jl/Gladiator.
Thanks man, appreciate the video. I just bought an F250 and went into a death wobble doing 75mph between 2- 18teen wheelers. I almost died. Gonna get this checked asap
I have a '96 ZJ project vehicle. I had all the front end pieces replaced. Including new shocks and steering stabilizer. Then bought new General AT2 255/70-15 tires. Drives real nice now. Has a Dana 44 with a Trutrac differential in the back. The 4.0L still powers the ZJ fairly good.
I never had a problem with death wobble on my '96 XJ when I had it and I don't have a problem with it on my '96 ZJ but I did have it on my '88 MJ. A new damper and new shock absorbers helped out a lot but new tires pretty well scotched it. A new track bar, tie rod and drag link afterward didn't hurt either!
Thank you so much for addressing this issue in a very “laymen’s” way. Im a lv2 alignment tech and I try my best to explain this to customers 2-3 times (at least) each week, only for someone to then tell me “well its never done this till yall put them tires on” after showing them blown out bushings/ball joints and separated wheel bearings.
Why would you "align" it until the components are repaired?
@@ronv6637 shops dont pay you to tell people “NO, WE WONT TAKE THE CASH YOU ARE DEMANDING WE TAKE EVEN THOUGH WE ALREADY EXPLAINED THAT WHAT YOU WANT US TO DO WILL NOT FIX THE ISSUE YOU HAVE”
@@brianfulwood7827 and bottom line bro its like anything, once you replace one bad thing..it opens a can of worms people dont understand..simply putting new tires on something as you know creates a whole lot of new problems..the car simply wore together..people should understand mechanics dont screw them the route they choose does
@@brianfulwood7827 I've had a shop tell me that before. They refused to align a truck that I had until I fixed a few issues that were going on in the front end. That happened in 1998 and I still go to them to this day.
@@brianfulwood7827 that would be the last time i go to your shop. integrity goes a long way, even if someone is shoving cash down your throat. you don't do something that is wrong no matter the amount of money. it's called having good character.
The customer will not give you a good review and spread the word, even if they are at fault for requesting the work. You're better off refusing the work. Good honest shops are never short on work, so they can always refuse something that will give them a bad reputation, even if it is not their fault.
Its your shop's job to have a good office guy who has good customer service skills and can communicate well.
They can show the possibilities of doing the work and what it can cause on other areas if everything is not addressed correctly.
There is a reason people who can communicate well never have a hard time finding good jobs.
You didn't mention a steering stabilizer! haha. These are all great sources to check for your death wobble no doubt. I find that more often its a track bar or like you said, an improper angle from stock suspension components.
Another thing I do that might help diagnose Trac bar issues is shake the front of the vehicle with it on the ground and track bar issues will become very apparent if you have slop in the track bar
An update for anyone w/a Unlimited JL, Jeep has finally found a fix for DW in 2018 and up by upgraded the steering gear boxes, from aluminum to steel. Had this issue for 2 yrs, mainly b/c they didn't have a fix so they were putting a bandaid on it by replacing the steering stabilizer. A temporary fix for the real issue, which was the aluminum steering gear box and bolts. When looking at the JL's steering box, it moves slightly when turning the wheel. That slight movement is exaggerated when transfered to the wheels causing premature tire wear and involuntary wheel movement. Brought my Jeep back to dealer and they are set to replace steering gear box, steering stabilizer, track bar and both tie rod ends. The Jeep only has 20k miles on it. I suggest to anyone that still has a warranty and is driving a 2018 or newer, to head over to your dealership b4 the warranty runs out and explain that you're having DW and you would like the new steel steering gear box. They'll probably end up replacing more steering component once inspected.
FINALLY!! A thoughtful, thorough, descriptive analysis of the many possible sources of Death Wobble™ complete with ways to inspect for it! Thank you so much for this.
This is an awesome video. 97 Wrangler. 1st time I blew out the track bar bushing Wheeling it. I jumped on the side steps to figure out what was moving around. About twenty thousand miles later I had issues the second time. It seemed like bad tie rod ends and ball joints with 200k miles. I'd point out that anybody who goes with a high steer most places will not do an alignment. So like you mentioned 4 x 4 shops are the way to go.
One check I do is jack one wheel off the ground just enough to get a shovel under it. Use this as a pry bar to apply upward pressure on the ball joints. Look for movement in those. If they move they are bad. replaced mine and death wobble went away.
DL, Thanks for sharing your expertise and insights. My '01 XJ just started the death wobble shimmy a few weeks ago, and this is an invaluable guide for how to properly assess the point(s) of failure!
I recently bought a 03 TJ as my first car and the previous owner put on a 2.5" linch lift as well 32" tires this video was so helpful because I never knew to check to control arms with since it has a lift, thank you.
Factory track bars can be thin- this makes them spring like. Worn track bar bushings and a spongy track bar means likely DW.
This i applied my daily mechanic life at my shop.Helpful video thank you so much.
Awesome! Happy to help! Thanks for watching!
I love this video. I have a jeep and it has a death wobble so now I know what to do. I learned alot from you and Thank You very much.
I'm happy to help 🤘
your right all I did was change my stock track bar with a 2.5 to 6 over custom one with 9/16 bolts and no more wobble
I do not know if it's applicable to off roading, but sometimes a higher grade bolt will mean the bolt causes something else to fail. In big equipment, certain hardware is lower grade so that is shears instead of breaking something more expensive.
Like the plastic layer in outboard motor propellers that breaks when you hit something solid with the prop, but saves you from snapping the far more expensive driveshaft.
Awesome video mate, pretty much every Jeep drivers need this video
Thanks. One of the better explanations of Death Wobble and what to trouble shoot.
The wiggle test always worked for me!
I have a shimmy I'm trying to fix. So if I do the wiggle test, how do i know if there is an issue? If something doesn't wiggle..............too much play in a joint? The shimmy is annoying! Never had it on my JK, but I have it on my JL.
I appreciate your thorough approach to troubleshooting a death wobble. I'll follow each step tomorrow including torqing all bolts to spec and upgrading them if needed.
Honestly I don't even think I have the dreaded "death wobble". Unless perhaps I'm at the beginning of what may become a more serious. I've had zero issues since having my JKU lifted two years and 30K miles ago... that is until I tried to run a rock garden that kicked my ass. Shortly after that I noticed a very slight but noticeable wobble in the steering wheel when one tire goes over a significant bump at speeds over 45 or so (doesn't happen so much when both tires hit bumps at the same time). But it recovers quickly on it's own without my having to slow down or make any other corrections. It's only because the Jeep drove so well before that I notice the wobble at all.
My tie rod has a play when twisted but not side to side or up and down. The guys at 4Wheel Parts (don't laugh) said that's normal. My steering stabilizer started leaking after the rock pile run but everyone swears that is never the fix for steering wobble. So I suspect I may have jarred a bolt loose when I bottomed out on a bolder or five. I'll wager it's the lower control arm bolt on the passenger side as you suggested (that's the side that starts the wobble after hitting a pothole). I saw another TH-cam vid where that fixed the issue. Good call man.
Thanks again!
Thanks for the great walk through. Just developed a case of death wobble on my TJU after a 3" lift and adjustable track bar install. Happens at different speeds and sometimes after a bump but not always. Time to put it on jack stands double check everything again.
Dude, this is the best video and actually helped me a lot thanks for the simplicity and informative video
Bought my little weekend "toy" back in 2011, it's a 2005 TJ Wrangler with 35K miles on it, brand new tires w/factory rims. Within two months, the death wobble appeared. Replaced shocks, steering stabilizer and put it on a wheel alignment machine (right on the money, repair shop didn't charge me a dime for alignment test) so I took it to a 4-wheel specialty store and they balanced the front right tire for free>>>>>NO wobble. Upgraded tires/rims anyway.
Love your channel man! All your topics are great 👍 keep up the hard work!
Thank you! I'm glad you hear your digging the videos!
Excellent video No Doubt.
I think it's more of a bump steer issue then death wobble. If I hit a decent bump make a turn it will start to oscillate. 14 jk
Rock jock 44 Rock crawler lower arms 2" spacer lift . 0 offset 34.4 mickey mtzp3. Np at high ways speed even up to 100.
Purchased that torque chart because I was glad to see it was from The Black Book. Those reference guides are my favorite. I got a bunch of them for different trades.
On heavier truck a ball joint test is to jack up the tire put a solid large prybar under the center of the tire and lift up.
First : Measure your Toe ensure when you measure to ensure you have always a ZERO or inside tow. Any outside tow meaning your tire face driving forward towards the left and right = death wobble.
2nd : Check your ball joint's, steering joints, sway bar links for any wear
3rd : SHOCKS
Those are the 98% of death wobble factors. Now if you got BIG meaning lift and or bigger tire which we all LOVE to do. It results into any minor little issue to become a amplified issue.
So your little steering shocks will work hard overtime so time you upgrade those to a much bigger set best with springs mixed into the mix so the system has zero play.
I lifted trucks up to over 2 feet of lift and zero death wobble. So always think before you so if you done all those steps but not the double shock on your bigger shoe's than do it before you take it to a laser alignment job. Because you take it to them and they find a part been bad you been charged luxury part price plus labor plus taxes and profit margin. I hope this helps everyone to figure out before they need to let a shop do it for them.
Check shocks first. One bad shock up front allows it to happen because there is no dampening on the spring.
Hey Nate! Its 2021 and I googles Death Wobble and clicked on a random video. It just so happened to be yours xD Ive been watching for a while. Keep it up!
Great video! I've had a dragging brake caliper initiate death wobble too. Ultimately it's stressing one of the other points you made enough to make it wobble. So in that case you have 2 things to fix.
I have a 96 XJ with a bad death wobble no one in Iraq knows what the cause thank you for good information
Solid info. You the man Nate 👊
Dude, the timing on this video couldn’t be any more perfect. I spent all of yesterday diagnosing and fixing the Jeeps death wobble.
I had the pleasure of tackling this a couple weeks back. Turned out to be a slight play in a TRE.
Riley Dillon what was the end result??
Ravenbar's Repairs had exactly the same problem mate
Most of the ball joints were shot and not holding grease, I had a little bit of a toe in also. I re-greased and did a quick alignment while I wait on a heavy duty steering set up to come in. Drove about 5 hours straight after the quick fix and it’s gone away. You can still feel the vibration when you hit a bump, but at least I’ve figured out the culprit.
‘97 tj, front Dana 30 running 35’s. 2 inch terra flex lift
Hope this helps
Update -
I’ve replaced the drag link and tie rod with a heavy duty set up. Got a balance and alignment and it’s Mickey Mouse. Caster/pinion angle isn’t perfect so I’ll be looking into a short arm adjustable set up in the front. I figured, rather than replace bushings I’ll invest in some new goodies with better bushings.
Hope this helps
In AMC Motors own memos from the 1970's they talk about "violent steering shimmy" being caused by the solid front axle combined with the oversized tires.
Killer video answered my question and help me fix my problem.......Maui Hawaii liven that JEEP LIFE STYLE---------ALOHA
Awesome video. Im soon getting a Jeep jl, this video helps when choosing suspension parts/lift kits. Thank you.
good vid mine was ball joints at 30 k on a jku stock ball joints are crap running 35s
You are my favorite source of inspiration for my channel, thanks and congrats.
Thanks for the video bro you have eased my mind on the death wobble problem I have with my truck. Question. Are all death wobble problems fixable and if not what problems are unfixable?
If so what problems are unfixable
Thanks for the video. Very informational. I will try these steps before taking it to an alignment shop.
My fave jeep topic I love fixing death wobble
Great video should help a lot of people... good info
Eric Lee Hahahaha said every Jeep owner
Yeah I got me some death wobble on my JK. It's manageable at the moment but want to fix it before it gets out of hand.
Very informative and easy to understand! Thanks for the info! I’ve been fortunate enough to never experience death wobble, but I will reference this if-and-when I do. I do have 2 XJ’s!! 🤣❤️🐞
My old XJ would only death wobble after hitting a bump going 48-53 mph. After that, hold on! I regrettably sold it, but not because of the death wobble, but because of rust. My TJ has a small rattle when driving between 50-55 mph. I've been keeping it at bay by using AT tires and new shimmy dampeners when the old one wears out. I know I'll have to dive into it deeper to fix it as the years go on, but for now it's barely noticeable.
Awesome! Very happy to help!
Christopher Sturm - Sorry about the rust! It’s hard to find XJ’s without any. We’ve been fortunate and found 2!
Glad you seem to have a handle on your death wobble! ❤️🐞
Great video...I'll be going through these steps. I had the upper/lower bushing changed on my Jeep JK and the death wobble is actually worse now. I'm thinking the mechanic didn't tighten something correctly.
Great video, really well done. Thanks mate! 👍🤘
Thanks for watching!
Thank you for the clear and precise information. Stumbled acros your channel and really enjoy your do it yourself style! I'm hooked keep doing what you do.
Thank you! Happy to have you aboard! Many more videos in the works 🤘
@@DirtLifestyle Pretty impressed that you seem to be a 1 man show doing the work and recording the videos. Can't imagine how much time that all takes. Hats off to you!
Looking forward to catching up on some of your past videos as well as your future ones.
@@jimschmidt4089 its alot of work! But I really enjoy it
I'm in the tire out of balance death wobble crew. I had a stock 2007 JKU Sahara with 15k on it that started having really bad death wobble. It happened after I had a tire rotation so I rotated them back and the issue went away. I had all my wheels re-balanced and rotated back to how it was when I had death wobble. It went away. I put a 2.5" lift on my 2018 JL and didn't touch the steering geometry yet but zero signs of death wobble so far. I'm ready for it though if it happens.
Nice my old XJ I shake the steraring wheel and the whole front of the Jeep moves like 2 inches side to side
Nailed it! Good video.
If I can add something additional when it comes to balancing big tires....
Throw in balance bags when mounting the wheels. It's so easy to do, works great, and will take that extra unnecessary stress off the rig.
Have used the balance beads on semi truck tires and they work well until "wet" air is inflated then they can stick together or even freeze in cold weather. Will be experimenting with "slime" puncture sealant on next set of tires and see if balance is effected.
Very informative video Nate . Thank you for sharing your experience . Loved your bonus wheeling video at the end . Until next time take care .
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed the video!
Awesome video all the way down here on the big island of Australia keep up the awesome informative videos
I bought a full factory 2013 JK 2D a few years ago that I threw on a AEV DS RS 4" lift, Fuel 18"x10 and 35x12.5 BFG TKO2's on and it ran "OK" for about 2 years (I could just feel something was strugglin under there in some turns) then one day super death wobble. it had 85K on it so I went on ahead and replaced the upper/lower BJ as well as new HD u-joints and hub bearings and that was a little help (and did need replacing) but I still got random super DW that I could not find. Turns out there was a chunk of rubber missing out of the upper track bar bushing (Very hard to see) that worked most of the time until it rotated around enough where that bolt through the center of the upper TB bushing would align just right and let the bolt slide out of it's center position.
After that I went on ahead and installed the full SteerSmarts kit. HD Track Bar, Draglink, Steering rod and ends and OMG my steering stability went up 500 percent. like way better than factory. It now will cruise 70mph down the highway straight for a half mile + without even touching the steering wheel. If you have 35's you need to upgrade all the factory steering parts. They may last for a while but eventually they will fail especially if you drive like speed demon like me. So far I have 10k on the new parts and it still steers perfect. And my next upgrade right after the SS kit was the Dynotrack big brake kit on all 4's.
I would imagine that the Upper lower BJ will fail again as they take the most hit since every thing else is now basically 1 ton when that happens I will use it as an excuse to get rid of the D30 and install a D44 and after that I should be good to go for a bit.
I enjoyed your Video. Im 58 years old and have driven Jeeps since i was 15 . Ive never experienced an actual "Death Wobble" until now. I bought a used and abused Grand Cherokee, it wobbled so bad that it made the headlight bulbs burn out and killed the motor. All this on the Freeway.
Ill fix it, but this had been going on a long time and damaged a lot of parts. The Bottom line.....inspect it before you drive it. I sure didnt.
Thanks for the help buddy. My wife’s 03 rubicon is great but it’s on my last nerve. All o2 have been replaced bout to do the fuel pump. Runs like crap can’t figure out why. Replaced wheel bearing that was bad up front she still don’t like how it’s got a little play. Bout to do all tie rods and ball joints. Thank you sir
Love the torque wrench and cheat sheet! Genius 👍
Some of the cheap kits also have Pan Hard Bar bolts that are not thick enough in diameter, so the bar will move.
That's simply not true. The bolt is not a press-tight fit. The bolt only serves to provide clamping force. If the strength of the bolt can provide enough clamping force, then the diameter is irrelevant. On a JK, for example the torque rating is 125 ft-lb's.
@jrg10332 Waot, your saying any size diameter bolt will work? First a little background, we race Jeeps and have an enormous amount of experience how these parts shake down under all kinds of conditions. We run 120 MPH in our ZJ across Deserts and over Whoops in our XJ in other races. We have used off the shelf and customer built and i can say that size matters. Clapping is part of it, but clamping can only hold so much, then size matters. After you have run the Mint 400 with a small diameter bolt, get back to me.
My dad's jeep has death wobble. The Trac bar to axle was super loose and steering box had lots of play also both tie rods and one ball joint.
Best death wobble video I’ve seen
Ive seen a very small deference in caster from driver side to passenger. Cause wobble on 4 links. They seem happy at a few degrees back on thier heels. But it can be hard to diagnose. Especially when its a combination of things.
your video very well explained
very cool greetings from "ruta pata salada 4x4 " Mazatlan Mexico
Good vid Nate. Much needed for newbies to the lifestyle of dirt (see what I did there?). 😅
Seeing the Land Rover banging thru those rocks is affirmation that you'll build that instead of the Liberty. No way, no how could the Liberty be built tough enough to do that.
It's a tough call man. This rover is so damn capable out of the box and it has pretty much every desirable element you want in a 4x4. Stock straight axle, stock long arm, giant storage, v8 power, stock high steer ect. But I really enjoy the liberty. It doesn't have the same ability or looks or charm or power....but... maybe your right lol.
Great video very clear instructions helpful in understanding death wobble and trouble shooting causes!
Yah, The wiggle test, I actually been doing that one like forever and works great, but you got one thing wrong about the test. DON'T ASK THE WIFE TO HELP YOU WITH IT!! For one, she hates laying on the ground and looking for something plus has no clue what the hell she is looking at. And two, if she is wiggling the steering she will do it for about 10 second before she starts complaining about doing it. Come on now, LOL.
Lol
I almost spit out my beer reading that lol
I speak the truth and know first had that the wife hates laying on the ground and of course is clueless too, LOL.
I guess I got the best one here, she will help so much, I have to ask her to stop wiggling the wheel, she also knows what things do, I just don’t ask her to crawl around on the floor anymore, we’re both in our mid sixties, I even hurt after a day of wrenching on the jeeps, I’m glad she kept me around for 47 years, hopefully you guys will last that long, and give the wife a little more credit!
@@jeffreybetts8014 almost 30 years so far.
Great advice and video. Thanks
I fixed my wobble on my 2003 tj. BALANCE your tires! Make sure the weights are on the inside. I didn’t have any wobble before I put new tires on,and after, I had wobble. Brought it back and made them balance again and put weights on inside of tires. No wobble.
Awesome video!!!! Thanks for the tips...time for some new tie rod ends!!!😬😬
fyi a prybar under the tire lifting up on the tire while the weight is off of it and look for play in the ball joints /kingpins some time shacking the weel wont show a bad balljoint
if i remember right the 1st gen chevy colorado has this problem and has a recall for spring right hight check and alignment check
Hey thanks for a great vid, It’s extremely hard to find ones I feel are detailed enough without being bored to death , but you were perfect
Caster will feel much better and return the steering wheel way nice with 8° positive caster angle .
If caster is set right the steering wheel always want to return to center .
Egg shaped tires and bad shocks can set off death wobble most noted if a bump sets off the death wobble.
Awesome vid, great advice and great explanation on the topic! Thank you.
Fantastic advice
Wiggle test WITH engine on. The power steering will amplify any play not reduce it. Either way works really
I say death wobble is just an extra degree of freedom which shows up with big tires thrust, but yes, good to get rid of play and loose connections! :)
Now that was good information. Thank you.
hey how about O2 sensors as a video topic.. seems to be alot of missinformation and conflicting info out there on them... i had my cats implode and plug off my exhaust so removed them and just ran pipe.. didnt bother reinstalling the downstream sensors as i was told the computer only uses the upstream sensor for engine control and the downstream were just to monitor the cats for emissions.. no emissions tests in my province but i think i need to reinstall some downstream sensors or look into dummy sensors.. rig is missing and stuttering under load
You may still have pieces of the catalyst in the exhaust, usually trapped in front of the muffler. In terms of O2, the upstream are critically important and help the computer understand fuel mixture issues as a result of a misfire, a faulty MAF/MAP sensor reading high or low, and vacuum leaks. The downstream are often, but not always, used to determine the health of the catalytic converters. Some systems will use the downstream to also impact long term fuel trims.
Thanks for the info... I'm going to apply these steps to my 99 2500 Ram Cummins. Hopefully it works
Well it worked! I did the checks and every steering component was worn. I replaced the track bar, tie rod and drag link. Bingo no more wobble.
Awesome vid Bro!! I will be a forever subscriber 💪
You rock! Great video! Top notch instructional techniques :)
Thank you!
Excellent coverage. Thanx!
Steering stabilizers do help, I ran 2 (1 on each side) on my 95 bronco with a 6inch bds and 36in iroks and it went over 100k miles without any wobble
GoPro update: after 4 days of enduring freezing temps, mud and knee-deep water my GoPro has been recovered! As you may recall, it fell off while shooting the Defender vid. May need a new mount, though 😉.
When purchasing a four wheel drive with a solid live axle, always buy it with death wobble / death rattle. You can talk the seller down very low and death rattle is easy to fix. It is also not expensive to fix. For instance, last year I purchased a 2015 Jeep Wrangler Sahara Unlimited for £7200. The asking price was £10.000, which was a very, very good price as well. I fixed the death wobble with ease for about £200 and sold the Jeep for £20.000 which was still a bargain for the next buyer. Right now, I am looking for a pickup truck for work. I am trying to find a Ford F-250 suffering from death wobble. I guarantee it will be sold for an incredible bargain. Death rattle seems extremely frightening, expensive, and unmanageable. However, it is the opposite. It is unpleasant, but not frightening, usually very affordable to fix, and extremely easy to get rid of it. I have £5000 to buy my future F-250 4x4. I am sure I will find someone terrified of their pickup truck because of death wobble that I can pick up for that price. I acted slow on a great bargain last week and lost a great pickup truck because I did not want to spend an extra £1000. I found a 2010 f-250 Super Cab with the diesel engine for £6000. Instead of haggling, I disregarded it. By the time I came to my senses, I called and the pickup truck was sold. I should have bought it because f-250 4x4 pickup trucks are rare in this region. But I will wait patiently and find another.
The lift and suspension on my Jeep is 1 year old the only thing stock is the track bar
Going to share this in my Jeep group and tell everyone to subscribe! Awesome videos cant wait to see what's next!!!
Really hope you get a few extra subs from my post they have a lot of members it is an XJ group so not sure how it will go might get some backlash 😅 will also share on my Jeep group that has a lot of other jeeps other than xjs
Dude seriously I can't thank you enough! Growing a TH-cam channel is really hard, So your help in spreading the word Is very much appreciated brother 🤘
@@DirtLifestyle anytime man! Anything for the favorite channel on TH-cam!!! Hopefully I gets a few followers you are growing though I remember a good 2-3 months ago when you were at 8k subs I'll be here the whole time for the support!!!
Kyle Lewis why group are apart of? Love joining up with like minded Jeep people
@@Whiteandsonsgarage ones Jeep xj support group. The other ones for the Tampa area
Great video, thanks for the explanation 👍
I don’t care who you are this is a freaking great video toe fixed mine for sure
Great info Nate, but I have leaf springs! 😆
If i fix my death wobble is it still a jeep? 🧐
Lol barely
Dirt Lifestyle I fixed my Cherokee’s death wobble issue by trading it in for a Ram 2500. Lol
I am Batman oh dam... that’s a really good point
I am Batman would not recommend this fix
🤣😂🤣
l got a death wobble in my Nissan Safari. Thanks, buddy this helps a lot.