*** UPDATE *** - I just released a STEP BY STEP guide and I did it on our brand new F350. Watch it HERE => th-cam.com/video/sG3kUG8Fh0Q/w-d-xo.html Here is the part I ordered: ** IMPORTANT ** This was for my specific truck (2020 F350 SRW), make sure you find the appropriate part for your vehicle. amzn.to/4aRsnIM For my install, I set the bushing to 2.5 degree positive caster, 0 camber. (which is the most that you can get caster wise out of these bushings). If you would like a more step by step, let me know and I might be able to throw something together. Thanks!
2015 f350 flatbed , front end totally rebuilt . Death Wobble hitting big bumps at 70mph. We put the adjust adjustable shims in and added 2.5 of caster. It fixed the problem, thanks you the man....
I'm 70. I've been fixing my vehicles since I was 14. Before youtube we had something called 'TRIAL AND ERROR'. With no one to show you how to fix something it was a hell of a lot of error. I learned a lot of patience. But I'd rather of had youtube.
@jasmith1867 Yes, I do agree with this. Having TH-cam vs trying to figure it out on your own has been huge for me too, at least to know the experiences and how it worked out for someone else. Thanks!
I did alignments for a living , and so you know that Napa auto parts sells adjustable camber caster bushings, get the old out ,install new then getting it aligned
This is exactly what causes the death wobble on Fords, especially if they've been lifted/leveled since these affect the caster angle. Thank you for explaining this!
In the 70s my dad bought a used 1972 Ford F100 Explorer long bed that turned out to have had extreme death wobble. It could have new tires, brakes, steering linkages, alignment, etc. etc., and it would happen again. I had no idea that this was happening to modern Fords and was immediately reminded of my dad’s truck. I’m amazed to hear about this happening 52 years later with modern steering geometry. Good video, btw. Edit - it even had the steering gear box replaced. If memory serves me correctly, it tended to wobble if you were going down a grade on a bumpy road.
I had a 72 econoline that had a death wobble due to a worn out bushing on the pitman arm. It happened around 75,000 miles. Bushing was a huge, unlubricated, rubbery design that looked like a roller on a boat trailer. I had to drive the vehicle to a stop to stop the wobble. I had a large frame shop replace the busing and align the front end which had those “I” beams. To adjust the camber the “I” beams had to be bent. They would put a chain at each end of the beam with enough slack to put a small bottle Jack between the chain and the beam. Pump the Jack to a number that had spring back figured in. That was a time I did most of the work myself but this was outside my pay grade. People riding in the truck when it would start to wobble were astounded by my composure bring vehicle to a stop and starting up and go again. I drove it with a wobble for about 6 months before I found out the cause at work. I was an engineer at ford in body engineering. Made a few phone calls to guys I knew from night school or bowling or golf that “knew a guy”. That’s was the pre-internet, internet. It always worked. Sometimes they would drag some parts out from under their desk if required.
I have a 97 Cummins and those are known for it too. I have no stabilizer or sway bar on 37s and my truck never gets it and never has. My truck calls for 3.5 degrees of caster and I have mine set to 5.1. I tell everyone that has death wobble that it’s their leveling kit that took all the caster out. I tell them their wheels are like shopping cart casters. I also tell everyone they want a bare min of 4.5 positive caster.
This is appropriate for most solid axels especially for the Jeeps! We two Jeeps and caster is everything to avoid bump steer and death wobble as long as the other components are in good condition. Great video!!!
Definitely applies to the 99-04 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Zero issues until I got a "fresh alignment". The Jeep had a very very slight tiny pull to the right, amplified by a larger off road set of tires.
The picture of your trailer set up with the excursion shows the excursion squatting pretty good. That takes weight off the front end which makes the steering more sensitive and increases that white knuckle experience. Air bags or a weight distribution hitch helps with that, bringing the weight back to the steering tires.
Yes I had the biggest equalizer hitch you can possibly have in that pic. The excursions springs were just too soft. It took too much weight distribution to make it good. You should have heard that equalizer hitch when I turned :)
💯 I've been saying this for years. Death wobble is caused by crappy alignment on all solid front axle vehicles. When I did a leveling kit on my Super Duty, the kit came with alignment casters. My alignment guy said those were wrong for my truck so he threw on a set that he believed were correct. I've never had a death wobble experience ever. A good alignment shop will look at your vehicle and tune it correctly. Not a set it forget it kit.
That may be true. I have death wobble. Took my tire off to check my breaks and put it back on. Doing nothing else. Had no wobble the last 2 times i drove it. It's the one tire that is wearing on the outside very quickly. With any luck, Gonna get an alignment today
My DW story... I have a 93 Grand Cherokee. At around 30,000, it started the death wobble. I have a car lift and have done my own mechanic work all my life. So I figured I have this. Up it went and I did everything I have done to hundreds of vehicles for years to check all suspension and front drivetrain. Everything seemed tight and unworn. My wife's dad bought the Jeep new and passed shortly after. Her mother drove the jeep to the store and back till she passed and we inherited it. I know the thing was not put in four wheel drive very many times in it's life. So basically what I am saying is the Jeep was just like new when we got it with less than 20,000 miles. Back to the story of dw. I couldn't find anything wrong so I took it to an alignment shop that I have used for years and have always had good service from them. They couldn't find anything wrong so we drove it up the road. At 45 mph it went into the dw. The guy said he had never seen anything like this. He checked everything and did an alignment on it and it still, dw... After several attempts, he said he determined the track bar was the problem. $180. later he said it was fixed. I picked it up and on the way home it was still wobbling. Went right back and got my money back and found another shop. Same thing, not a clue what caused it but said I needed to replace all my bushings and tie rods. I asked why and they said they were all worn enough that they were all causing the problem. I didn't buy it. Now if I would go from 40 to 60 under heavy throttle, I could get past the wobble and it would run all day. But between 45 and 60 it would almost always wobble and violently!!! Eventually I replaced every part that can be replaced including tires twice because they would wear out fast. 4 or 5 shops tried to fix it and no one knew what to do. After putting up with the problem for several years and spending probably $2,000, I was thinking about what was going on when it was wobbling. I had even stuck my head out the window to watch the tire. What I decided was the toe in was causing the problem. I know it was aligned to specs at least 5 times but something was still not right! I got my tape measure out and a couple of pieces of angle iron and set the toe in to less than 1/8th of an inch. It was over 3/8ths when I first checked it. It has now been over 100,000 miles later and never once have I experienced the DW! I figured out the geometry of these suspensions cause this problem when they get to a certain harmonics. With the toe in adjusted in too far, the left tire will try to go right at a certain harmonic and when it gives in to traction making it slip, then the right tire will be trying to go left and at just the right harmonics the fight for traction gets to be more than the tires can support and they begin fighting and they start the wobble. Don't know if this is a good explanation, but when I took almost all the toe in out of my alignment, it fixed the problem. Even with 31 inch tires the wobble never came back. I now have over 160,000 and it runs and drives like a new one.... Almost.... lol...
This is 100% true….i changed everything on the front end and nothing changed..wobble continued…I changed the caster bushing 1/4 degree and boom wobble gone…done …this subject has a million videos and the are all over the damn place. New bushings problem solved. Hell my stabalizer isn’t even connected and dead solid steering. Stock bushings have 0 degree New 1/4 positive. I took mine to the alignment place with bushings installed and a tad of grease to make them turn easy and they set them correctly…tightened the castle nut. PERFECTION.
I had a 1995 Lincoln Town car that did the same thing. Dealership wanted about $500 to do this. I sold the car. I wish I had known about this back then. My dad taught me about bicycles when i was a preteen. I didn't put it all together like you did. Thank you for figuring this out and for posting!
As a friendly suggestion from a retired former ft. end/alignment tech, the toe-in should be checked/reset after any change is made to the spindle position or KPAI to insure minimum tire wear and maintain steering wheel center position. Even a slight change may have occurred to the camber and quickly feather-edge a set of expensive tires. Cheap insurance... Thanks, as your video here will help a lot of folks.
With any death wobble always check every component in steering to make sure they are all tight. You're also right that a low amount of positive caster can cause wondering and even shimming issues as the tires want to follow any road imperfections. For on road use a decent amount of positive caster is wanted to keep you going straight but in off road low amount of positive caster is wanted as you don't want the vehicle to fight you while you're off wheeling in the back 40s. At the end of the day a full inspection of the vehicle suspension and alignment check should be done in my opinion few times per year.
Thanks for the comment, that is a good point. Was wondering, when you go with the full off road setup, do they allow for more caster adjustment, or is it still using the stock bushing system to adjust caster at that point?
@@WeCanExploreIt It will very for set up of area you're wanting to off road in. High speed like highway you want more caster. Any low speed/rock crawling/mudding where you want your steering to stay for the most part where you place it less caster. The bushing you are using will in most application meet your needs. If you are wanting caster there are some nice kits out there ranging from $300-2k I would say in road/high speed off road for an f250 +4-6 degrees caster will keep you straight as an arrow. Slow rock crawling and what not +.5-2 degrees caster. This maybe be very loosie goosey at anything over 30 mph
And as far as tire pressure the door plate is pressure for max load for factory tires if running aftermarket tires and wheels the chalk method works great to determine pressure and if running empty pressure doesn’t need to be maxed out
caster turns into camber when wheels are turned to the left or right. it CAN effect tire wear to a small percentage. it depends on how much driving is done on tight curves.
My question also , as more caster causes the tires to “lean” to the side an wear on the side of the tread instead of all across … suspension geometry is TRULY “rocket science” and ability to think in 3D … I have no idea how much change 3% would affect tire wear but the hypothesis certainly makes sense … in the 50s we used to tilt the kingpins back to keep the tires flatter on the banked oval.. had no clue about centering ..
I have a 99 E350 class c it is a chore to drive there was a video of an RV owner with my same problem,said his wife would not drive it, He had 2.5 degrees positive caster bushings put in and said it made all the difference in the world and his wife will now drive it with no problem. I can do this I just needed to see the technical part of the video how it was actually installed. Thank you so much for posting this.
Great video and diagnoses. You are spot on on the caster theory and proved success. Positive caster ideally should be slightly more on the right front to compensate for road crown. You have to wonder what Ford was thinking here kinda like the Bosch CP4 high pressure fuel pump that has been proven a bad design yet Ford continues using it on the 6.7 Powerstroke.
I agree with your positive caster advice, as I've been adding it to modified lifted suspension trucks for years, by air gouging and rewelding the axle tubes to accommodate for pinion angle changes, and caster angles beyond the capabilities of replacement bushings. The only thing I have an issue with is the "Recommended Tire Pressure" that Ford tells it's customers. Ford doesn't make tires, and tires have gotten thinner and lighter over the years, and the Tire Manufacturers recommended air pressure is what has replaced the structure of the tire to enable the load rating. "IF" you have a tire related issue or defect, that manufacturer will NOT stand behind that tire, as it was used under inflated. Then there's the heat related issues, more rolling resistance, and premature wear that goes along with an under inflated tire. On steer tires I would run whatever pressure is stated on the tire especially. All your powertrain weight is mostly on the front of an empty pickup truck anyway. YMMV...
The Max pressure is rated for Max load. An unloaded super duty has about 65% of it's max load on the rear axle and 75% on the front. Running 55 rear and 60 front while unloaded is the same as running loaded at 80 psi. 80 psi will have a harsh ride and cause center tire wear on an unloaded truck since the tire tread isn't pushed down for a flat contact patch. That's how it works.
Bingo! My alignment tech had this conversation with me years ago after I installed new upper control arms to my Tacoma. The arms he recommended added more caster so the truck would track better. Imagine a hand truck you are pushing and the more upright it is, the more unstable the tracking is. Tilt the hand truck back more, all of a sudden it tracks much better. My Tacoma tracks great and it feels like I am on rails driving down the highway. It makes me wonder though if the Ford SD camber is set the way it is to accommodate more axle weight on the front end.
as an old guy, learned this years ago, being around the drag races and rail dragsters was my introduction to caster. boy is it important in those chassis!
From Australia, I have a 1991 Toyota land cruiser ute and have been chasing this problem for years. Same shit with alleged experts, change the steering damper, which is fine. Loose or worn bushes, ball joints or bearings, well they are all NEW. Put castor wedges under front leaf springs but it returned after a while. I believe that by putting new springs on the front end, lifting it just 1" it put the castor angle out, putting the 1° wedge in cured it until the new tyres wore down. It appears to be that critical. Going for a fresh alignment tomorrow and am sure I will be better aware of how to cure the problem than someone born after my car was made.
Thanks for your Vid. I too have an Excursion and have been chasing the front end bs for years. Just got a reallllllllly bad death wobble in my 2020 F250 today. less than 68K miles. Really thinking after 35 years of heavy duty fords that I will be going to another brand. I have no confidence driving it. I will have the caster looked at.
Death wobble is not a known to Ford only problem (weekend experts on the internet) nor caster only problem. Any vehicle with a solid axle and coil spring suspension can experience it due to many factors such as worn parts, alignment, lift kits, tire issues, etc... A knowledgeable tech (good luck finding one these days) will suggest caster bushings after checking the alignment if the owner is experiencing this problem and no other cause can be determined. You are correct that stabilizers only mask the problem. Glad you were able to adjust it yourself and remedy the problem. But caster adjustments alone are not 100% guaranteed to solve the problem.
I have a 2015 f350 and trying to pinpoint my wobble. I’ve had this truck over 2 years and it just started doing this last year. So I lowered mine 2” aftermarket wheels (24” alcoas) and had these mods on for a year and never had an issue. Parts lost , 2 alignment’s, outer tie rods, drag link bar, track bar ball joint and bushing , new shocks, wheel bearings, axle u joints and new steering stabilizer shock and still have an issue. Ball joints look good and the alignment specs say I’m + 5 degrees. Is it possible that the caster shims are worn out?
Very interesting video. I experienced death wobble because I had a ball on one of my front steering tires. If I get it back for some reason this will be the first thing I do. Thanks 👍🏼
On my Fox Body Mustang I set the caster/camber plates at max caster (3-4 degrees iirc). It is a must have for high speed driving. Now I need to do this with my '24 Super Duty.
When doing this , if your going to add more than one degree caster you will likely require a bushing for both sides to equalize caster ,if you have a higher reading difference (cross caster) , usually 1.5-2.0 degrees or more the vehicle may pull left. also keep in mind some of there adjusters affect camber ,the tilt of the wheel in and out and cause excessive tire wear (cross camber) most shops wont mess with this , discuss the bushing change first before giving you their money. Expect to replace the ball joint more often as it loads the ball joint differently. As others stated , get your alignment checked after this modification , it could wipe out your tires. The reason the caster gets lower on the right side is because thats where the bumps and potholes live, the caster angle gets bumped back.
Increasing positive castor will beat the edges of your tires more, but not so much that rotating them often won't fix that problem. That said race cars depending on there intended use often use more than typical cars and trucks as it helps with turn in speeds and stability, we won't talk about motorcycles here... lol
It's a simple toe adjustment. People think you need toe in. You dont. It can be very touchy on some vehicles, so its best just to adjust your toe out a touch at a time, til it stops. Then set your steering wheel. Camber and other things can make a difference, but the root cause is the tires not tracking together.
Where did you end on Caster... What degree? I agree, used to teach automotive years back and caster was a valid Non-Tire Wearing adjustment for adjusting streering behavior (Toe & Chamber wear tires). Your Bike fork is a great example; Can also relate to a shopping cart, which is always a negative caster and ft wheel often rattles & shakes back & forth as you push it. Steering neutrality, return to center track, ease of leaving center track, response to bumps and steering reaction to jounce & rebound... All variables of caster. From Zero... Adding Positive (top pin rearward) improves holding and returning to center track, and slow steering response... These give a more stable feel on wheel. Increasing positive to extreme will push the tire contact point beyound it's ideal center zone relationship to spindle. You're correct, adding a little positive will improve center track alignment, too much positive will begin to introduce a different wobble based on tire / spindle angle relationship. Negative chamber enhances off-road steering by reducing desire to return to center track and places tire contact slightly behind spindle axis... Providing more agility in steering and ease move off of center track. As a off-road example that uses positive camber to provide center track in dirt and not quick steering are Ag Tractors. Their goal is to enhance straight steering in loose dirt and use strong positive caster. Adjusting caster used to be a common adjustment with older suspension when all 3: Chamber, Caster, Toe were all easily made to adjust. Pushing a little positive (1-5 degrees) will normally always improve steering stability and retain center track. Too much can induce a new wobble. Great work & video... You're on track!
Note for F450, it uses different, larger shims, not the same as 250/350 axles. Little deeper search, I did find a good Brand caster / camber shim, about double the price for F450. Shim Consists of 2 parts ( inner / outer sleeves) with a matrix showing what positions provide different caster / camber values.
OMG is this the answer to my motorhome steering? I can't take my eyes off the road for a second, cuz if I do I'll be off the road. I have to be super focused 100 percent of the time. I've taken it to multiple alignment shops, and they say it's right, but there's really something wrong. I've been thinking about the stabilizers, and trying to stabilize something that's unstable, but this really makes a lot more sense. The way you explain this is spot on. I understand more about caster now than I have in my entire life, and I'm old. Can I get your thoughts on this? Should I be telling these alignment shops how to do their job? If this is right on, I have no problem doing just that, because so far they don't seem to have a clue.
I never ever thought about the old 1974-1986 Chevy with worn out rag joints and components falling out! Damn near had to turn the wheel 2/3 the way around to get it to turn a curve 😂😂 never any death wobble
I followed the advice on this video and it worked like a charm. no issues. for about 4 months. now the Death Wobble on my 2016 F250 is worse than ever (happened 4 times in 5 miles on a bumpy paved road in Nevada) Does anybody know what would be going on? everything underneath feels solid and tight
I run my tires at 60psi instead of 80psi. I air up if hauling a load. If I have my 8.5' snowplow installed, I air the front tires up to 80psi. I like the ride at 60psi when I'm empty
Another version...I had my Grand Cherokee to 5 different shops, spending more than $2000. Numerous shop owners and so called "front end specialists" telling me this was worn out and that wasn't any good. I was told that all it needed was an alignment so I think I had like 8 or ten alignments done on it. When this "dw" thing started (I had less than 30,000 miles on the Jeep), I replaced everything under the front end except the axles and the differential itself. Power steering gear box, everything!!! Still when I was going between 45 and 60 and hit the slightest little bump in the road, death wobble would nearly throw me off the road it was so violent!!! Everyone that aligned the thing did it according to what the "book" said to do. I knew it had nothing to do with worn out parts. It was getting the wobble from the flex in the tires. I decided to take things in my own hands and try and figure out what was happening. First thing I did was to adjust the toe in to where it had little to no toe in. My thinking was by what I was feeling in the steering wheel, the tires were fighting each other by one trying to roll toward the center and when it overcame the force of traction it jumped up and lost traction. This caused the other side to dip down and since it was now carrying most of the weight and was turned toward the center because of excessive toe in, it tried to go to center and when it got in a bind it would jump up and cause the same condition on the opposite side. I now have over 160,000 miles on my jeep and have not experienced death wobble once since I took all but the slightest bit of toe in out of my alignment. I have helped numerous friends with the same problem and to date, I have fixed the dw of all of them so hopefully this will be of help to you also. My thoughts are that the length and geometry of the control arms are a perfect match to create a harmonic condition that if they are forced to try and fight toe in, it creates this wobble and the tires can't help themselves!!! One other thing that led me to this conclusion. While I was trying to figure this out, I put a new set of tires on it because I was told my tires were bad and it made it worse than it was before the new tires. I went from stock size to 31 inches tall because I wanted taller tires anyway. Logic told me that I now had more side wall and the flex was greater than the shorter tires so I had one more piece of information to inject into the puzzle. Sorry for the long explanation, hope it helps you and others!!!
So how did you fix the problem on your excursion with a solid axle cause that’s what I’m have right now not an independent suspension but a solid suspension. Thanks
Yes, I know guys that have the same truck and it never happened to them, so it's most likely that their truck is "within specs" on the positive side of caster, hopefully yours is as well. Thanks!
You kind of left me hanging. You dont show your install of that new bushing and how you dialed it in. A link to the bushing where you purchased it would have been welcomed by everyone who views this. Is there a descriptive name for that bushing that I could search for that would enable me to duplicate your results?
Negative caster allows for easier steering by the driver while positive caster requires more effort but the truck will almost steer itself. Personally i prefer more effort to steer but most people are lazy af.
What you said is not caster in a nut shell, on most vehicles you want a lot of positve caster, on most you want 3.5 if not more of positive caster, a lot of caster will give you more stability and control, i have heard that 0 caster can cause the death wobble and you dont want 0 caster, that bushing he installed is better if your caster or camber are out of spec, i bet you this guy has worn components he has not adressed
I go on Amazon for the caster to many . Do you know the part number so I get right ones.? I have 2019 f350 powerstroke. I have had the death wobble and need to do this. Thank you for your videos
Those bushings well affect camber as you adjust them away from center. There are split bushings allowing you to set both. Maybe you need those and maybe you don't but something to keep in mind.
Thanks Nick! Like #35 Did you ever do anything with your CP4 fuel pump? I am thinking about the S&S Diesel’s Ford 6.7 CP4 to DCR Fuel Pump Conversion Kit. Thoughts?
Got it all fixed up, working on that video too. It's back to stock, but one thing I'll be asking is for thoughts/suggestions as to how to minimize any trouble moving forward. Have a good one Dennis!
@@WeCanExploreIt I just took my 2017 F250 XLT out and I have no problem with steering over bumps or at speed. It tracks fine. I guess I have a positive canter
How many degrees of caster did you set it at? My 2020 f250 wanders a bit and the wheel won't self center after turning. I replaced a sloppy tie rod and it still does it. I'm set at +3.5° of caster already.
Hey, so I have a 2012 Ford F250 and I’ve never had any problems with it, but after hitting some pretty severe bumps in the road due to the construction where I live, I was driving on the freeway at about 65 miles an hour and got the death wobble. Took it to the local mensch place and the guy wanted to replace the whole front end the steering stabilizer the tracking mechanism the pushing everything $2500 later I said no and continue to keep driving but I just didn’t go on freeway, long story short was finished. There’s no big huge like one to 2 inch dips in the road now my truck on the freeway hit 70 miles an hour just went away. What happened?
Ford as with other manufacturers don’t add extra castor because it makes steering stiffer at low speeds and you can tell when stopped ant turning steering especially at idle and they want to sell trucks so they make then steer easily for comfort There is a reason that companies that make lifts and kits for these trucks use drop brackets for radius arms or an radius arms with adjustable settings that is to add castor Anytime the front goes up the castor angle decreases physics
I agree and to be honest it seems that the power steering takes it in stride, I didn't really notice much change at low speeds. Ahh I can see where at idle it may be stiffer
Hello I have a 2006 F250 with a death wobble problem. When installing these correctly will your top of ball joint leaning back towards the rear or forward to the front of the truck? Thanks
My 22’ with 19,000 miles wanders. And you always have to do a lot of small steering inputs to keep it going straight. This truck has done this since day one . I hate the ford steering. My bro in law has a 20’ GMC and it steers GREAT.
I have a 24 frontier that has shake from the rear that gets better and worse without any real cause. The shake happens at 65to75mph and we have already road force balanced the tires and wheels along with replacing the tires and wheels and also the drive shaft, but have not had any luck. The next step is possibly changing the rear differential but I'm thinking maybe adding caster angle/increasing the rake would help in this situation?
Are you getting an alignment done immediately after installing? I just put +2degree bushings in my 23 and it now pulls horribly to the left. Your video makes it look like you’re just dropping them in and driving away with it driving straight and true. Is that correct?
Ok.. So I've dealt with this for the past 6 months. I will give this a try. cause I've replaced everything now on my front end, and got it a alignment and it still has a bit of a wobble. I replaced my steering gear box even, and still it is off. also it pulls hard to the left. it so frustrating. I have a 05 f350 6.0. my rear end is starting to shake now. so I'm about to due the ujoints, in the drive shaft and see what that does for me. that and add a 4" lift with new shoks. see what that will do for me also . I'm just at a loss as to How I should fix my front end. I've only got 147, 000 on the truck, so its got a lot of life left. if you have advice I would love to here it please.
This is great, but what you should've done is film it 'death wobbling' and then film it again after the mod on the same road & at the same speed to demonstrate the improvement.
The thing with the death wobble is that it might not be perfectly repeatable, and when you get it you might not have a camera handy (or another person that wants to try to film it). It was an immediate improvement but it was only "felt" by me, which is why I waited a year (and 30k miles) to release it. That and the fact that the linkages had even more time to wear so that if any death wobbling was going to happen, it should have for sure happened by now. Thanks!
Hi, just got my 2014 E350 12 passenger van back from the Ford dealership. I brought it in because of a very noticeable shaking of the entire front end, which I can feel through the steering wheel. The dealership said the front two tires were out of round. So got 4 brand new tires. The shaking and juddering still exists. Especially on the interstate at 75 mph. An hour ago on the interstate, I thought it just be bushings then. We have brand new KYB shocks too from an independent auto aligner, which fixed half the problem. The new tires from Ford did not fix the other half. I just watched your entire video, and my question to you would be: in your research over the years, does the E350 Ford passenger van have the same caster-bushing problem as your old Excursion and newer truck? Thanks for your video. We're not at death wobble level yet, but I have to hold on tight. Good video. I will subscribe.
At first glance, seeing your knuckle, i assumed your truck was in worse shape but, i would recommend KROWN undercoating!!! Spray everyrhing except for your brake pads, rotors, brake shoes or the inner part of a brake drum. Also try to stay away from rubber but? Plz krown your knuckle's, supension , frame, & All body panels. Prevent rust!
50psi is not enough for a F-250 or 350. You have 8ply- 14ply tires. If you just drive around town, pick up some mulch, grass seed, etc. once or twice a year. You can probably get by with 65psi. I have 10plys on my explorer(4500lbs.GVW), I run 65psi(45-50 look like a low tire). F-250,350 GVW is 5,800-7,000lbs, I'd run 75psi(I never usually max out a tire, max: 80psi tires.). Most car tires, yukon xl1500(7600lb. GVW), 40psi(max: 44psi). They should have heavier tire(at least 8ply). You will get better mileage and tire wear. Rotate and balance your tires every oil change, they will last longer. From my personal experience.
WAIT, before you try this fix. He's not telling you the whole story here. While the castor change will help with the death wobble, it causes other problems with your 4 wheel drive that may be worse. The steep castor angle causes the front universal joints on the half-shafts at the knuckle to bind up when turning tight in either direction. So, you get a very profound vibration that will eventually break the joint. If you only use your 4 wheel drive occasionally, it might not be a problem. If you really use it and depend on it, the castor thing is gonna bite you. I removed the steep castor bushings immediately.
Tight turns in 4x4 are a strain on those joints all the time, not just with more caster. Tight turns to the stops should be avoided or minimized on 4x4's while in 4 wheel drive.
There is some truth and some bad advice here. Low caster can be an issue, but high caster will not fix many versions of death wobble. The bad advice is that adding caster at your upper ball joint is bad for the joint and eats the dust seals off the inner axle shaft. Also it is worth noting that level kits reduce caster, and make drag link and track bar angles further from ideal. If you want to add a caster with less downsides, do it with a radius arm drop bracket, this is what a proper lift kit does to restore or add caster.
The part he left out is when you turn that sleeve it also moves your camber you have to keep your camber from 0 to a half positive to keep from haveing tire wear so you can only get so much positive caster an keep your camber right I ran a alignment shop for 45 years so I know what I’m talking about you believe what you want it’s nothing to me just telling it like it is
He also down plays the importance of making sure you have no worn out components, and does not know the proper ways to check for wear. He says he "hits them with hammers and everything" checking for wear!lol
I was an alignment technician for 30+ years and fixed many, many death wobbles. Replacing the bushing is correct, but you want to LOWER the caster. Ford even had a TSB concerning this.
Tire air pressure should be set proportional to load. Each tire has a load index. A 128 load index, for example, is 3970 lbs. at Max pressure (E rated tires are 80 psi). If your rear axle unloaded is carrying 5000 lbs, then 5000/(3970 x 2) = 0.629 so the rear tires should be set to 63% of 80 psi = 50.4 psi. As load increases, so must tire pressure. That's how it works.
![เจ็บที่ยังฮัก - ม่อน วรวิทย์ [ Official Mv ] จอนนี่มิวสิค](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/KALIGSRSjFs/mqdefault.jpg)
*** UPDATE *** - I just released a STEP BY STEP guide and I did it on our brand new F350. Watch it HERE => th-cam.com/video/sG3kUG8Fh0Q/w-d-xo.html
Here is the part I ordered: ** IMPORTANT ** This was for my specific truck (2020 F350 SRW), make sure you find the appropriate part for your vehicle.
amzn.to/4aRsnIM
For my install, I set the bushing to 2.5 degree positive caster, 0 camber. (which is the most that you can get caster wise out of these bushings).
If you would like a more step by step, let me know and I might be able to throw something together.
Thanks!
This worked for me!!! I was about to sell my truck after putting 3 front ends in it. Thank you so much!
2015 f350 flatbed , front end totally rebuilt . Death Wobble hitting big bumps at 70mph. We put the adjust adjustable shims in and added 2.5 of caster. It fixed the problem, thanks you the man....
I'm 70. I've been fixing my vehicles since I was 14. Before youtube we had something called 'TRIAL AND ERROR'. With no one to show you how to fix something it was a hell of a lot of error. I learned a lot of patience. But I'd rather of had youtube.
@jasmith1867 Yes, I do agree with this. Having TH-cam vs trying to figure it out on your own has been huge for me too, at least to know the experiences and how it worked out for someone else. Thanks!
I did alignments for a living , and so you know that Napa auto parts sells adjustable camber caster bushings, get the old out ,install new then getting it aligned
Thanks! Doing a video and getting the part from Napa. Appreciate the heads up on this!
This is exactly what causes the death wobble on Fords, especially if they've been lifted/leveled since these affect the caster angle. Thank you for explaining this!
In the 70s my dad bought a used 1972 Ford F100 Explorer long bed that turned out to have had extreme death wobble. It could have new tires, brakes, steering linkages, alignment, etc. etc., and it would happen again. I had no idea that this was happening to modern Fords and was immediately reminded of my dad’s truck. I’m amazed to hear about this happening 52 years later with modern steering geometry. Good video, btw. Edit - it even had the steering gear box replaced. If memory serves me correctly, it tended to wobble if you were going down a grade on a bumpy road.
I owned a 1950 F1 Ford Truck and it had death wobble. That was my last Ford LOL.
1972 Ford has king pins not ball joints, but the kingpin bushings would wear out
I had a 72 econoline that had a death wobble due to a worn out bushing on the pitman arm. It happened around 75,000 miles. Bushing was a huge, unlubricated, rubbery design that looked like a roller on a boat trailer. I had to drive the vehicle to a stop to stop the wobble. I had a large frame shop replace the busing and align the front end which had those “I” beams. To adjust the camber the “I” beams had to be bent. They would put a chain at each end of the beam with enough slack to put a small bottle Jack between the chain and the beam. Pump the Jack to a number that had spring back figured in. That was a time I did most of the work myself but this was outside my pay grade. People riding in the truck when it would start to wobble were astounded by my composure bring vehicle to a stop and starting up and go again. I drove it with a wobble for about 6 months before I found out the cause at work. I was an engineer at ford in body engineering. Made a few phone calls to guys I knew from night school or bowling or golf that “knew a guy”. That’s was the pre-internet, internet. It always worked. Sometimes they would drag some parts out from under their desk if required.
Torqueing the front wheel bearings to spec helps, too.
I just bought a 2012 e250 with front end issues no wobble but your fighting it every mile keeping it on the road. This info is golden
Finally a truthful and accurate video on this. Everything else is a bandaid. Steering components become worn because of the alignment
I have a 97 Cummins and those are known for it too. I have no stabilizer or sway bar on 37s and my truck never gets it and never has. My truck calls for 3.5 degrees of caster and I have mine set to 5.1. I tell everyone that has death wobble that it’s their leveling kit that took all the caster out. I tell them their wheels are like shopping cart casters. I also tell everyone they want a bare min of 4.5 positive caster.
Does this apply to 2012 Ram 2500? I did add a one inch leveling kit too! Thanks🙏🙏🙏
Thanks so much sir. Gave it a try fixed the death wobble instantly. Saved me thousands.
This is appropriate for most solid axels especially for the Jeeps! We two Jeeps and caster is everything to avoid bump steer and death wobble as long as the other components are in good condition. Great video!!!
I posted my Jeep dw story...
Definitely applies to the 99-04 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Zero issues until I got a "fresh alignment". The Jeep had a very very slight tiny pull to the right, amplified by a larger off road set of tires.
The picture of your trailer set up with the excursion shows the excursion squatting pretty good. That takes weight off the front end which makes the steering more sensitive and increases that white knuckle experience. Air bags or a weight distribution hitch helps with that, bringing the weight back to the steering tires.
Yes I had the biggest equalizer hitch you can possibly have in that pic. The excursions springs were just too soft. It took too much weight distribution to make it good. You should have heard that equalizer hitch when I turned :)
💯 I've been saying this for years. Death wobble is caused by crappy alignment on all solid front axle vehicles. When I did a leveling kit on my Super Duty, the kit came with alignment casters. My alignment guy said those were wrong for my truck so he threw on a set that he believed were correct. I've never had a death wobble experience ever. A good alignment shop will look at your vehicle and tune it correctly. Not a set it forget it kit.
I’ve heard about this many times, but never in detail like you did, thanks,
I'm dying to try this bushing fix. I've also found that keeping your tires re-balanced regularly helps a lot too.
That may be true. I have death wobble. Took my tire off to check my breaks and put it back on. Doing nothing else. Had no wobble the last 2 times i drove it. It's the one tire that is wearing on the outside very quickly. With any luck, Gonna get an alignment today
My DW story... I have a 93 Grand Cherokee. At around 30,000, it started the death wobble. I have a car lift and have done my own mechanic work all my life. So I figured I have this. Up it went and I did everything I have done to hundreds of vehicles for years to check all suspension and front drivetrain. Everything seemed tight and unworn. My wife's dad bought the Jeep new and passed shortly after. Her mother drove the jeep to the store and back till she passed and we inherited it. I know the thing was not put in four wheel drive very many times in it's life. So basically what I am saying is the Jeep was just like new when we got it with less than 20,000 miles. Back to the story of dw. I couldn't find anything wrong so I took it to an alignment shop that I have used for years and have always had good service from them. They couldn't find anything wrong so we drove it up the road. At 45 mph it went into the dw. The guy said he had never seen anything like this. He checked everything and did an alignment on it and it still, dw... After several attempts, he said he determined the track bar was the problem. $180. later he said it was fixed. I picked it up and on the way home it was still wobbling. Went right back and got my money back and found another shop. Same thing, not a clue what caused it but said I needed to replace all my bushings and tie rods. I asked why and they said they were all worn enough that they were all causing the problem. I didn't buy it. Now if I would go from 40 to 60 under heavy throttle, I could get past the wobble and it would run all day. But between 45 and 60 it would almost always wobble and violently!!! Eventually I replaced every part that can be replaced including tires twice because they would wear out fast. 4 or 5 shops tried to fix it and no one knew what to do. After putting up with the problem for several years and spending probably $2,000, I was thinking about what was going on when it was wobbling. I had even stuck my head out the window to watch the tire. What I decided was the toe in was causing the problem. I know it was aligned to specs at least 5 times but something was still not right! I got my tape measure out and a couple of pieces of angle iron and set the toe in to less than 1/8th of an inch. It was over 3/8ths when I first checked it. It has now been over 100,000 miles later and never once have I experienced the DW! I figured out the geometry of these suspensions cause this problem when they get to a certain harmonics. With the toe in adjusted in too far, the left tire will try to go right at a certain harmonic and when it gives in to traction making it slip, then the right tire will be trying to go left and at just the right harmonics the fight for traction gets to be more than the tires can support and they begin fighting and they start the wobble. Don't know if this is a good explanation, but when I took almost all the toe in out of my alignment, it fixed the problem. Even with 31 inch tires the wobble never came back. I now have over 160,000 and it runs and drives like a new one.... Almost.... lol...
3/8 toe in,way too much-I see why the tires wore quickly
This is 100% true….i changed everything on the front end and nothing changed..wobble continued…I changed the caster bushing 1/4 degree and boom wobble gone…done …this subject has a million videos and the are all over the damn place. New bushings problem solved. Hell my stabalizer isn’t even connected and dead solid steering. Stock bushings have 0 degree New 1/4 positive. I took mine to the alignment place with bushings installed and a tad of grease to make them turn easy and they set them correctly…tightened the castle nut. PERFECTION.
Did this to my truck last year.... 3 degrees + caster seemed to be the magic number.... I run 37x13.50 with an 8 inch lift. Zero Death wobble!
I had a 1995 Lincoln Town car that did the same thing. Dealership wanted about $500 to do this. I sold the car. I wish I had known about this back then.
My dad taught me about bicycles when i was a preteen. I didn't put it all together like you did.
Thank you for figuring this out and for posting!
glad to do it, thanks for stopping by!
As a friendly suggestion from a retired former ft. end/alignment tech, the toe-in should be checked/reset after any change is made to the spindle position or KPAI to insure minimum tire wear and maintain steering wheel center position. Even a slight change may have occurred to the camber and quickly feather-edge a set of expensive tires. Cheap insurance... Thanks, as your video here will help a lot of folks.
Thanks, will mention this in my follow up vid.
With any death wobble always check every component in steering to make sure they are all tight.
You're also right that a low amount of positive caster can cause wondering and even shimming issues as the tires want to follow any road imperfections.
For on road use a decent amount of positive caster is wanted to keep you going straight but in off road low amount of positive caster is wanted as you don't want the vehicle to fight you while you're off wheeling in the back 40s.
At the end of the day a full inspection of the vehicle suspension and alignment check should be done in my opinion few times per year.
Thanks for the comment, that is a good point. Was wondering, when you go with the full off road setup, do they allow for more caster adjustment, or is it still using the stock bushing system to adjust caster at that point?
@@WeCanExploreIt It will very for set up of area you're wanting to off road in. High speed like highway you want more caster.
Any low speed/rock crawling/mudding where you want your steering to stay for the most part where you place it less caster.
The bushing you are using will in most application meet your needs. If you are wanting caster there are some nice kits out there ranging from $300-2k
I would say in road/high speed off road for an f250 +4-6 degrees caster will keep you straight as an arrow.
Slow rock crawling and what not +.5-2 degrees caster. This maybe be very loosie goosey at anything over 30 mph
Your rant is correct... Your analogy is perfect.
I also own a 2001 Excursion as my Tow Tractor... Lol it is an alert activity, to say the least
It sure was a cool truck though 😎
And as far as tire pressure the door plate is pressure for max load for factory tires if running aftermarket tires and wheels the chalk method works great to determine pressure and if running empty pressure doesn’t need to be maxed out
caster turns into camber when wheels are turned to the left or right. it CAN effect tire wear to a small percentage. it depends on how much driving is done on tight curves.
My question also , as more caster causes the tires to “lean” to the side an wear on the side of the tread instead of all across … suspension geometry is TRULY “rocket science” and ability to think in 3D … I have no idea how much change 3% would affect tire wear but the hypothesis certainly makes sense … in the 50s we used to tilt the kingpins back to keep the tires flatter on the banked oval.. had no clue about centering ..
I have a 99 E350 class c it is a chore to drive there was a video of an RV owner with my same problem,said his wife would not drive it, He had 2.5 degrees positive caster bushings put in and said it made all the difference in the world and his wife will now drive it with no problem. I can do this I just needed to see the technical part of the video how it was actually installed. Thank you so much for posting this.
That's awesome to hear that the video was helpful for you! It's amazing how small adjustments can make a big difference in driving comfort.
Great video and diagnoses. You are spot on on the caster theory and proved success. Positive caster ideally should be slightly more on the right front to compensate for road crown. You have to wonder what Ford was thinking here kinda like the Bosch CP4 high pressure fuel pump that has been proven a bad design yet Ford continues using it on the 6.7 Powerstroke.
Yes, just had a run in with THAT too (the HPFP), stay tuned for that video! Have a good one!
I’ve fixed dozens of these Ford Super Duty’s with only one part! The track bar! Replaced with a Baja customs track bar. Never had death wobble again.
It's usually caused by a loose steering link or a steering geometry issue from what I have seen
I agree with your positive caster advice, as I've been adding it to modified lifted suspension trucks for years, by air gouging and rewelding the axle tubes to accommodate for pinion angle changes, and caster angles beyond the capabilities of replacement bushings. The only thing I have an issue with is the "Recommended Tire Pressure" that Ford tells it's customers. Ford doesn't make tires, and tires have gotten thinner and lighter over the years, and the Tire Manufacturers recommended air pressure is what has replaced the structure of the tire to enable the load rating. "IF" you have a tire related issue or defect, that manufacturer will NOT stand behind that tire, as it was used under inflated. Then there's the heat related issues, more rolling resistance, and premature wear that goes along with an under inflated tire. On steer tires I would run whatever pressure is stated on the tire especially. All your powertrain weight is mostly on the front of an empty pickup truck anyway. YMMV...
I like the max pressure listed on the TIRE. The ride is more stable (to me) and just feels better. and yes, YMMV.
The Max pressure is rated for Max load. An unloaded super duty has about 65% of it's max load on the rear axle and 75% on the front. Running 55 rear and 60 front while unloaded is the same as running loaded at 80 psi. 80 psi will have a harsh ride and cause center tire wear on an unloaded truck since the tire tread isn't pushed down for a flat contact patch. That's how it works.
Bingo! My alignment tech had this conversation with me years ago after I installed new upper control arms to my Tacoma. The arms he recommended added more caster so the truck would track better. Imagine a hand truck you are pushing and the more upright it is, the more unstable the tracking is. Tilt the hand truck back more, all of a sudden it tracks much better. My Tacoma tracks great and it feels like I am on rails driving down the highway. It makes me wonder though if the Ford SD camber is set the way it is to accommodate more axle weight on the front end.
as an old guy, learned this years ago, being around the drag races and rail dragsters was my introduction to caster. boy is it important in those chassis!
From Australia, I have a 1991 Toyota land cruiser ute and have been chasing this problem for years. Same shit with alleged experts, change the steering damper, which is fine. Loose or worn bushes, ball joints or bearings, well they are all NEW. Put castor wedges under front leaf springs but it returned after a while. I believe that by putting new springs on the front end, lifting it just 1" it put the castor angle out, putting the 1° wedge in cured it until the new tyres wore down. It appears to be that critical. Going for a fresh alignment tomorrow and am sure I will be better aware of how to cure the problem than someone born after my car was made.
Thanks for your Vid. I too have an Excursion and have been chasing the front end bs for years.
Just got a reallllllllly bad death wobble in my 2020 F250 today. less than 68K miles. Really thinking after 35 years of heavy duty fords that I will be going to another brand.
I have no confidence driving it. I will have the caster looked at.
Death wobble is not a known to Ford only problem (weekend experts on the internet) nor caster only problem. Any vehicle with a solid axle and coil spring suspension can experience it due to many factors such as worn parts, alignment, lift kits, tire issues, etc... A knowledgeable tech (good luck finding one these days) will suggest caster bushings after checking the alignment if the owner is experiencing this problem and no other cause can be determined. You are correct that stabilizers only mask the problem. Glad you were able to adjust it yourself and remedy the problem. But caster adjustments alone are not 100% guaranteed to solve the problem.
I have a 2015 f350 and trying to pinpoint my wobble. I’ve had this truck over 2 years and it just started doing this last year.
So I lowered mine 2” aftermarket wheels (24” alcoas) and had these mods on for a year and never had an issue.
Parts lost , 2 alignment’s, outer tie rods, drag link bar, track bar ball joint and bushing , new shocks, wheel bearings, axle u joints and new steering stabilizer shock and still have an issue.
Ball joints look good and the alignment specs say I’m + 5 degrees. Is it possible that the caster shims are worn out?
Very interesting video. I experienced death wobble because I had a ball on one of my front steering tires. If I get it back for some reason this will be the first thing I do. Thanks 👍🏼
Great problem solving!
On my Fox Body Mustang I set the caster/camber plates at max caster (3-4 degrees iirc). It is a must have for high speed driving. Now I need to do this with my '24 Super Duty.
When doing this , if your going to add more than one degree caster you will likely require a bushing for both sides to equalize caster ,if you have a higher reading difference (cross caster) , usually 1.5-2.0 degrees or more the vehicle may pull left. also keep in mind some of there adjusters affect camber ,the tilt of the wheel in and out and cause excessive tire wear (cross camber) most shops wont mess with this , discuss the bushing change first
before giving you their money. Expect to replace the ball joint more often as it loads the ball joint differently.
As others stated , get your alignment checked after this modification , it could wipe out your tires.
The reason the caster gets lower on the right side is because thats where the bumps and potholes live, the caster angle gets bumped back.
No wobble in my 1980 F-150 shortbed. Also no airbags, no door alarms, no cameras, no ECM, 😊
Increasing positive castor will beat the edges of your tires more, but not so much that rotating them often won't fix that problem. That said race cars depending on there intended use often use more than typical cars and trucks as it helps with turn in speeds and stability, we won't talk about motorcycles here... lol
It was nice to meet you in Q.
Great video on a great FIX😮
It was great to meet you as well!
It's a simple toe adjustment.
People think you need toe in.
You dont.
It can be very touchy on some vehicles, so its best just to adjust your toe out a touch at a time, til it stops.
Then set your steering wheel.
Camber and other things can make a difference, but the root cause is the tires not tracking together.
Toe is always relative to camber. Positive camber requires toe in, negative camber require toe out to make the tire straight.
Where did you end on Caster... What degree? I agree, used to teach automotive years back and caster was a valid Non-Tire Wearing adjustment for adjusting streering behavior (Toe & Chamber wear tires). Your Bike fork is a great example; Can also relate to a shopping cart, which is always a negative caster and ft wheel often rattles & shakes back & forth as you push it.
Steering neutrality, return to center track, ease of leaving center track, response to bumps and steering reaction to jounce & rebound... All variables of caster.
From Zero... Adding Positive (top pin rearward) improves holding and returning to center track, and slow steering response... These give a more stable feel on wheel. Increasing positive to extreme will push the tire contact point beyound it's ideal center zone relationship to spindle.
You're correct, adding a little positive will improve center track alignment, too much positive will begin to introduce a different wobble based on tire / spindle angle relationship.
Negative chamber enhances off-road steering by reducing desire to return to center track and places tire contact slightly behind spindle axis... Providing more agility in steering and ease move off of center track. As a off-road example that uses positive camber to provide center track in dirt and not quick steering are Ag Tractors. Their goal is to enhance straight steering in loose dirt and use strong positive caster.
Adjusting caster used to be a common adjustment with older suspension when all 3: Chamber, Caster, Toe were all easily made to adjust.
Pushing a little positive (1-5 degrees) will normally always improve steering stability and retain center track. Too much can induce a new wobble.
Great work & video... You're on track!
Ended up going to 2.5 positive on caster, 0 degree for camber. I'm shooting another vid more detailed and how I got to where I did. Thanks!
Note for F450, it uses different, larger shims, not the same as 250/350 axles. Little deeper search, I did find a good Brand caster / camber shim, about double the price for F450. Shim Consists of 2 parts ( inner / outer sleeves) with a matrix showing what positions provide different caster / camber values.
OMG is this the answer to my motorhome steering? I can't take my eyes off the road for a second, cuz if I do I'll be off the road. I have to be super focused 100 percent of the time. I've taken it to multiple alignment shops, and they say it's right, but there's really something wrong. I've been thinking about the stabilizers, and trying to stabilize something that's unstable, but this really makes a lot more sense. The way you explain this is spot on. I understand more about caster now than I have in my entire life, and I'm old. Can I get your thoughts on this? Should I be telling these alignment shops how to do their job? If this is right on, I have no problem doing just that, because so far they don't seem to have a clue.
It's very possible and would definitely be worth a try! Thanks!
What make model and year is your pickup. I take it was a 4x4? Gas or diesel? Thanks for the great video.
1994 ford f250 2wd. Death wobble after multiple failures fixed after adjusting gear box nut. Mechanic got me my truck back that afternoon.
I do not see a link to where you got this on Amazon. Thanks
Thanks, sorry just added pinned comment.
Thanks! I wish I knew about this when I had my ram2500.
I never ever thought about the old 1974-1986 Chevy with worn out rag joints and components falling out! Damn near had to turn the wheel 2/3 the way around to get it to turn a curve 😂😂 never any death wobble
I followed the advice on this video and it worked like a charm. no issues. for about 4 months. now the Death Wobble on my 2016 F250 is worse than ever (happened 4 times in 5 miles on a bumpy paved road in Nevada)
Does anybody know what would be going on? everything underneath feels solid and tight
very nice and under standing thanks my guy
I lifted my 95 XJ with long arms and a Dana 44 high pinion front axle and designed in 6 1/2 degrees of castor just for this very reason.
I run my tires at 60psi instead of 80psi. I air up if hauling a load. If I have my 8.5' snowplow installed, I air the front tires up to 80psi. I like the ride at 60psi when I'm empty
Another version...I had my Grand Cherokee to 5 different shops, spending more than $2000. Numerous shop owners and so called "front end specialists" telling me this was worn out and that wasn't any good. I was told that all it needed was an alignment so I think I had like 8 or ten alignments done on it. When this "dw" thing started (I had less than 30,000 miles on the Jeep), I replaced everything under the front end except the axles and the differential itself. Power steering gear box, everything!!! Still when I was going between 45 and 60 and hit the slightest little bump in the road, death wobble would nearly throw me off the road it was so violent!!! Everyone that aligned the thing did it according to what the "book" said to do. I knew it had nothing to do with worn out parts. It was getting the wobble from the flex in the tires. I decided to take things in my own hands and try and figure out what was happening. First thing I did was to adjust the toe in to where it had little to no toe in. My thinking was by what I was feeling in the steering wheel, the tires were fighting each other by one trying to roll toward the center and when it overcame the force of traction it jumped up and lost traction. This caused the other side to dip down and since it was now carrying most of the weight and was turned toward the center because of excessive toe in, it tried to go to center and when it got in a bind it would jump up and cause the same condition on the opposite side. I now have over 160,000 miles on my jeep and have not experienced death wobble once since I took all but the slightest bit of toe in out of my alignment. I have helped numerous friends with the same problem and to date, I have fixed the dw of all of them so hopefully this will be of help to you also.
My thoughts are that the length and geometry of the control arms are a perfect match to create a harmonic condition that if they are forced to try and fight toe in, it creates this wobble and the tires can't help themselves!!!
One other thing that led me to this conclusion. While I was trying to figure this out, I put a new set of tires on it because I was told my tires were bad and it made it worse than it was before the new tires. I went from stock size to 31 inches tall because I wanted taller tires anyway. Logic told me that I now had more side wall and the flex was greater than the shorter tires so I had one more piece of information to inject into the puzzle. Sorry for the long explanation, hope it helps you and others!!!
The death wobble Found on road nice job
So how did you fix the problem on your excursion with a solid axle cause that’s what I’m have right now not an independent suspension but a solid suspension. Thanks
Interesting information. We have not experienced any issues like this with our Ford. - Michelle
Yes, I know guys that have the same truck and it never happened to them, so it's most likely that their truck is "within specs" on the positive side of caster, hopefully yours is as well. Thanks!
@@WeCanExploreIt Yes, hopefully!
So, the OEM caster-bushings can fall "out of specs" from potholes and more severe tire and wheel damage?
an example of caster is, think of a shopping cart, when you have a wobbly wheel it's from bad caster that was the easiest way I learned about caster
Can you tell me more about what you did to you Excursion I have a 2003 that is not fun to drive. Thanks Mike
I love listening to you, you're so wise
You kind of left me hanging. You dont show your install of that new bushing and how you dialed it in. A link to the bushing where you purchased it would have been welcomed by everyone who views this. Is there a descriptive name for that bushing that I could search for that would enable me to duplicate your results?
Thanks, just added the bushing link to a pinned comment here. Sorry I forgot to add that, and thanks for the reminder!
Great video. What mileage did you have to do this?
Negative caster allows for easier steering by the driver while positive caster requires more effort but the truck will almost steer itself. Personally i prefer more effort to steer but most people are lazy af.
3/4 ton, diesel engine, 38x15.50 tires, negative caster ftw
What you said is not caster in a nut shell, on most vehicles you want a lot of positve caster, on most you want 3.5 if not more of positive caster, a lot of caster will give you more stability and control, i have heard that 0 caster can cause the death wobble and you dont want 0 caster, that bushing he installed is better if your caster or camber are out of spec, i bet you this guy has worn components he has not adressed
@@jamesbasye2362
Who is"this guy"? The comment above you or the author of this tutorial?
@@pappysproductions author of tutorial
I go on Amazon for the caster to many . Do you know the part number so I get right ones.? I have 2019 f350 powerstroke. I have had the death wobble and need to do this. Thank you for your videos
Why Ford hasn’t figured this out is absolutely embarrassing and unacceptable
Like with everything else, it may not make sense, but it makes dollars.
Those bushings well affect camber as you adjust them away from center. There are split bushings allowing you to set both. Maybe you need those and maybe you don't but something to keep in mind.
Thanks Nick! Like #35 Did you ever do anything with your CP4 fuel pump? I am thinking about the S&S Diesel’s Ford 6.7 CP4 to DCR Fuel Pump Conversion Kit. Thoughts?
Got it all fixed up, working on that video too. It's back to stock, but one thing I'll be asking is for thoughts/suggestions as to how to minimize any trouble moving forward. Have a good one Dennis!
@@WeCanExploreIt I just took my 2017 F250 XLT out and I have no problem with steering over bumps or at speed. It tracks fine. I guess I have a positive canter
@@DennisWintjes2 Yeah, it's funny how some don't ever have an issue with it and some do.
How many degrees of caster did you set it at? My 2020 f250 wanders a bit and the wheel won't self center after turning. I replaced a sloppy tie rod and it still does it. I'm set at +3.5° of caster already.
Very well done video and excellent advice.
Hey, so I have a 2012 Ford F250 and I’ve never had any problems with it, but after hitting some pretty severe bumps in the road due to the construction where I live, I was driving on the freeway at about 65 miles an hour and got the death wobble. Took it to the local mensch place and the guy wanted to replace the whole front end the steering stabilizer the tracking mechanism the pushing everything $2500 later I said no and continue to keep driving but I just didn’t go on freeway, long story short was finished. There’s no big huge like one to 2 inch dips in the road now my truck on the freeway hit 70 miles an hour just went away. What happened?
Ford as with other manufacturers don’t add extra castor because it makes steering stiffer at low speeds and you can tell when stopped ant turning steering especially at idle and they want to sell trucks so they make then steer easily for comfort
There is a reason that companies that make lifts and kits for these trucks use drop brackets for radius arms or an radius arms with adjustable settings that is to add castor Anytime the front goes up the castor angle decreases physics
I agree and to be honest it seems that the power steering takes it in stride, I didn't really notice much change at low speeds. Ahh I can see where at idle it may be stiffer
Hello I have a 2006 F250 with a death wobble problem. When installing these correctly will your top of ball joint leaning back towards the rear or forward to the front of the truck? Thanks
My 22’ with 19,000 miles wanders. And you always have to do a lot of small steering inputs to keep it going straight. This truck has done this since day one .
I hate the ford steering. My bro in law has a 20’ GMC and it steers GREAT.
I have a 24 frontier that has shake from the rear that gets better and worse without any real cause. The shake happens at 65to75mph and we have already road force balanced the tires and wheels along with replacing the tires and wheels and also the drive shaft, but have not had any luck. The next step is possibly changing the rear differential but I'm thinking maybe adding caster angle/increasing the rake would help in this situation?
Are you getting an alignment done immediately after installing? I just put +2degree bushings in my 23 and it now pulls horribly to the left. Your video makes it look like you’re just dropping them in and driving away with it driving straight and true. Is that correct?
Ok.. So I've dealt with this for the past 6 months. I will give this a try. cause I've replaced everything now on my front end, and got it a alignment and it still has a bit of a wobble. I replaced my steering gear box even, and still it is off. also it pulls hard to the left. it so frustrating. I have a 05 f350 6.0. my rear end is starting to shake now. so I'm about to due the ujoints, in the drive shaft and see what that does for me. that and add a 4" lift with new shoks. see what that will do for me also . I'm just at a loss as to How I should fix my front end. I've only got 147, 000 on the truck, so its got a lot of life left. if you have advice I would love to here it please.
This is great, but what you should've done is film it 'death wobbling' and then film it again after the mod on the same road & at the same speed to demonstrate the improvement.
The thing with the death wobble is that it might not be perfectly repeatable, and when you get it you might not have a camera handy (or another person that wants to try to film it). It was an immediate improvement but it was only "felt" by me, which is why I waited a year (and 30k miles) to release it. That and the fact that the linkages had even more time to wear so that if any death wobbling was going to happen, it should have for sure happened by now. Thanks!
Hi, just got my 2014 E350 12 passenger van back from the Ford dealership. I brought it in because of a very noticeable shaking of the entire front end, which I can feel through the steering wheel. The dealership said the front two tires were out of round. So got 4 brand new tires. The shaking and juddering still exists. Especially on the interstate at 75 mph. An hour ago on the interstate, I thought it just be bushings then. We have brand new KYB shocks too from an independent auto aligner, which fixed half the problem. The new tires from Ford did not fix the other half. I just watched your entire video, and my question to you would be: in your research over the years, does the E350 Ford passenger van have the same caster-bushing problem as your old Excursion and newer truck? Thanks for your video. We're not at death wobble level yet, but I have to hold on tight. Good video. I will subscribe.
Which way was the opening on you camber kit facing to get the 2.5 deg. Trying to read and understand instructions but a little confused.
If you do have an alignment done it involves inspecting the " linkages" tie rod ends and parts for wear.
My truck does it too will this cause so truck pulling sometimes when you turn sharp ?
I haven't noticed any negative effects of adding positive caster to the truck. I actually like it more now than our mini van
At first glance, seeing your knuckle, i assumed your truck was in worse shape but, i would recommend KROWN undercoating!!! Spray everyrhing except for your brake pads, rotors, brake shoes or the inner part of a brake drum. Also try to stay away from rubber but? Plz krown your knuckle's, supension , frame, & All body panels. Prevent rust!
50psi is not enough for a F-250 or 350. You have 8ply- 14ply tires. If you just drive around town, pick up some mulch, grass seed, etc. once or twice a year. You can probably get by with 65psi. I have 10plys on my explorer(4500lbs.GVW), I run 65psi(45-50 look like a low tire). F-250,350 GVW is 5,800-7,000lbs, I'd run 75psi(I never usually max out a tire, max: 80psi tires.). Most car tires, yukon xl1500(7600lb. GVW), 40psi(max: 44psi). They should have heavier tire(at least 8ply). You will get better mileage and tire wear. Rotate and balance your tires every oil change, they will last longer. From my personal experience.
Thank you very much for the info.
WAIT, before you try this fix. He's not telling you the whole story here. While the castor change will help with the death wobble, it causes other problems with your 4 wheel drive that may be worse. The steep castor angle causes the front universal joints on the half-shafts at the knuckle to bind up when turning tight in either direction. So, you get a very profound vibration that will eventually break the joint. If you only use your 4 wheel drive occasionally, it might not be a problem. If you really use it and depend on it, the castor thing is gonna bite you. I removed the steep castor bushings immediately.
Tight turns in 4x4 are a strain on those joints all the time, not just with more caster. Tight turns to the stops should be avoided or minimized on 4x4's while in 4 wheel drive.
There is some truth and some bad advice here. Low caster can be an issue, but high caster will not fix many versions of death wobble. The bad advice is that adding caster at your upper ball joint is bad for the joint and eats the dust seals off the inner axle shaft. Also it is worth noting that level kits reduce caster, and make drag link and track bar angles further from ideal. If you want to add a caster with less downsides, do it with a radius arm drop bracket, this is what a proper lift kit does to restore or add caster.
Thanks for the info! 👍🏻
F-350 2016 should it be a split or a solid caster??
What’s the exact part to fit f250 2017 super duty
Where can I get these for my 1989 ford super duty. And what do i ask for. Thank you in advance.
Check out my pinned comment where I went to Napa to get the part. They should be able to get what you need there.
The part he left out is when you turn that sleeve it also moves your camber you have to keep your camber from 0 to a half positive to keep from haveing tire wear so you can only get so much positive caster an keep your camber right I ran a alignment shop for 45 years so I know what I’m talking about you believe what you want it’s nothing to me just telling it like it is
He also down plays the importance of making sure you have no worn out components, and does not know the proper ways to check for wear. He says he "hits them with hammers and everything" checking for wear!lol
Jeep xj taught me about death wobble. I replaced everything with BDS 6.5 long arm lift lol
So when I do this I would have to get my alightment re done?
I was an alignment technician for 30+ years and fixed many, many death wobbles. Replacing the bushing is correct, but you want to LOWER the caster. Ford even had a TSB concerning this.
How do you lower it?
Just the opposite of this video ?
@@jimpetrilb4979 Yes
I found the link, it's in the latest update. Thank you
Found it, it's in the latest update. Thank you
Would this work for the 2015 f250
Tire air pressure should be set proportional to load. Each tire has a load index. A 128 load index, for example, is 3970 lbs. at Max pressure (E rated tires are 80 psi). If your rear axle unloaded is carrying 5000 lbs, then 5000/(3970 x 2) = 0.629 so the rear tires should be set to 63% of 80 psi = 50.4 psi. As load increases, so must tire pressure. That's how it works.
I don’t know the first thing about alignments. But wouldn’t an eccentric on the top affect caster and camber?