Trouble at 40mph

Went up to browns camp today, all the way out there it was runnin great. Hit some trails and went back to the high way and when my jeep hit 40 and the front end started shaking really bad. My buddy that was driving in front of me said that both of my front tires were just woblin really bad. He said it looked like my tires were going to fly off. So I had to limp it all the way home at about 40mph. You guys ever have this happen?? Have any ideas??
Thanks James

Sounds like you have the venerable Death Wobble. Lots of stuff to check.

Check all your front linkages for tightness, check your bushings, ball-joints and alignment. You may have knocked the alignment out when off-road.

Others will be along shortly to give some more advice. You should post some more info such as if you hit anything, how hard were the trails, etc. This will help in helping you diagnose the problem.

ciao for now

lots of variables factor into Death Wobble, tires out of balance (maybe u slung off a weight while offroad) allignment would be another,
i'm guessing your rig is lifted, are u still running stock control arms, if not are they adjustable (rule of thumb is the uppers should be set to one inch longer than the lowers for proper camber)*i think or is it one inch shorter?*
is the steering sytem stock?, check for worn or bent tie-rod ends= slop in the stearing system or a worn stearing stablizer, also check the mounting bolts of the steering box and also the *frame*rail where the stearing box is mounted is subject to stress fractures, another possible suspect is the tracbar mount could be loose or the joint could have wear..
Death Wobble is no joke, last time i had to drive my jeep to work (on the interstate goin bout 70mph) i hit a rough spot & had to pull on to the shoulder & stop twice because of the problem, @ 70 mph tires wobbling like he11 makes your *Check UNDERWEAR* light illuminate

if you got an excessive amount of mud stuck on the inside of the wheel that could contribute to setting off the DW........

I had a similar problem after a wheeling trip, it ended up that i bent the he11 out of my stock drag link. Gave the same symptoms you described. I ended up doing the Rusty's tie rod conversion. Nice set upo if I do say so myself. If I ever need another one, I think I will fab it myself though.



Patrick

cj7xjmj said:

I had a similar problem after a wheeling trip, it ended up that i bent the he11 out of my stock drag link. Gave the same symptoms you described. I ended up doing the Rusty's tie rod conversion. Nice set upo if I do say so myself. If I ever need another one, I think I will fab it myself though.



Patrick

Click to expand...

How ironic...I fixed my DW by getting RID of Rusty's steering conversion!! My DW was caused by worn tie rod ends, I believe. I had the LA kit on for about 6 mo along with the OTK coversion before my DW started. I got tired of waiting for my new ends to come from Rusty so I ordered the set up from these guys. http://performanceunlimited.com/steering/main.html
You want to talk about night and day...what a difference!!! I got the steering and track bar and I fixed my DW with the steering alone. The track bar was just a bonus. Of course the poly bushings in Rusty's track bar crapped out after about a year so then I put the other track bar on. Haven't looked back since.

Do a search on Death Wobble...everyone has a different story/opinion on what causes and what fixes. Unfortunately, that's the way it is.

I too have made the trip home from Brown's with death wobble. Driving all the way home at 25 mph takes awhile. Check your track bar and mounts. Two of the times that I have dealt death wobble had to do with my track bar. New tie rods have also tighten up the front end. One more thing. Check your alignment with a tape. Make sure your toe in is set right. Offroading can adjust your tie rod for you.

I have new controls arms that came with my lift along with new trac bar. The steering is stock besides a steering box brace and a new steering stabilizer. I just droped my front end to put in some coil spacers. But it was fine all the way out there. I'm thinking my trac bar needs to be alined.