it most certainly is lol. Have you ever driven a Jeep with a front tire looking like this— could this cause death wobble?
Extreme death wobble
- Thread starter Leahatrill
- Start date
The axle u-joint is not going to cause DW, but those tires will. If it were mine I would replace those front tires and have it checked on a laser alignment rig (most alignment shops). Then we can look at the toe (which they can align for you and take a look at the caster and camber. Ask them for the before and after print out like this one:
A tire that worn will no longer be round and cannot be balanced. Severely out of balanced or out of round tires will cause DW.
If the tire is any indication of maintenance I would check every front end component along with every nut and bolt on the suspension.
I couldn’t agree with you more! I’m removing my spare tomorrow and putting it on that bald tire lol
2 things...absolutely yes on the tire ....but typically tire related death wobble will do it consistently ....start every time at around the same speed, and is not dependent on road conditions .
What your original post described sounded like the bump set it off, which normally indicates a loose component, which is often the track bar as a bump compresses the suspension and the track bar applies counter force to keep the axle centered .
moving the steering wheel from 10-2 and watching each end of the track bar as you change direction usually will reveal excess track bar movement ...anything more than the flex of the bushing can be too much , and bushings get soft and deteriorate as well.
irregardless , that tire is in bad shape , so you are making a good move .
What your original post described sounded like the bump set it off, which normally indicates a loose component, which is often the track bar as a bump compresses the suspension and the track bar applies counter force to keep the axle centered .
moving the steering wheel from 10-2 and watching each end of the track bar as you change direction usually will reveal excess track bar movement ...anything more than the flex of the bushing can be too much , and bushings get soft and deteriorate as well.
irregardless , that tire is in bad shape , so you are making a good move .
Which is now post number 31, which I think is post 12 Canadian.
Hahaha ok got it.
so what am I checking for with the track bar? Do I turn it and see if there’s excessive play in the bushings or?
so what am I checking for with the track bar? Do I turn it and see if there’s excessive play in the bushings or?
Yes. . That or slop in the mounting bolts , on either end.. anything overnight them the dance would concern me.
Download the frame side which is the driver side you can see it move up there and where it mounts on the axle on the passenger side the mount can be elongated and give you a lot of movement you don't want... The dry steering test will show that you just had the vehicle sitting and turn the wheel 10-2 and you'll see what's going on
Download the frame side which is the driver side you can see it move up there and where it mounts on the axle on the passenger side the mount can be elongated and give you a lot of movement you don't want... The dry steering test will show that you just had the vehicle sitting and turn the wheel 10-2 and you'll see what's going on
What iv noticed is this....Sunday I drove quite a bit so it wore my tire out even more etc it’s basically bald on the inside. Yesterday driving home while on a turn going about 70 a bump is what made my death wobble go into full affect, yes. Before that bump tho once I reach about 70-80 I always had a shimmer in the steering wheel for the past year or so now because of the uneven front tires it just has gotten to the point now of getting death wobble I guess. Maybe it is a worn suspension component too though. But to address what was said about it happening after hitting a bump....today driving I notice as soon as I reach about 70 the shimmer starts happening like it always did in my wheel but now it’s just really bad and if I hit any bumps or potholes it will set in death wobble to the point of me having to brake and slow down to stop it. I tried 3 times earlier going up to 70km/h and it happens everytime without hitting bumps in the road — this is the worn tire and it being unbalanced?
John Scoggins
TJ Enthusiast
Yes, that tire has broken belts and rotted rubber which is why the tread wear is uneven and causing the vibration. A tire in that condition cannot balance since the broken belts move around as the tire is driven. Looking a at the edged of the tire I would say the toe is pretty straight as I do not see any scrub marks on the tread and the sides of the tread are sharp (not work down like being toed out or in).
Definitely check for loose parts in the steering but that tire alone is enough to cause your problem.
You can have both. Bad tires and loose components...that is likely on older vehicles.
A tire only can cause it , but the loose components allow it . If you hit a bump and that's all that sets it off , it's likely loose components that allow the shake ....but if it happens consistently at speed , it's the tire ...but in many cases the tire is part of it , and the components are, and the amount each one contributes varies , like a sliding scale . But it can be just one thing . Even just a low tire.
....any time the shake or slop is such it overpowers the vehicles inherent tracking ability , you get death wobble.
A tire only can cause it , but the loose components allow it . If you hit a bump and that's all that sets it off , it's likely loose components that allow the shake ....but if it happens consistently at speed , it's the tire ...but in many cases the tire is part of it , and the components are, and the amount each one contributes varies , like a sliding scale . But it can be just one thing . Even just a low tire.
....any time the shake or slop is such it overpowers the vehicles inherent tracking ability , you get death wobble.
TJ2
TJ Expert
Reading this I think you need to get your priorities straight because you cannot have it both ways.
Owning a wrangler needs a lot of care.
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