Death Wobble, DW, Death Wobble, DW, Death Wobble, Shimmy, Wander, Drift, Bump Steer

[Lunentucker]

Apologies for the obvious redundancies in the thread title, but DAYUM!, does anyone search before they post?

1. Shimmy is not death wobble. Shimmy can be tires, alignment, loose components, driveline issues, and a host of other scenarios.

2. Death Wobble is the VIOLENT shaking of the steering wheel back and forth. The wheel moves inches at a time and cycles back and forth several times per second.




3. Wander and Wind Drift - Poor alignment or loose steering components. Lifts reduce caster. You can correct that or you can live with it. Adjustable control arms or geometry correction brackets.

4. Bump Steer - Poor alignment or loose steering components. (See above)


Copy & Paste

Stabilizers (Dampers) do not cure death wobble. They help to mask the symptoms.
When your underlying issues overwork your stabilizer enough it will fail, and "suddenly" you have death wobble.

Stock stabilizers are junk. Get Falcon or Fox pass-thru adjustable and never look back.
A slight toe OUT will help to mitigate death wobble (Steer Smarts)
Those are the better symptomatic reliefs. Now for the cause...

Check ball joints, tie rod ends, drag link, track bar, sway bar links, wheel bearings, steering gearbox bolts, pitman arm nut, and every other nut and bolt you can see for proper torque.

Death Wobble: Identified, Explained, ELIMINATED! - YouTube

JEEP DEATH WOBBLE - Find and Fix Death Wobble - YouTube

Rancho | Control Arm Geometry Correction Brackets for Jeep Wrangler JK/JL - YouTube

https://metalcloak.com/sector-shaft-brace-jl-wrangler-jt-gladiator.html

https://www.amazon.com/TeraFlex-09-02-22-110-000-Stabilizer-Falcon-Nexus/dp/B07GTQTNZJ/

Steering Components and How They Relate to DW / Shimmy

Another Good Video on Drop Brackets, Geometry, and Anti-Dive

Are Drop Brackets Bad?

Scrub Radius in Relation to Backspace (Poke)

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[RudeJeepin]

Carried over from your other post, figured it could be helpful for some...

Nice post, maybe the best post ever.

Great video, that guy has some big clunkers to do that on purpose and keep driving for the sake of the video. Just wish they would of shown clip from inside, showing his hand and steering wheel. You can see his hand through the windshield for a moment.

Thanks for the post, very informative.

 

[JT1]

Bump steer isn't exactly a problem, it's a result of your front axle changing vertical position under the jeep. The trackbar moves in an arc, so as the front moves up and down, your steering wheel moves too.

The closer to horizontal your track bar is, the less bumpsteer you get.

 

[exfil offroad]

Carried over from your other post, figued it could be helpful for some...

Nice post, maybe the best post ever.

Great video, that guy has some big clunkers to do that on purpose and keep driving for the sake of the video. Just wish they would of shown clip from inside, showing his hand and steering wheel. You can see his hand through the windshield for a moment.

Thanks for the post, very informative.

the subaru part is funny.

 

[Jeeperjamie]

Thanks for this post, I'm tired of correcting people as well!

Hey I hit a bump and my steering wheel shook a little and it's never done that, Got the DW

 

[jac04]

You may want to clarify that TSB 02-004-21 does not apply to the Mojave.

 

[DailyMoparGuy]

Admin should pin this thread to the top of the main page. Seriously. This and towing/payload numbers

 

[Lunentucker]

Bump steer isn't exactly a problem, it's a result of your front axle changing vertical position under the jeep. The trackbar moves in an arc, so as the front moves up and down, your steering wheel moves too.

The closer to horizontal your track bar is, the less bumpsteer you get.

Low caster can amplify bump steer

Carried over from your other post, figued it could be helpful for some...

Nice post, maybe the best post ever.

Great video, that guy has some big clunkers to do that on purpose and keep driving for the sake of the video. Just wish they would of shown clip from inside, showing his hand and steering wheel. You can see his hand through the windshield for a moment.

Thanks for the post, very informative.

Thanks. I actually meant to and overlooked it.

 

[Lunentucker]

You may want to clarify that TSB 02-004-21 does not apply to the Mojave.

That's a bit baffling. It's the same part number. Anyway, my Mojave is torqued to 59 and has been fine.

 

[jac04]

That's a bit baffling. It's the same part number. Anyway, my Mojave is torqued to 59 and has been fine.

With the knuckles being cast iron on the Mojave versus aluminum on other 3.6 JTs, the ball joints are only part of the equation. I can't confirm where I found it, but I have 45 ft-lbs. written in my notes for the lower ball joints with the Mojave iron knuckles.

 

[Lunentucker]

With the knuckles being cast iron on the Mojave versus aluminum on other 3.6 JTs, the ball joints are only part of the equation. I can't confirm where I found it, but I have 45 ft-lbs. written in my notes for the lower ball joints with the Mojave iron knuckles.

Makes sense. I emailed a friend at the dealership. Asked him to check 21 and 23.
I'll modify after hearing back from him, if needed.

Heck of a dude. He was going to go check them tonight for me. He thought I had things apart and needed it right now.
He'll check in the AM.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Makes sense. I emailed a friend at the dealership. Asked him to check 21 and 23.
I'll modify after hearing back from him, if needed.

He's right - wish my spec pic was clear, but there's a difference in the specs -

Bump steer isn't exactly a problem, it's a result of your front axle changing vertical position under the jeep. The trackbar moves in an arc, so as the front moves up and down, your steering wheel moves too.

The closer to horizontal your track bar is, the less bumpsteer you get.

Yeah, it's an issue discussed in my college books and you can make it worse with certain mods - even with IFS. Worn parts can cause it, especially with IFS.
So you are actually saying the same thing - mods can lead to bump steer.
With a solid axle, it's going to be worse when one side bumps up than when the other side does.
As the right wheel moves up on a bump, in a lifted vehicle, the axle will move farther to the right than with an unlifted vehicle.
When the left wheel moves up on a bump, there will be very little effect on steering.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

4. Bump Steer - Poor alignment or loose steering components. (See above)

Taken right from the ASE study guides? (or you borrowed my college books? Or the Orange trim in the Mojave gives you special powers)
A lifted Jeep/solid axle vehicle can have this worse due to the arc swing of the track bar.
Even IFS can have a problem with it.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

One form/configuration, explaining what happens (from a suspension engineer)

 

[Lunentucker]

Yeah.. That.

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