2021 gladiator death wobble

[jetrocker]

I have this issue. Started at about 6000 mile point. Now at about 9600. I've had it to dealer once and actually, I was impressed with their write up on what was inspected and tested for, along with notes on each component. Unfortunately, given all that, the problem continues and seems to get worse. Lasts about 20-30 seconds and I have to slow down to stop it. Back to dealer soon again. They say they've had 6 so far with this issue but the factory will not acknowledge this as a "problem" yet. Dealer thinks it's tires with low load rating. Rubicons have load range D and they've not seen problems with any of them. Not real happy right now...

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[NachoRuby]

Rubicons have load range D and they've not seen problems with any of them. Not real happy right now...

Rubicons come with load range C tires. 285/70/17C Falken Wildpeak MTs or ATs.

 

[jsalbre]

I have this issue. Started at about 6000 mile point. Now at about 9600. I've had it to dealer once and actually, I was impressed with their write up on what was inspected and tested for, along with notes on each component. Unfortunately, given all that, the problem continues and seems to get worse. Lasts about 20-30 seconds and I have to slow down to stop it. Back to dealer soon again. They say they've had 6 so far with this issue but the factory will not acknowledge this as a "problem" yet. Dealer thinks it's tires with low load rating. Rubicons have load range D and they've not seen problems with any of them. Not real happy right now...

Tires cannot be the problem, no matter what your dealership says. You could have some vibration from tires that are out of round or unbalanced, but it would be consistent with speed.

The only things that can cause this issue are Incorrect suspension geometry, loose or worn suspension bolts/bushings/joints, or loose or worn steering bolts/bushings/joints.

The vast majority of the time it's caused by the track bar and drag link not being close enough to parallel, usually from a poorly designed or installed lift. The second most frequent cause is loose track bar or drag link bolts.

 

[XJADDICTION]

No one uses solid axles anymore on light/medium duty but jeep now (on front) in this country. So not many people are used to it anymore. We're the last ones outside of 2500s/F-250s and up.

This is one reason I bought the JT… I’ve had a lot of Jeeps and trucks with solid axles and I love them for their simplicity and durability.

all manufacturers are struggling with quality control. This is a result of decreased labor force, and material supply chain. Many people working in any industry you will find are not happy with their jobs and therefore the quality of work IMOP, has decreased for this reason .

Do some research on issues with Toyota Tacoma and Tundra. There are plenty and if you think the JT is slow… go drive a Toyota Tacoma?… then try putting 37’s in them ?. They are reliable in some regards. That is largely because they haven’t changed much in the past 20 years and they are way under powered which keeps things easy on the drivetrain… hence longevity.

No… IMHOP the Toyota Tacoma doesn’t hold a candle to the JT for many reasons (I have owned plenty of Toyota’s over the years).

 

[MagnusWolf]

Kind of wondering if the firm suspension is making it more prone to death wobble, my truck has the tow package with stiff springs and it feels like a hard tail going down the road. Maybe the rubicons don't suffer as badly because they have more plush fox shocks to absorb bumps?

 

[zmax44]

I have the same issue with my 2021 Gladiator Freedom, wooble started at highway speeds 65-70 mph at 14,000 miles. dealership recognized the problem and replaced the steering dampener and traction bar this past Saturday, drove it to work today and the issue was worse, undrivalbe at highway speeds. hit any kind of bump at all and the steering wheel went crazy. drove it straight back to dearlership told them the vehicle was unsafe to drive after repair. They gave me a loaner (Renegade) and said they will fix the problem.

 

[MagnusWolf]

Well I have decided to just let the gladiator go, traded it for a willy's edition wrangler. I could deal with the death wobble if that was the only issue but the truck had too many problems to make me feel good about it. I still like gladiators and I know most of them are good but I just got a bad one and that happens with cars, time to move on.

 

[calnca]

Don’t think death wobble is just a Jeep issue.

Prior to my JT, had F350 dually, and had it to the dealer twice for DW. Ford had issued a TSB for same…..check out the Ford forums. Mine eventually got solved, after one stabilizer and a alignment messing with the camber.

 

[NachoRuby]

Well I have decided to just let the gladiator go, traded it for a willy's edition wrangler. I could deal with the death wobble if that was the only issue but the truck had too many problems to make me feel good about it. I still like gladiators and I know most of them are good but I just got a bad one and that happens with cars, time to move on.

But Wranglers and Gladiators are mechanical twins up front. Is this not an issue on JLs? At least you stayed in the convertible jeep family though. Congratulations!

 

[DailyMoparGuy]

Well I have decided to just let the gladiator go, traded it for a willy's edition wrangler. I could deal with the death wobble if that was the only issue but the truck had too many problems to make me feel good about it. I still like gladiators and I know most of them are good but I just got a bad one and that happens with cars, time to move on.

Those Willys are nice. What color did you go with?

 

[Rocksalt]

don't want DW??? get an IFS. truck. problem solved

 

[Rusty PW]

Back in mid 2000's. Ram put out a TSB about DW on the 3Gen Power Wagons with the BFG AT tires. The TSB said that if the customer complains about DW. Replace the old BFG's with new tires. A lot of people I know got new tires. For some, the new tires eliminated the DW. but for others. It didn't help.

 

[Daddiator54]

I have the same issue with my 2021 Gladiator Freedom, wooble started at highway speeds 65-70 mph at 14,000 miles. dealership recognized the problem and replaced the steering dampener and traction bar this past Saturday, drove it to work today and the issue was worse, undrivalbe at highway speeds. hit any kind of bump at all and the steering wheel went crazy. drove it straight back to dearlership told them the vehicle was unsafe to drive after repair. They gave me a loaner (Renegade) and said they will fix the problem.

Just curious, is your freedom completely stock?

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Don’t think death wobble is just a Jeep issue.

Prior to my JT, had F350 dually, and had it to the dealer twice for DW. Ford had issued a TSB for same…..check out the Ford forums. Mine eventually got solved, after one stabilizer and a alignment messing with the camber.

Correct! Had a similar problem on my 95 F250, shop wasn't able to fix it - $2,000 later. It wasn't as bad as some so I lived with it until I traded it.
Track bar flexing, loose or worn parts, wheels and tires changed, impacting scrub radius (when people change things for looks rather than function and design and go outside of the engineered parameters)


This is from experts (real ones, not arm-chair experts on the web) -

Norm Layton: "Jeep death wobble" is basically a shimmy, and can affect any suspension with a continuous tie rod (which nearly all solid axles have) to connect the front wheels.
A major cause is improper toe-in or toe-out, with oversized tires.
.....has little to do with design flaws, until design parameters are tampered with, or damaged. It's been around since at least the 1950s, and is not limited to Jeeps.

A steering damper is not a fix, it's a band-aid used to mask issues with either worn components or poor design. Dampers did not start appearing on stock vehicles until the late 70s, mostly associated with the trend to larger (wider thus heavier) tires on older designs.
On a properly designed and well maintained system, a damper's purpose is to mitigate the effects of bump steer and the sudden encounter of unexpected objects, such as hitting a rock in a trail at 50 miles per hour.
On an improperly designed and/or poorly maintained system, a damper is used as a crutch to mask issues with suspension and tire errors.
Jeeps and other vehicles experienced shimmy way before the 1960s, and before the advent of lifts and larger tires. Worn components are just as much at fault as jury-rigged suspensions.


This is from a suspension ENGINEER -

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

Tires cannot be the problem, no matter what your dealership says. You could have some vibration from tires that are out of round or unbalanced, but it would be consistent with speed.

The only things that can cause this issue are Incorrect suspension geometry, loose or worn suspension bolts/bushings/joints, or loose or worn steering bolts/bushings/joints.

The vast majority of the time it's caused by the track bar and drag link not being close enough to parallel, usually from a poorly designed or installed lift. The second most frequent cause is loose track bar or drag link bolts.

Tires absolutely can be the problem.

The track bar and drag link not being parallel causes bump steer, not death wobble.

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