FCA being sued for Death Wobble

[UKCATS]

The Jeep brand, specifically the Wrangler, will not die out that way. If FCA were to go bankrupt I'm positive another company would buy it. The Wrangler is practically a money printing machine. I do think FCA may have gone a bit too far in cost cutting to try and maximize profits.

Agreed. The effort to meet standards rammed down our throat by an overreaching federal government, hurt the Wrangler too. FAD, ESS, thinned out diffs with exposed lips, etc.

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[Bswen]

No jeep shipped large numbers with physically loose bolts, defective stabilizers, and had to rev track bar and drag link due to weak bushings, as well as reving the gear box.

This is on top of simple mistakes like over filled tires and bad alignments and they flubbed cal data on some early units.

Stock jeeps are seeing it, and many have to fight terrible dealers to get fixed. Sure you lift it and beat it, you fix it. Talking stock new jeeps are seeing death wobble, death shimmy and loose steering due to factory issues.

Like any yield issue the fact that yours does not an issue (yet) means nothing

Exactly. Mine was completely stock. I bought a Jeep knowing it wasnt going to drive like my old beamer. But expecting people not to complain about loose bolts, bad engineering and parts is crap. My 2018 was perfect, until it wasnt. 18K miles and the shimmy started. It got worse and worse until it scared the shit out of my wife. Nothing they did fixed it. Some "fixes" dampened the shimmy a bit, but only temporarily. Bone stock vehicles, regardless of the type of vehicle, should be suitable for driving on the road.

 

[Kyanche]

Agreed. The effort to meet standards rammed down our throat by an overreaching federal government, hurt the Wrangler too. FAD, ESS, thinned out diffs with exposed lips, etc.

Nah man, how does it not affect other brands of cars so badly?

 

[UKCATS]

Nah man, how does it not affect other brands of cars so badly?

I don’t care about “cars” per se. I lament the changes that soften the Wrangler as a traditional off road vehicle.

 

[smithrd65]

No issue is no issue. A Mass law suit is a waste people think they have wobble and go to the dealer.
THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A PERFECT VEHICLE. Just wishful thinking

 

[LateBraking]

Posted something similar elsewhere, but because of the same behavior of people ragging on other members I feel like it warrants repeating.

Just because a number of you have a perfect car doesn't mean that everyone has a perfect car. Manufacturers in mass production make mistakes, if they didn't there would be no need for consumer protection/lemon law. Enjoy your perfect car, while others try to get what they paid for. Stop trashing on people just because you haven't experienced problems yourself.

Interesting fact, I thought the Subaru forums had a "blind brand loyalty/cult" issue but apparently Jeep actually has been titled as a cult. And here I thought it was bad over on the Subaru and Toyota sides.

https://www.quadratec.com/c/blog/jeep-brand-garners-official-cult-status-rating

Thinking that because your own car is fine that no other cars could possibly ever experience issues, or that nobody is entitled to the value of what they paid for (a new car in good functional condition) is such flawed thinking that I have no idea where such ideas could possibly come from, aside from cultist groupthink or practically religious fervor.

 

[Bob502000]

Link
https://amp.detroitnews.com/amp/1433767001

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles faces a class-action lawsuit over an alleged "death wobble" involving 2015-2018 Jeep Wranglers with a solid front axle that the suit says can cause the steering wheel to shake violently at highway speeds.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Detroit's U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, alleges Fiat Chrysler had knowledge of the issue: "Rather than address it — or disclose its possibility and/or warn drivers at the point of sale — FCA simply claims in a news article that the 'Death Wobble' is not a 'safety issue' and that it 'can happen with any vehicle that has a solid front axle (rather than an independent front suspension), such as the Wrangler.'”

FCA U.S. said it has not been served with the lawsuit and cannot comment on its allegations at this time. "We note, however, that any manufacturer vehicle equipped with a solid axle can experience steering system vibration and, if experienced, it is routinely corrected," the automaker said in a statement.

According to the suit, the so-called “death wobble” occurs because the solid front axle cannot absorb bumps and vibrations as efficiently as a vehicle with a front suspension that allows each wheel to move independently. It says the front suspension and steering components can be jarred out of equilibrium.Drivers experience an "uncontrollable side-to-side shaking of a Jeep’s front-end steering components and – by extension – its steering wheel," the suit alleges.

The lawsuit, which was filed on behalf of Claire Reynolds, a New Jersey resident who owns a 2018 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport 4 x 4, accuses the company of offering drivers a "Band-Aid fix" in the form of replacing the steering damper if the vehicle is under warranty.

The suit claims the problem will ultimately return and can only be remedied by substantial revisions and repair to the suspension. Reynolds claims the damper was replaced three times in six months and the Jeep's front end still shook

Drivers have complained about Wrangler steering problems to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for years.

"I first experienced the 'Death Wobble' within a year or so of purchasing my new 2016 Jeep Wrangler," an unidentified Wrangler owner from Paw Paw, Michigan, wrote to NHTSA in February 2019. "Very scary (seems to happen on a rough spots in the road, traveling at 45 mph or higher). The front end was shaking so badly that I thought I had a flat tire, or that a wheel had fallen off. It has now happened at least 8 times, and I no longer drive on any interstate highway."

Safety advocates in Washington have been urging federal regulators and lawmakers in Congress to look into the steering problems with Jeep Wrangler vehicles as far back as 2012.

"The Jeep 'death wobble' is a serious safety issue that must be evaluated by NHTSA," the Center for Auto Safety wrote in a March 2012 letter to former NHTSA Administrator David Strickland. "It is also representative of the problems involving lack of transparency and access to reliable repairs that are present in other safety and defect cases."

NHTSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The lawsuit seeks damages for affected drivers in the form of a buyback program that requires FCA to pay drivers for defective vehicles and compensation for the loss of value to the vehicles. It also wants drivers to be provided with replacement vehicles while their repairs are pending.

The lawsuit also seeks punitive damages "for FCA’s knowing fraud that put drivers and members of the public nationwide at risk;" calls for regulators to order the company to issue a recall.

WAKADOODLES ARE EVERYWHERE. i LIKE MY JEEP.

 

[dejatra]

But why the photo of the JL though in the article? It’s evident it’s the 15’ to 18’ JK..

No mention of the 18’-19’ JL...

Mine is a 2018 JLU and it did exactly what the article says, fixed now after 3 trips to the dealer. This is my third Wrangler in 15 years and the only time I experienced this. I'm no wimp...this was bad. It shook the whole car/steering until I slowed down and it stopped. I couldn't control the car for a second or two and it was dangerous and 100% unsafe. It only happened on the highway at speeds over 60 when I hit a bump, so weird.

 

[Sippican]

No issue is no issue. A Mass law suit is a waste people think they have wobble and go to the dealer.
THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A PERFECT VEHICLE. Just wishful thinking

You don't know what you don't know....drive one and it will scare the $it out of you. The dealers admit there is a problem, and they have the parts to fix it. Its not 'wishful thinking' on our part. It actual fact there there is a dangerous condition. Like I said, You don't know what you don't know.

 

[TrailTorque]

Mine is a 2018 JLU and it did exactly what the article says, fixed now after 3 trips to the dealer. This is my third Wrangler in 15 years and the only time I experienced this. I'm no wimp...this was bad. It shook the whole car/steering until I slowed down and it stopped. I couldn't control the car for a second or two and it was dangerous and 100% unsafe. It only happened on the highway at speeds over 60 when I hit a bump, so weird.

That’s crazy man and I’m sorry you had to deal with that. I hope it’s fixed for good that’s for sure. So the bump you hit would they be big or small? Seems like it would have to be significant to cause such a violent shake

 

[Sippican]

That’s crazy man and I’m sorry you had to deal with that. I hope it’s fixed for good that’s for sure. So the bump you hit would they be big or small? Seems like it would have to be significant to cause such a violent shake

ya, that's what it's like. It happens when you go over the uneven pavement that separates regular pavement and the concrete of overpasses. If it isn't smooth, and your going about 70-75, the shake is like the top and bottom of both tires wobble back and forth. I had to hit the brakes hard. All the while passing someone with someone behind me. They were Pi$$ed because I hit the brakes so hard. I had to, I didn't have control at that point....that said, Jeep Cares has been great in making sure the it gets resolved. They reached out to me right away, they follow up with phone calls, they know when I brought in my Jeep for an oil change and called me asking if I was having a problem because they saw it was at a dealer. I have a problem with a defroster wire. They are calling the service department and letting me know when the new window has been delivered. I can't ask for better service. Jeep Cares has never shy'ed away from taking responsibility for not only the wobble, but anything else that comes up.

 

[smithrd65]

No wobble here.

 

[PavementWarrior]

No wobble here.

and? this is like posting "no robberies here at my house" there is no problem with crime in my city! Well untill it hits ya.

JL suspension was way underdesigned, its a fact not an opinion.

 

[PavementWarrior]

I don’t care about “cars” per se. I lament the changes that soften the Wrangler as a traditional off road vehicle.

making the steering stronger will not "hurt the wrangler"

 

[UKCATS]

making the steering stronger will not "hurt the wrangler"

??? Context is everything.The gentleman and I weren’t discussing steering.

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