Death Wobble

[Boatbuilder88]

Well, my wife and I experienced the dreaded death wobble. Happened twice in the past week. We were driving at ~60-65 mph both times and It suddenly felt like the entire front end was going to rip apart. It was an unnerving experience. The Jeep is sitting at the dealership to see what is covered under Maxcare. I did ask that they inspect the track bar and other suspension/steering components but I think the only official "fix" is a new steering damper.

Has anyone had any experience with a dealership fixing the problem instead of just addressing the symptoms?

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[TrustWonUSA]

Still have PTSD from Death Wobble. After so many attempts to get a stock Sahara low mile 2024 fixed, I found it. I traded it in on a Rubicon

 

[AVGeek99]

Well, my wife and I experienced the dreaded death wobble. Happened twice in the past week. We were driving at ~60-65 mph both times and It suddenly felt like the entire front end was going to rip apart. It was an unnerving experience. The Jeep is sitting at the dealership to see what is covered under Maxcare. I did ask that they inspect the track bar and other suspension/steering components but I think the only official "fix" is a new steering damper.

Has anyone had any experience with a dealership fixing the problem instead of just addressing the symptoms?

Are your tires and and suspesion fully stock, or at least Mopar parts? Good luck getting them to do anything if not.

Is this your 2019? How many miles. Did you ever have the steering box replaced with the steel one (TSB)? If it is your 2019 you likely are at a mileage where there could be several things at fault, to the point that a new OEM steering stabizer will likely do little to solve your issues. Assuming all OEM, your issue is likely ball joints, TR/DL, or track bar, or a combination of the three.

If the dealer isn't able to "resolve" your problems you may just want to investigate and fix yourself. It's really not all that difficult. Plenty of YouTube videos explaining how to diagnose issues that cause DW. If you go down this path, beware stock ball joints. They often test fine even though they are failing.

 

[WillysMeow]

As @AVGeek99 said and I would never replace stock junk with more stock junk, always upgrade when something fails or just wears out.

 

[Boatbuilder88]

Are your tires and and suspesion fully stock, or at least Mopar parts? Good luck getting them to do anything if not.

Is this your 2019? How many miles. Did you ever have the steering box replaced with the steel one (TSB)? If it is your 2019 you likely are at a mileage where there could be several things at fault, to the point that a new OEM steering stabizer will likely do little to solve your issues. Assuming all OEM, your issue is likely ball joints, TR/DL, or track bar, or a combination of the three.

If the dealer isn't able to "resolve" your problems you may just want to investigate and fix yourself. It's really not all that difficult. Plenty of YouTube videos explaining how to diagnose issues that cause DW. If you go down this path, beware stock ball joints. They often test fine even though they are failing.

Yes, it is a 2019 model year Jeep (purchased in Dec 2018) with 59k miles. The suspension/steering is all stock and the Jeep is covered under Mopar's Maxcare until Dec 2026. I'm not too confident that the dealer will do anything other than replacing the steering damper under the TSB but I am keeping my fingers crossed.

 

[Pain Killer]

Goldens Gone Wheeling has a good video on youtube that you should watch. It's about casters and toe and how to do it yourself.

 

[yokramer]

Well, my wife and I experienced the dreaded death wobble. Happened twice in the past week. We were driving at ~60-65 mph both times and It suddenly felt like the entire front end was going to rip apart. It was an unnerving experience. The Jeep is sitting at the dealership to see what is covered under Maxcare. I did ask that they inspect the track bar and other suspension/steering components but I think the only official "fix" is a new steering damper.

Has anyone had any experience with a dealership fixing the problem instead of just addressing the symptoms?

As Im sure you know the Steering Damper is only a band aid over actual issues. If what you had was true "death wobble" only replacing the worn out steering/ball joints will fix the problem. Try to reach out directly to your warranty provider and speak to them about it, or see if they will cover it not at a dealer.

 

[Boatbuilder88]

As Im sure you know the Steering Damper is only a band aid over actual issues. If what you had was true "death wobble" only replacing the worn out steering/ball joints will fix the problem. Try to reach out directly to your warranty provider and speak to them about it, or see if they will cover it not at a dealer.

Yes, I know the steering damper is just a bandaid. My extended service contract is through Mopar so I'm waiting to hear back from the dealer service dept.

 

[yokramer]

Yes, I know the steering damper is just a bandaid. My extended service contract is through Mopar so I'm waiting to hear back from the dealer service dept.

You're probably just going to have to advocate for yourself then. Press the dealer about the actual issues and if they refuse to do anything about it move onto another one.

 

[gek]

Yes, I know the steering damper is just a bandaid. My extended service contract is through Mopar so I'm waiting to hear back from the dealer service dept.

I have yet to hear of a dealer not just putting on a new stabilizer, best of luck, hopefully you are the first.

 

[Boatbuilder88]

I have yet to hear of a dealer not just putting on a new stabilizer, best of luck, hopefully you are the first.

I'm not optimistic.

 

[CloakedWillys]

Most common thing we see is the ball joints (mine only lasted 13K ) and they tend to flare up at the higher speeds. They won't show play like the older jeeps do using the bar test. You will want to make sure they has consistent resistance when turning. Like anything you want to check for wear before shot gunning parts at it.

 

[Casaflyr]

When I test drove my 2022 Wrangler I experienced death wobble at about 65mph after crossing a slightly off camber bridge. I slowed and waited for it to stop. The dealer told me they'd "fix it" right then... it's only one part, we've got it in stock"... Anyway, I already knew that the part was the steering stabilizer, and that would only mask it. It's "fixed" for now in that I can't get it to death wobble any more. I know it's not fixed but masked, and I'm going to have to do something to fix it.
So, long story short, I'd like to find a good aftermarket "kit" to bolt in to fix this problem once and for all. Any suggestions?

 

[gek]

When I test drove my 2022 Wrangler I experienced death wobble at about 65mph after crossing a slightly off camber bridge. I slowed and waited for it to stop. The dealer told me they'd "fix it" right then... it's only one part, we've got it in stock"... Anyway, I already knew that the part was the steering stabilizer, and that would only mask it. It's "fixed" for now in that I can't get it to death wobble any more. I know it's not fixed but masked, and I'm going to have to do something to fix it.
So, long story short, I'd like to find a good aftermarket "kit" to bolt in to fix this problem once and for all. Any suggestions?

Ball joints are more of a press in thing than a bolt on thing. Teraflex, Dynatrac, Metalcloak, Synergy, there are many brands out there. In my experience it is likely the Ball joints or your track bar. I had to tighten my trackbar more than recommended torque at the frame side to get it to not move around. But even if it is your trackbar, if you have stock ball joints, they are probably bad.

Northridge has a good video about the different options.

 

[CloakedWillys]

When I test drove my 2022 Wrangler I experienced death wobble at about 65mph after crossing a slightly off camber bridge. I slowed and waited for it to stop. The dealer told me they'd "fix it" right then... it's only one part, we've got it in stock"... Anyway, I already knew that the part was the steering stabilizer, and that would only mask it. It's "fixed" for now in that I can't get it to death wobble any more. I know it's not fixed but masked, and I'm going to have to do something to fix it.
So, long story short, I'd like to find a good aftermarket "kit" to bolt in to fix this problem once and for all. Any suggestions?

The issue is that it is not always the same cause. It will depend on where the wear is in the steering system causing the harmonic to start. There are a lot of common causes but not a fix all answer.

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