***SOLVED*** Troubleshooting death wobble after lift

[Deleted member 64316]

A little more than a year ago I installed a 2-inch coil spacer lift on my 2020 JLUR. At that time, I also added Mopar front lower control arms, Clayton offroad front and rear bump stop extensions, Clayton front brake line brackets, Teraflex shock extension brackets, Synergy parking brake relocation bracket, and Metalcloak front track bar (upgraded trackbar hardware to 9/16" grade 8 hex bolts, washers, and nuts). The alignment was checked at a reputable shop afterwards and everything looked great. Caster was at 5.2 degrees. The Jeep rode nice and smooth, steering felt solid, no shimmy at any speed, tracked well. The suspension has been entirely trouble-free since it was installed. This was a good set-up at the time based on budget and how I planned to use the Jeep. Since then, however, I have added a fair amount of weight to the vehicle (e.g., winch, interior cargo storage rack, tools, offroad recovery gear, etc.) and found myself in need of suspension upgrades again.

About one month ago, I replaced the Teraflex shock extension brackets and OEM shocks with Bilstein 5100 series shocks. This past weekend I replaced the coil spacers with Clayton 2.5" dual rate coils and added Clayton Overland+ upper & lower rear control arms (set at the lengths recommended by Clayton). During the install, I replaced all rear control arms, torqued them to spec, and then tightened down the control arm jam nuts. The OEM rear track bar and sway bar end links were removed and reinstalled as well to prevent any prebind in the bushings (which looked to be in good shape). I have a rear track bar bracket that needs to be installed when I get the chance.

The front coil spacers were replaced with Clayton 2.5" coils as well. I also removed, extended, and reinstalled the Metalcloak front track bar after installing the coils to prevent prebind. The front upper control arms are still the original OEM control arms (58,000 miles). As mentioned above, the front lower control arms were upgraded to Mopar extended length arms when I installed the coil spacers last year (less than 10,000 miles ago). I lengthened the OEM drag link. I removed and re-installed sway bar end links while installing the front coils. I have not yet loosened and retightened any of the control arm bolts on the front suspension since installing the Clayton coils.

Took the Jeep for a few short drives on Tuesday, nothing more than 2-3 miles, and everything felt nice and solid. The honeymoon period was short-lived. On Wednesday morning I was driving the Jeep and noticed a pretty significant shimmy in the steering wheel about a mile in the drive. The shimmy seemed to get worse as my speed increased. I just kept driving, knowing I would need to address the issue later that night, but didn't think much else of it. Roughly five miles into the drive, I was going around a soft turn at about 40 MPH and suddenly the death wobble began. Didn't feel any major bumps in the road when the death wobble started, I was just turning. I have never experienced death wobble before but can definitely see where it got its name! I drove the jeep for another 20-30 miles on Wednesday, including interstate and poorly maintained roads, without any more death wobble making an appearance. Although I still had some shimmy in the steering wheel, it felt improved after the death wobble, which seemed very odd to me. Wednesday night I checked the torque for the front track bar, lock nut, and drag link pinch bolt. These seemed to be the most likely culprits for the issues I was experiencing. Lo and behold, the axle-side track bar bolt needed a little tightening to get to 110 ft lbs of torque. Frame-side bolt was good to go. Drag link was good to go as well. Took the Jeep for a short test drive Wednesday night and everything felt great.

Thursday morning, however, I experienced death wobble on three separate occasions on my way to work. Although the death wobble was mild compared to Wednesday morning, it was present and significant. I drove the same route as the day before, during which I did not experience any death wobble issues.

I have already ordered Clayton front upper control arms to adjust for caster angle. Plan to go back tonight and check torque on front track bar again. Do forum members have any other recommendations for things I can check that might explain the issues I am having?

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[Roky]

A little more than a year ago I installed a 2-inch coil spacer lift on my 2020 JLUR. At that time, I also added Mopar front lower control arms, Clayton offroad front and rear bump stop extensions, Clayton front brake line brackets, Teraflex shock extension brackets, Synergy parking brake relocation bracket, and Metalcloak front track bar (upgraded trackbar hardware to 9/16" grade 8 hex bolts, washers, and nuts). The alignment was checked at a reputable shop afterwards and everything looked great. Caster was at 5.2 degrees. The Jeep rode nice and smooth, steering felt solid, no shimmy at any speed, tracked well. The suspension has been entirely trouble-free since it was installed. This was a good set-up at the time based on budget and how I planned to use the Jeep. Since then, however, I have added a fair amount of weight to the vehicle (e.g., winch, interior cargo storage rack, tools, offroad recovery gear, etc.) and found myself in need of suspension upgrades again.

About one month ago, I replaced the Teraflex shock extension brackets and OEM shocks with Bilstein 5100 series shocks. This past weekend I replaced the coil spacers with Clayton 2.5" dual rate coils and added Clayton Overland+ upper & lower rear control arms (set at the lengths recommended by Clayton). During the install, I replaced all rear control arms, torqued them to spec, and then tightened down the control arm jam nuts. The OEM rear track bar and sway bar end links were removed and reinstalled as well to prevent any prebind in the bushings (which looked to be in good shape). I have a rear track bar bracket that needs to be installed when I get the chance.

The front coil spacers were replaced with Clayton 2.5" coils as well. I also removed, extended, and reinstalled the Metalcloak front track bar after installing the coils to prevent prebind. The front upper control arms are still the original OEM control arms (58,000 miles). As mentioned above, the front lower control arms were upgraded to Mopar extended length arms when I installed the coil spacers last year (less than 10,000 miles ago). I lengthened the OEM drag link. I removed and re-installed sway bar end links while installing the front coils. I have not yet loosened and retightened any of the control arm bolts on the front suspension since installing the Clayton coils.

Took the Jeep for a few short drives on Tuesday, nothing more than 2-3 miles, and everything felt nice and solid. The honeymoon period was short-lived. On Wednesday morning I was driving the Jeep and noticed a pretty significant shimmy in the steering wheel about a mile in the drive. The shimmy seemed to get worse as my speed increased. I just kept driving, knowing I would need to address the issue later that night, but didn't think much else of it. Roughly five miles into the drive, I was going around a soft turn at about 40 MPH and suddenly the death wobble began. Didn't feel any major bumps in the road when the death wobble started, I was just turning. I have never experienced death wobble before but can definitely see where it got its name! I drove the jeep for another 20-30 miles on Wednesday, including interstate and poorly maintained roads, without any more death wobble making an appearance. Although I still had some shimmy in the steering wheel, it felt improved after the death wobble, which seemed very odd to me. Wednesday night I checked the torque for the front track bar, lock nut, and drag link pinch bolt. These seemed to be the most likely culprits for the issues I was experiencing. Lo and behold, the axle-side track bar bolt needed a little tightening to get to 110 ft lbs of torque. Frame-side bolt was good to go. Drag link was good to go as well. Took the Jeep for a short test drive Wednesday night and everything felt great.

Thursday morning, however, I experienced death wobble on three separate occasions on my way to work. Although the death wobble was mild compared to Wednesday morning, it was present and significant. I drove the same route as the day before, during which I did not experience any death wobble issues.

I have already ordered Clayton front upper control arms to adjust for caster angle. Plan to go back tonight and check torque on front track bar again. Do forum members have any other recommendations for things I can check that might explain the issues I am having?

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...ble-an-algorithm-to-diagnose-the-issue.62313/

 

[Deleted member 64316]

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...ble-an-algorithm-to-diagnose-the-issue.62313/

Awesome resource, thank you for replying with it! I remember reading through that thread some years but was not having any issues at the time.

Reading through it again, I think I may have identified the possible explanation for the death wobble. During installation of the Metalcloak front track bar, I ate through the grinder bit while widening the window pocket on the bottom of the OEM frame-side axle bracket. The track bar was so close to fitting into the bracket, that I decided to wallow out the top of the track bar bolt hole on the bracket. Realizing now that was an excellent way to introduce slop into the system, and a great way to increase the chances I would experience issues like this lol.

I did a brief search and found the Teraflex bracket which I could lay over the top of the OEM bracket- https://teraflex.com/jl-jt-front-track-bar-axle-bracket-kit-2-5-3-5-lift.html#. Don't have the skills or tools to weld a new bracket on. The Teraflex bracket would require new holes to be drilled and looks like it would eliminate the issue that I introduced by wallowing out the bolt hole. Compatible with 2.5" lift as well. Thoughts?

 

[TorturedMargot]

Just to be thorough, I would check the torque on your trackbar bushings, as is best practice. Should be at 160 lb-ft. Make sure it is done by hand, not by impact.

 

[Deleted member 64316]

Just to be thorough, I would check the torque on your trackbar bushings, as is best practice. Should be at 160 lb-ft. Make sure it is done by hand, not by impact.

Good point here. I had not thought to check the torque on the bushings. Although I did not have any issues with the bushings when previously installed, they were never checked to begin with and could also have loosened up throughout this whole process.

 

[TorturedMargot]

Good point here. I had not thought to check the torque on the bushings. Although I did not have any issues with the bushings when previously installed, they were never checked to begin with and could also have loosened up throughout this whole process.

I have the Steersmarts Yeti XD trackbar with the "pro" bushings. It is a phenomenal trackbar, but a week after initial install, I had some slight DW. Checked the torque and it needed to be re-torqued, loosened by around 40 pounds or so. Tightened to 160 and never had any issues since. Most MFG say to check torque after 300 miles, so it all made sense to me. Admittedly I might have been in a hurry the first time. Not a bad idea to check torque on other things too, it goes quick when that's all you gotta do.

 

[Roky]

Awesome resource, thank you for replying with it! I remember reading through that thread some years but was not having any issues at the time.

Reading through it again, I think I may have identified the possible explanation for the death wobble. During installation of the Metalcloak front track bar, I ate through the grinder bit while widening the window pocket on the bottom of the OEM frame-side axle bracket. The track bar was so close to fitting into the bracket, that I decided to wallow out the top of the track bar bolt hole on the bracket. Realizing now that was an excellent way to introduce slop into the system, and a great way to increase the chances I would experience issues like this lol.

I did a brief search and found the Teraflex bracket which I could lay over the top of the OEM bracket- https://teraflex.com/jl-jt-front-track-bar-axle-bracket-kit-2-5-3-5-lift.html#. Don't have the skills or tools to weld a new bracket on. The Teraflex bracket would require new holes to be drilled and looks like it would eliminate the issue that I introduced by wallowing out the bolt hole. Compatible with 2.5" lift as well. Thoughts?

If you can set your MC track bar to oem length then you can use a raised t.b. bracket with a 2.5” lift ( providing you got exactly 2.5”) if you got more lift, you’ll have to adjust accordingly…..just make sure that it doesn’t get out of parallel with the drag link, or you’ll induce bump steer……another way to do it is to get a Steersmarts steering stabilizer relocation bracket and tie rod clamp and relocate the ss….. the bracket has a secondary bolt to help stabilize it….

 

[Deleted member 64316]

I have the Steersmarts Yeti XD trackbar with the "pro" bushings. It is a phenomenal trackbar, but a week after initial install, I had some slight DW. Checked the torque and it needed to be re-torqued, loosened by around 40 pounds or so. Tightened to 160 and never had any issues since. Most MFG say to check torque after 300 miles, so it all made sense to me. Admittedly I might have been in a hurry the first time. Not a bad idea to check torque on other things too, it goes quick when that's all you gotta do.

Very interesting. Learned something new today. Would not have even considered checking the bushings unitl you mentioned it.

 

[Deleted member 64316]

If you can set your MC track bar to oem length then you can use a raised t.b. bracket with a 2.5” lift ( providing you got exactly 2.5”) if you got more lift, you’ll have to adjust accordingly…..just make sure that it doesn’t get out of parallel with the drag link, or you’ll induce bump steer……another way to do it is to get a Steersmarts steering stabilizer relocation bracket and tie rod clamp and relocate the ss….. the bracket has a secondary bolt to help stabilize it….

Should be good to go with this. According to Metalcloak's website, the front track bar can be set slightly shorter than OEM length. The lift yielded close to 3" of lift, so I think the Teraflex bracket should work. Will update this thread once it has been resolved. Thanks again for the help!

 

[mikem20]

Wasn’t the TB torque supposed to be at 180#?

I wonder how the stock ball joints are holding up.

 

[Deleted member 64316]

Wasn’t the TB torque supposed to be at 180#?

I wonder how the stock ball joints are holding up.

Metalcloak and OEM both state 110# for bolts on frame and axle. Unless you're talking about the lock nut? Which was tightened down well above that. My torque wrench only goes up to 150# and I tightened the lock nut down at least that much.

I didn't remove the ball joints, but they felt good when I checked for movement while in the knuckles about 5,000 miles ago. Tend not to think it's the balljoints as there were no signs before the lift, and it is now very significant immediately after the lift was installed. Leads me to believe it's one of the components that were removed during the intall. I have considered using this as an excuse to upgrade the balljoints anyways though .

 

[mikem20]

110 seemed low but I see it in the mopar lift instructions.
Found this on here.

it does seem like it’s related to something you’ve changed recently. Frustrating for sure.

I think i was thinking the control arm mounts.

 

[Deleted member 64316]

110 seemed low but I see it in the mopar lift instructions.
Found this on here.

it does seem like it’s related to something you’ve changed recently. Frustrating for sure.

I think i was thinking the control arm mounts.

Appreciate the help either way. It’s useful to talk through these things. At least it is for me.

I have a set of Clayton Overland+ front upper control arms and the Teraflex bracket on order. Will be able to start testing some of the ideas we discussed once those arrive. I will check the torque for the track bar bushings first though. That will be easier to test than the bracket or control arms. If either bushing is loose, I’ll probably torque to spec and run for a few days to test it out. If both bushings are good, the Teraflex bracket will be first in my line of tests. Although I didn’t touch the upper control arms, I can’t shake the thought that they might be introducing enough shimmy into the steering to throw the whole system out of whack, which exacerbates the stress on the track bar bolt hole I conveniently wallowed out.

 

[Tyderian]

@DBBHride I noticed you didn't mention anything about your wheels and tires.
See my post here about my own recent DW experience and solution.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...r-some-jeep-owners.107670/page-5#post-2248582

 

[Deleted member 64316]

Thanks for sharing, @Tyderian. Assuming there have not been any issues since you wrote about this in February?

I’ll confirm the wheels are balanced once I have ruled out the possibilities already mentioned in this thread. I’m trained and think like a scientist, so changing only one variable at a time is a near must for me.

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