Strange death wobble advice.

[Dewaddict]

Are 2021 Wrangler started experiencing extreme death wobble at 18,000 miles. Everything is still stock. Took it into dealer they replaced track bar and some bushings I'm not sure what else. Less than a couple hundred miles it started doing it again. One thing they had told my wife is turned the steering wheel back and forth 25 times before driving it. That sounds really crazy and not helpful, does anybody have any idea where that's coming from?

Sponsored

 

[Bob Burd]

Wishful thinking? ?

 

[aldo98229]

Welcome to the forum.

Sorry to hear about your issues.

In this age of the Internet, “Death Wobble” has become a catch-all phrase for any type of steering irregularity; most of which are not Death Wobble.

Can you provide more details as to what it is she is experiencing?

 

[Deke]

One thing they had told my wife is turned the steering wheel back and forth 25 times before driving it.

That sounds a lot like the procedure for purging air from the steering stabilizer after some bone head installed it upside down. It was more like 5 times though, not 25.

 

[Mikester86]

What’s next, say “Beetlejuice” 3 times before driving?

 

[Dewaddict]

Welcome to the forum.

Sorry to hear about your issues.

In this age of the Internet, “Death Wobble” has become a catch-all phrase for any type of steering irregularity; most of which are not Death Wobble.

Can you provide more details as to what it is she is experiencing?

I would be happy to, unfortunately my wife and I have become almost experts at experiencing death wobble. We had a 2018 Jeep Wrangler, that when we would hit a bridge overpass that the seam was diagonal to the regular road, so one wheel would hit before the others, it would start that rhythmic vibration in the front end that made it feel like you were driving down a path of railroad ties the wheels were shuttering right and left so hard. We had it fixed twice under warranty and once under recall. when it started to do it again we said the hell with that and traded that jeep in. We thought we were good on our 2021 but at 18,000 miles we were driving down interstate 94 east of the twin cities and because of the truck traffic the road bed was worn enough that anytime we started to speed up over 62 miles an hour or so that front end vibration would start. The only way you could get it to stop was to slow down to about 25 miles an hour, which is really fun on a busy interstate. It was 15 MI to the next exit that we could get off, it did it six times in that stretch. We had an appointment to make so we couldn't just drive 40 mph the whole time. Once we got off that interstate and on a smoother side road we were able to drive 65 MPH just fine. So it's not just a single bump that will cause it like people talk about, but also just a rough enough extended stretch that can get it bouncing and go into that vibration mode. The dealer ended up replacing track bar, bushings and a new steering stabilizer. We love our jeep, but it's the wife's vehicle and she says if it does it again it's going down the road- moving on to something else.

 

[aldo98229]

I would be happy to, unfortunately my wife and I have become almost experts at experiencing death wobble. We had a 2018 Jeep Wrangler, that when we would hit a bridge overpass that the seam was diagonal to the regular road, so one wheel would hit before the others, it would start that rhythmic vibration in the front end that made it feel like you were driving down a path of railroad ties the wheels were shuttering right and left so hard. We had it fixed twice under warranty and once under recall. when it started to do it again we said the hell with that and traded that jeep in. We thought we were good on our 2021 but at 18,000 miles we were driving down interstate 94 east of the twin cities and because of the truck traffic the road bed was worn enough that anytime we started to speed up over 62 miles an hour or so that front end vibration would start. The only way you could get it to stop was to slow down to about 25 miles an hour, which is really fun on a busy interstate. It was 15 MI to the next exit that we could get off, it did it six times in that stretch. We had an appointment to make so we couldn't just drive 40 mph the whole time. Once we got off that interstate and on a smoother side road we were able to drive 65 MPH just fine. So it's not just a single bump that will cause it like people talk about, but also just a rough enough extended stretch that can get it bouncing and go into that vibration mode. The dealer ended up replacing track bar, bushings and a new steering stabilizer. We love our jeep, but it's the wife's vehicle and she says if it does it again it's going down the road- moving on to something else.

My 2018 Sahara did what you describe once. I was on a two-lane road doing about 35 MPH when I drove over a heavily rutted railroad crossing: the steering started shaking violently left to right. I had to slam on the brakes to get it to stop.

But by then my Jeep already had a Mopar lift, 35x12.5 inch tires, aftermarket wheels, a Yeti track bar, a Fox stabilizer, etc.

This was about a year ago. Thankfully, it hasn’t done it again. In fact the Jeep feels VERY stable on the freeway. Fingers crossed!

Does your Jeep have a lift, different wheels or tires, or any other mods?

 

[Dewaddict]

My 2018 Sahara did what you describe once. I was on a two-lane road doing about 35 MPH when I drove over a heavily rutted railroad crossing: the steering started shaking violently left to right. I had to slam on the brakes to get it to stop.

But by then my Jeep already had a Mopar lift, 35x12.5 inch tires, aftermarket wheels, a Yeti track bar, a Fox stabilizer, etc.

This was about a year ago. Thankfully, it hasn’t done it again. In fact the Jeep feels VERY stable on the freeway. Fingers crossed!

Does your Jeep have a lift, different wheels or tires, or any other mods?

Everything is factory stock. Just had it in and they said they put a different stabilizer on it. Ha been rock solid so far. We've driven over the usual trigger points on the freeway multiple times and nothing yet. I'll have to update in 10 or 15 thousand miles.

 

[OBD]

Sorry you are experiencing this.The steering problem with the JL's is going to reveal its self at some point in the future.It must be a design issue. When delivered my 2021 two door was literally the worst driving vehicle I have ever owned.It required constant correction to keep in the preferred lane. I played with the tire pressure, increased the toe in slightly,and removed some weight from the rear end.It helped.I'm going to remove the Mud Terrain tires shortly,and I'm sure that is going to help even more. Don't accept the excuses you hear from dealers or enthusiast that refuse to admit there is a real problem.Good luck.

 

[sherpaJL]

...anytime we started to speed up over 62 miles an hour or so that front end vibration would start. The only way you could get it to stop was to slow down to about 25 miles an hour....

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/thrumming-noise-at-highway-speeds-63-67ish.10189/

62, 63, 64 mph seems to be when harmonics kick-in on these JL front ends. I wonder if the thrumming mentioned in the linked thread above is somewhat related or a precursor to bigger problems down the road.

 

[herbhall1]

Are 2021 Wrangler started experiencing extreme death wobble at 18,000 miles. Everything is still stock. Took it into dealer they replaced track bar and some bushings I'm not sure what else. Less than a couple hundred miles it started doing it again. One thing they had told my wife is turned the steering wheel back and forth 25 times before driving it. That sounds really crazy and not helpful, does anybody have any idea where that's coming from?

There might be something to this advice. I have a 2021 with 22000 kms on it. Yesterday I experienced a shudder in the steering wheel when hitting bumps at highway speed. I pulled over the check the lug nuts and check the wheels for debris and found nothing. Before pulling away I cycled the steering wheel full turn both ways 3 times to make sure nothing was loose on the steering.

No noises or issues so I headed back out on the highway and the shudder was gone. I deliberately tried to hit bumps to see if it would come back but so far all good !

Is there perhaps on issue with air in the cylinder causing this issue ???

 

[BUSHRVN]

This is where the “25” cycles comes from.
They did this on mine, fixed it for a week, then back to its old self.
It has now been replaced with a Teraflex Falcon Nexus fast adjust and it nice on med and firm settings.

 

[TheBirdie72]

The stock JL platform just needs to come with more castor. If they were to go up from 4 to 6 standard, they would probably have less problems long-term, and improve handling. Just my witless 2 cents. Discuss. ?‍

Sponsored