Death Wobble checklist: Precheck, tire pressure, tire wear/bulges, ball joints, for safety. Next, 1. Tire castor, lift kits push tires out at the top of the fender (learned from dr. Deathwobble on youtube. Longer control arm on bottom needed, adjustable. You only need a little castor, they also sell shims to lengthen lower control arms. Buying stock bottom control arms can add back old, short sized bar. 2. Loose steering pump setting. Always good to check, don't adjust too much, but check every two years. 3. Loose dampener shock, horizontal. 4. Regular shocks not balanced, one working, one blown out and loose. 5. Check rest of joints and rubber parts on arms and pump. 6. Check steering pump play after adjusting upper valve 7. Check frame to axle connections and large frame connections 8. rebalance tires/new tires 9. Check front axle tightness in front differential 10. Get another jeep. 😁

@thedeathwobblechannel6539

4 жыл бұрын

Mine has cracked frame rail near steering box. Iro plate fixed it. This is well documented issue on xj. Weld in or bolt in it stops steering box wobblin.

I watched for months as my father chased a death-wobble on his '97. There was no single fix. It took new control arm bushings (top and bottom), track bar bushing, squishy shock replacement, and ball joints. The whole front end of that thing was rebuilt, one component at a time, and it drove like a beauty again. Sometimes you just get enough wear on enough separate parts to engender the wobbles. Frankly, I'm amazed my '88 still has no front end replacement parts whatsoever and no wobble; go figure! My lower control arms are those cheapy "adjustables" that are threaded. They have at least 1/8" play from being a million years old. I can grab my tire and rock the front axle. It still drives fantastic! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I had wicked death wobble from 35 thru 55 mph every time I'd hit even a little bump. Turned out to be the holes where the track bar mounts to the axle were ovaled. Stinkyfab makes a beefier weld in track bar bracket that I drilled to accept a 1/2 bolt. Problemo solved. Glad to see you're still making videos. They've kept me from scrapping my xj more than once 👍

Its fun watching the like 2 minutes straight of death wobble 😂

Nice job Nick.Hopefully the ball joints solved your DW problem.I need to do the ball joints on mine,they are 19yrs old.....

A commonly overlooked area to check is caster angle. A lot of guys forget to double check caster angle after adding a lift or going from short to long arm etc. Lift kit instructions for arm length may be slightly off and leave you without enough caster, which can cause the tires to turn on their toes rather than pivot on their heels. Most agree that 6-8 degrees is a solid angle to shoot for in most lifted applications.

@TheParkingLotGarage

3 жыл бұрын

Additional info for anyone reading: what I mean by turning on their toes (negative caster) vs heels (positive caster) is how the axis of rotation relates to the tire. All vehicles come from the factory with a positive caster. Think of a motorcycle front tire. When you turn the bars, the tire does not pivot on a vertical axis. The angle is tilted back a few degrees (pivoting on its "heel"). Now take a look at a scooter. The scooter wheel pivots on a near vertical axis. It is much less stable (not only because wheel is smaller, but because the caster angle is much more vertical). If you let go of the bars on a scooter, the wheel does not want to return to center nearly as easily as a motorcycle tire.

I recently had an issue with wobble on my WJ. Turned out to be bad trackbar bushings. I opted to buy the bushings and swap em out myself. Was a lot cheaper than replacing the bar. Bit of a pain in the butt, but they def fixed the issue.

@svborek

4 жыл бұрын

100 percent. I did everything to my front when I had it. Ball joints tie rod ends steering stabilizer

Been a long time follower and glad to see you still making jeep videos. I know I can say you have helped my quite a few times, so thank you. The latest being a Mishimoto radiator install and of course the infamous jeep death wobble!

High steer and caster. As soon as those balljoints loosen up a little it will be back to hammering.

I would like to see you work on that MJ you have. That could be a whole new source of vids. As for the death wobble. Order of operational usually is as follows; Camber, tires, joints. Lift changes Camber, tires may have lost weights or chunks missing, and all above put way more stress on the joints. I would upgrade your front axle. 37's are the limit of a D30. I'm surprised it's lasted this long.

@DanielPace92

4 жыл бұрын

You mean caster not camber, no way to adjust camber on a solid axle without special ball joints.

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

I would like some sort of HP 44 front axle for sure, but I've been a little unsure on aftermarket housings as it seems I hear different issues about each one. Will need to decide if I pull the trigger on one or rebuild the 30 since the ring gear is popped currently.

Went through same upper hiem ironrock offroad setup replaced steering box because of excessive play in sector shaft (which I believe was main cause of hiem joint damage) this tightened everything up but still had dw and exactly as you lower ball joint had very little play. I gues 30 thousndnts is ok for factory wheels but 35" tires create more movement I guess. So after replacing ball joints I have a instance that tries to start dw at certain speed without bumps but no longer becomes dw. So now looking at wheel imbalance but totally driveable. Thinking hard about beeds dynamical balance tires with weighted beeds since my tires seem to loose chunks of lugs plus rocks that wedge in between lugs will constantly change a static balance of just adding weights. Glad to see you doing more wheeling looking foward to some more footage.

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

I have been playing with the idea of trying balancing beads, seems like a neat idea as long as it doesn't eat up the tire or wheel and isn't annoying at low speeds.

use a dile indicator to check you steering gear box were it mounts to frame i seen movement

Track bar for sure. I replaced everything on my front end, tie rod ends ball joints and stabilizer bar. 2 ball joints 1 on each side were bad and 3 tie rod ends were bad. After replacement front end felt like new. Tight when turning and straight. Home made alinement. I also needed to tighten my lower control arm bolt that connects to the dana shaft. Looks like the same kit I used. Mine would act up about 35 and 65. After all installs it's been 2 plus years and truck runs great

@thedeathwobblechannel6539

4 жыл бұрын

I used chinese junk on my comanche. Then scored a rubicon express track bar and got modern. Hahaha

I always wonder what people are thinking when they see death wobble happening, as we hang on for life lol

@elliotthorum3671

4 жыл бұрын

The first time I saw it... It was a black TJ rolling down the highway past me at about 60 in a 55. BIG tires... Suddenly started the weeble wobble, then the wobble wobble, then the DEATH wobble... I literally thought he'd had something come apart and I was expecting either wheels or axle parts to come flying off, but nope... he slowed down to about 15, it stopped, he gunned it and roared off at 80. As he was passing me again, I noticed that his license plate said "CORPSE". But yeah, there are strings of four letter words and only one of them is HOLY.

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

Haha, On the last trip video we were on our way to a diner haver the trail and some guys pulled up behind us to ask who had the crazy death wobble so it's pretty apparent haha.

What your looking for is a Road Force Balance. You need to find a shop that has a balance machine that is able to do road force. When you do a road force balance it matches the low and high points of the wheel and tire, then tells you to mark the rim and tire then you take the tire off the wheel and line the marks up . Then you do the final balance.

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

I wish I still had access to the roadforce machine at the old school. Was great getting to do my own tires.

I'd change the front shock bushing while you're at it, or go all out and change the front shocks all together. I've had bad shock bushings cause death wobble.

Awesome! Now I know what I'm going to replace while mine is apart.

I was rooting for salty potato Nick but as soon as I saw that magnet I knew you were in for the good luck.

Some "expert" told me years ago that ball joints will never cause the wobble. Funny thing is, had the DW real bad and Al connections were right. I changed the ball joints. Smooth. Don't listen to the experts.

You and I have the same cars,2001 Cherokee and a 2020 Civic. New Jersey too!

The bad ball joints might have been within original specs (0.035" measured, 0.050" allowed), but you've got larger tires and a lift, so the specs for an original vehicle should be taken with a grain of salt. Glad you chased it down.

Congrats on trackin the wobble down! (And beatin the rain too.) There's a reason so many jeepers have a bald spot...Yankin their hair out!!! Also, good on ya for chuckin off the stabilizer, they're very unnecessary unless your $hit's worn out. Tire balancing hack- buy a 1lb pack of BBs, crack a bead loose on each wheel & throw in 4oz each. The tires will stay balanced for their lifetime...works on beadlocks too.

Hey bud. Long time subscriber.. a few years now.. I have a 91 xj and after I got a dui and ramped it about 5' in the air and about 75' distance.. I have had problems with death wobble. Once it comes on I have always hit the brakes HARD.. Well, yesterday I installed a rough country dual steering stabilizer and no more death wobble.. It tried to right around 40mph but it goes right away.

I had death wobble on my 02 wj, it wobbled like a sumbitch. Originally it had very very sticky/ basically stuck brake calipers. Changed those out and the wobble is basically non- existent. It still wobbles SOME but my guess is it's my tires. But the new brake calipers really really helped for whatever reason

@thedeathwobblechannel6539

4 жыл бұрын

Fuckin death wobble. Nothing surprises me with it. Stock or 1500 dollar steering setup- you can get the dw.

Man I got an 89 Comanche, that rock auto sticker is awesome :)

Well shit. I've been trying to track down a wobble lately but I haven't checked the ball joints out of a misguided attempt to convince myself that they're fine. Guess that's the end of that. Thanks a lot, Nick.

Also check your castor. I got an actual alignment at a shop and my castor was off. Fixed that and no mo death wobbles

i had the same problem in my stock '87 .. after essentially rebuilding the entire frond end it finally disappeared.. seems like when the front end goes, it's everything all at once. there seems to be no single element failure that you can pinpoint and replace that failed component.. one of the quirks of the XJ

I was going say if that didn’t fix it not lot people know but the track bar mounting bolt hole on the axle is bad about ablonging and you get play there but when you test it turning tires you can’t tell with naked eye

@thedeathwobblechannel6539

4 жыл бұрын

I have rocky road outfitters track bar.axle side takes 2 piece repair bushing from NAPA and frame side is jeep tie rod end. Can get parts to repair it anywhere in the US and Canada.. It cost 109 dollars in 2015.

That was the issue with mine ball joins where shot now I just have to figure out the play on my steering

@aidengeiger43

4 жыл бұрын

autozone86 the power steering gear box. The oem can’t handle bigger tires and so as you get bigger tires it gets even harder it to turn it. Dodge Dakotas have the same mounting points but I forget what year

@autozone86

4 жыл бұрын

I think it’s the 98 I’m running one right now easy to turn but still have play lol might get a new one I got a rebuilt one also the bracket behind the box is cracked need to change that out ASAP

Did almost every part on my 97 jeep cherokee to fix it.

Haha took me 3 hours to do the passenger side, and 45 minutes to do the driver’s side. Upper and lower ball joints. One of four kinda sorta went in without force lol. Upon doing ball joints I realized my tie rod ends were super shot out. I’m just using the Grand Cherokee setup on mine. Not as pretty as yours.

Nice! Havent seen a vid in a while!

Control arms is what did it for me

You need to get centramatic balancers for your wheels they are awesome

Dude your video is great, I'd stick to an XJ they are legit

Check the control arm bushings, chased my death wobble for about a year and it was the bushings.

@thedeathwobblechannel6539

4 жыл бұрын

Mine were shot. Found junkyard rubicon express adjustable lower arms. That and some parts from iron rock offroad fixed it. The skinny tie rod was part of my dw too. Used iro solid steel tie rod. I know stock steering is horrible that y link crap but i have mine working very well now. My steering box also was wobbly. Steel spacer and steering box plate stopped it all .

Check the axle side of the track bar make sure you got a good steering stabilizer sometimes the steering stabilizer. The initial oscillation. And It ultimately can be a little bit of play it all of the rest of the suspension death wobble is evil

How was it after putting the steering damper back on? Awesome video as usual!

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

Besides the steering feeling a little stiffer, it seems just fine.

I had same problem so I replaced it with a Tacoma. No more wobble

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

Lmao.... just y'all wait till I get to the moab content. Low and really slow is all I can say.

It's that iron rock off road steering setup. I see you are loyal to them, and I have personally bought many parts from them. But that steering setup with heims is not good for street use. Highly recommend stock knuckles with currie steering. It's the same as stock angles but much, much beefier.

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

My main concern with the Currier steering setup was that not all the joints were replaceable so I wouldn't want to have to buy a full bar when it just needs a TRE.

@lol123321123321

4 жыл бұрын

@@NickInTimeFilms Ahh, yes that is true. IMO, The stock steering geometry works great from lifts all the way up to 6.5in. I thought knuckle to knuckle tie-rods were the shit, much stronger and easier alignments. But on stock jeep axles and steering boxes the factory geometry works great and actually helps eliminate bumpsteer.

Nice you got it fix but at the min 5:28 or so you can see how much the ball joint move bad ball joint and fix

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

Lol, that's the whole point of the dial indicator, so you can *see* how bad it is. Internet was saying I was good to .050" but apparently that was not the case. I can't find the clip but I tested the new joints as well and they only had about .005" of play, if that, big difference.

I have E load range on my xj. If I don't have 40lbs in my tires I get DW

@thedeathwobblechannel6539

4 жыл бұрын

In the missouri/arkansas/oklahoma area mine was ok on blacktop. Drive on cement and dw comes . it sucked.

Haven’t watched the entire vid yet but it’s almost always tires... that’s why you pay for road force balancing foregoing the wheel weights you’re just gonna knock off when wheeling..

Ball joints!

Nick not having a 4x4 Cherokee? Does not seem right....i hope you have one all your life. And the ulcers that go with it lmao

I was wondering in your last video if you had caught the trackbar moving around, I've found that with the tires I have I have to run above 35psi on the road or it wobbles, everything is tight and it just seems to be the tires.

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

Yeah, some of my videos are a little out of order. I did the track bar bushing video a while ago.

more xj videos please

I wonder if the castor angle change from giving it a lift and the bigger wider tires could be another cause. Like, one side of the tire grips slightly more when you go over a bump, the castor effect or whatever pulls that side of the tire back, making the wheel turn, causing the other side of the tire to grip better, pulling THAT side back, and so on and so forth. I also have an '89 XJ with 3.5" of lift and 33s and I've never had death wobble issues, but my castor angle is darn near 0 degrees after installing my lift, and the wheel doesn't really return to center. I'm scared to change it though because I don't want to cause death wobble 😂

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

One of the big reasons I went with my long arm kit was so that I could dial in the caster better and give it some chance of returning to center. Before that this damn thing would want to swerve all over the place if the road was uneven, really un-fun to drive. I think I've got it dialed in around -5º or w/e is about stock for my ride height and it seems to do well enough while keeping the pinon happy on the highway.

@thedeathwobblechannel6539

4 жыл бұрын

Part of my dw was the skinny tie rod flexing. got iron rock offroad solid steel tie rod on my 88. It is awesome.

hey, i really enjoy watching your videos they have helped me quiet a bit. but i have a few questions you have a 6” lift, and 35” tires did u do anything to ur axles? or gear ratios? i have a 5-6” lift in my jeep and in the rear im having constant issues with my shackles for my leafs being to short, hitting the frame. i have a 4.5” lift for rear leafs with the shackle relocation brackets. i was thinking of getting longer shackles but im worried my rear driveshaft will be on a horrible angle, and i bought 2* shims just never put them in yet. any thoughts? im just curious on the routes u took for flexing and drive ability on the road with a 6” lift. id like to compare ur setup with my own.

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

4.56 gears and fairly built axles. SYE so I didn't need shims, also got shackel boxes to help with angles and flex.

Is that XJ your daily driver because it has a bunch of hiem joints/Johnny joints for a daily driver.

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

*Looks at 2019 Civic parked right next to it* No, definitely not a daily driver anymore. This is purely a toy now that can drive itself places.

Moog heavy duty steering damper. problem solver could help

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

Only covers up the problem, so I kept it off until I was sure it was fixed properly. Damper just makes the steering feel stiffer which isn't fun with an already stiff aftermarket box.

I’m chasing death wobble on my 97! It’s a pain in the ass

@davidjeep6543

4 жыл бұрын

paint all your joints with a white line eazy to see movement

@thedeathwobblechannel6539

4 жыл бұрын

Check out my video and see what i did to fix mine. XJ will crack frame rail near steering box. Mine did and my iro plate fixed it. I chose it because it is an honest 1/4 in thick. I think all others are not 1/4 in thick.they are thinner. I only have a few vids all on my dw issues. Take look

I want the comanche sticker

First minute in video and it looks like everything in front end has been shot for long time ! Maybe you need to take to real shop and have complete front end rebuild ! That might save your life .

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

First minute in was also old footage. I doubt many shops would even want to take on a custom job like this considering none of the parts are factory anymore. Also, if you watched till the end you'd know it's fixed now.

@richardlankford1142

4 жыл бұрын

@@NickInTimeFilms 4x4 shops do it every day ! Also when the front end is rebuilt , let 4x4 shop do front alienment ... You wound be good for another100 thousand miles ! I did watch complete video... Looked like when you said it was good, top speed was maybe 45 tops ! That is not a dayley driver , you wound need to trailer it any time you wheeled it any distance from your house !!!

@thedeathwobblechannel6539

4 жыл бұрын

Lol nick doesnt do "trailer queen " mode. Unless he hauls out to moab.

I still have death wobble can't figure it out

@NickInTimeFilms

Жыл бұрын

It can be so many different things that is hard to know for sure. Could be tires, suspension or steering alignment, loose joints, cracked frame or mounts, and so many other things. Have to start eliminating variables and see what hasn't been checked yet.

@KountryBoy7

Жыл бұрын

Replaced all hemi joints on steering, wheel hubs, u joints next I guess I'm going to try to put offset u joints.. didn't get death wobble until I upgraded on hemi joints never had it before that. That's what doesn't make sense..

@NickInTimeFilms

Жыл бұрын

Sounds like you might need to adjust your toe a little. It can make a difference in keeping the wobble from getting out of control.

Dude the problem is your track bar your track bar needs an ota mount because they arent even close to being parallel

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

Hopefully you know the difference between end to end angles compared to the bars bends which is irrelevant. End to end they are close enough which is a big reason why I choose this steering setup.

@randyanderson6110

4 жыл бұрын

Funny that peope who don't know shit have such knowledgable input.

@NickInTimeFilms

4 жыл бұрын

@MichXJdad The stock setup is UTK Drag though, why would I want OTK all of a sudden? I kept the frame side track bar mount at the same height for this reason.

Death wobble is so "Fucking" annoying.

Hahahahahaahahaha

8th comment