I have recently but a new 6 inch lift on my 94 cherokee. Now when ever i hit a big bump or even a slight bump my front end starts to bounce around. I really need to figure out what causes this horrible "Death Woble". I replaced two of my tie rod ends not sure if the others are bad and that could be the problem. I also lost the shims that go behind the lower control are brackets that help them in not moving. This could be a problem too. I also think it might could possibly be my steering stabilizer.


I NEED HELP... any info on what i could do could really help me.

 

"bump steer." i think a drop pitman arm usually works for lifts that large. did you get it aligned after you did the lift?

 

Try these steps:

1.) Inspect the track bar. It has to be torqued to OEM specs at the frame mount and axle mount. You need an adjustable TB for a 6" lift. no other sert up will work properly.
2.) Ensure ALL steering componants and linkages are good and tightened properly. A worn out steering stabilizer can defintiely contribute to this problem. Improper adjustment of the steering linkage after the lift can also cause this.
3.) Check that your upper and lower ball joints are good and tight. Also check that your tires are properly and evenly inflated, worn evenly and properly balanced.

 

I Have a drop pitman arm for a lift this large and i also have an adjustable trac bar. I have an alignment and my tires are inflated properly.

 

Well, that leaves worn balljoints, tire possibly has thrown a balancing weight or steering stabilizer. What size tires are you running? The bigger the tire, the more the XJ will react to every little imperfection in the drivetrain. We just have to make sure you've checked tham all. DW is usually pretty easy to troubleshoot.

 

Well i am running 31 10.50's right now. they are balanced fine. i got under there and looked and it looks kinda like my steering stabalizer might have a small leak not sure if that could cause a problem or not.

 

Here is a good article on this problem:

Death Wobble

 

yup, the inverted Y stock steering setup will contribute greatly to DW.

i replaced everything on mine, and i mean every bushing, tierod end and even new longarms with johnny joints, new 6" drop pitman arm, and still had deathwobble at the alignment shop. (scared the hell out of the tech) haha
so i replaced my already new skyjacker steering stabilizer with a coil over from trail master, and that took care of the rest.

but i'm also running 36x13.5 irocks on beadlocks. very heavy.

DW could be a number of things, or just simply one loose/worn out bushing and can be hard to diagnose. check your upper CA axle bushings also.
also, look into rusty's steering upgrade. definitely worth every penny.

 

6" of lift on 31's?

 

Whose lift gets you to 6" with control arms? You should have long arms for that much lift or worst case some short arms but to just have regular control arms is just too much on those CA bushings. The stabilizer should not be a factor. It just covers the symptoms of DW it is NOT a cure.

 

you need to ditch the drop pitman arm and do either(in cost order from cheap to expensive):

a) OTK 1-ton inverted T steering (reamed out stock knuckles)
b) crossover steering (new or old knuckles, depends on the kit)
c) hi steer (new knuckles, $)

 

Yeah i had a 4 inch with 31's.. lifted it to a 6 inch and don't have the money for any tires bigger.

I have found that the lower control arms on an XJ can be adjusted alittle. Not much but it helps alittle with the geometry of it. I can't afford longer control arms. I also can't lower it back down for two reasons.

1) at college no tools to do so.
2) my new trac bar will not fit a lift lower than a 6 inch.

 

well why did you lift it more if you knew you wouldn't be able to upgrade everything else? and even if you do have adj. LCA's, like BlueXJ said, thats a lot of stress on those CA's and the bushings.

 

rustys has a nice over the knuckle conversion

 

This would definitely help with geometry at your height:

http://www.roughcountry.com/jeep_xj_..._arm_drop.html

Tell me something, how much drop is that drop pitman arm? By any chance was the aftermarket trackbar the kind that drops from the original mount or is it just a bar that bolts like the factory ones? If you drop the pitman arm, you have to drop the trackbar as well or else your steering geometry will suffer.