Cannot solve DW
Old fart with a wrench
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 14,398
Likes: 740
From: Manlius, east of Syracuse, NY
Year: 2000 XJ Sport & WJ Laredo
Model: Grand Cherokee (WJ)
Engine: 4.0L
Nice pics, although I noticed a missing lug nut and a wrench hanging from your right front axle.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 66
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From: mississippi
Year: 1999
Model: Grand Cherokee
Engine: 4.7
Haha! Yeah, I was in the middle of swapping in a stock track bar when I took that pic. Did you see the video I posted before that. The "new" track bar seems to have a little play
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 66
Likes: 0
From: mississippi
Year: 1999
Model: Grand Cherokee
Engine: 4.7
Well guys, after 6 months of trying everything, i was able to drive my WJ today!!!
what i did was press out the bushing on axle end of RC track bar and put in a poly bushing i had laying around from my XJ. I had to put the trackbar in upside down though
ha! so now the heim joint is on the axle end.
I emailed rough country last night about the play in the bushing on my brand new track bar
: They actually emailed me back around 8pm and said they would send me one out first thing in the morning. I cant say anything bad about there customer service for sure!
anyway, i'm gonna bring it to get a third alignment because the tires are fighting each other a little.
I may still put adjustable lower control arms in case i decide to go up a little more. Anybody got a set they wanna sell?
i gotta say THANKS TO EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!
what i did was press out the bushing on axle end of RC track bar and put in a poly bushing i had laying around from my XJ. I had to put the trackbar in upside down though
ha! so now the heim joint is on the axle end. I emailed rough country last night about the play in the bushing on my brand new track bar
anyway, i'm gonna bring it to get a third alignment because the tires are fighting each other a little.
I may still put adjustable lower control arms in case i decide to go up a little more. Anybody got a set they wanna sell?
i gotta say THANKS TO EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 66
Likes: 0
From: mississippi
Year: 1999
Model: Grand Cherokee
Engine: 4.7
Old fart with a wrench
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 14,398
Likes: 740
From: Manlius, east of Syracuse, NY
Year: 2000 XJ Sport & WJ Laredo
Model: Grand Cherokee (WJ)
Engine: 4.0L
Hey, I meant no disrespect. I was just joking. I just hate it when the answer turns out to be something simple that I overlooked.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 66
Likes: 0
From: mississippi
Year: 1999
Model: Grand Cherokee
Engine: 4.7
Dave, none taking. I wish that was the end of it but I gotta wait for Monday to get alignment done. When I contacted RC and told them there new track bar had a defective bushing they said they would get one out ASAP. I got home last night and it was on my doorstep. Not just a bushing but a whole dang trackbar! Ha! Good people! Lesson to everyone: just because you have all new parts doesn't mean they can't be bad.
Dave, none taking. I wish that was the end of it but I gotta wait for Monday to get alignment done. When I contacted RC and told them there new track bar had a defective bushing they said they would get one out ASAP. I got home last night and it was on my doorstep. Not just a bushing but a whole dang trackbar! Ha! Good people! Lesson to everyone: just because you have all new parts doesn't mean they can't be bad.
Did you check the bushing in the second Bar yet? It is my luck that I get an "exact" replacement for the part that was wrong and the replacement is still wrong too.
Old fart with a wrench
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 14,398
Likes: 740
From: Manlius, east of Syracuse, NY
Year: 2000 XJ Sport & WJ Laredo
Model: Grand Cherokee (WJ)
Engine: 4.0L
I was looking at the RC 4" lift kits at Morris and the kit has a track bar mount with a unit-body stiffener in it. I notice there is a problem with broken bolts and frame areas around the steering box on the WJs with lifts, so I was wondering if your frame was flexing. They actually thinned the metal on the WJ's to make them lighter.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 66
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From: mississippi
Year: 1999
Model: Grand Cherokee
Engine: 4.7
Well guys. It's still there
I installed the new track bar and the bushing on axle end still moves a little. Enough to notice it. It's not the bolt moving, I welded a washer and watched it real close. It's actually the bushing. Do y'all think with a little bit of play, it will cause DW at 35mph??
I installed the new track bar and the bushing on axle end still moves a little. Enough to notice it. It's not the bolt moving, I welded a washer and watched it real close. It's actually the bushing. Do y'all think with a little bit of play, it will cause DW at 35mph??
Old fart with a wrench
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 14,398
Likes: 740
From: Manlius, east of Syracuse, NY
Year: 2000 XJ Sport & WJ Laredo
Model: Grand Cherokee (WJ)
Engine: 4.0L
I cannot believe this thread is still alive and you haven't found the problem yet! Maybe you could mount a camera underneath and drive it until it wobbles. That might help isolate the problem. You might need a drop bracket for the track bar to make it act straighter on the axle.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 66
Likes: 0
From: mississippi
Year: 1999
Model: Grand Cherokee
Engine: 4.7
I cannot believe this thread is still alive and you haven't found the problem yet! Maybe you could mount a camera underneath and drive it until it wobbles. That might help isolate the problem. You might need a drop bracket for the track bar to make it act straighter on the axle.
But even that I would think wouldn't let the wobble be so bad at 35mph. At only 3 inches of lift
you said there is still a lil play in the axle end of the track bar? im having the same kind of dw issue on mine, but at 45+ mph, and does not move at all at the axle end. not even a bit. (mine is a bad heim at the frame end of the track bar) i bet that is still your culprit. might wanna try a different brand track bar. ( ive had bad ball joints, control arm bushings, bad tie rod ends and u joints on each side of the axle, bad at the same time, with NO death wobble, even at 80+ mph) this has lead me to believe that those dont really cause DW. (and by DW i mean the extremely violent shaking that is set off! not bumpsteer or a lil shimmy here and there) its always the track bar. in your case it is too. you said the bolt does not move, its the bushing. it might just be a crappy quality. but anyway like i said maybe try a different bar. mine has absolutely NO play at the axle end (99 wj 4 inch long arm lift)
Last edited by xjmachine; Aug 27, 2015 at 09:36 AM.




