buddyantunez1

Hey all, I am about to the point of driving my XJ Cherokee off a cliff. I'm pulling all my hair out trying to figure out what could be causing my death wobble and other issues with the front end. Some days it will death wobble at 35-40 like it's going to fall apart, and others it has no wobble at all.

Here's a run down of what I have in the front end.
-98' XJ, 4.0, Auto, 132k.
-HP Dana 30 with 4.88's and a lockrite locker.
-Riddler diff cover
-6.5" lift on teraflex adjustable control arms, and trac bar. (Long arms in the garage waiting to go on.)
-35x12.50x15 KM2's on 15x8 steel wheels.
-1.25" hubcentric wheel spacers.

Parts that have been replaced in the last 800 miles/2 months or less.
-Spicer ball joints
-Spicer U-Joints on the front axles
-Rebuilt front driveshaft
-Advance auto brake pads
-Pinion seal and bearings
-Axle seals and bearings.
-Steering replaced with another used setup. Tie rod ends all feel good.

Now onto other issues that go along with the death wobble. The front locker seems to be locked up at all times in the past week. It leaves tire marks when turning in and out of the driveway and I can hear them barking when turning tight.

The front wheels look to have camber in them. Which I know isn't adjustable. And it's enough camber that even a non-mechanically inclined person can notice it. Pulled the whole front end apart and nothing looks bent, wore out or has play in it. Put it all back together and the wheels line up perfectly. Drove it around the block and they can still be strait or one of both of the wheels can be cambered again. It's like the camber comes and goes. Hubs and ball joints are all tight.

My only thoughts on what else could be wrong is the locker springs and pin can be wore and causing the axle tubes to bind and death wobble and/or camber the wheels. Or one of the axles are bent causing everything to bind up.



Can anyone think of anything else I can check before breaking down and buying new axles and a locker rebuild? I'm about tired of buying rtv and gear fluid from pulling everything apart multiple times. Only other thing I can think of is measuring the axle housing to make sure it's level, which it appears to be. I greatly appreciate any help or advice in advance.

-Kyle






Pics for reference:

Xj88

Have you rotated your tires/tried new tires/wheels?

Cherokeekid4x4

Look at the tie rod. It's most likely bent. Stock steering isn't meant for a locker, and huge tires.

Xj88

His tie rod looks bigger than stock.. But it could just be deceiving.

Cherokeekid4x4

Ahh sorry can't see the pics. (School filters)

jebmccall

bent rims????? had the alignment checked?

Lead Foot

New long arms? I would go ahead and put them on to rule out bad control arm bushings since you have them sitting there.

Still alot of things you havent confirmed that you have checked.

Have you done the steering back and forth 10 to 2 test?

How does your track bar look? Tight on the frame? Tight joints and bushings?

How does your steering box look? Steering shaft tight? Pitman arm tight with no twisted splines?

How does your frame look? Any cracks or crushed frame by the steering box?

How do the unit bearings feel?

ta2tony

Hard to tell if its stock or maybe a Grand tie-rod.

Honestly, to the OP, whats the hold up with putting the long arms on if you have them? I'd put them on first rather than chase down a problem only to possibly have it solved with the longarms. Eliminate that part of the equation.

The next thing I would do (assuming all ball joints look good and everything is torqued to spec) is a driveway alignment.

Next, check tires for balance.

After that probably upgrade steering.

Good luck.

buddyantunez1

They were rotated, balanced and aligned when the steel wheels went on a month or two ago. But rotating them again can't hurt.

It is, but that has since been swapped out to a stock tie rod to rule out a bad tie rod or ends.

Asking these questions has pointed out some things I have forgot.

I've been waiting on the long arms because if the truck can't go past 35, why even mess with upgrades until I can get it to where it cam drive properly? The control arm bushings have all been replaced within the last 3 months and 1500 miles.

Turned the wheel back and forth while a very experienced friend checked everything. There was little play on the trac bar drop bracket but we welded it to the frame so that's no longer an issue. The trac bar bushing at the axle was put in on Saturday and is brand new.

Steering box was just upgraded to a durango box about 6-8 weeks ago and is tight without play.

Frame is reinforced by the extended bumper plates. No cracking or breaks.

Unit bearings are tight as there is 0 play when trying to shake the wheel when off the ground.

I'm telling you guys, besides changing axles, differentials or the housing itself, EVERYTHING else has been inspected or replaced. Although the issue did come around when the new steel wheels went on, the local 4 wheel parts refuses to think it is a wheel issue and will not replace them. I'm not going to pay the hundreds of dollars to say it's something that i've already replaced.

Why upgrade the truck when it can't hardly make it out of the neighborhood? I understand it replaces the control arm bushings, but they are new to begin with. Everything is to spec and not showing any signs of wear or damage. I've literally had the front end apart every weekend for the past month looking for issues, and I cannot find anything. Carrier and pinion were out last weekend to replace bearings and it still wobbles and has camber problems.

Tires have been balanced twice in the 500 miles since the new wheels went on, At a tire shop that deals with large tires. I have a lifetime alignment at Merchant Tire, where it goes every couple months to get tweaked. Last time I took it in, they said it was still within spec and just tweaked it a little to get it perfect.

Only thing else I can think of is axle shafts, locker issue, or going to 1 ton steering to get all brand new rod ends.

I'm telling you guys, I have literally done EVERYTHING that fixes 99.9% of Jeep death wobble. And I'm about tired of soaking money into this vehicle. I am already dealing with a blown motor in my SRT and at this point just need a reliable vehicle to get around in.

/end rant.

Cherospeed99

Sometime even though the wheels are balanced th bad wear( from your weird camber issue) could still cause a wobble I had the exact problem

buddyantunez1

The camber issue just arised and I cannot see any uneven wear yet. But it seems that when i begin to drive, the camber goes away and the wheels straighten up. Weird as itmsounds, that's what it does. Leads memmore and more to think its a bent axle shaft or binding up locker.

Xj88

Clearly not a grand tie rod.. they are pre-bent right near the diff.

buddyantunez1

Additionally it wants to wobble more when turning left, even the slightest at the 35-40 mph range.

4Mudders

Can you swap out wheels and tires with someone and try that?

Lowrange2

I didn't have time to read the whole thread but I did a quick search for castor and see that it hasn't been mentioned.

What's your castor set at?

Control arm bushings, Castor and Worn track bar have been the top 3 causes of DW in my experience.