DEATH WOBBLE
DEATH WOBBLE
Let’s set the scene boys and girls. There you are going about your merry way in your solid axle vehicle. (Very rarely does this happen in an IFS vehicle so for this illustration we’re gonna be in a solid axle vehicle so deal with it.) You’re driving along on a beautiful day in Paris, Tx. Is that an Eiffel tower with a cowboy hat? Great googly moogly it is! The real one doesn’t have that. What’s that up ahead? A bump in the road? No problem for your Jeep Wrangler, right? Wrong. Dead wrong. Your driver front tire goes over the bump first, followed by the passenger. The steering wheel goes right, then left, then right, then left, right, left, right, left. If this is your first time experiencing this your heart begins to race. Your temperature rises. What in the wide wide world of sports is happening? You begin to clench and your ass begins to become one with the driver seat. Your life flashes before your eyes as you cross the center line then jump back over to the shoulder line. Back and forth this goes until you instinctively push down on the brake pedal. Holy hell it’s getting worse! Here comes the ditch! I’m sorry God! Please get me through this and I promise I’ll go back to driving a Chevy! BAM! POW! BOOM! It’s like a Batman episode from the 60’s. You push further down on the brakes with both feet. Your knuckles are the color of Casper from gripping the steering wheel so tight. Finally, thankfully, mercifully you come to rest in the ditch with all four tires pointed down somehow. Guess what, you need new drawers and a new seat.
What you probably also need are some repairs to your steering setup. And I hate (not really) to be the one to tell you this but a steering stabilizer wouldn’t have prevented this. Nine times out of ten the dreaded death wobble is caused by worn out steering. Steering stabilizers may cover the issue for a short time but it won’t last. It’s usually a combination of wear in the joints on your tie rod assembly, track bar and in some cases ball joints. In some cases we have seen severely jacked up tires (broken belts/bent wheel/severely out of balance) cause this issue but usually it comes down to steering. A big cause of this issue is when someone goes to modify their Jeep with larger wheels and tires they don’t always upgrade their steering components to handle the increased weight. There are many aftermarket upgrades to go with from tons of manufacturers, all of which we at Off-Road King can provide to you!
We’re talkin’ joints man. Big fat joints that can make all the stress of a death wobble go away. A beefy joint can handle the added weight and additional stresses associated with big ass wheels and tires. So do yourself a favor and avoid this scenario altogether when you update and upgrade the look of your Jeep or any other solid axle vehicle by going the extra step and giving your unit’s steering the ability to handle a heavier load. Your drawers and driver seat will thank you. K love you bye.