vrtical

My 03 1-ton has started the DW recently. I'm gonna try to check the caster angle. Has anyone had any luck using a digital level/angle finder? Also noticed the left front tire is wearing on the inside, and it pulls to the right. Otherwise the tires aren't in bad shape. Maybe the tow needs to be checked also.

vrtical

Well took tires off, the axle castor has a lot of positive castor. So that looks good. I swapped the front tires then took a drive. Now it drives straight down the road, tried to hit a big bump and it didn't give me the DW. So maybe the problem is solved. It may need a steering stablizer, but I'm from the theory that steering shocks are used to hide symptoms. Sure they do provide some stabilization but shouldn't be used to cure the problem. I will go ahead and buy some tires and then continue to buy more as I rotate them.

Hounddog

The two that I've known to have 'death'wobble" (friends trucks) tires corrected.

irondan

This is my first time on the Diesel Truck Resource, my story is I purchased a 2005 dodge Ram 3500 flat bed with 105,000 miles on it. I love the truck and after I bought it the steering was loose and truck wondered a little. I need to point out that the truck has 150,000 miles on it now. OK! I purchased the heavy duty steering linkage and steering damper to try and fix the wondering problem. I then bought six brand new cooper tires and then experienced the death wobble. I also want to point out the truck is stock, no big tires or lifted. I then bought a bracket to stabilize the steering box to the frame, I have the best shocks you can buy. I have replaced the bushings on the track bar and have just bought the heavier track bar to put on trying to fix the death wobble. Since I put the coopers on I can feel like mini death wobbles at high speed, front and rear. Mater of fact after purchasing the tires I went on a camping trip pulling a toy hauler, the tires on the rear were shaking so bad I had to find a dealer to balance the back tires. I can't help think that if I replace the cooper tires with Michelin tires like what the truck came with my problem will be fixed. I just don't want to put out another 2k for tires right now after paying 1500 for the coopers. I am going to install the adjustable track bar and have a professional aline the front end, no Les Schwab tec's. If that doesn't work then I will start out buying two Michelin tires for the front. I am about ready to go to a ford but don't like selling this problem to some one who might die in an accident. So that is my story and I am sticking to it.

Hounddog

You don't need Michelin's. You need to figure whats going on with the NEW tires you got. Either a DEFECT in the tires or whomever balanced them screwed up. Many a Cooper used on these trucks with no issues. Michelin's decades ago were a cut above. Now thy are just another tire of many to choose from. I got new tires on mine. Was told a rear wheel was bent. Zillion pounds of weights on it. I didn't believe them. Ran it a while. Had a rotate and Road Force balance done and the guy came out and said he broke 4 of 6 tires down and turned them on the rims. Said no bent nothing. Said all out of balance. Not a tire one took over 4 ounces of weight. Big difference in how it drove.

Hummin Cummins

My 03 2500 has never had any problems.

I've run it with stock suspension so far to 240000 miles and am consistently on interstate to 80mph and back roads to 50-60mph.

Have replaced:
- ball joints every 70000 miles
- u joints at 90000 miles with greasables
- front drive shaft at 190000 miles (for my sanity...was less money to buy driveshaft than have joints rebuilt)
- tires every 50000+ miles

Always ran BFG Rugged Trail tires...265/70r17E mspn 78589 (DC tires carry a different part number than ford/Toyota/etc than the ram part. Ram tire slightly taller with more tread depth and tire width)

The factory recalls for the front drag link didn't apply to my truck...so I wonder if DC or AAM changed the front drag link and steering geometry sometime after the first production runs leading to these issues...

If any DW remains in other rigs possibly (again mines always been and is fine...saw videos on YouTube and wow the DW is a shocker..!) we should start to collect data: photograph stock trucks that do and don't have the DW and what tires are being run. An excel spreadsheet matrix will start to hone in on the problem area.

RWDCelicadude

I'm on my third cummins powered truck and have never experienced death wobble, even with cheap tires that were worn out. This may be luck but every truck I buy I climb underneath and max the caster on the right side and go one line from max on the left side. Every single one has driven straight down the road and never a DW felt. If you have the tools it just takes five minutes and will give you peace of mind if nothing else.

MtnDodge

Update on my 06- been almost a year since Dodge installed the after market part designed to stop the DW. So far, so good. LOL Even Dodge finally had to admit they have a problem with SOME of their trucks. Pretty sad that they had to put an after market part on to fix it! This was after almost 4 years and 14 separate trips to the Dodge dealer for the DW.....
(so it wasn't the tires wearing, it wasn't tire pressure, it wasn't loose bearings, or steering linkage, it wasn't any of the other 'stuff' they said it was or it would STILL be DW'ing!)

sdmark

Hello all,
I was one of the lucky ones I guess. I had modified suspension since about 8k (current setup in sig) and had zero shimmy or DW....Until I had my tires rotated. It was horrible. So they (discount tire) told me I had some run out from a bent rim. Rims replaced. Still had issues, went to an independent for an alignment and TRE needed replacement so I did, went back and they were amazed that everything was in spec. Still had issues although not as bad. Shocks and Steering Damper was next. Rears and Steering Damper were a snap, fronts included many bad 4 letter words and busted knuckles. (it happened to be 103 the day I did the fronts). I forgot to mention that I have the steering stabilizer brace from BD and all the Borgeson goodies. I still get a bit of vibration at 60-65 but nothing like before and I think the tires will be gone soon. Time to upgrade to Red letters... I hope this helps someone out there. Like many that have commented before me, I believe shocks and tires will fix much of issues as long as the other parts are in serviceable. I might be naive but my truck has 145000 and runs true...again.

ROOFGOOF

Had the death wobble for about 15K miles... I upgraded with OEM tie rods/damper, then Thule sway bar.... still had wobble... THEN I DITCHED BY BFG's AT 315's and its now GONE!

I am now running NITTO dura grapplers 285's. Load range E. I think the BFG's made that truck horrible. I'm knocking on wood that my ride continues to be good. Its the first time ive ran my truck at 85mph with confidence !

JOE M

http://www.winknews.com/Business/201...s#.UoF2TyceUkg
This was anounced today. Its about time!!!!!

Danderson

The new steering is keyed so it's impossible to not have the tre's in a common plane. I'm using Thuren's HD driver's side tre. Ram had to do that as even some of their tech's couldn't install them right. Many alignment shops would goof up the install when they adjusted the toe.
Quality,well balanced tires are critical on these trucks.

MtnDodge

Would be nice if that would fix it ....but it won't. The problem is systemic and its based in the basic design. Why some trucks have it worse than others I don't know. I'm just sorry mine was one of the 'has it worse' trucks. But since the engineers from the east couldn't fix it, and the tie rod assemblies have been replaced multiple times, I'd advise anyone with DW to get the Thule and get it now - and just be done with the DW. At least Dodge paid for mine.

GumpsVa

Had the D/W also. I changed the front end to the 08 upgrade, New Shocks and Stabilizer, also the steering stabilizer, new track bar bushing, front end aliment, tires rotated and balanced but still the D/W reared its ugly head. Thought that I was going to have more front end work done as in the ball joints and u-joints. Had one more thing that I didn’t do change the Track Bar itself. Ordered one from Doug Thule been running it for the last 1K Miles and no D/W and I know some of the roads I have driven over would have cause the D/W. So I think one of the fix’s IMO is the track bar. When I removed the OME track bar that had the new bushing for just fewer than 2K miles they were toast totally useless.

brutal

Update.

My DW was cured by tires and the Posistive caster.

I just recently installed the upgraded 2008 steering kit purchased off e-bay. The front steering was still soft and one of the tie rods needed replacement.

Part # 52122362AH is the tie-rod drag link assembly and the kit also included Damper part # 5154661AA & Pitman Arm part # 68039930AA. The seller included the three tie-rod end nuts but did not include the needed 12mmx1.75(coarse thread) jam nut for the new stabilizer stud mount, or a replacement 12mm jam nut for the stabilizer frame mount bolt.