3rd Gen Front End Shimmy/Wobble
03-08-2006, 07:39 PM
#17
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I just got lucky and found this site after searching for some help with my problem. I have expierenced the "death wobble" twice in my 05 3/4 ton diesel. The first time they said check your tires. Now they are saying bring it in maybe we can do something and maybe we can't. I am not happy about the dealership. It is fairly new truck with no tire wearing.
I have a concern pulling a travel trailer now with my family.
Thankyou for your research!!
I have a concern pulling a travel trailer now with my family.
Thankyou for your research!!
03-08-2006, 08:29 PM
#18
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After reading over the steps that the dealership should go through to diagnose and fix death wobble, I can't help but shake my head at Dodge. I don't know what I expected of them really, but putting inferior stock parts back on will only fix the problem for a while. I just can't believe that they can do so little to address the problem, because we all know it exists, and I can't believe there has not been a major lawsuit or any deaths involved.
03-09-2006, 12:00 AM
#19
Edited by Admin
LMAO!!!
Man, don't let the wife see that or it might be your butt doing the death wobble. 
The poster that doesn't understand death wobble should quit rolling the eyes and start using them. There is a reason the shocks and tires are a part of the checks when the wobble is present. All tires are not created equal. All shocks are not created equal. I think almost half of the wobble problems I have seen posted were solved by a good pair of shocks and/or the correct tire. You can replace all the front end steering parts you want but if the shocks are bad and the tires are wrong or bad the problem is still there waiting to happen.
LMAO!!!
Man, don't let the wife see that or it might be your butt doing the death wobble. The poster that doesn't understand death wobble should quit rolling the eyes and start using them. There is a reason the shocks and tires are a part of the checks when the wobble is present. All tires are not created equal. All shocks are not created equal. I think almost half of the wobble problems I have seen posted were solved by a good pair of shocks and/or the correct tire. You can replace all the front end steering parts you want but if the shocks are bad and the tires are wrong or bad the problem is still there waiting to happen.
03-09-2006, 08:55 AM
#20
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Thread Starter
Guys, please let's try to keep this post civil! PLEASE! 
I started this thread because Mike and I want D/C to admit they are having a problem with the front ends on these trucks and to help all of you and other DTR Members and Dodge CTD owners in the U.S. that are experiencing the problem. Together, I know we can get this done.
Thanks.
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John_P
I started this thread because Mike and I want D/C to admit they are having a problem with the front ends on these trucks and to help all of you and other DTR Members and Dodge CTD owners in the U.S. that are experiencing the problem. Together, I know we can get this done.
Thanks.
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John_P
03-09-2006, 09:18 AM
#21
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Originally Posted by djgaston
Death wobble rarely has anything to do with the CONTROL arms. Usually it is because of the hub assemblies, tie rod ends, or ball joints. If the track bar is not loose or worn, it holds the center of the axle in place while the outer parts of the axle are going crazy. If you don't believe me, go stand in front of a truck and watch. 
Shocks and tires should not have anything to do with death wobble, but the dealership puts them on it's extensive checklist because it is obvious to me that they do not know what causes death wobble. They are just throwing a ton of ideas out there so a mechanic will check them all and hopefully find something wrong. I promise you that I can take my truck with the manual hub conversion and steering upgrades and drive around on any tire you want me to, at any air pressure, with NO shocks and I won't get death wobble. Don't believe me? Put some money down and I'll go put on my 39.5 Boggers and run 15 psi in them with the shocks unhooked. Sure, the truck will ride like hell, but I won't get death wobble.
The problem I see already is that several people think the dealership and Dodge have this figured out and know what they should do to fix it. It's obvious to me that they don't, because if they did, the checklist would only have a few items on it. It is also obvious to me that there are members within this post that do not work on their own trucks, and they do not have any idea what causes death wobble.
To solve the problem, you have to get to the root of the problem. The root of the problem is that we simply do not have strong enough parts for these trucks. That is what it all boils down to. Just like our fuel system, if you want a reliable truck, you have to put money into it after you purchase it, using aftermarket parts. Stock sucks.
Shocks and tires should not have anything to do with death wobble, but the dealership puts them on it's extensive checklist because it is obvious to me that they do not know what causes death wobble. They are just throwing a ton of ideas out there so a mechanic will check them all and hopefully find something wrong. I promise you that I can take my truck with the manual hub conversion and steering upgrades and drive around on any tire you want me to, at any air pressure, with NO shocks and I won't get death wobble. Don't believe me? Put some money down and I'll go put on my 39.5 Boggers and run 15 psi in them with the shocks unhooked. Sure, the truck will ride like hell, but I won't get death wobble.
The problem I see already is that several people think the dealership and Dodge have this figured out and know what they should do to fix it. It's obvious to me that they don't, because if they did, the checklist would only have a few items on it. It is also obvious to me that there are members within this post that do not work on their own trucks, and they do not have any idea what causes death wobble.
To solve the problem, you have to get to the root of the problem. The root of the problem is that we simply do not have strong enough parts for these trucks. That is what it all boils down to. Just like our fuel system, if you want a reliable truck, you have to put money into it after you purchase it, using aftermarket parts. Stock sucks.
03-09-2006, 12:53 PM
#22
Warning...Any further personal insults will lead to IMMEDIATE and PERMANENT banning of the offending individuals!
You guys know better than this and I am NOT going to put up with it!!!
You guys know better than this and I am NOT going to put up with it!!!
03-09-2006, 03:23 PM
#23
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hey, I do some work of my own on the truck, but when it comes down to leting them fix it with their parts for free while I still make 500 bux a montyh payments on untill I can afford to buy the much better parts out there. I agree with ya that the thurein stuff would be killer, but if it comes down to making or not making the payment guess what? I will let DC cough up the change and let them put their parts on..... a bandaid perhaps but they buy the bandaid. I like the look of the box brace for the front end of the truck and combined with the thuren track bar, combined its a bit pricey but maybe next time..... for now with only 28 thou on the truck I would rather ba a thorn in DC's side and possibly be another reason for them to re engineer the truck better for the long haul.
03-09-2006, 04:41 PM
#24
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Sorry, I didn't mean to be insulting to anybody. I am on several other forums where calling people names is just a way of joking around. I like to joke around and am pretty passionate about Dodge trucks, so I tend to get rowdy pretty easily. Again, sorry for the insulting remarks, I could have said a lot of that much better without being offending.
mikmaze, the problem with letting the dealership put more bandaids on the truck is this: what happens if those bandaids fail and you end up wrecking the truck and hurting yourself or someone else? There is no telling how long the dealership's fixes will last. You could get it all worked out and then turn around and have the same problem a few thousand miles later... or it could possibly fix the problem for good. In most cases, it is not repaired for a long period of time.
What are you going to do when your warranty runs out and you still have that truck payment? To me, it's a matter of fixing something the right way, the first time. I'm not saying buy the Thuren track bar. I'm not saying buy any particular part. If anybody asks me how to fix death wobble, I will tell them how to diagnose the real problem and see what is causing it, then correct that particular problem first. I don't want anybody to think that I am on here pushing products or anything like that... I'm just trying to help, and hope that maybe I can make a dent in the death wobble problem one truck at a time.
What makes you think that anybody can convince Dodge to fix their problem? People have been trying since 1994... 12 years!
mikmaze, the problem with letting the dealership put more bandaids on the truck is this: what happens if those bandaids fail and you end up wrecking the truck and hurting yourself or someone else? There is no telling how long the dealership's fixes will last. You could get it all worked out and then turn around and have the same problem a few thousand miles later... or it could possibly fix the problem for good. In most cases, it is not repaired for a long period of time.
What are you going to do when your warranty runs out and you still have that truck payment? To me, it's a matter of fixing something the right way, the first time. I'm not saying buy the Thuren track bar. I'm not saying buy any particular part. If anybody asks me how to fix death wobble, I will tell them how to diagnose the real problem and see what is causing it, then correct that particular problem first. I don't want anybody to think that I am on here pushing products or anything like that... I'm just trying to help, and hope that maybe I can make a dent in the death wobble problem one truck at a time.
What makes you think that anybody can convince Dodge to fix their problem? People have been trying since 1994... 12 years!
03-09-2006, 05:23 PM
#25
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I was just wondering. Has anybody done the research to see (I'm not sure how to do it) if there have been accidents that have occured when this has happened?
I know how it feels and I have heard the possible reasons but I was just wondering if anyone knew if accidents have occured? It seems to me this would be the next step in addressing the seriousness with D/C.
I know how it feels and I have heard the possible reasons but I was just wondering if anyone knew if accidents have occured? It seems to me this would be the next step in addressing the seriousness with D/C.
03-09-2006, 05:38 PM
#26
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I have often wondered the same thing. I KNOW that there had to have been many accidents involved... I just can't see how there could not have been. I know several people who have reported the problem to the NHTSB but there has been nothing done about it. If a group could get together all of those that have experienced death wobble AND been involved in an accident because of it, DaimlerChrysler would be looking at a large class-action lawsuit. I'm not saying to go out and sue the pants off of DCX, but they obviously are going to require some sort of kick in the butt before they start addressing the issue the way that they should.
03-09-2006, 06:01 PM
#27
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I've never experianced the death wobble in a Dodge truck but years back did on Datsuns and Full size Ford station wagons.Would break your thumb when it occured. Back then TIRES and ALIGNMENT.Tires mainly.Just my 02 worth.
03-09-2006, 07:36 PM
#28
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I have an 05, and find this thread very interesting. If the problem is designed in than should all the trucks have the problem? I had a thought, would installing high speed cameras under the front end of a truck with a major death wobble help to locate the problem. I have 23k miles now, and I hope mine doesn`t catch (you know, from all the sick trucks ) this problem. Anyone using that stabilizer frame brace? If it helps, I`ll get one. Kevin.
) this problem. Anyone using that stabilizer frame brace? If it helps, I`ll get one. Kevin.
03-09-2006, 08:08 PM
#29
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djgaston:
Thanks for your apology! I know that things can get "intense" on this site sometimes as I have been in a few "disagreements" myself! But as I said earlier, if we all stay focused on this problem and get enough good input I am going to get with my friend and technician (Mike) and his D/C rep. to present all of this to them and hopefully Daimler Chrysler themselves! We all need to remember, "the wheels of justice turn slowly!"
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Let me again thank everyone who has posted here for their input! "djgaston" and "Samiam554" you bring up some good points about possible accidents with the 3rd Gen Dodge CTD CR (or earlier models) because of these problems. That is something we probably need to look into also. But we need more input here on actual cases of our members having it happen to them.
So,......try to check in your local areas and ask around about this to other Dodge CTD owners. If you find someone that has had this happen or know someone who has had it happen, try to get them on here to post their experiences and contacts with their dealers.
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John_P
Thanks for your apology!
I know that things can get "intense" on this site sometimes as I have been in a few "disagreements" myself! But as I said earlier, if we all stay focused on this problem and get enough good input I am going to get with my friend and technician (Mike) and his D/C rep. to present all of this to them and hopefully Daimler Chrysler themselves! We all need to remember, "the wheels of justice turn slowly!" -------------------------------------------------------
Let me again thank everyone who has posted here for their input! "djgaston" and "Samiam554" you bring up some good points about possible accidents with the 3rd Gen Dodge CTD CR (or earlier models) because of these problems. That is something we probably need to look into also. But we need more input here on actual cases of our members having it happen to them.
So,......try to check in your local areas and ask around about this to other Dodge CTD owners. If you find someone that has had this happen or know someone who has had it happen, try to get them on here to post their experiences and contacts with their dealers.
--------
John_P
03-15-2006, 04:14 PM
#30
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I'll add this here, got mine back from the dealer anout an hour ago, just finished puttin tue quad back on, 
they did upper and lower ball joints, all 4. They said they seemed a bit loose. Truck feels better, I still have to do a few things on my own to make it as good as I can knowing what I learn here. As for the tsb info that was posted, Dealer says there is no such tsb in their system, shocked me as it looked tech enough for a bulletin. if the fellow that posted it could provide a link to the info I will send it on to them with an I told you so smiley..... They did the joints under waranty, altho they said the tires most likely cause the problem. ha, it did it with the stockers as well. At least they did not inform me of any flags on the waranty, good till the next go round. If my snow bonus is good enough I will think about the upgraded parts for the rest of the stuff, drag link, track bar and possibly the box brace as well.
they did upper and lower ball joints, all 4. They said they seemed a bit loose. Truck feels better, I still have to do a few things on my own to make it as good as I can knowing what I learn here. As for the tsb info that was posted, Dealer says there is no such tsb in their system, shocked me as it looked tech enough for a bulletin. if the fellow that posted it could provide a link to the info I will send it on to them with an I told you so smiley..... They did the joints under waranty, altho they said the tires most likely cause the problem. ha, it did it with the stockers as well. At least they did not inform me of any flags on the waranty, good till the next go round. If my snow bonus is good enough I will think about the upgraded parts for the rest of the stuff, drag link, track bar and possibly the box brace as well.