Can someone HELP. Never had a dodge wobble as bad as this one. Only happens if i go faster then 70mph and hit a good pothole or small crack in the road. Scary thing. I've installed a dual shock steering stabilizer and its helped but not totally. WHAT IS CAUSING IT? And is there a fix? I have a 2009 2500 megacab with 6.7 and have a 2.5inch leveling kit with 315/70/17 bfg's on stock steel wheels

 

lookin at the signature, explain "custom 2.5" leveling kit". Also hate to say it but the first thing the dealer is going to look at is the tires. It is one of the procedures when diagnosing DW according to the bulletin.

 

i don't know the brand name of the leveling kit. its two plates of steel welded together looking like similar kits sold so I called it custom. Not worried about the dealer. Just concerned with the wobble. Maybe a drop pitman arm will help? thanks

 

from what we saw at the dealership was more tire related (hence the inspection on the bulletin). People using softer tires than required for such a heavy truck. d vs e rated. Many people never see DW. my truck has been lifted since 30 miles (has over 90k on it now) and I have never had DW.

 

BigBlkCummin.

I have run the same tires BFG AT KO'sin 315-70-17 without any problems, but I am running them on a wider rim than the stock one. I have never had death wobble. The difference in the front end leveling that I did vrs what you did is that I installed the KORE kit which came with longer, variable rate springs and also shocks. I also changed my steering stabalizer, run the KORE steering stabalizer. I run my front tires at 55#s and my rear ones at 50#s. The weight rating of the BFG- D rated is the same as the stock e rated tires, but the air pressure is considerably lower than the stock tires.

You might want to re-think your leveling kit you put on your truck. If it didn't include springs/shocks, that may wellbe where your problem actually exists. 2 plus ins more travel on thestock shocks all but exceeds what their performance range is, shocks dampen out the bumps, but no shock range is relative to increasing the bounce.


As Chris pointed out in his post (#4) the first place the dealerships look for problems is the tires, but if you read the TSB, they look at the tire pressure being properly inflated for the brand of tire itself. After that they look at the steering stabalizer, then the shocks.


CD

 

You also did not say you had it to an alignment shop after the lift.
Dial in the max caster, because you lost some of it when you raised the front end 2-1/2".

 

BFG 315s, search out DW on this forum and you will find lots of issues /posts about that tire and size,they seem to be the cause of DW in many instances,and never use Moog ball joints.

 

Whats wrong with MOOG ball joints. That's all I use and the ONLY one I recommend to customers and I have NEVER had a problem. My stockers lasted for 200,000 miles and for the past 100,000+ i have been running MOOG ball joints with no problems. The have a great warranty and are thought by many to be the best you can get. What kind of ball joints do you thing are the best. FYI your stock ball joints are made by MOOG , found that out when I worked for Dodge.

 

A lot of blame is being put on BFG 315s for death wobble. My question is, is it because of the design of the tire? Are people having problems with other brands of 315s?
Or (what I think my be the problem) is it because people are mounting 315's on the stock rims? BFG specs a 8.5" to 10" wide rim for that size. Aren't the stock rims 8"? Putting them on a too narrow rim will buldge the sidewalls and make them too soft, plus the fact they are only rated to hold 50 psi.
As CD states, he has wider rims and no problems.

 

Whats wrong with Moog ball joints?..Although I have no first hand experiance I was told not to use them by a Steering Specialty shop near me,apparently they wear out very quickly and can sometimes be the cause of other steering problems,he recommended Spicer ball joints,he does not sell either and has been in buisnees for a long time ,so I am just taking his advice.Do a search on this forum and you can find steering issues that seem to be related to Moog ball joints,including DW.According to him stock ball joints on 2nd Gen trucks were worse than 3rd Gen trucks,so if Moog made those I think I'll try different ones on mine .

 

1. Tires could just be a coincidence, but sure alot of BFG AT trucks get the death wobble. Lose them first.
2. Pull off the leveling kit, see what happens.

Not bragging, but it semed like a common problem, but my 07 drives tight as the day it was new (only 53k mi on it).
Start with the stuff you've changed.

 

I'd have to say that I've been running 315 bfg tires since 2005 on my CTD trucks, and never once experienced death wobble.
I'd take the level kit off first, throw a steering brace under it, and it should drive like a dream.

 

BigBlkCummin:

For more information on the front end shimmy and "Death Wobble" here is a LONG link for you on it:

https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...html?p=2444405


---------
John_P

 

BigBlkCummin:

Here is another link on the front end, Death Wobble for you Sir:

https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...html?p=2458469

 

I've repaired three trucks in the last three months with steering return issues that other shops had worked on. In all three cases MOOG Problem Solver ball joints were installed on these trucks. While abhorently expensive, the Mopar ball joints that were installed took care of the issue. I was surprised to find this myself. One truck the "other" shop even installed two new steering boxes attempting to correct what the new (moog) ball joints created.

...and to the original poster. Job one would be to get rid of that leveling kit.