mijpa

I read some trucks have it and some don't. Does it matter what year your truck is? It seems like it can happen no matter what year.

I just read 2004 with a leveling kit Has it Thank GOD I haven't experienced it and i too have a leveling kit with 33's. Is the issue only with 35's? Or will i just get one day?

djgaston

Death wobble does not discriminate. It doesn't matter what year your truck is, how much lift or stock height, what size tires, etc. Death wobble happens when a part or parts of your steering system wear out and have too much slop, so the axle is able to move side to side while moving down the road.
The most common cause is the track bar wearing out, however it can also be caused by worn tie rod ends. Generally, the culprit will be the track bar, which is solely responsible for controlling the side to side movement of the axle. When it gets even a minor amount of play in it, you will feel it all over. The steering wheel will violently shake back and forth, the truck sways side to side, hops around, and the truck is not controllable for the most part. All you can do is get on the brakes and get off the road, hopefully there is nobody near you. Then you make the decision of spending $200 +/- and getting a stock replacement so you can go through this again at a later date, or you upgrade. I have a Thuren track bar sitting in my shop that not only is much stronger than the stock bar, but is also adjustable so you can get your axle centered just right after adding any amount of lift. His bar is not much more than the stock bar, but it is much more reliable. http://www.thurenfabrication.com

ratat98

I had a 1947 ****** Jeep that had the death wobble (of course it could only go 35mph, so it wasnt really a "death" wobble..more like a cheap hydraulic system) It did it in front of a cop one day and i was amazed that he didnt pull me over! I finnaly looked at it, and pretty much every part of the steering was very loose, so im assuming this can happen on all vehicles?

mijpa

Well That's Sucks.


Just have to wait for it to happen Not knowing when and if it will ever happen. Could cause a serious problem. Especially driving with small children in the vehicle.

SOUNDS REAL SAFE.

bigdav160

My truck had the shakes bad. Just a large expansion joint in the freeway would get the truck shaking violently. It made my wife afraid to drive the truck.

I'm going to disagree slightly with Mr. Gaston. I think it is more than a loose track bar causing this condition. Why is it a "Dodge" problem? I seen plenty of other trucks with worn out suspension and steering and no complaints of "death wobbles". Other than my current Dodge truck the only time I've experienced the same type of shakes is just seconds before a ball joint fails. I'm really suprised there's not more complaints on the NHTSA about this condition as it could be very dangerous.

The good news is I have not experienced the "death wobbles" since I removed the 315 BFG's and put stock Michelins back on.

1sttruck

Jeeps seem to have the problem a lot too. The newer Dodges have good marks for handling but it might be at the expense of stability. It seems to be a 'margin issue', where a few stock trucks have the problem but more trucks with lifts and large tires have it.

mijpa

I agree qith you. Idon't want to jinx myself i have a leveling kit on with 33's and i ahve not experienced the death wobble {yet} Where as others who have bigger tires/lifts have experienced it.

djgaston

Like I said earlier, and maybe you guys missed this, but death wobble can happen to anybody... stock trucks, lifted trucks, whatever. The lifted trucks are more prone to display it because of the angle on the track bar and the fact that it has more vertical load than normal. Dodge tried to upgrade the track bar in 03 by using one that has rubber bushings at each end, but it still sucks. I'm on my 2nd one at 38,000 miles. The first one was gone with no lift and 31 inch tires. When you have movement in your steering like that (track bar is part of your steering), you are going to see exxagerated wear... once it starts getting play, it just gets worse and worse. Some people can use the same track bar for years before they get any movement, others replace them annually. What I'm saying is that it is not necessary to consider a track bar a "maintenance" item anymore. You can fix it once and have literally no problems for the life of your truck.

Also, stock trucks can have a worn out track bar and not even know it sometimes. It might only be noticeable in irregular tire wear up front, poor alignment or not holding alignment, and exxagerated body roll in certain conditions. The reason it doesn't show up immediately as death wobble is because the track bar is basically holding a horizontal load only. Even if the ends are worn out, it is still going to pretty much hold the axle in place under normal driving conditions because there is enough tension to keep the axle in place enough that you don't feel it moving. Lifted trucks, like I said earlier, have more of a vertical load... even with a drop bracket, you are still putting a vertical leverage on the bar itself and therefore it has to hold both horizontal and vertical loads. It's kind of hard to explain but lifted trucks do exxagerate the movement and are tougher on all steering components. Stock parts aren't made for those conditions. That is why when you lift a truck, you upgrade... don't just reuse stock parts and consider it safe. It's not. You need stronger parts because your truck is requiring them in order to be as reliable as a stock truck, or even more reliable.

You can have death wobble in vehicles without a track bar, as I have in my offroad Jeep. If I get going above 30 mph, it shakes so bad that I can't control it. I have hydro assist steering but the tie rod ends on the tie rod are extremely worn out and allow the wheels/knuckles to move back and forth a little. That little bit of movement feels like the whole earth is shaking underneath you. Death wobble is always caused by steering failures, and that could be the tie rod/tie rod ends, ball joints, or track bar if applicable. In Dodge trucks, 95% of the time, it's going to be the track bar. You can count on that.

mikewms05

Last night while on interstate at 70 mph I crossed some expansion joints on an overpass. My front end was violent, shaking from left to right, the steering wheel was vibrating wildly. I slowed down and it seemed to go away I thought that maybe it was due to the cold temp around 15 degrees and the tires. My 2004.5 2500 CTD is stock, with 26K miles. On the way home it happend twice again.....Really bad experience. I called Dodge dealer and discussed the issue with him... I will be taking the vehicle in Tue am to have it looked at. He indicated that the cause is most likely a steering dampner? We'll see. I can tell you it was a scary situation and lucky that the interstate was not highly crowded. Does anyone know the procedure on reporting this to NTSB? If so let me know and I will file a report.... Apparently this is not the first incident the service writer has seen.

DirtEater

Crap, it happened!!!

I had the KORE Chase/Toyo 35" AT's installed along with their steering stabilizer around 1400 miles ago, and today for the very first time, death wobble struck. My truck barely has 10,000 miles on it. I'm pizzed!!!

This happened right after I hit a bump on a major road doing about 55. Luckily it was early in the morning and not too much traffic was out. I was able to pull over safely and then it stopped. I reluctantly proceeded on a 200 mile round trip, hoping it wasn't going to strike again. There were a few close calls.

The KORE steering stabilizer doesn't seem to be helping anything at all. I think the installer let too much nitrogen charge out. A truck with 35's shouldn't really need one imo, but I guess the Dodge HD does.

This is so lame! Get a new truck with one of the best motors ever made, and the suspension isn't built heavy duty enough, if you have parts wearing out at 10,000 miles. Should we replace track bars, tie rod ends at each oil change? I didn't see that item in the maintenance schedule.

Very disappointed in DC, and my Dodge Heavy Duty at this point.

mikmaze

wow at 55 thats not good, I had it twice tonight, but both times I was at 80 mph, quick stomp to the brakes and back to speed. both times was a bridge joint that was at an angle to the whells so one would hit then the next and then hop hop hop.,..... I still gotta find a good shop that will set the numbers that are suggested, 3.3 left and 3.2 right camber I think it is supposed to be.........

djgaston

I wish you guys would listen to me. I can save you a LOT of headaches.

The Dodge track bars suck, always have and always will. I have a brand new stock replacement for sale if anybody wants it. Make an offer. I just put my ThurenFab track bar on a few nights ago and I'll never have to worry about death wobble again, especially once I put the new ThurenFab crossover steering on.

Taking your truck to the dealer does NOTHING. You aren't fixing the problem, you are spending more money and setting yourself up for more failures. UPGRADE, don't repair.

A steering dampener or "shimmy shock" isn't even a necessary item. If your steering is setup correctly, you don't have to run one. All they are is a bandaid to cover up other problems.

I can't figure out why you guys ignore the stuff I am telling you... I'm trying to help you out and its like my advice is falling on deaf ears.

mikmaze

how much did the track bar cost that you switched to? and how much for the crossover steering? are there any opther costs involved other than doing the work? details and prices may get some of us over the hump and get us off our butts to do it. thanks, hop hop hop at 80 isn't very fun.

djgaston

The track bar is under $300. I think Don is selling them at $279 or something, you'll have to get with him. I bought a whole bunch of stuff from him all at once so I am not sure exactly on the cost. http://www.thurenfabrication.com is his website and you can contact him from there via phone or email. Installation of the track bar is super, super easy. You undo two bolts, the stock one comes out, put the new one in place, bolt it back up. Very simple, anybody can do it in their driveway with a couple of wrenches.



The crossover steering is not available to the public yet but will be shortly. It will be about $350. This is the strongest steering setup you can get. Instead of the drag link coming off the pitman arm and bolting to the tie rod and knuckle, the drag link actually bolts to the knuckle itself as is separate of the tie rod... then the tie rod mounts to the bottom of the knuckles on each side. It's super strong and will last forever. You have literally no play in your steering with this setup, as far as the drag link and tie rod go.
Here is an example picture, not on a 3rd gen truck though. This is not available yet but will be very soon, then we will be working on long arms.

This is a picture of Cowhand's steering:


Here is how the crossover steering mounts to the knuckle.

DirtEater

Hode-up! Not ignoring you at all, in fact I believe what you're saying, and I shot Thuren an email asking if he makes them for 05's yet. I didn't see one on his site, but it did say something about having them out a week after Thanksgiving. Hadn't heard back from him yet.

How much do they run and, can any bonehead (like myself) install them correctly?