jbham

can anyone tell me if the death wobble only happens to 4wd or can it happen on 2wd as well?

Thanks

DaveB.inVa

It can happen either way. I would say almost all people experience it in 2wd simply because thats what most trucks are usually running when it happens. Thats not to say that it can't happen in 4wd or that you might only experience it in 4wd.

Hodge

I think he is asking if it can happen to 2wd's. I haven't heard of it, because the suspension design is different. In my experience, I have only heard of it on solid axle, coil sprung, control armed, track-bar equipped vehicles.

jbham

Yes that is correct. I have a 2wd and wanted to know if it affects 2wd vehicles or only 4wd.

Thanks

Fisherguy

Never heard of it with a 2WD.

Foxborough

We had a 3/4 ton work van (2WD) that had the death wobble. My dad took it to many places and each place had a different theory. Most were tie rods, U-joints and shocks. Finally one place told us to get new tires, that was the fix. The tires had plenty of thread and appeard to be roughly 1/2 worn out. I sure do remember the death wobble at speeds above 45, but only occasionally.

Raspy

It's something that can happen on almost any vehicle. Old military power wagons, VW bugs, motorcycles and Mercedes cars come to mind from first hand experience.

Once the front wheels shake at the right frequency, from a balance problem, a bent wheel, or hitting a pothole just right, you either have to dampen it out or change the vehicle speed to stop it. The more play in the system the worse it is, but play is not the cause. It only allows it.

Tight linkage, good dynamic balance, plenty of caster and a good damper are all important in the system. Get rid of the things that cause it and then deal with the things that control it.

Dealers are poorly equipped to deal with it because they can usually only replace stock parts, not upgrade. And they can only align to factory specs, not to preventive specs. Plus they most likely don't really understand it and they are not likely to want to deal with wheels and tires that are not stock. They are just not very good at, out of the box, thinking. A service writer orders a procedure and a tech performs it. Not much analysis there and if it isn't something Dodge or the dealer has figured out or not something they want to take responsibility for, you are out of luck for creativity and reliable fixes.

It all comes back to tight linkage, good dynamic balance, plenty of caster, and good damping. Forget the dealer unless they want to install the '08 linkage under warrantee. That will get you started on your overall fix, but then it's up to you to do the rest.