96 ZJ Death Wobble Question

[noss10]

Try balancing the wheels and get a proper allignment

[heap o' jeep]

Also, have you rotated your tires? If one or both is off balance it can also set off in a DW

[elesjuan]

There are 4 things in this world I can't stand:

Buying tires
Buying Socks
Telling someone I know what I'm talking about just to have them dismiss me
and wasting my money.

I'm sorry, am I supposed to be all happy and excited that I've spent over $200.00 on this truck trying to make it safely driveable?

[MR.CLIFFORD]

There are 4 things in this world I can't stand:

Buying tires
Buying Socks
Telling someone I know what I'm talking about just to have them dismiss me
and wasting my money.

I'm sorry, am I supposed to be all happy and excited that I've spent over $200.00 on this truck trying to make it safely driveable?

You know what I can't stand? People that look a gift horse in the mouth. You came here looking for advice and people are trying to help you. Free of charge. If you don't want to take peoples free advice go pay someone to fix the problem for you. It is going to cost quite a bit more than $200 bucks.

I also can't stand hypocrites. I do know what I'm talking about. And you are dismissing me.

You are so close minded that I'm surprised people are still offering advice. Look at it this way. Had you replaced something else and it didn't fix the problem you would be looking for more advice. All of the components on the front end of your jeep need to work together to correct your problem. The most obvious problem areas are the best place to start. You need to spend more money to get it in check. Get off your high horse.

[elesjuan]

..and I'm thankful to those who do offer advice. Did I not say to you the track bar wasn't the problem and you dismissed me, insisted it was then poked fun at me by posting a picture of a cat turd? Spending money to fix the truck isn't my issue, its replacing parts that people insist are the problem and they turn out solving absolutely nothing. I'm not some dumbass kid with a honda civic who thinks an air filter + fart can exhaust + header makes my car quicker than a C6ZR1 vette. My course of study was automotive technology and I've been turning a wrench as a shadetree since the age of 8.

Seriously, whats next? Any good alignment shop charges almost a hundred bucks for their labor and that doesn't fix it, then what? Tires, drag link, steering stabilizer, lca bushings, ball joints, then another alignment?

Tires ~$600 including mount/bal
Drag link and tierod end ~$170
LCA bushings ~$50
Steering Stabilizer ~$40
Ball joints ~$280 for all 4

That's over TWICE what I paid for the **** thing to begin with! What if it still doesn't fix the problem? Steering box, UCA bushings, all the same **** on the rear end???????


I'm getting frustrated with this because throwing money at a problem isn't an acceptable solution in any situation.

[noss10]

If you are coming into a hobby and are mad that you may spend twice what you paid for it then maybe you should just sell it and move on..... This is a jeep not a Cadillac you are going to have strange little issues with it that is expected out of any modified vehicle. and all the parts you listed that you might have to are all common wear items especially on a higher millaged four wheel drive vehicle. So either buy a jeep done or just dont own one.

[MR.CLIFFORD]

I'm getting frustrated with this because throwing money at a problem isn't an acceptable solution in any situation.

You aren't foolishly throwing money at a problem. This is money that needs to be spent in order for the jeep to drive straight down the road. Whether you believe it to be a viable expense for the track bar is irrelevant. You needed to spend money on it. It is a vital portion of a properly setup jeep. Along with all the other problems you've stated. If you are a shade tree mechanic you should have known about these problems before you bought it. You are going to have to throw money at it to get the problem to go away.

Or throw the jeep away and start out with something in better condition. I'm willing to bet the problems you are having are a big reason why you got the jeep so cheap in the first place. Be glad you didn't drop a metric *** load of money on it and then had to do the same thing.

[tuffnutz70]

as previously stated...it could be a butt ton of different little things that could be causing the problem. would you be willing to meet myself or another member to take a look see? I am no mechanical wiz.....but i've had enough jeeps to usually find these little problems. My garage and tools are almost always avail for a fellow jeeper and would have no problem turning a wrench....but must warn you...I dont handle attitude problems very well.

[Troyb_78]

If replacing trac bar didn't fix it I would look real close at your mounts. After watching your videos I agreed with MR. Clifford. There is axle movement side to side.This is the trac bar job. Front to back is the CA Busings. If the side to side movement isnt the trac bar it is the mounts. The stock mounts are very weak IMO The lower hole will whaller out and the upper mount will actually twist the unitbody overtime. I would say move on to mounts until I saw no side to side movement in the axle then move on to the balljoints. Could you post a new video of the jeep sitting on the ground with someone steering left to right showing the lower trac bar mount and upper mount since you replaced the trac bar I bet you will still see movement.

[elesjuan]

You aren't foolishly throwing money at a problem. This is money that needs to be spent in order for the jeep to drive straight down the road. Whether you believe it to be a viable expense for the track bar is irrelevant. You needed to spend money on it. It is a vital portion of a properly setup jeep. Along with all the other problems you've stated. If you are a shade tree mechanic you should have known about these problems before you bought it. You are going to have to throw money at it to get the problem to go away.
.

That would've been a neat trick considering the truck never drove more than 100 feet under its own power during my test drive.

Isn't that a little like knowing an engine has a spun rod bearing without it ever running?


Guess building my own supercharged engine, building and tuning my own ECU along with countless other modifications to a vehicle doesn't qualify me for having any knowledge of automobiles?



The track bar mount is solid, as I already stated. I very closely inspected it after removing it from the body of the truck. Removing the track bar from that bracket took a pickle fork and 10 minutes of work with a mini-sledge, and the axle's mounting hole is perfectly round. My brother is coming by later so I'll take another video.

[elesjuan]

Didn't have a chance to take video today. Rotated the tires, centered the wheel and measured tow in at about 1/16th of an inch. Checked the remaining steering for slop and only found the output shaft of the steering box might need some new bearings, it moved more than it should but not very much and not in a way that'd affect steering any. On my test drive we went over the bridge sep. on I-635 which normally sets off the wobble with a positive result, twice. Right hand lane of South I-635 to South I-35 the road is pretty ****ty, started the wobble. Also driving on 135th under the US-69 bridge a bump set off the wobble at 25 mph.

[ericfx1984]

A measuring tape is NOT an alignment tool.

YES it is... all you need to a Jeep is a tape measure, a large pipe wrench, a 13 mm socket, a ratchet and a 13 mm wrench... that is in... MAYBE a torch to aid in breaking the tie rod loose...

I have never had my Jeep aligned at a shop I used the above listed method... to be honest that is how it was done before all these laser guided computer missle launching alignment machines

[91xj/95yj]

Well just alittle input from me. I have a 94 grand cherokee. I bought it 6 months ago. I noticed that when I hit bumps it had alittle wobble in the wheel but would pull right out of it. I put a 3" spacer ebay lift on it w/new pro comp shocks. It brought out the death wobble bad. Scared the **** out of me on 69 highway just on the alternate where there doing highway work. Going thru s curve and it started. Anyways I had a buddy turn the wheel back and fourth and it did the same thing yours did in your video. I ordered a new trackbar for 30.00 shipped off of ebay a ds1235 and a new trackbar relocation bracket which drops the trackbar down to compensate for the lift. On the new trkbar bracket. It used the stock bracket hole but comes with a new nut/bolt. And it has a extra hole in the new bracket. I had to drill a hole another hole in the factory bracket for extra support so the new aftermarket brkt. doesn't move around at all. It took out all my death wobble issues. I do believe that your trackbar bracket bolt hole is wallowed out. if you drop the track bar on down just on the axle side. And just put your bolt in there see if it moves around in there. Mine did. Im willing to bet that that hole is wallowed out. I can take a pic of the new trackbar mount if you would like to see it. It really shores things up on that side. Plus if your going to lift your jeep, this will help also.