Hello everyone. I’m new to the site and have a couple of questions about death wobble. I am sure there are several threads about it and I apologize in advance if I’m asking repeat questions. I have a 2012 with 4/4.5 inches of lift and 76,000 miles. I found the tie rods and drag link were worn so I replaced them, steering stabilizer, and had an alignment. Still death wobble. Next I removed the JKS track bar and found my bolt holes were egged out. I had weld washers and a stiffening plate welded on. Also I installed 9/16 bolts and torqued to 140lbs. This helped but still had intermittent death wobble. Next I rotated the tires, but it didn’t help. I replaced the track bar bushings because I noticed a few rubber cracks. When I replaced them, my death wobble got way worse and there’s no driving my Jeep over 40mph. I cant figure out why this made it so much worse. I’ve checked my ball joints and bearings several times and can’t find any play. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
2012 JK Death Wobble Questions
- Thread starter mb3598
- Start date
Do you have adjustable track bars front and rear? Do you have adjustable control arms especially in the front? Have you checked your steering gearbox for play?
Craig T
Member
When you say you checked your ball joints and they have no play, how did you check them? On mine, I did not have noticeable movement of my wheel but my ball joints were completely shot. Also, what size wheels are you running? If you can take a picture of your front undercarriage, it may help to identify something.
Lxxtsy
JK Enthusiast
Thank you all for your help! I spent most of my day yesterday under my Jeep checking everything over to see if I missed something. On one of my test drives I heard a pop on the passenger side. I jacked it up and spun the tire. I happened to see my axle joint was barely rubbing the wheel bearing bolt so something had to be loose. I put a heavy duty pry bar under the tire and could feel a small amount of movement. With a little help from a friend, I climbed under and watched. Finally, I saw a tiny movement from the lower ball joint. I had tried this test several times before but it seemed solid. Im thinking the bar I used before was flexing. I’m hoping a new set will cure my DW. Later I will post some pics to maybe help someone else. I feel like my DW came from several issues and it gets expensive. Thanks again!
Keep us informed this could help someone in the future because this DW is common when the Jeep gets lifted.
Craig T
Member
I spent 2 months chasing it on mine. Had my wheels off so often, thought I could make a NASCAR pit crew. After replacing basically everything, I can now drive my lifted Jeep with 35s with one hand. No more death grip on the steering wheel. Like it appears to be with yours, I think mine had multiple causes. Ball joints were a big one. I got a ball joint press from Harbor Freight. Worked great and wasn’t expensive. Good luck.
Mjmsi
New Member
I have the same issue. Edmunds reports it is common with 07,08, and 2012 jk models. Has anyone experienced and fixed the wobble in stock height?
I want to correct the wobble and get a 3 1/2 in lift but can't afford to lift it and still have the wobble. I don't want to buy parts then get a lift kit and replace some of those parts.
☆☆☆Any suggestions on a lift kit that also corrects the wobble?
I guess the trackbar is the most probable cause based on Extreme Terrains website.
All I know about lift kits is from. Reading websites and this forum.
Rough country - Low cost and seem to have a good following. Not really liked here?
AEV seems to be high tech and sounds good, but expensive?
Clayton- first and only time I've heard of them is here. Same for AEV. Are we biased towards our sponsors? I wouldnt even ask or care if was anything else. But this is a safety issue I want to resolve, and hopefully get a lift kit if it saves time and money.
Thanks,
A 3.5" lift would need to have adjustable track bars front and rear. Adjustable Control arms in the front so that the Alignment can be set to specs.
If you have wobble with the stock suspension it's going to be any of these things:
Tie Rods
Hub bearings
Steering Gearbox play
Alignment
Bad tires, balance or broken belt.
Loose lugnuts either spacer or wheel
Ball Joints
It's best to find and fix the problem before getting a lift because the lift will make the problem worse.
If you have wobble with the stock suspension it's going to be any of these things:
Tie Rods
Hub bearings
Steering Gearbox play
Alignment
Bad tires, balance or broken belt.
Loose lugnuts either spacer or wheel
Ball Joints
It's best to find and fix the problem before getting a lift because the lift will make the problem worse.
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Mjmsi
New Member
Thanks BLACKJKU, I was hoping for an easy solution but expected the worse. I guess it doesn't hurt to get all new ball joints anyways. Ill definately check everything you recommended. Makes sense because it drove really smooth until I went on a long trip and put on alot of offroad miles. Tires are uneven and for sure it's out of alignment. Didn't know those could cause such bad vibrations. A friend saw it and said my front wheels were moving side to side past the fenders...
You could try moving the front tires to the rear and see if that makes any difference.
Mjmsi
New Member
Ok,
Do you think if it is any bars or links, then the frequency will increase over time? I'm thinking as the tires get worse, the wobble would become more frequent. Is that how it works with trackbars and links etc?
I checked the front end today and found one loose bolt on a link. All my lugs were tight. I'll jack it up tonight and check the wheel bearings for play also.
I think it probably is the tires, alignment and that one loose bolt. It ran so nice up until my trip, after offroading all day. Thanks for the advice.
If the track bar is bad it will just keep getting worse, and if you also have something that is going bad the 2 together will not make a good combination.
You won't like it when you have the DW, it's not a fun thing to go through especially if in alot of traffic.
Hooperdog
JK Enthusiast
Mjmsi
New Member
It's possible, I read somewhere the bolts will create an oval in the bolt holes over time.
Mjmsi
New Member
I stand a 4' level against the fender so it's straight and measure the top side of the tire to the level. Do that on both sides front and rear to check to check to see they are centered.