"Death Wobble"

Have any of you experienced the "Death Wobble"? It happens when you're driving your truck...very common in Dodge's and Jeep's...down the highway and all of sudden the front end starts shaking and you think you have a flat tire. So you pull over to find you don't. Then, being concerned, you take it to your mechanic and have a boat load of front end work done...and new tires...and when you think it's fixed, it happens a few years later. It's really scary! Especially when you're cruising at 60 MPH. We got new tires yesterday and it happened twice while going 30 MPH. So speed isn't a factor either.

We would like to hear from others who have experienced this and what you've had done. It seems to be an ongoing problem and no one has a fix. Darn it!!!! :help:

Does it have a lift or any other suspesion mods on it?

Year, make and model would help.

Nope! It's a 1997 Dodge Ram 2500 4-WD diesel.

Happens all the time in our 2000 Jeep Cherokee, although not as severe as you are experiencing. Sometimes its due to brakes out of adjustment or out of balance tires. If you drive thru a lot of mud, make sure there is no dried mud caked on the inside of the rims. This happens with wet snow too.

On Dodge trucks, the track bar is usually the culprit. Dodge trackbars are infamously prone to death wobble with the slightest wear which occurs rather quickly. Installing an aftermarket trackbar (I think around $300) might fix the problem for good.

Warped Rotors?

It could be warped rotors if it happens only when braking.


Castor angle? See if they checked your castor on your last alignment.

Worn tie rod ends are possible, but not probable.

Dodge Ram trucks have a "death wobble" usually caused by how the gear box is attached to the chassis. Any worn front end parts will increase the chance of a wobble. There is a crossmember availiable to attach to the gearbox and the frame. O'Malley's Auto Repair has fixed the "death wobble" on my 2000 Ram 2500. The phone number is 303-816-0754.

had a 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee. It did that when there was mud on the tires.

I had a '98 dodge ram 1500. It would do the death wobble occasionally, if I hit a bumpy or washboardy patch. Usually if I slowed down, it would stop and I could speed up again.