yet Another Death Wobble Thread
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yet Another Death Wobble Thread
So the wife was driving the truck today (92 in sig) and at about 40 mph she encountered some death wobble. She was going straight and not braking, but it got significantly worse when she was braking. I came and limped the truck home, confirmed it was a bad wobble, and took a peek underneath.
The grease boot thingy between the pitman arm and drag link puked out a ton of grease, aside to that everything looked normal, and the play in the steering wheel looked like it had before.
Is it likely that this joint failed and is causing this? I really need the truck on Tuesday so I'm hoping to fix this before then.
Cheers,
Tom
The grease boot thingy between the pitman arm and drag link puked out a ton of grease, aside to that everything looked normal, and the play in the steering wheel looked like it had before.
Is it likely that this joint failed and is causing this? I really need the truck on Tuesday so I'm hoping to fix this before then.
Cheers,
Tom
#2
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So the wife was driving the truck today (92 in sig) and at about 40 mph she encountered some death wobble. She was going straight and not braking, but it got significantly worse when she was braking. I came and limped the truck home, confirmed it was a bad wobble, and took a peek underneath.
The grease boot thingy between the pitman arm and drag link puked out a ton of grease, aside to that everything looked normal, and the play in the steering wheel looked like it had before.
Is it likely that this joint failed and is causing this? I really need the truck on Tuesday so I'm hoping to fix this before then.
Cheers,
Tom
The grease boot thingy between the pitman arm and drag link puked out a ton of grease, aside to that everything looked normal, and the play in the steering wheel looked like it had before.
Is it likely that this joint failed and is causing this? I really need the truck on Tuesday so I'm hoping to fix this before then.
Cheers,
Tom
There are a few things that can cause a death wobble, tie rod ends and bad front U-joints for example, but mine was caused by the bad king pins and king pin bushings and springs. See here:
https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...4-t290373.html
...Mark
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Yes, that is definitely a possibility that I thought of, although I sure hope not! I also forgot to mention that I had just put on my winter tires a few days ago and have not driven the truck much at all. I'm gonna try throwing my summers back on and see if that makes a difference. Could a wheel balancing issue cause these symptoms?
Mark, I hate jumping to conclusions so I really want to figure this out before I throw parts at it. How do you diagnose to make sure it is the kingpins?
Mark, I hate jumping to conclusions so I really want to figure this out before I throw parts at it. How do you diagnose to make sure it is the kingpins?
#4
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Yes, that is definitely a possibility that I thought of, although I sure hope not! I also forgot to mention that I had just put on my winter tires a few days ago and have not driven the truck much at all. I'm gonna try throwing my summers back on and see if that makes a difference. Could a wheel balancing issue cause these symptoms?
Mark, I hate jumping to conclusions so I really want to figure this out before I throw parts at it. How do you diagnose to make sure it is the kingpins?
Mark, I hate jumping to conclusions so I really want to figure this out before I throw parts at it. How do you diagnose to make sure it is the kingpins?
#6
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I was thinking about this and thought that, yes wheel imbalance causes a wobble, usually at a certain speed, then usually goes away at a faster speed (in my experience). There is a big difference between a death wobble and a tire imbalance wobble. A death wobble feels exactly like you are going to lose control, not so with imbalance wobble, again in my experience...Mark
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They are different yes, but a wheel imbalance could be all that is needed to trigger a death wobble. The fix for a death wobble VS tire wobble/imbalance is different though.
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I think that if an imbalance wobble causes a death wobble, that by itself indicates greater problems than just tire balance. Also, the things that cause death wobble can also cause tire imbalance. It's a tapestry ...Mark
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With the weight of the cummins
These wear out fast https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...d.php?t=302761
Not a ton of money
These wear out fast https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...d.php?t=302761
Not a ton of money
#10
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I think that if an imbalance wobble causes a death wobble, that by itself indicates greater problems than just tire balance.
Totally agree with above and is what i was trying to say as well.
I would agree with the below with some clarity. It can cause tire wear with time. If freshly balanced tires are installed the cause of the death wobble will not in turn cause tire imbalance right away, it will take many miles.
Also, the things that cause death wobble can also cause tire imbalance. It's a tapestry ...Mark
Totally agree with above and is what i was trying to say as well.
I would agree with the below with some clarity. It can cause tire wear with time. If freshly balanced tires are installed the cause of the death wobble will not in turn cause tire imbalance right away, it will take many miles.
Also, the things that cause death wobble can also cause tire imbalance. It's a tapestry ...Mark
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Got an update for you guys, but I am still kinda stumped!
I put my summer tires back on (I had just changed them a week ago) and guess what? No more wobble. That led me to 3 possibilities:
1. Either the winter tires/rims are out of balance (they are only 2 winters old)
2. I did not properly center one of the wheels when I put them on
3. The aftermarket lug nuts for the summer tire alloys don't properly center my stock steel rims for the winter tires. This makes the most sense to me. They are larger acorn nuts with a small mating surface compared to stock lug nuts. Do I need to go buy some new nuts?
Thanks in advance guys, really appreciate all the help!
Tom
I put my summer tires back on (I had just changed them a week ago) and guess what? No more wobble. That led me to 3 possibilities:
1. Either the winter tires/rims are out of balance (they are only 2 winters old)
2. I did not properly center one of the wheels when I put them on
3. The aftermarket lug nuts for the summer tire alloys don't properly center my stock steel rims for the winter tires. This makes the most sense to me. They are larger acorn nuts with a small mating surface compared to stock lug nuts. Do I need to go buy some new nuts?
Thanks in advance guys, really appreciate all the help!
Tom
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No sir, The winters are stock size and stock 1st gen steel rim.
The summer tires came with the truck when I bought it last year, 17 inch ultra wheel alloys with 265s on them.
Would that cause some kind of wheel alignment issue maybe?
The summer tires came with the truck when I bought it last year, 17 inch ultra wheel alloys with 265s on them.
Would that cause some kind of wheel alignment issue maybe?
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