Xspearo

Ok thanks once again!! And oh wow, well i definitely know what my next two purchases are lol

jlovett06

So i just read ALL 33 pages of this thread and i just want to say thank you! PLANMAN, this is one of the most informative threads i've ever read.

Now that i've done my studying I will be troubleshooting my 2011 JKU Sport

I bought it with a 2.5" ProComp Lift and 315/70/17 Tires/Wheels already on it. has 70k miles on it
I never had any issues with "Shimmies" until I took it Off Road a few times. I believe whoever had it before me used it as a mall crawler.

I have a VERY consistent shimmy at 40-45mph.

I have had my tires rotated and balanced, had an alignment (lifetime alignment at firestone) and the shimmy is still there.

Hopefully with all of this information i can get this fixed.

I see that someone posted that most speed related shimmies are from the tires...

If i can get home with enough daylight i'll start today.

Again, thanks for the info!

planman

Were these removed?

jlovett06

It's not my daily and i'm at work. I'll check when i get home.


Can you explain what these are? I'm still kind of new to all of this.

Thanks

planman

Those are lug retainer clips that were placed on 2 to 4 of the lugs during the assembly line process at the manufacturer to hold the brake disks on the axle.

The stock wheels have gaps to accommodate those clips while still allowing the wheel to sit flush on the hub/disk.

Aftermarket wheels and wheel spacers do not have gaps for those clips. As a result, it's impossible for aftermarket wheels and wheel spacers to sit flush on the hub/disc unless those clips are removed.

If they weren't removed on your rig, your wheels are slightly bent and/or not sitting flush. It would explain the shimmy.

It wouldn't explain why it only started after your first off-roading trip--unless that coincided with installation of the larger tired and either aftermarket wheels or wheel spacers.

jlovett06

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4987aQXXeoA This is a video of my drag link end. It looks to be doing exactly what you say is bad. I plan on taking my wheels off tomorrow if the weather allows it to check those clips.

planman

That drag link end is worn and needs to be replaced.

jlovett06

Ok i'll be ordering the Synergy one ASAP!

grandjunktion

Please forgive me if someone else has already posted about the same problem but without time right now to research, I just wanted to throw this one out there and see what responses I might get back.

So about 2 years ago and installed a basic Teraflex 2.5" coil lift, replaced the stock bolts with the 9/16" kit from Northridge4x4 and added 33" tires. I did not see much need to re-center the steering so never bothered nor did I adjust the toe. The trackbar mount holes were in good condition at the time.

About 6 months ago, I experienced my first encounter with Death Wobble driving down the highway at ~ 60 MPH. I attributed it to some loose bolts, which I soon tightened. The death wobble returned a couple of more times and I kept trying to tighten bolts to remedy, however this last time everything seemed tight and the occurrence seems worse.

Following the checklist, I inspected the trackbar for flex / movement while turning the steering wheel and observed some movement. I removed the grade 8 9/16" bolts from Northridge and saw that my mount holes were becoming wallowed out like in Pullman's video, particularly on the axle side.

I called Teraflex who confirmed that the lack of alignment was not the culprit. The guy I spoke with also did not recommend replacing the bolts with the Northridge kit since he believed that the harder metal may have compromised the holes during the death wobble. He suggested to get their axle mounted bracket to be welded on to the axle and an adjustable trackbar. I personally find this kind of hard to believe and if the trackbar is to be held tight in the vise grip of 125 lbs., why would I need to worry about adding a welded bracket to return the wallowed holes to their original opening size?

I previously checked the ball joints and they appear good, however have not checked anything else other than tire balancing and rotation at this time. I am reluctant to add new parts to the mix to fix an underlying problem which will likely return.

Has anyone else had experience with this and got any ideas how to remedy?
Many thanks

https://youtu.be/NHLpOL--sMw

planman

When there is sufficient torque to those bolts and the trackbar bushings are in good shape, and in a neutral position (the bolts were only torqued after the full weight of the vehicle was on the ground at actual ride height), then there should not have been play sufficient to cause the bracket bolt holes to oval.

The bolts only provide a clamping force, and are not meant to float in the bracket holes. The hardness of the metal of Grade 8 bolts vs. stock bolts are essentially the same. The primary reason to do the Grade 8 bolts is to make sure the bolts and bushings are centered when clamped/torqued.

If the bolts were sufficiently torqued at 125 ft lbs, and periodically re-torqued, they would have not caused that kind of ovalilng unless the trackbar bushings were failing, or the bushings didn't do their job because they were run in a twisted/binding/pre-loaded position instead of a neutral position.

You need a shop to either weld washers over those bolt holes in order to snug things up, or you can run different brackets that accomplish the same thing. I particular, the axle side bracket holes are ovaled enough that some sort of repair is needed. The trackbar bushing bolt sleeve is not likely able to fully sit on the surface of the bracket outside the bracket hole.

I am very curious of the condition of your trackbar bushings.