I have a 2018 Rubicon, 3" lift with 35's. I had the death wobble so I replaced the trac bar, drag link, & tie rod bar with Yeti Steersmart heavy-duty replacement parts. I then took it straight in for an alignment. it drives So much worse now then before! I would rather have the death wobble then this. it will actually make the light in the dash for traction control to go off when it does it. its not even safe to drive, I have it parked in the garage until I can figure out WTH is going on with it.

 

how much caster do you have dialed in? check the alignment sheet for caster angle.... you will want as much caster as you can get.

 

well that sucks because they didn't give me a printout of the adjustments made. I thought it was strange because they always send one with me after an alignment

 

You need to elaborate on this a bit. What specifically is it doing? I'm not suggesting this is your issue, but have you taken a close look at your ball joints post-DW? Those are typical culprits and if you had good DW before those were likely really stressed. If they are factory BJs a wobble would have easily killed em. Post up alignment specs as asked. Caster angle is always going to be one of the first questions we ask, though I do think a big deal here is what was it like before, and what makes it worse now?

**I see you just responded saying you don't have alignment sheet. Do you have some form of caster correction on the jeep? Adjustable control arms? Control arm brackets? cam bolts? Fixed length longer lower front control arms?

 

I agree with the approach that Resharp is taking. I'd add some info for you in case you're not familiar with the Wrangler suspension: First, on a JK Wrangler with a stock suspension, there are only two things that an alignment shop can actually adjust, toe in and steering wheel centering. They cannot set caster, which is what gives a steering wheel that on-center feel. Driving with 3" of lift and without some means to adjust caster means that your steering wheel will feel like what is commonly described as "driving on ice". Add in worn ball joints (I've seen them go bad in as little as 20K miles) and other problems might occur.

Second, an alignment shop that is unfamiliar with off-road vehicles, and especially your Wrangler, may attempt to dial in the factory spec for front end alignment. Which is fine if you don't have a lift. Not so good with a lift, however. That is why Resharp is asking about your caster measurement (if you have some means to adjust that). Another thing those shops unfamiliar with off-road vehicles may do to reach that factory spec is install camber bolts. Those are notorious for becoming loose from the jarring of off-road usage. There are better (albeit more expensive) means to fix caster, including adjustable front lower control arms and geometry correction brackets.

Bottom line: If you have no adjustable control arms, then you could easily adjust your toe in and steering wheel centering in your driveway. If you'd rather a shop do it, take it to one familiar with lifted Jeeps. Discuss the need for aftermarket parts to better dial in your caster. And have them check those ball joints.

 

Thank you for your responses
I just got back from the shop again. They put it back on the rack and instantly saw that the track bar was way out of alignment. They said the guy that did it last time screwed up,They readjusted everything and now it’s driving fine.

 

Great to hear it is fixed. Remember the best advice is collectively from here as we are not trying to sell you something!! We just try to help each member through an issue if we can.

 

I'm not sure what they did cuz there's nothing they should have done with the TB in general as part of an alignment (I have never known any alignment place to adjust a track bar which is centering the axle horizontally under the jeep), but you report it's better after they fiddled with it and that is what matters.

I would still take all the above comments about caster to heart.....especially since the spousal unit is the primary driver. Did they give you a print out of the specs this time round? You really want that caster up over 4° again.

 

Track bar adjustment is common in an alignment on lifted vehicles.

 

Guessing maybe if you take it to some 4x4 shop and paid for some high dollar alignment full-service alignment where they'd touch everything that is adjustable? My experience is even if you have adjustable components, the only thing included in your normal alignment is what they can adjust from the factory...toe and recenter steering wheel (unless you pay for additional services). Even so, what the heck could they have done that would have made it drive like crap? it's not like they adjusted it inches in or out and really uncentered the axle under the jeep. idk, it all seems very odd to me. Outside of having a full set of adjustable arms, also not sure any owner should pay for some full alignment like that cuz you're simply not getting your money's worth of service. Oh well....