First off, I dont believe i have death wobble, its not that bad. I now have a the basic 12' JK 2.5'' TF kit with blisteins and 35s, but even when I was stock, my jeep would jerk left and right when hitting a pothole or bump, not even that large, while driving on the hwy. During the bumpyness its very hard to keep the jeep straight sometimes and as soon as i pass over it, my steering is fine. It also handles very good driving around on side roads or even at hwy speeds when no bumps are involved. When i was stock I kind of just chalked it up to a jeep thing, since it was my first truck and jeep. Now with the lift it's defnitely more prevalent and getting very annoying, especially on curvy bumpy parkways when im driving at highway speeds (55-75mph). Question is what can be adjusted or what can be I purchase and install (simplest fixes to more complex ones) to fix my steering geometry and not me feel like im gonna slam into a guardrail when im driving??

 

Welcome to the wide world of "Bump steer"

 

Bump steer...

Jeep Parts, Jeep Accessories & Jeep Soft Tops From The Jeep Parts Experts - Quadratec

Rub my icon beat me.

 

thank you both for the warm welcome, now how the hell do i get out??! Will a TF adjustable front trackbar do the trick??

 

Diagnose before immediately taking a suggestion and just throwing money at it!!!

Start by hitting backspace a time or three and going up to the writeups area. Stickied at the top is Planmans Deathwobble thread. (I know you said it is not deathwobble, but there is a bunch of great diagnostic info there.) Go through it item by item and find what is worn or loose or broken, both components and mounts.

Have you had an alignment done? It may be worth a few phone calls to find a local shop that will do a free check. Just throw it on the machine and print out the numbers without actually paying to 'fix' anything.

Which specific components were installed with the lift? Any adjustable parts on the front end? (trackbar or control arms?) Was either a drop pitman or a trackbar bracket installed? Assuming you still have all stock parts, and the caster is still low from the lift, correcting the caster will help. (low caster causes general flightyness, not bumpsteer).

Some shops/dealerships may try and tell you that replacing the steering stabilizer will magically fix the issue. It can help to control the bumpsteer or deathwobble, but it is not a fix. Look past this and find the cause.


Spend a few minutes learning what the various components actually do.
The trackbar simply aligns the axle left to right under the frame, so changing it should not have an effect on your bumpsteer. What could possibly affect it is a broken trackbar mount, or loose bolts, or even bolt holes that are wallowed out and allow movement. (and I'd be willing to bet this is covered in the thread I mentioned... )

 

To me it sounds like more than bump-steer, and that something like the trackbar or ball joints could be loose. Loose doesn't always mean death wobble -- Planman has a death-wobble write up you could search for that describes how to find loose steering related components.

 

Not on a 2.5 lift. you should not really be having issue's at 2.5 inches the thing should be driving like stock!

To fix bump steer usually requires relocating the track bar and drag link to a better position parallel to the axle tube.

This gives the drag link and the track a very shallow arc so when you hit a bump your axle wont go side to side.

All an adjustable track bar will do is relocate your axle housing side to side you will still get the bump steer.

I would check your track bar bolts and make sure there tight. i think its 110 ft-lb i would check this though i aint messed with mine in 6 years

 

Absolutely go through Planmans checklist and see if you find any problems. The first thing that pops in my mind is a loose trac bar, based on my own experience.

 

125 ft-lbs.

Planman's checklist a great idea. Agree with previous comment about very unusual to see bump steer at 2.5" of lift, and you mention experiencing it even when stock. Although many of us have plenty of experience at shadetree mechanic aligning our front ends, there is a time when having a professional readout is desirable. Since your problems were present even when stock, I'd suggest getting a pro readout and share it here. If the shop suggests camber bolts, run away: Bad idea on vehicles taken off-road because they can loosen up causing all kinds of headaches out on the trial. People on this forum can suggest other alternatives once we know what we're dealing with. Once you get your Jeep hardware locked in, then you should be able to perform your own driveway alignments with no problems. I've helped dozens of folks install their own 2.5" lifts with great luck avoiding any DW or shimmy problems.

BTW: It is most helpful if you would fill out your profile information. Folks on phone apps may not be able to see it (which makes putting what you think is relevant in the original past a good idea), but you'll get better quality answers from those using a web browser if they know exactly what mods they're dealing with (or what mods you don't have).

 

I had same issues with Leveling Kit. Turned out it was Drag Link joints were wore out. Dealer Warranty.
Had wife turn steering wheel left and right as I snooped around looking for movement.

Good luck

Ernie