Myths About Steering Stabilizers
Recently, I have been reading a lot of posts over on JK-Forum.com regarding steering stabilizers and I have to say that I find all the misinformation regarding them or the need for them to be quite troubling. Here are some of the myths I’ve been hearing:
A new heavy duty steering stabilizer…
1. Is needed after installing a new lift and/or bigger tires
2. Will fix wandering or flighty steering
3. Will fix death wobble
For the record, IF you have your suspension/steering dial in correctly, a steering stabilizer isn’t really needed at all. While one might act as a bandaid and help to hide or mask wandering or flighty steering or even help reduce death wobble, IT DOES NOT AND WILL NOT FIX ANYTHING. Trust me, I have been running a factory steering stabilzer on my JK for over two years now and the last of which was while running 5.5″ of lift and 37’s. In fact, I have been running without one at all for the last two weeks and even at speeds of 80 MPH and I can’t hardly tell that one isn’t installed.
Now, am I suggesting that you shouldn’t run a steering stabilizer? Not at all and that is not the point of this article. A steering stabilizer is NICE to have and something I would recommend that everyone uses as it will help to absorb bumpsteer. However, it has been my experience that even with a set of heavy 37×13.50’s mounted on beadlocks, a factory unit is really all that you need. Will a heavy duty unit help absorb bumpsteer more, of course it will, but that’s about all it will do.
So, why bring all this up you might ask? Because I care about you guys and I just want to make sure that you take the time to address and FIX problems that you might be experiencing as opposed to masking or hiding them with a steering stabilizer.
Eddie
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Eddie,
Thanks for posting this. It’s good to have accurate information shared with all. As an added note to everyone who reads this, Eddie has posted a write-up on basic front-end alignment adjustments that help with some of these issues (http://project-jk.com/jeep-jk-write-ups/basic-do-it-yourself-jeep-jk-wrangler-front-end-alignment). Just be sure to read the article carefully and be sure to do what applies to your setup.
Anyway, thanks again.
Cheers,
Dave
Again Thanks. I replaced mine due to fluid leakage. after I found out that some of the JK were over filled at the factory. This came from my chrysler parts cented
Eddie, I am perplexed. Can you address the “dredded DEATH WOBBLE”.
I am told that it is, when your front axle oscillates after hitting a bump in the road. I have an 07″ 4 door jk “x” stock with a 2in. spacerlift on stock tires.I have had it on since it was new.as of two months ago the “D.W.” happend to me and it is very bad I cannot go over 60 mph. I have replaced my factory trac bar, drag link and tie rod bar w/ends. Replaced all shocks and stablizer shock with propper alignment and still have a severe wobble. I am wanting to put a 4in. lift with 35s but not sure what to do
I too have an ‘07 Jeep Jk unlimited 4d with ‘wobble’ problems. I have a rancho 4″ lift, installed by Chrysler Authorized install center, “4 Wheel Parts”. They say by tie rod ends are bad, Jeep says it’s the stabilizer shock, because the tie rod is a single piece? I don’t know who to beleive? What’s my best recourse, if I put a new ’shimmy shock’, I mask what’s really wrong till I’m off warranty. HELP!!!
hi ruben, just so that we are clear here, death wobble is a violent shaking of your entire jeep to the point where it feels like the whole thing is about to tear itself apart and the only thing you can do is come to a stop. if this is not what you are experiencing, you DO NOT have death wobble. a really bad shimmy in the steering wheel at a high speed is typically a problem with tire balancing.
as far as what you are told goes, yes, hitting a bump in the road can trigger an oscillation which can result in death wobble BUT, only if you have a track bar that can’t keep it in check. in my experience, 99% of all death wobble can be directly traced to track bar bolts that are not tightend to factory specs, worn out bushings, mounting holes that have been wolloed out OR track bar mounts that are fatigued and failing.
hi dan, as i said to ruben, are you sure that you have death wobble and not just a bad shimmy in the steering wheel? IF you do have death wobble, i am sorry to say but both your jeep tech and 4 wheel parts have no clue what they are talking about. again, IF you really do have death wobble, you need to have your track bar track bar mounts checked for fatigue or tearing both at the axle and the frame - this is especially so if you have a track bar relocation bracket. i have seen way too many mounts fail because of them and this will cause death wobble. if they check out, you need to make sure the bushings are in good shape and that the mounting bolts are tightend to specs.
I’m doing a 4″ skyjacker lift today on my brand new 2009 Jk unlimited I hope I don’t have this death wobble I had it I. My old 2000 tj and it sucked everytime I hit a bump on the road will advise you all when I get it back from the shop oh and by the way I’m getting rockstar 18″ rims
I have to agree that the death wobble is an issue with the suspension and may not be a stabilizer issue. When I had a similar problem one of the sway bar quick disconnects was broken.
I would also check the sway bar links.
The factory rubber bushings are not up to lifts and hard use. Replace the factroy stuff with Daystar or another poly bushing set.I have run a Skyjacker lift with no problems on a 98 TJ Sport.
I replaced my stabilizer on the 98 with a double unit to help with the drifting when driving in a lot of cross wind.
Eddie,
Installed a 2″ econo lift with spacers along with recommended shocks. The Mopar dealer installed it & aligned it. I get considerable front end wandering more so when the road is cupped from heavy traffic. Is there anything I can do to upgrade the front end? Thanks John
which econo lift did you have installed and was a front track bar relocation bracket included? if so, remove it. aside from that, what size tires are you running and how much psi is in them? if you are running 33’s, you really shouldn’t have more than 30-32psi, with 35’s, 28-03psi - anything more and that won’t help things at all. if all that checks out, you need to add more positive caster and the best way to do that is to install a set of adjustable front lower control arms and lenghten them to be a bit longer than stock. experience has taught me that about 23″ from center of mounting hole to center will do the job well.
The track bar bracket is located on the top of the front axle? I am running 33’s at the recommended psi.Remove the bracket that came with the kit? Will I have to re-align? The kit is from Full Traction, I listed it below…
2007-09 JK Wrangler and Unlimited Simple, quick installComes with front and rear spacers Front track bar bracket Billet aluminum bump stop extensions Includes 5100 Series Hydraulic shocks Max Tire Size: 33×12.50
Thanks for listening, John
yes, remove the bracket that is sitting on top of the axle and mount your track bar directly to the factory mount. unless you have an adjustable front track bar, there is nothing an alignment shop can do for you so save your money. your front axle will shift over a bit to the driver side but it really is no big deal and you will find that your handling is better.
Sorry to keep bothering you…is it better to purchase front & rear adjustable track bars? Thanks
if you can afford it, both is good to have but if you could only choose one, i would go with the front.
Back again…placed the track bar back in the factory bracket (Jeep does not wander anymore), now my steering wheel is off and the traction control comes on all the time. Any suggestions? Thanks John
if you do not have an adjustable front track bar, your axle will shift just a bit. likewise, your steering wheel was most likely centered to what you had before and will now need to be recentered. click on the write-up below to see how to do this:
http://project-jk.com/jeep-jk-write-ups/basic-do-it-yourself-jeep-jk-wrangler-front-end-alignment
Great information. Thanks
I have a 2007 Sahara Unlimited…. It has had the Death wobble for the last 20k miles. It has been in the shop for weeks at a time beginning in October of 2008. The Chrysler reps have looked at it several and thus far… no fix. They have checked, replaced balanced and aligned everything. As for the stabilizer I have a heavy duty Rancho off road stabilizer to help mask this issue and still.. it is there. . I have spent the last few months talking to owners, and service departments and there is no good answer. What works for some does not work for others.
Does anyone have a real answer? I would like to enjoy the truck I am paying for.
Jeep-in, is your jeep lifted or is it still stock?
Hi WAYOFLIFE, I am in Australia and have just had a 40mm lift kit (installed by TJM, shocks and springs) which gave me a lift of 80mm. After driving it home I too have experienced the death wobble so I brought a rancho steering damper in the hope it would help,and all that done was to stiffen my steering, the wobble is still there, and is eccentuated by braking. I have had it back to the jeep dealer and they have told me that the fix is to dial the caster back by a couple of degrees, as they say that is where the problem lies. Are they correct?
yes, a lack of positive caster can “instigate” death wobble. if you are running below +4°, you should install a set of adjustable lower control arms and increase this to at least +4° and if at all possible, closer to +6°. having said that, death wobble is almost always a track bar related problem. either the mouting bolts aren’t tightend to torque specs, bushings are bad, mounts are wollowed out or even physically failing.
E
in the last few weeks a friend and I, both with JK’s, both smashed our steering stabilizers. Its a vulnerable design. Any options you know of?
Thanks
E
Las Vegas
jeepswag.com sells a relocation bracket that will allow you to relocate the stabilizer so that it mounts on top of the tie-rod.
I dont kno that i would say that the caster should be at +6 i put a 4inch rough country lift on at my caster is at +6 and i still get that DW now if i put the factory 235 tires on it theres no dw but as soon as the brand new american racing wheels with the 35’s on it the DW returns
caster is just one aspect you should be looking at if you have DW. a track bar bolt not tightend to torque spec, bad bushing or failing mount is a more likely cause. bad ball joints is a cause as well.
I had a slight wooble when passing on an expansion joint on a bridge lately. I told my dealer about it and he ordered a new stronger damper. I was running my winter tires (245/75 R16… small, 10″ wide and 29″ tall). Before it was changed, I switched to my summer tires (315/75 R17… 12.7″ wide and 35″ tall) and the wooble was practcally gone. I still had the damper changed and it was actually badly crushed since last summer.
Is it possible that it is more important to have a good one when you have smaller tires on than with the big ones ???
tire size will not make a difference and assuming you have your suspension dialed in, you techncially don’t even need a steering stabilizer installed. more than likely, your other tires are out of balance.