Sorry for another possible death wobble thread! I am getting what i think is death wobble at around 45-55 mph in my 2012 but not near as violent as others/videos have described. I do not have a lift but i do have 35x55x12 mud tires. I got an alignment but it is still happening. I have read that it is usually caster but i thought this was only in lifted trucks? I am putting a 3.5 inch lift on it to better clear my tires in a couple of weeks and it comes with a trac bar relocation bracket. Will this fix the issue? I have checked tie rods/ball joints as well and they seem ok. Will the relocation bar fix the issue? I also have dual stabilizers on it. That helped firm up the steering after i put the tires on but the intermittent wobble is still there. Most of my driving is between 45-55mph so it can become annoying.

 

maybe if you do most of your driving at 45-55mph you shouldn't be running Mud tires.
They are designed to run at lower speeds, you can't put on a off-road tire and then run the highway and expect it to perform like a normal road tire.

 

I never stated I wanted these tires to drive like regular tires.what I would like help with is solving the front to back shaking which shouldn't be too much to ask in a truck. In fact I like the way the 250 ride like trucks vs my f150 or expedition which feel like clouds in comparison. Many people put this upgrade on their trucks because of looks and performance I just want to figure out how to make it the best with my current setup. Thanks for the response

 

Not sure if gas or diesel but if gas, a cop or two can create a wobble with the miss.
Maybe a tire delaminating, a weight falling off of a driveshaft, or an overdrive clutch tranny shutter?
If a 4wd, maybe a front wheel bearing going bad, a vibrating stub shaft bearing, cv bearing?
Lots to test for.

 

Thanks for the starting points. I don't think it's the COPs because I am familiar with that shudder from my 5.4s.i may just replace tie rods and ball joints when I do the lift. The truck has 78k on it and I'm pretty sure they are stock. Looks like I'm in for a lot of trial and error.

 

I hear you. My ball joints only lasted about 80k on my Expy and if these are work trucks, they probably get driven hard.

 

Sorry I can't help myself but I am going to be a little bit of a smart a$$, where did you find 35x55x12 tires and rims for your truck I googled it and only found this thread?

On a more helpful note, can you describe the shaking with a little more detail? Possible death wobble at 45/50mph doesn't really help. There are numerous things that can cause shaking at those speeds. Tires, warped breaks, u-joints and more.

 

Sorry, 35x12.5x20. RBP rims. The shaking is same motion as a teeter totter but short and quick (not sure if that helps). It seems to me it is very similar as what i see in the death wobble videos but obviously not as violent because it is at lower speeds. I have new shocks with the lift and a carrier bearing shim is to be installed as well. I am just trying to get some tips before i dismantle the truck if there is anything else i should be looking for. The odd thing is i have not experienced it at highway speeds. At highway speeds i have a slight vibration.

 

Is it a wobble (steering wheel going left to right) or a vibration?
These are two entirely different things and have different causes and your approach to diagnosis will be very different.
If it is indeed a wobble, have you checked your track bar ends for wear and loose hardware?

 

Definitely a left to right wobble. When i installed the stabilizers a lot of the left to right went away. But as many have said, they are really just a bandaid if something is truly wrong. I did inspect the trac bar but i am going to do everything one more time. I didnt feel and loose hardware or play the first time. The right side ball joint bushing has a bit of compression compared to the left but that is about all. This is why i thought to change those anyways (and mileage) but the place that did my alignment (truck shop) swore it is ok. I can get some pics tonight/tomorrow.

 

Definitely do a dry steering test.
Have a helper sit in the truck and turn left to right while you inspect under the front of the truck. Look for any slop in the steering linkage. Also look for any movement in at the ends of the track bars or anything that locates the axle left to right (suspension pick up and mounting locations at axle and chassis). Sometimes it is helpful to feel each connection and rod end being inspected while the steering is being turned because you may be able to feel a "pop" or play/looseness that you can't see.

The procedure for checking the ball joints and wheel bearings is different and requires you to jack up the truck.

 

Are your aftermarket rims lug centric or hub centric? Did you use the stock lug nuts?

 

You may not be able to solve this problem.
Can those tires be balanced? If not your only solution will be to drive slower 45 mph.
It could be that one of the tires is "out of round",- replace that tire.
But in most cases when you drive with a tire that was designed to go at a slower speed then regular highway speeds you are going to have problems no matter what, and you are going to do damage to the vehicles components that will result in lots of $$$$$ in repair costs.
So the only three options I see is 1. to either slow down, or 2. replace the tires with one's that are more appropriate to your driving needs, 3. live with it the way they are and start putting money in the bank for those repairs.

 

I have had them about a month. I contacted the company that put them on and they are going to check them next week for me and maybe re-balance them if needed. We will start there. However, i am going to go through the entire steering system and do what NOTURMAILMAN suggested.

 

If it is a tire balance issue, it may benefit you to ask if the shop doing the balance has a road force balancer. Many people have had issues with larger offroad tire balancing that were solved by balancing on one of these machines. I won't try to explain the difference and how they work, but if you really want to know you can Google it.