Hey Guys, I have a 2011 F250 6.7 XLT crew cab with just over 50,000 miles. A couple of weeks ago while heading to work I experienced a very violent Front end bounce while driving on the freeway. My Speed was around 55-70. I experienced this front end bounce on after hitting a patched portion of asphalt on the freeway. I lost complete control of my vehicle and had to slow down almost to a complete stop in order to regain control. When I got to work I checked my tires, wheels and under carriage. I found under abnormal.
Well it happened again today. Again on my way to work I hit a bumpy stop in the road and experienced this "Death wobble" (youtube it). So I decided to take it to the dealer and have it looked at. On the way there it happened a couple more times. Anyone else experience this?

 

I'm glad you got your dealership involved, DeeDubz. Have you heard anything from them yet? I'll hang around here to see when you have any news; if you need my help, just let me know.

Crystal

 

I havent heard anything yet. Im sure I'll hear from them later this afternoon. Thanks Crystal.

 

Unfortunately, death wobble is fairly common in solid axle trucks - and not just Fords. Fixes range from checking tightness of all front end components ( including ball joints, track bar joints and tie-rods), steering stabilizers (adding or replacing), shocks and tires. Some also suggest that the camber is out of whack causing instability. Good luck getting it corrected. I have been fortunate to have never experienced it, but seeing the videos, I can see where it would be scary.

 

Bad or out of balance tires, esp. when over sized, have been the cause in many cases. Unfortunately many found this out after throwing mucho dinero at the front end components.

 

Got a call from ford this evening. Said that They're going to replace a bunch of stuff in the front end... Cant remember all that was told. Warranty will cover most of it. They Said I need to replace my tires. They told me that I have un even tread. I kinda of find it hard to believe because I have rotate them myself and check the depth each time. Their Michelins 275 65 20. Im not sure what model. Anyway they say it should be ready for pick up in a day. I'll keep updating.

 

Getting practically a new front suspension for the price of new tires, mileage unknown, ain't too shabby in my book.

 

Update!!!!
After spending almost 700 dollars (some parts weren't covered under the warranty) last month to fix the death wobble / front end bounce IT HAPPENED AGAIN! This time it was worst than before. I was driving about 70mph on the freeway started to turn left on the freeway and hit a couple of bumps. At first I thought the truck would drive out of it... nope. I was in the number 2 lane when it started, I pretty much veered into every lane. Luckily the traffic was pretty lite. about 2 car lengths behind me was a 18 wheeler that observed what happened, slowed down and put his four ways on. I slowed down to 35 mph to get out of this uncontrolled vibration.
I love my truck but, but this thing almost caused me to crash. Im glad no one got hurt. Im glad it was just me in the truck and not my wife and two kids.
This happened Sat, I will be dropping my truck off at ford in the am on Monday. I have a gut feeling that they will inspect it and tell me that theres nothing wrong with my vehicle. I don't feel my truck is safe to put my family in it. What happens then? am I just stuck with a broken truck that I hope and pray it doesn't crash...
Like I said I love my truck but looking back at it, its had a few problems go wrong with it. Transmission, a couple of recalls and now the death wobble. This truck is completly stock and has just over 50k.
One thing the dealer mentioned was that my tires needed to be replaced. They tried to get me to buy over g worth of tires over the phone. I declined, my tread depth is still pretty good. I have a feeling that the dealer may use this as an argument that , this wouldn't happened if I had brand new tires.... Im 99.9% sure my tires aren't the problem.
I'll update as I get info, Its going to be a rough week... The family and I will be down to one car. I guess the wife will have to drop me off at work and pick me up. yay.......

MODS can you add UPDATE on the title please? I tried but I couldn't figure out how to edit.

 

I put a top gun customz dual steering stabilizer on my truck and haven't experienced any wobble issues.

 

i second the dual steering stabilizer. i experienced death wobble a while ago it was pretty scary when it was happening. i got a dual stabilizer and swapped the factory steering damper with one from bilstien (a bit overkill having 3). being that mine is a dually i don't rotate my tires like i should so the fronts are cupped a bit. still no death wobble. in my opinion it is the only way to fix it once you have eliminated the front end ball joints being worn and tires in working condition. any solid axle front end can have this issue ford, dodge, jeep, etc..

 

Steering Stabilizer / Damper - This from the Oasis report on my truck:

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Tech Comments

FRONT END JUMPS ALL OVER ROAD WHEN HITTING BUMPS
VERIFY CONCERN. CK OASIS. FOUND TSB 11 6 14 STEERING WHEEL OSCILLATION. CARRY OUT TSB AND REPLACE STEERINGDAMPER ASSEMBLY. R&R DAMPER AND RETEST,
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I had the wobble on my 2008 truck. It never happened again after I got new tires and a new stabilizer. I don't know why, but that fixed it for me.

Use the search function in this forum and type in death wobble. You'll have a good couple days worth of reading material.

 

If was a betting man the tires had more to with it than whatever suspension parts were changed out. Are the michilins on your truck original? You might have a slight belt shift/early signs of tire failure occurring. Tires have a 5-6 year lifespan, regardless of use or tread remaining, at which point they should be replaced. Depending on your production date you could be there on original tires.

 

Yeah I think tires are gonna be in my future... Im still going to take it to ford to make sure everything is ok. I crawled underneath and everything looks fine but Im not a ford mechanic. I talked to a couple of my buddies that are mechanics and they told me its either my tires or the suspension. Now I get to spend over a g on tires....

 

Any news from the dealership today, DeeDubz? I'll keep checking in for your updates in case you need my help.

Crystal