The vibration and wobbling can be scary to navigate, as these sometimes deter you from fully enjoying your ride. Before panicking too much, your axle will not fall off. With that in mind, though, the wild shaking of your vehicle shouldn’t go overlooked. Let’s talk about troubleshooting the death wobble in a military Jeep and hopefully help you navigate the situation easily if it arises.
What Is the Death Wobble?
To simplify the identification process, the death wobble appears to be an uncontrollable shaking from side-to-side within the Jeep’s steering and front end. It makes the entire Jeep hard to handle and makes an operator feels like the whole front end will fall off.
Encountering a pothole or a hard brake tap can usually trigger a death wobble. It’s worth noting that this does not occur in every Jeep, but vehicles with a single axle are more prone to something like this. Chances are, it will happen after an instance of one tire being jarred while at a steady speed, typically 45mph or more.
How To Overcome It
The first thing you want to do is remain calm. Panicking is easy but won’t change the circumstances, and they are fixable. Generally, you’ll experience the wobble the most at high speeds, so avoid going over 50mph if you need to.
Always maintain a solid two-handed grip on the steering wheel to guarantee you have more control of the vehicle. You don’t need a death grip on the wheel, just two hands tight enough to handle any jarring movements.
Misconceptions
A common misconception about military Jeeps is that all of them are prone to a death wobble. But single-axle vehicles are more prone, so these models experience it more often.
A second misconception many do is swapping their Jeep’s stabilizer to something stronger, hoping this will solve the wobble. The best way to work around this is to ensure you’re buying official replacement M151A1 Jeep parts. Simply swapping parts out from one to something different does not solve the problem quite like replacement parts that are accurate to the make and model.
Possible Causes
Discovering the cause of a death wobble is challenging, as it can be the result of multiple issues. Things like loose and damaged parts can typically stir up a death wobble. But once you begin experiencing it, this might be the sign that parts have been wearing for a while. The steering and suspension of a military Jeep experience a lot of movement and wear naturally.
Troubleshooting
Thanks to a solid front axle, the uncontrollable jarring can pop up any time. Should this happen to your vehicle, and you need to investigate troubleshooting the death wobble in a military Jeep.
To receive an accurate diagnosis, you can consider detaching the stabilizer temporarily instead of swapping it out. Check that all the bolts have a secure fasten, as any looseness in these parts can also throw a wobble. Additionally, examine the track bar. This is where absorption of the forces takes place, and with time, the bushings wear out.
To learn more about the death wobble and how to kill it in your military Jeep, reach out to Army Jeep Parts today. We offer replacement parts for all military models and can assist in ensuring you receive the most accurate diagnosis.