Death Wobble in Steering Wheel

[esmit208]

12 hours ago, ramsesosirus said:

Bought the Ball Joint removal tool and a torque wrench from harbor freight today, had 20% coupon.  The ball joint removal tool works great, just remember to leave the nut on because it pops off like a gunshot when it goes.   It also wont' ruin the boot like the pickle fork does, it case I need to remove them again without damaging them.  Tomorrow I plan to adjust the alignment a little, seems somewhat toed out.  Still have a little clicking on the passenger side when jacked up and pressing at 9 and 3, we'll see if the death wobble is improved tomorrow after work.  If not, I'm thinking:

Brake rotors

Inner tie rods

TC rod bushings

Rag Joint

Rack Mounting Bushings

 

Funny thing is it didn't really have this problem 6 years ago when I blew the engine (rear main oil seal leaked all the oil on the interstate).  It is a problem that seemed to develop/worsen after sitting....

 

Thanks for all the advice and help guys!

 

I also love "cheater bars".  No way I could've gotten those jam nuts off without them.

How do I adjust the toe without removing the outer tie rod end from the knuckle/spindle thing?  

 

The inner tie rod spins once you undo the jamb nut for this adjustment. I suggest a professional alignment to know for sure it ends up correct.

[Zed Head]

If you have two out of round tires and their wobbles get sync'ed up you'll get a really bad wobble.

A jack and 16 lug nuts is pretty simple.  But all of that other stuff is fun work anyway.  Except for the risk of creating new problems.  Not really many new problems that you can create by swapping wheels.

Just my keep it simple approach.  Carry on.  At least you're trying one thing at a time so you'll know what the cause was when you're done.  I can't stand the shotgun approach, with no answer at the end.

[ramsesosirus]

34 minutes ago, esmit208 said:

The inner tie rod spins once you undo the jamb nut for this adjustment. I suggest a professional alignment to know for sure it ends up correct.

Thanks, I knew there was a way to adjust without removing the outer end from the knuckle/spindle.  

[ramsesosirus]

On 6/14/2017 at 6:37 AM, siteunseen said:

Somebody said "right is right, left is wrong" on the tie rod threads 

 

On 6/16/2017 at 9:55 AM, esmit208 said:

The inner tie rod spins once you undo the jamb nut for this adjustment. I suggest a professional alignment to know for sure it ends up correct.

Well I spent the morning doing my best to align the new outer tie rod ends with some string and measuring tapes.  I think I got it pretty close, obviously I should take it to a shop, but I'd like to replace a couple more suspension components first.  

I'm happy to say that 99% of my steering wheel "death wobble" is gone.  I still get it when I brake hard, so my next mission will be to address the brakes.  

Thanks for all of the replies and comments, but special thanks to siteunseen and esmit208.  Siteunseen has routinely replied and offered good advice, and without esmit208 's advice on adjusting the tie rods, my dumb self would've been taking the tie rod ball joint out and turning it every time haha.  

 

[siteunseen]

Well thank you sir! That's awful nice of you to go out of your way instead of just clicking "LIKE".

In my expirences when you get on the brakes and you get a shaky wheel your rotors are warped, usually from being hot then driving through a puddle of water on the roadside. Hot then cold warps them. Try a cut to get it out but if it's too bad and they'll tell you at the parts store if they're too far gone so you'll buy new ones. They're only $20 or so bucks so not too bad. When and if you decide to do that I would reccomend new wheel bearings to. They aren't expensive, $5 to $10 per side. There's info on this site a bbb out driving the old ones out and the new ones on. Get a tub of grease and slop them full. I'll try to find my post from when I did it in the morning, not too easy on this phone.

Thanks again for saying thanks, that's what drives me to help out others. 

[ramsesosirus]

Hey no prob man.  My life for the past few years has been a movie.  Tried to kill myself in my Monte SS, but failed and subsequently lost my job, my car, and a plethora of other things.  Really, the Z has been one of my primary motivating factors.  Sorry, I keep it real. 

So when I ask for help, and people respond constructively, I really do appreciate it.  

The car is running as good as ever, and looking decent as well !  I cruised for like 6 hours today.  I might be high from the Z fumes.

 

[ramsesosirus]

59 minutes ago, siteunseen said:

Can't figure out this internet thing, see previous post

thanks

FYI siteunseen didn't really say that stupid stuff, giving credit where credit is due. #z

Edited June 18, 2017 by ramsesosirus