Finally,I've found a solution to my front end shimmy.

[zerosecta]

Originally Posted by mashed067

Did you get a print out from your most recent alignment - post up the details, a few fellas on here know there stuff and will be able to help, - ***cough cough Flex-off where r ya*** - whats the toe in ?

OK - Yet another alignment, I'll do one in the next week or so and post the results.

To be honest though, I really am at the end with this - I've been dealing with it for 11 months.
Surely there is someone out there (in melbourne) and not a jeep dealer that I can take the jeep to a pick up after a couple of days and have a rock solid vehicle that I can be comfortable with my wife and kids in. Surely right?...

So who is up for the challenge? - Fix this and you will get lots of business with the hundreds of other people out there will have the same issue but have'nt yet gotton to the point I am where I have put my jeep on the market and probably never again buy one. And to think I have wanted a jeep all my life...

[MCJK]

If your vehicle had the issue stock the only allignment issue theoretically will be the Toe. another wheel allignment after all you have done would be fruitless?

You will notice alot of ppl screaming Caster Caster Caster as being the primary offender - more often than not the ppl screaming this do not own a jk or have had DW as an issue.

many people have fitted adjustable control arms and caster pins only to find a very small improvement if any at all. Some have fixed the issue, but if yours did this stock the issue is more than likely elsewhere.

You may have noticed the DW starts off as a Shimmy between specific speeds, lets say 60 - 80, or 70 - 90, 90 - 100.

The shimmy may begin, you round a corner or hit a bump and you have a DW or if it's bad enough you simply get a DW when you reach a particular speed.

There must be excessive movement in an associated component, issue is locating the one responsible.

You have the 4 balljoints upfront, 2 on each knuckle (has this been a issue for anyone?)

The 2 trackbar joints - it is obvious you have replaced this unit with a aftermarket one and it did not fix the issue. (if either of these joints have play you have instant DW) This area has been a big issue for alot of ppl and caused many issues.

2 x Tie rod ends on the Tierod. - seems the RH tie rod end wears the quickest.

2 x Draglink ends, 1 at the LH knuckle other at the steering pitman arm. - seems the Pitman arm end joint wears the quickest, you may notice grease around teh joint.

2 x wheel bearings.

Steering dampner - which you have replaced.

Steering box itself, exessive play.

Maybe look at what components have worked or changed and eliminate these. It is effecting vehicles of any km, stock or lifted. tie rod ends, balljoints, bushes are well known to have perished on very low km vehicles.

Good luck.

[xjdavid]

The problem will almost certainly be loosness some where in the control arms or tracbar assuming the TREs and balljoints are perfect. I would eyeball each bush as it is worked under load and check if maybe the bushes are too soft. I am a bit suspicious of having a rubber bush both ends of the tracbar. The XJ only has a rubber bush one end. There are a lot of cheap inferior bushes on the market. All this is very critical on a lifted vehicle with a live axil. Why dont you try replacing one of the bushes in the tracbar with a Jonny Joint or TRE. This will take some of the spring out of the tracbar. You will find that there very few people at Jeep dealers who can think outside the square.

[zerosecta]

OK as appreciative as I am for effort put in to replying to my post.

You are only repeating what I already know and have read/exercised 100 times, like said earlier I have had this issue for 11 months.

Well it starting to look like I really have found the solution afterall since no-one has sugested anything or anyone I don't already know.

IF Your jeep has DW or shimmy Get rid of it and buy a Toyota. Very sad.

I think there is another issue here, and that is jeep drivers are to easily conned by the dealers, just look at Toyota, one little problem with the brakes and they recAlling 10000's of cars. If that was jeep you'd have people going Down hills only using 1'st low to slow down and never actually hold jeep accountable for it. And let's not forget the get out of jail free phrase for jeep -ITS A JEEP THING. I think people have got the wrong impression of this saying in that they see it as a good thing. Well i now see it as a clever way to spin a very nasty vehicle clearly put together using less than substandard components.

[OIIIO]

Originally Posted by zerosecta

OK as appreciative as I am for effort put in to replying to my post.

You are only repeating what I already know and have read/exercised 100 times, like said earlier I have had this issue for 11 months.

Well it starting to look like I really have found the solution afterall since no-one has sugested anything or anyone I don't already know.

IF Your jeep has DW or shimmy Get rid of it and buy a Toyota. Very sad.

I think there is another issue here, and that is jeep drivers are to easily conned by the dealers, just look at Toyota, one little problem with the brakes and they recAlling 10000's of cars. If that was jeep you'd have people going Down hills only using 1'st low to slow down and never actually hold jeep accountable for it. And let's not forget the get out of jail free phrase for jeep -ITS A JEEP THING. I think people have got the wrong impression of this saying in that they see it as a good thing. Well i now see it as a clever way to spin a very nasty vehicle clearly put together using less than substandard components.

Geez mate, talk about bitter and twisted.
You say you've heard the same advice over and over again, BUT have you changed the balljoints, the TRE's, or do you just keep taking the JK in for wheel alignments?. the only thing adjustable on the steering in toe in/out. It's pointless doing alignment after alignment.....

If Toyota are so appealing sell the JK, buy one and move on...

As far as your comments on Toyota's recall "one little problem with the brakes". Are you serious?. are you aware that people have died because of the one little problem?.. I doubt anyone has died because of steering shimmies on the JK.

Are you also aware that any vehicle with a solid axle front end is likley to have steering shimmy?. If in doubt check out the patrol owner forum, or a Land Rover forum..

If you expect a vehicle with a ladder section chassis, solid axle front and rear, long travel multi link coil suspension to handle like a camry........ it's never gonna happen!!

[xjdavid]

As frustrating as this is there will be a solution to this. Once you get deathwobbles once is tends to loosen everything up. That shimy is most likely rubber bushes bouncing. Once you lift a live axil it changes the geometry. Did you say that you had a high steer conversion?

What sort of upper adjustable arms did you use.

Also as strange as it may seem why dont you swap in another set of front shocks. What sort of shocks do you have now. If the shocks are faulty it will give a shmmy.

[double black offroad]

Go and see flexy at south melb tyres. He has had experience with DW with many Jeeps including my JK, get him to do the alignment also. You would be surprised how quickly trackbar and control arm bushings can deteriorate.