Topic: Death wobble

[12 valveR]

I just fix my front end of my 4runner now it wants to death wobble how do I fix this? 87 4runner solid axle swap crossover steering no steering stabilizer. Would tires out of balance have any thing to do with it?

[toyodaaddict]

more info, what did you do to the front end? absolutely out of balance tires will cause wobbles and shakes

[12 valveR [OP]]

The front tires where out 3/4" pointing away from each other. They where wearing really bad on the insides of the tires. I adjusted them strait and today driving 40 mph when I went over some railroad tracks the front tires started to do death wobble. Same thing as on of my old dodge 2500 4x4 trucks did.

[toyodaaddict]

i believe your tires should be set tow it 1/8''  if youve  got  a  good 4x4 shop close by thats used to toyota steering . it might be worth it to have the alignment done. or get out the tape and see what you can do. i payed to have mine done then put a tack weld on the jam nuts to keep the alignment set for when things come apart.  it sounds pretty clear alignment is the issue.

[12 valveR [OP]]

Ok sounds good I will go move it a little and see if it helps. Thank you for your help I will post back in the next couple days  with what I find out.

[toyyota]

Death Wobble is all to common on these trucks. My truck was fine on the freeway, but at 25-35 mph a hand full. It just kept getting worse. There is a lot of information on this site, but the bottom line for me was to re-tighten the shackle bolts. It worked for me, cost nothing to try.

[BadnewsBob]

Your tires should never be lined up straight. The truck will be hard to drive, Toe in is what you should have. You can do it with some simple tools you make yourself but I always take mine to a shop.

[Nation]

Id start by checking your shackle bolts. Then make sure your knuckle arms are tight. The 4 nuts on top of the knuckle. Make sure they are tight. Check your steering wheel linkage. (In the engine bay from firewall to steering box). Check it for slop or excessive play.
Get the tires balanced and check to see if they are directional.

[Fjcrawler]

Could be bushing , shackle bolts , tires .

[Fjcrawler]

O ya and make darn shur everything is rigged properly . Seen some shady handy man work

[rockhound]

Definitely check all attachments for snug. Steering box, idler arm, steering arms, u-bolts, wheel bearing play, lug nuts, shackle bolts, etc. Proper inflation, balancing, toe and good spring bushings.
Then cut and turn your knuckles. 
Or shim the springs.
Same thing happens to my '85 with Marlin's 4" springs up front, spring hanger and crossover. The aftermarket leafs move the axle forward and now the spring pad on the axle , following the arch of the spring, is tipping back a few degrees. This throws the caster out. A shim will correct it. I believe that is why some guys will cut and rotate the knuckles to correct negative caster created by modifying the suspension. I have run a shim to correct this. That creates another problem. Shimming the spring pad from the front, rotating the housing a few degrees, causes the crossover steering tie rod to come in contact with the top of the leaf spring. Also reduces the thread available for the u-bolt nuts.
I'm running a 6 degree shim now and plan to reduce to 4 degrees. I think that will give me clearance at the tie rod and correct the caster.

[OOPS]

When you say you "fixed the front end", what did you do to it? If you rebuilt it, I have a question or two.

Did you have DW before you rebuilt it?

What width are your tires?

What did you set the pre-load at on the trunion (knuckle bearings) bearings?

Did you align the front-end (set tow in)?

Did you do any welding on the housing?

Are your bushing good?

All hardware tight?

How long are your shackles?

Do you have a drop front hanger?