[tzuukk]

My 1997 Suzuki Sierra SJ413 has a bad case of death wobbles. I have taken it to three different mechanics already and not one of them has been able to diagnose the problem. I have had the car balanced and aligned, yet no difference. One mechanic adjusted a screw onto of the steering box which cured some play in the steering wheel, although the death wobble continues. The car begins the wobble from anywhere between 50-75km/h and obviously i haven't tried anything quicker. My sierra does not have a steering damper, is this normal in the model? The most recent mechanic is suggests to replace the front 6 axel bushes although they are not entirely shagged. These bushes have not been replaced since the factory 130 000 km ago. Need the problem fixed ASAP as it is very dangerous as well as a Moreton Island trip coming up soon. I am not a mechanic. I bought his car at the beginning of this year. If anyone in Brisbane has previous knowledge in the Suzuki Sierra death wobble, i really need your help.

Will a Steering damper fix the problem?

Cheers

[henno]

tzuukk wrote:

Will a Steering damper fix the problem?

No.

Much in the same way that a good pair of running shoes won't fix a dodgy knee, a steering dampener - while it can improve the 'situation' - will not fix the problem itself.

I assume you have searched the forum high and low and tried all of the other usual fixes? I see no mention of king pins in your post, for instance.

EDIT: It's fitting that I automatically assumed this was a post about a Jimny.

[tzuukk]

henno wrote:

tzuukk wrote:

Will a Steering damper fix the problem?

I assume you have searched the forum high and low and tried all of the other usual fixes? I see no mention of king pins in your post, for instance.

EDIT: It's fitting that I automatically assumed this was a post about a Jimny.

First check at KTAS they said Swivel Hub Bearings, Sway bar links and D bushes, front brake pads, front disk rotors were all worn. As well as a tight R/H/F brake caliper.. When i went to another mechanic he said that they were trying to take my money and that they weren't bad enough to cause this problem.? What do you think?

Sorry, what should i EDIT?

[henno]

The edit was mine (I edited my post after initially submitting it).

[Gwagensteve]

In order of the likely cause:

Kingpin bearing preload.

After that, radius arm and panhard bushings.

After that, wheel bearings.

[Reubs]

tzuukk wrote:

If anyone in Brisbane has previous knowledge in the Suzuki Sierra death wobble, i really need your help.

SuziAuto at Springwood are pretty good at fixing death wobbles on coil Sierras and Jimnys.

You could try to PM Losfer - he is probably the best expert on this forum and fixed one of my coilies nearly 10 years ago. The fix was new bearings/seals/bushes which were all flogged out.

As an aside my current coily has never had death wobbles in 350,000km. I put that down to routine maintenance.

[tzuukk]

Reubs wrote:

tzuukk wrote:

If anyone in Brisbane has previous knowledge in the Suzuki Sierra death wobble, i really need your help.

SuziAuto at Springwood are pretty good at fixing death wobbles on coil Sierras and Jimnys.

You could try to PM Losfer - he is probably the best expert on this forum and fixed one of my coilies nearly 10 years ago. The fix was new bearings/seals/bushes which were all flogged out.

As an aside my current coily has never had death wobbles in 350,000km. I put that down to routine maintenance.

Thank you so much! I will message him now.

[JrZook]

Gwagensteve wrote:

In order of the likely cause:

Kingpin bearing preload.

After that, radius arm and panhard bushings.

After that, wheel bearings.

This!

[ALBYALBATROSS1]

HI All...I have yet to intro myself. We have been banging our heads against the wall with this wobble on a brand new 3013 jimny less than 5000k. Bob jane have nearly torn their hair out.. The wobble started after we fitted Kings rims sunraysia style 15 x 6. After they checked all balancing and alignment and castor ect decided to just try putting the two front original rims on and it has vanished. the tyres are the still the standard factory fit and were also fitted to new rims. There is no wobble at all now. Kings are not sure why this happens. They are looking into finding us some other rims. Suzuki says we have the new parts as per service bulletin. (but i do not trust them..wanted to blame the bull bar.)

Hope this helps someone.

[Mezteq]

tzuukk wrote:

My 1997 Suzuki Sierra SJ413 has a bad case of death wobbles. I have taken it to three different mechanics already and not one of them has been able to diagnose the problem. I have had the car balanced and aligned, yet no difference. One mechanic adjusted a screw onto of the steering box which cured some play in the steering wheel, although the death wobble continues. The car begins the wobble from anywhere between 50-75km/h and obviously i haven't tried anything quicker. My sierra does not have a steering damper, is this normal in the model? The most recent mechanic is suggests to replace the front 6 axel bushes although they are not entirely shagged. These bushes have not been replaced since the factory 130 000 km ago. Need the problem fixed ASAP as it is very dangerous as well as a Moreton Island trip coming up soon. I am not a mechanic. I bought his car at the beginning of this year. If anyone in Brisbane has previous knowledge in the Suzuki Sierra death wobble, i really need your help.

Will a Steering damper fix the problem?

Cheers

Hey mate, 6 years on from your original post. I'm wondering how you ended up with this problem. I too, have a 97 SJ413 and it's death-wobbling at anything over 60kph. I've replaced the steering hub which fixed the problem for about 7 months but it has come back with a vengeance. The bushes are new and so are the coilies.

How did you go?

[bumstein]

Looks like he hasn’t logged on since 2016, might not get a reply I think

[tzuukk]

Mezteq wrote:

Hey mate, 6 years on from your original post. I'm wondering how you ended up with this problem. I too, have a 97 SJ413 and it's death-wobbling at anything over 60kph. I've replaced the steering hub which fixed the problem for about 7 months but it has come back with a vengeance. The bushes are new and so are the coilies.

How did you go?

G’day mate,

The solution I have found to have the best results in fixing the death wobble problem is replacing the tie rod ends (all four).

They may not seem to have much play when the vehicle is stationary but at speed there must be enough ply to begin the oscillation.

They are $100 from 4wd_products off eBay. Let me know how you go.

Tzuukk.

[bumstein]

I stand corrected!! Welcome back!!