[zukenutter]

The plan for this thread is to gather everyone's experience and tried remedies into one place.

This issue seems to be very common with pretty much every Jimny owner I meet. At certain speeds, and it can differ, the front end develops a wobble which in most cases disappears again with more or less speed.

My Jimny had it but I assumed it was the slightly bigger tyres and lift I installed early on. I added caster correction and a steering dampener and the problem was gone. Well almost, it's still rears its' ugly head every so often but not enough to worry me.

My wife's 2006 Jimny, which is totally stock, also had it and still does to a degree even after fitting a dampener. I've read all sorts of tried remedies but none seem to solve the problem 100%.

I tend to feel its' a caster or toe-in issue and I remember JOEBLOW mentioning in a thread somewhere about setting the toe-in at a particular measurement.

All feedback is welcome, except for "buy a leaf sprung Sierra"

[royce]

Leafs still do it

My take on it, replace the scraper seals, part of their job is to dampen this, make sure the front end is all in good condition, bearings and bushes and so on, then fit a damper between the diff housing and the tie bar, when everything is perfect it shouldnt wobble, for the other 364 days a year the damper should catch it

[Scrawny]

How old is it? How many klms? What are the bushes like in the front end? Steering components? Swivels? Tires?

joeblow wrote:

and when you get an alignment tell them to set toe at 0mm. trust, this works.

I'm sure you've read everything in Sams thread

[zukenutter]

ScrawnC wrote:

How old is it? How many klms? What are the bushes like in the front end? Steering components? Swivels? Tires?

joeblow wrote:

and when you get an alignment tell them to set toe at 0mm. trust, this works.

I'm sure you've read everything in Sams thread

Yeah read Sams wobble section. I forgot that's where Joes bit was.

My Jimny had about 30,000 or less when it became an issue but I'd already started messing with front end dynamics so put it down to that. My wife's Jim only has 34,000 and has done it from new so nothing would be worn. This is what makes me question all the fixes.

[zukenutter]

Also both Jims wear the tyres evenly. Mine a little on the outside fronts due to not quite enough caster correction, but it's minor

[Scrawny]

Have you tried warranty? I realise some dealers are difficult to deal with some times but they might do the hard work for you

[royce]

go put a wheel on the end of a stick and try and push it along at different speeds and terrains, now that you understand whats going on in the front end youll have a better idea of what wont help stop it

[zukenutter]

ScrawnC wrote:

Have you tried warranty? I realise some dealers are difficult to deal with some times but they might do the hard work for you

Don't get me started!!

I managed to get the importer, who admitted they new of the problem, to come to the party with an aftermarket dampener kit on the 2006 Jim. It has mostly fixed it but sometimes, usually braking into a corner, it happens.

I have had the same idea ROYCE mentioned of fitting the dampener to diff and Tie Rod as opposed to chassis and steering rod. this would remove some bump issues from the equation I think

[royce]

when my leafy got it (After fitting power steer, no bracket for it on pitman arm) I looked at it and figured it was the best spot, afterall when its shaking the wheels are swinging left to right pretty violently yet the steering wheel is barely moving so its better to get right at the source of the movement

[Scrawny]

I believe dampers are just a band aid covering the real problem. Strictly speaking they should be able to run without one.

[royce]

I dont, otherwise they wouldnt be there to start with

Its caused by harmonics in the front end and trying to do things that are hard to do, IE push a wheel along on the end of a stick, its much easier to pull it, it starts cause something moves at a rate that it likes to, the combination of its weight and strength makes a certain point where it takes little energy to move it a great deal, also tha same reason why subwoofers in cars all have a point where they work really well.

In order to remove this or move it to a point where it wont occour in general use you need to change how easy it is to wobble, you could make something more resisitant to moving (not useful in a 4wd) heavier (ever seen them big blocks on some 4wd trailing arms) or add some kind of dampening to stop it being able to start the wobble, which then allows you to have stuff that moves and doesnt weight a ton

[zukenutter]

royce wrote:

when my leafy got it (After fitting power steer, no bracket for it on pitman arm) I looked at it and figured it was the best spot, afterall when its shaking the wheels are swinging left to right pretty violently yet the steering wheel is barely moving so its better to get right at the source of the movement

I just had a look at the tie rod area. I'll have to have a look at yours at the meet-up. There is definitely some clearance issues. I could easily bolt on a bracket to the axle housing at the radius arm mount but I think the dampener would foul on the sump

[royce]

I havent had a sierra in 3 years

and you have the tie bar on the back of the housing dont you? would make it harder to do, Draglink to diff would be an OK alternative

[zukenutter]

OK I won't be checking yours out then Royce. I still like/prefer the idea of Tie Rod to axle housing as both are static in their relationship. I am picturing yours to have looked something like this pic. I think drag link-to-diff would give a similar effect to chassis-to-drag link as neither is static and would still have feedback from suspension movement.

P.S. Royce & ScrawnC looking forward to meeting you both on the 1st of Nov

[Scrawny]

Careful! That Jeep pic might catch fire!!

[royce]

yeah a lot like that, have a look at the calmini kit I used that damper with home made brackets

and chassis to steering isnt as good, as the body is more or less moving in a straight line while the diff (and therefore steering) is moving side to side

[zukenutter]

ScrawnC wrote:

Careful! That Jeep pic might catch fire!!

LOL - I knew that would get a comment

[Saam]

best way to get rid of death wobbles is, take your front wheels off swear at it set it on fire and drive another car..

[zukenutter]

Saam wrote:

best way to get rid of death wobbles is, take your front wheels off swear at it set it on fire and drive another car..

LOL

[ajsr]

Personally ive found that a bit of extra toe in nearly got rid of the shake entirely.
what sort of toe in are you guys running??
ps this is on a sierra.

[zukenutter]

no idea

[Saam]

toe out made mine drivable, still shit though

[steak_knife]

royce wrote:

go put a wheel on the end of a stick and try and push it along at different speeds and terrains, now that you understand whats going on in the front end youll have a better idea of what wont help stop it

That`s beautiful..

Do you want the factory fix????

Steering dampener, adj steering box ( only ever a slight adjustment) & machine the rotor`s, this HAS worked every time I`ve done it & wiil normaly last 40k before the rotor`s need to be skimmed again.

[steak_knife]

P.s Jimny toe in is set to 0 from factory..

[zukenutter]

I don't have to be on the brakes for it to happen though. In fact it's usually accelerating and at particular speeds.

[steak_knife]

zukenutter wrote:

I don't have to be on the brakes for it to happen though. In fact it's usually accelerating and at particular speeds.

Buy a Gv, hang on, my car dose it to..

All the one`s I`ve done were std, I like royce`s suggestion of the dampener between diff & drag link, it`s something I`ve said to Suzuki but as far as thay are concerned the dampener fix`s it.

[kenn]

Hi Zukenutter, this happened to my 2000 Jimny with ARB 40mm lift and 30"s on 10mm offset rims. My fix was 2 deg tow in and a dampener from the chassis to the drag link. Hope this is some help to you..


I miss my Jimny...

[steak_knife]

kenn wrote:

Hi Zukenutter, this happened to my 2000 Jimny with ARB 40mm lift and 30"s on 10mm offset rims. My fix was 2 deg tow in and a dampener from the chassis to the drag link. Hope this is some help to you..


I miss my Jimny...

But you have a Gv now, it`s ok....

[zukenutter]

Right'o. I've discovered some movement in my front driver side wheel bearing. I'm going to pull it apart to have a look in the morning. I've not attacked a front hub and knuckle before so will be a learning curve. Have read through the manual and all looks fairly straight forward.

I'm hoping that as a quick fix I can just tighten the wheel bearing lock nut enough to get me by for the weekend until I get my hands on a full seal and bearing kit for the spindle and knuckle.

So my questions for tonight are;
- do we think this will remove the freeplay?
- where is the best place to get all seals and bearings for a Jimny?

Any feedback is appreciated

[Scrawny]

So long as the bearing is still good then a quick adjust will be ok. I use the MaxiTrac swivel hub kit from Motorspecs on Webster Rd the Grange. Haven't had any problems with them yet. They are owned by Repco and supply to them but sell their product cheaper than Ripco do.