04 Tahoe Death Wobble?

[GreenZilla]

I have a 2004 Tahoe with 6" Pro Comp lift and 35's on 9.5" wheels - When I hit a small bump in the road or just uneven pavement it goes into a death wobble. Doesn't do it all the time but I would say it happens once a week pretty severe. I can also feel a slight shimmy vibration in the wheel most of the time. Any ideas on where to start?

 

[0352Marine]

I would start with the stabilitrak system. More than likely since you lifted it to the sky it is alot harder for this system to work. I would try and disable it and see if it still does it, be careful through if you do and it will probably set a code as well.

 

[nickm]

For starters, get your tires balanced and only with a road force machine. Unfortunately out of balance tires are usually just the trigger for underlying problems. Do a "dry" steering test, have someone turn the wheel quickly from 11 o'clock to 1 o'clock position while you lay underneath the front end. Closely look at all steering and suspension components for wear and play. Toe and caster can trigger death wobble as well, was it aligned after the lift? Have you tried rotating the tires to notice a difference? When is the last time you re-torqued the suspension since installing the lift? That should be enough to get you started, and remember, each DW episode will further destroy all steering and suspension parts.

 

[clkelley]

Welcome to the neighborhood!

I have to agree with checking your steering components. Once that is done, make sure to check your ball joints and hub bearings. To check the ball joints, jack the truck up and use a large rod/bar under the ball joint on the lower control arm and attempt to move it up and down prying up on it, if the ball joint moves independent of the control arm at all it is bad, there should be zero play there.

To check the hub bearings, while it is still jacked up, grab the top and bottom of the tires and attempt to move them back and forth/in and out so to speak, if there is any play there then the hub bearings need replaced. There can be movement left to right with the steering, but not up and down.

LEt us know what you figure out!