91 6.2 "death wobble"

[lmholmes11]

I have the occasional death wobble of the front end when coming to a stop. (Mostly happens when I have a trailer. Is it time for new tires? What causes this?

1991 6.2 with 127000 miles

[CoyleJR]

You just have to go through the list of possible causes.

1.) Tires that are way out of balance or badly worn.
2.) Check steering linkage, ball joints & control arm bushings.
3.) Check the steering dampening shock absorber.
4.) Check for a cracked frame or loose bolts where the steering gear box bolts on. Have someone turn the steering wheel while you look at the gear box from above.
5.) Check for a frozen brake caliber or warped rotor.
6.) Check for a bent or loose wheel.


Good luck
John

[DmaxMaverick]

Good list, but add:

Separated tire cord. This is common on old, but not necessarily worn out, in appearance. Jack the wheel off the ground and give it a spin. If the tread walks back and forth, or it's out of round, it's a possibility. Any obvious bulges are suspect.

Wheel bearing(s). Check while the wheel is off the ground.

[lmholmes11]

I think I found the culprit. Bad outer tie rod end. I jacked the truck up and was able to move the tire about an inch side to side. I'm going to replace the inner/outer tie rod and adjusting sleeve.