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Old 04-01-2010, 11:05 AM   #31
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

When my track bar was loose and I had severe DW, I found I could stop it by quickly turning. That loaded everything in one direction and wobble could not get to the 'resonant' mode. The only other thing that could make it stop was reducing the speed down to below 10mph and changing my shorts.

All because of a loose track bar. Factory F350 axle, wheels, tires, etc. But, a loose track bar. The factory steering damper did nothing, the steering wheel didn't move or vibrate. Parts of my body did vibrate though.

It has not done it in the 15,000 miles since the track bar was tightened. Including some nasty roads on the way to/from Alaska. But, I will still add the dual stabilizer kit when the weather settles down. Not going to lay on my back under the van in the rain.

Skyjacker dual stabilizer kit 7254 for 2005 F350 from Amazon.com $123.40 including shipping.

Mike

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Old 04-03-2010, 07:21 PM   #32
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

I just returned from Death Valley. Probably did about 50 miles of washboard and 20 miles of serious 4wd stuff. This trip came after having the front end inspected and aligned to Quadvan Specs. I had no DW until I was about 300 miles from home. Total trip was 1325. Dw was very slight and happened as I braked from about 50mph headed straight down hill on pavement. Tires, BFG/AT 285/75/17's have less than 10k on them. Entire front end was new 25k ago.
What is back spacing? How do I measure it?
Next stop......dual dampers.
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Old 04-04-2010, 10:57 AM   #33
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

Brake wobble is not Death Wobble. Anything that can be called slight is not Death Wobble. Maybe irritating or scary, but not Death Wobble. If you ever have DW, you will understand why it is called that and anything else is just something else.

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Old 04-04-2010, 01:00 PM   #34
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

Survivors of serious DW will tell the rookies that "shimmy" is not DW. While the definition of DW is vague, IMHO all conditions of wheels resonating back and forth all have the same root causes and fixes.
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Old 04-04-2010, 05:31 PM   #35
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

DW= Holy Crap this thing is going to come apart any second! My intro to DW started as a slight movement in the steering wheel and got worse. Ford refers to DW as "steering wheel oscillation". I certainly could have "something else" ....I was just describing my experience as clearly as I could. Turbo and I have had almost identical situations. I've felt DW 5 or 6 times and it's very scary.
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Old 04-06-2010, 12:48 AM   #36
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

FWIT, it can be a combination of things being just slightly worn that together = DW. Tires with a flexy sidewall, worn tires, worn control arm bushings, track bar bushings, ball joints, shocks, steering stabilizers, steering shaft, wheel bearings/unit bearings, tie rod ends ect... Thats why it is so hard to track down. No one part is worn so bad as to say "thats your problem right there." It is very fustrating. Especially with how much SMB's cost. I am surprised no one makes aftermarket high quality HD stuff for SMB's like http://www.thecarlisuspension.com/ does for Dodge. Maybe someone should contact them & explain your vehicles to them & see if they would be willing to make you some HD greaseable-rebuildable trackbars & other stuff. It's worth a shot.
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Old 05-12-2010, 07:47 PM   #37
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

We have a 2008 Quigley with about 50,000 miles on it. I don't think what I have is any where near the "Death Wobble", but I do have some minor shimmy or wobble in the steering at certain speeds and certain road conditions. Usually starts around 45 to 55 mph and may even go away at higher speeds or maybe not. It's in the Ford shop right now getting new ball joints. The Ford dealer didn't think it was the wobble shock or the track bar bushings. Hope they are right, because it's going to be about 1,000 bucks for the ball joints and an alignment, etc. Let you know whether it helps or not. We will put about 600 miles on it this weekend. We have new tires on it, so I don't think it's a tire issue.
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Old 05-13-2010, 07:06 PM   #38
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

So far so good. The wobble seems to be gone and the steering wheel points straight forward (always a good thing). I've only done a short test drive so far, so it may change on the road trip. We are planning to go west for a month or two this summer and I wanted to get it right before we leave. Also did the 4x4/transmission service and changed the fluid in both differentials and the transfer case. Can't afford to go west now, but the van's ready.
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Old 05-14-2010, 11:04 AM   #39
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

I don't think you will have anymore problems. I don't have a Quigley but with only 20k on the 08 front end a proper alignment seems to have solved the problem. I am going to install an after market steering damper to clear up a little bump steer I still have. How's your gas mileage? I installed a 5Star program and it really made the van drive better with regard to shift times in different situations. Much smoother. I also picked up at least 2mpg.
Chris
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Old 05-14-2010, 03:45 PM   #40
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Re: Quadvan Death Wobble

I may do the programmer one of these days. I have looked into a couple of them to at least get my speedo back to actual. We have averaged 12 mpg since the start, but we drive 75 or so on the highway.
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