10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 1 / 0
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 0 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 67,640 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
At highway speed my steering wheel and front end began to shake violently. This occurred when hitting a small joint in the pavement. The only way to stop the shaking was to slow down from 60 to approximately 30 miles per hour on the interstate.
- Baltimore, MD, USA
Was driving down the road about 45 mph, hit a bump and the vehicle began to shake so violently that I was convinced a wheel was about to fall off. I immediately stopped on the side of the road to inspect the vehicle but could find nothing wrong. In researching the problem online I found out that is a common occurrence known as a "death wobble." I was lucky in that I was driving on a rarely traveled back road when the incident occurred, had this happened on a major highway I could see this as a very dangerous situation.
- Salisbury, MD, USA
Death wobble - I can drive the Jeep down the highway and once it hits above 45 miles an hour it will start to shake extensively. I have to start putting on the break immediately to stop the Jeep from shaking and regain control of the vehicle. With the speed limits on the highways 60 - 75 miles an hour the vehicle problem makes it impossible for me to take many highways. This Jeep is my only means of transportation to and from work and transporting my children. I have avoided over 5 near miss accidents because of this problem with my children in the vehicle. It has almost cost me my job because of having to avoid traveling in the Jeep.
- Talala, OK, USA
As I was driving through the entrance to the baltimore harbor tunnel, I hit a bump and the steering wheel began to shake violently on my Jeep Wrangler. In addition, the front end of the vehicle vibrated and shook violently. I had no place to stop, a bus was behind me, and I had trouble keeping my Jeep in one lane. Since there was no place to pull over, I slowed down and when I reached a speed between 15 to 20 miles per hour, the shaking stopped and I was able to continue on. During my trip that day, I had three more episodes of violent shaking as I hit bumps in the road when I was traveling between 50 and 60 miles per hour. I had recently read an article about this problem and this issue appears to be a common problem for Jeep Wrangler, although I had never experienced the problem before. My Jeep is a 2007 4-door Wrangler which only has 10,400 miles on it because I usually keep it garaged at a beach home in Delaware and I use it only during summer weekends. The Jeep is a stock model with no after market modifications. I had driven it home to Maryland to have a dealer checkup before I returned the Jeep to the beach. The problem happened on my third trip after the dealer service but it was my first trip driving on a highway. My daughter was in the car with me and she and I were extremely disturbed and consider this issue a major safety issue. Since my research indicates this is a widespread problem, I feel strongly the ntsb should take the appropriate action to have Chrysler address this issue before there is a fatality. I am extremely thankful that the bus behind me in the baltimore harbor tunnel had good brakes.
- Arnold, MD, USA
While driving down the road at about 40-45mph my right front tire hit a bump. When that happened the entire front end began to vibrate violently. The only thing that cured the issue was to brake the vehicle. Once it got down to about 15mph it finally stopped and I was able to continue. This has been an ongoing issue with this Jeep. This has happened before and the dealership replaced tie rods and a steering dampener but it's never gone away completely.
- Pittsburgh, PA, USA
I own a 2007 Jeep Wrangler that has a violently shimmy or a so called "death wobble". it has nearly caused me to go off the road on several occasions. After some research, I've come to find out this a common problem among Jeep owners which the Chrysler co. Refuses to acknowledge. It's been to the dealership twice and the problem still isn't fixed. To my dismay, the have no problem charging me for their ineffective attempts. My model Jeep, as well as others, needs to be recalled and my money refunded.
- Lexington, KY, USA
The contact owns a 2007 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated that while driving 60 mph, the front end of the vehicle started to shake violently. The contact then pulled over and started to reverse when the shaking stopped. The vehicle was taken to a body shop where it was diagnose that the control bar and the steering were faulty. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The vehicle was not further repaired. The failure mileage was 99,900 and the current mileage was 100,034.
- Harper Woods , MI, USA
The contact owns a 2007 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated that while driving 50 mph, the front end of the vehicle began to shake violently. When the failure would occur, the contact would slightly lose control of the vehicle. The contact applied the brakes and the vehicle decelerated as normal. The contact took the vehicle to a local mechanic where the mechanic advised that the stabilizer bar and steering dampener were faulty and needed to be replaced. After replacing the steering dampener and stabilizer bar, the vehicle continued to shake when driving at higher speeds. The contact took the vehicle to a dealer and the dealer advised that the tires needed to be replaced. The contact stated there was nothing wrong with the tires. The failure mileage was 55,000.
- Petaluma, CA, USA
For your urgent review and action: I was driving down the road at 45 mph and the front wheels and steering wheel of my Jeep started to shake violently! I had no control over the steering of the Jeep. I looked up on the internet this problem and discovered much information including videos that describe this violent shake as the "death wabble". this violent shake continues to happen when I get up to speeds between 45mp and 60mph. So far I have replaced the steering stabalizer shock and now my Jeep is back in the shop at a local tire and front-end service center getting new tires, wheel balancing and a front-end alignment. Because of the severity of this issue, the service center said they will not "test drive" the Jeep after this work is complete because they are not willing to put their employees lives at risk. This is a major problem for me if I can't even have a service provider test drive my vehicle after they do their work because they fear something terrible could happen to their lives. It makes me very scared to drive this Jeep. I am requesting that Chrysler-Jeep immediately review the fixes of my Jeep (including a test drive) when I get the Jeep back and that they cover my expenses thus far to fix the "death wabble" plus any additional work that they may need to do to make my Jeep safe to drive by eliminating this violent shaking problem. I find it hard to believe that this vehicle, with this violent shaking issue that creates loss of control of the vehicle, meets automative safety regulations. This is a "known" difficiency with various Jeep products including my 2007 Jeep Wrangler X. in addition, I am requesting any "recall" information that may be available to fix this problem that I may have missed. I am available to provide additional information upon request to assist with my request for resolution.
- Ballston Lake, NY, USA
At between 35-40 mph, when a bump is hit with one wheel before the other a shaking begins in the front suspension. At times this shaking is so violent and sustained that the vehicle has be brought to a complete stop. There is some kind of apparent harmonic oscillation that is being established for it to be as violent and sustained as it is. I initially reported this to the Jeep dealership in 2008, after the steering stabilizer bracket broke off the front axle of the Jeep. I was told that my problems were because the lift kit that was installed on the vehicle was not a mopar approved kit. Jeeps resolution was for me to purchase a new front axle at my cost and replace the lift kit that was on the vehicle. The lift was professionally installed and is one of the top kits on the market. Since this time, I have replaced the steering stabilizer about every 10K-12K miles. Each time the I do, this reduces the problem for a short period of time. Each time I have discussed the issue with a Jeep service center, I've been told that this is a lift issue and not Jeep's problem. From the many complaints that I continue to read on Jeep forums in which people are experiencing this issue, I strongly believe that this is an issue with the design of the front suspension/steering system on the jk. I have read reports from people experiencing this with the stock suspension, as well as a variety of lift systems and tire/rim configurations. If there is some way to fix this that Jeep is aware of, they should be disclosing it to the owners of the vehicles, if not they should make efforts to investigate and try to resolve this issue.
- Cypress, CA, USA
The contact owns a 2007 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated that the vehicle would violently shake while driving approximately 55 mph. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer on numerous occasions and various suspension components were replaced. The failure continued. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 15,000.
- Palm Springs, CA, USA
I hit a small bump on my morning commute on interstate 95 while riding next to a tractor trailer. My front end started shaking violently...I thought I was going to slam into the side of that tractor trailer. The so called "death wobble" is a horrifying experience, and frankly something threatening my life really pisses me off. My Jeep is stock..never lifted and no modifications. I do not understand how the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has let this one slip through the cracks. I am going to see a lawyer. I have spent so much money trying to get this resolved..and I am still not safe it is still happening..happened yesterday. Now I could trade it in or sell it, but that is some real bad karma coming back. I am looking for these manufacture issues to be resolved and to know that when I drive my Jeep to and from work everyday that everytime I hit a small bump or cross over a joint in a bridge, I am not at risk of killing myself or someone else due to driving a Jeep Wrangler. I would never recommend Jeep to anyone at this point. In fact people ask me all the time how I like it and I tell them it is a piece of crap and I wouldn't buy one. Feel free to contact me regarding these issues. I am sure you have heard them before as they seem to be pretty common (the violent shaking in the front end even has it's own name...the "death wobble"). why don't you go out and buy a Wrangler and put your own family members in it and drive down the highway at 70" would you own a Jeep Wrangler or buy one for your daughter"
- Woodford, VA, USA
The contact owns a 2007 Jeep Wrangler. While driving approximately 60 mph, the vehicle began to shake vigorously. The failure recurred constantly when driving between speeds of 50-70 mph. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing and the technicians replaced the ball joints, stabilizer bar and the tires. The failure continued after the repairs were performed. The vehicle was not further repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 31,000.
- Broken Arrow, OK, USA
At 45mph steering wheel shook violently. Vehicle about to roll over due to loss of control. Car following states wheels were turning back and forth at high speed. Does frequently now.
- Jefferson Hills, PA, USA
The contact owns a 2007 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated while driving 70 mph over a bump in the road the vehicle would shake uncontrollably. The vehicle was taken numerous times to several mechanics who stated they could not repair the failure. The tires were replaced and rotated. The shocks and stabilizer were also replaced but the shaking continued to occur. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated there was no repair for this problem. The manufacturer was notified and a claim was filed and she was advised a representative would give her a call. The failure mileage was 120,000. Updated 12/12/11
- Riverside, CA, USA
While driving on a secondary road at 50 mph, I crossed a bump in the road where a culvert had been replaced. The blacktop was replaced on the road and no visible obstructions were noticed. The Jeep started shaking violently. I thought I had blown a tire or a ball joint had failed. I came to a stop at the side of the road with traffic behind me, fearing I'd get rear-ended making a stop so suddenly. I got out of the Jeep to check the tires, etc and nothing looked out of place - no flat tires, no sign of joints failing. I got back in the Jeep and slowly started driving again. This happened within a 4 week span at least 4 times at the same location. But when I would drive with others in their vehicles, there would be no problems. I ended up taking my Jeep to the local garage and they replaced ball joints, U joints and also aligned the front end. I had no problem until November 1, when along another secondary road, another culvert had been replaced; again the Jeep started shaking violently. Again on a main highway, a week later, a bump you could not see but feel while driving, violent shaking occurred. I called my garage today and told the attendant what has been happening and they explained to me that this occurs in some Chrysler and also Ford vehicles. There probably is nothing else wrong, but it's something that just needs to be dealt with in owning one of these vehicles. "dealt with""??" I shouldn't have to deal with this - Chrysler should deal with this - helloooo, "recall"...
- Beaverton, MI, USA
I purchased this vehicle used with 7907 miles on it. Within four months I experienced the front end shake violently when I hit a bump. I thought it was just a one time occurrence caused by being in a curve when it happened. But this has happened six or seven times in the past year with two occurrences in the same day, yesterday 11-1-11. I have found a location on interstate highway I-294 where at 55mph it will occur when ever I am in the right lane. I have not taken the car to a dealer yet because it only has 27000 miles on it and everything looks tight in the front end. The vehicle is completely stock and has never been driver off road. After researching the internet for similar complaints I found many people experiencing the same trouble. It is described as "death wobble". I believe this issue should be looked at by the ntsb. With so many Jeep Wrangler owners having the same trouble, there may be design fault.
- Lansing, IL, USA
Dear [xxx], I received a response from [xxx] stating that there was not a safety defect trend with Jeep Wrangler...are you kidding me? do you not read all your reports regarding this issue. I am asking again and will continue to ask for any one person at NHTSA to look into this very serious defect that causes accidents, crashes, that may lead to death...Office Of Defects Investigation needs to have "the Jeep death wobble investigated, researched for NHTSA describes its mission as "save lives, prevent injuries, reduce vehicle-related crashes. Please I would like this rsolved for I would like my life back. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
- Colorado Springs, CO, USA
My Jeep has a death wobble that has not been resolved. I have paid hundreds of dollars and still no solution. Please help!!!
- Fort Walton Beach, FM, USA
- Wyoming, MN, USA