10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 1 / 0
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 0 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 1,619 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.
With less than 35,000 miles on a 2021 jeep wrangler, I have started to experience extreme shaking when going over a bump. Otherwise, known as the -??Death Wobble-??. The steering wheel shakes uncontrollably and could cause a serious accident while driving. I was told that the 2021 and newer models would not have this problem due to manufactures addressed the design flaw. Jeep has known about this issue for many years but has done nothing to make repairs or changes to the vehicle design. This is a huge safety concern because I could lose control of my vehicle while the steering shakes uncontrollably or cause an accident because the only way to stop the shaking is to quickly decrease speed. My vehicle was inspected by Gillman Jeep in Houston, Texas.
- Houston, TX, USA
I have a 2021 Jeep Wrangler Sport that only has 24k miles on it (all oem stock components with zero modification) and I have been experiencing death wobble issues when traveling at highway speeds and driving over seam transitions where the road meets bridge crossings. The vehicle shakes uncontrolably and it's absolutely terrifying. The only way to get it to stop is to remove my foot from the gas pedal, apply the brakes and come to a near stop. I took it to the dealership and all suspension parts are in good condition with no wear and bolts are tightened to oem torques. The dealership is recommending a steering stabilizer be installed, which is going to cost me $400 with no guarantee it will fix the issue. Many Jeep forums state the steering stabilzer is a band aid fix that does not resolve this serious safety defect long term. We'll see what happens, but quite honestly I'm scared to even drive it anymore. If it continues to experience death wobble after this supposed fix, I'm getting rid of it and trading it in on a more reliable brand, but am concerned about the next person who ends up buying it. It's an obvious design flaw that has been going on with Jeeps for 2 decades and Jeep needs to go back to the drawing board and figure out a permanent long term fix. I have owned many vehicles in my life and I have never experienced this problem with other brands. It seems to be synonymous with the Jeep brand.
- Bemidji, MN, USA
Jeep Death Wobble. Dealer is acting like this is an unknown issue.
- Metuchen, NJ, USA
The contact owns a 2021 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the contact experienced failure known as the death wobble. The contact stated that the vehicle started shaking violently after driving over a bump in the roadway, causing the contact to lose control of the vehicle. The contact regained control of the vehicle once the vehicle had slowed down and the shaking ceased. The dealer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the model year vehicle was not covered under recall. The contact was then informed that the steering wheel stabilizer needed to be installed to prevent the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 24,000.
- Phoenix, AZ, USA
Extreme vibration from front end at highway speeds. Commonly referred to as Jeep 'Death Wobble'. Occurred in 2022, steering damper replaced. Problem has reoccurred.
- Zeeland, MI, USA
In the three years I have owned this vehicle I have had the steering damper replaced to correct uncontrollable vibrating of the steering wheel, commonly referred to as the -??Death Wobble-??. The issue occurs when driving at highway speeds and requires the driver to quickly slow down to stop the -??wobble-??. There is no warning light or detection, and the issue come on quickly. The dealer has identified the problem with the remedy being replacement of the steering damper. While this does initially fix the symptoms, it does not correct the problem, as I have had three dampers replaced in 24 months. This is obviously only a bandaid and not the correct fix for this dangerous problem. My opinion is that a recall is needed to allow for a proper repair.
- Little Canada, MN, USA
On several occasions the vehicle experienced the 'death wobble' this is a known issue and was recalled on earlier models but the 2021 has not been recalled. The suspension shakes aggressively out of nowhere at highway speeds. This is extremely dangerous! The entire car shakes and rattles aggressively on the highway, it is so easy to lose control of the vehicle! I could not get it to stop and had to dangerously pull over on the side of the highway!
- Plainfield, IL, USA
Driving on an Interstate Highway in Florida, hit a small "rut" in the roadway at Highway speeds and the front end started shaking "VIOLENTLY" to the point I though the vehicle was going to "Roll Over". I had to slow down, switch from the center lane of a three lane highway crossing over the outside lane then onto the shoulder of the Highway, get the speed down from 70 to 50 mph before the "Violent Shaking" stopped. When speaking with a service center for Jeep I was told this is a "KNOWN ISSUE" with the 2021 Jeep Wrangler but there is no recall for the vehicle year 2021 BUT there were for other vehicle years, which I find UNBELEIVABLE!!!! As a retired Police Officer I will tell you this is a VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED IMMEDIATELY OR SOMEONE WILL GET KILLED IN A CRASH!!!
- Marco Island, FL, USA
Jeep Death Wobble. While driving at 65 mph on the freeway, I drove over a small bump in the road. My vehicle started to shake uncontrollably. The shaking would not stop until I slowed down to under 30 MPH. This is very unsafe to do while driving on a busy CA freeway. The first time this shaking happened my vehicle had about 26,000 miles. Within the next 1000 miles of driving, the wobble has happened approximately 10 more times, one of which the vehicle went off the road into a ditch. I contacted Jeep and they said they would not fix the problem because the 3-yr/36,000 mile warranty expired. I asked if they were ok with having unsafe vehicles on the road and they said "yes". The front suspension is the system that failed. My safety was at risk when the vehicle was shaiking and went off the road. The safety of other drivers was at risk when I had to slow down to under 30 MPH to get my vehicle to stop shaking. The vehicle was taken to a Jeep dealership for inspection/repair but they would not diagnose the problem without me pre-paying a $250 fee. The vehicle was taken to an independent service center and the problem was confirmed. The vehicle was not inspected byt he manufacturer, police, or insurance. There were no warning lights or symptoms before this problem first appeared.
- Brentwood, CA, USA
Beginning September 30th I experienced the Death Wobble while driving on the highway. It cause violent shaking of my vehicle. It stopped when i slowed to about 50 MPH, each subsequent day after that it would start shaking when i reached a speed of over 60 MPH. It is currently with the dealer to be repaired. Issues include: steering shock has air, also there is an updated longer shoulder bolt that holds the dampner that should fix the steering wheel shake. They also discovered the shock absorbers leak shock oil. In addition, I have had to replace the auxiliary battery placed 2x since I have bought and it is already draining to low levels, which will prevent the electronic system to work less than 1 year after replacing the battery last. These all are defects to the design and should be recalled as they are safety issues.
- Tulsa, OK, USA
I have experience multiple episodes of the "death wobble"that previous 2021 Jeep Wrangler have reported over the past year. The steering wheel starts to wobble at times going over 60mph or hitting a bump. It appears that that the auto maker does not have an answer given the reports I have reviewed by NHTSA.
- Culver City, CA, USA
The contact owns a 2021 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated while driving at various speeds over 45 MPH, the vehicle was shaking and vibrating after driving over bumps on the roadway. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The contact stated that the failure had occurred after the dealer installed the manufacturer's lift kit accessory to the vehicle. No additional information was available. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 12,980.
- Diamond Bar, CA, USA
The contact owns a 2021 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated while driving 74 MPH, the vehicle vibrated violently, after which the steering wheel began to jerk from the contact-??s hands, prompting the contact to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who was able to duplicate the failure. The contact was informed that the vehicle was experiencing a death wobble; however, the cause of the failure was not yet determined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 31,000.
- Palm Coast, FL, USA
When driving above 30 MPH and going over a bump the car shakes and wobbles Violently feeling like the tires and steering wheel will fall off. This has been referred to as the -??death wobble.-?? The car has some warranty remaining and is going in for repair with an authorized Jeep dealer.
- Monroe, NJ, USA
DEATH WOBBLE. Loose, or misaligned mechanical parts shake violently when driving on highway causing the -??wobble-?? in the front end steering and suspension. Exactly the same way the 2018 and 2019 Jeep issue occurred, as noted by NTHSA in 2019.
- St Pete Beach, FL, USA
The 2021 jeep wrangler wheels wobble at moderate speeds. the dealer informed me that jeeps up til 2020 had this problem and it was covered under a extended warranty. I just had to spend over $300 to get the steering damper replaced and I cannot get anyone at jeep to talk to me about this problem, even though it IS a known problem.
- Manchester, NH, USA
I was driving to work on 7-25-24 at approximately 65 mph and suddenly my jeep started to shake. It was so violent I just grabbed the wheel so tight, let off the gas and hoped I didn't crash. Cars were swerving around me. I called the dealer and told them the problem. I refused to drive the car and had it towed to the dealer. This is the second time this Death wobbled happened in the last two years. The dealer ended up changing the steering Damper both times. I feel just changing the same parts is not fixing this problem. Now I have a vehicle that I'm deathly afraid of driving. Apparently there is a known problem with this death wobble. I am writing this not just for my self but everyone else that is at risk and don't even know about this. I hope someone really looks into this problem. I am not sure what my rights are and want to get out of my lease. This car is not worth dying for. Thanks in Advance for you help
- Howell, NJ, USA
In Jan 2023 my Jeep experienced the -??death wobble-?? where I hit a bump at speeds above 60mph and the steering started violently shaking. The jeep was less than 2 years old and had less than 20,000 miles; all stock, never lifted and not used for offroad. I took the Jeep to the Gilbert AZ Jeep dealership who determined it was the steering stabilizer and replaced it. This week, in July 2024 the death wobble returned on the freeway going full freeway speed and I struggled to maintain control of the vehicle. I contacted the Jeep dealership and they said I could pay $200 to diagnose and if it was the steering stabilizer again all they could do was put a new one on. If it was anything else they would not cover as the jeep was 5 months out of warranty - but has only 29,000 miles on it. His suggestion was to buy an aftermarket part. He said this part fails frequently. This is unacceptable! Why has this part not been recalled or remade?? This is going to result in a violent accident or death.
- Gilbert, AZ, USA
The front and rear driver side shocks were both leaking oil discovered by the local Jeep dealership service department. This looks to be a common occurrence as others with same make, model, and year have also experienced this problem with the leaking shocks. This failure in the shocks did cause a vehicle wobble at higher speeds while on the highway. Both shocks were replaced.
- Chicago, IL, USA
- Phoenix, AZ, USA