1st gen 65mph shake

[Splorer Man]

new front shocks(rancho),recent ball joints and radius arm bushings, axel joints(manual hubs)in other words the front end is TIGHT.New tires and balanced,still shakes,rotated them,still shakes,tried different wheels and tires,still shakes.Took wheels and tires off my BII(which didnt shake) and put them on the explorer,they shake :fire: :fire: Put the explorer wheels on the BII,no shake :fire: .Anyone have a cure for the explorer shake??

PS. its not a vibration

 

[Jason94sport]

Search. It's a 1st gen problem. All 91-94's do it. Some more then others. No real solution. Some things worked for some. Others just live with it.

 

[Chew_12]

Search for the "Death Wobble" its pretty common

 

[Splorer Man]

for one thing i dont have a EB with a D44,its not lifted,dont have big tires.And mine doesnt wobble like that.I have a shake(like a tire out of balance) NOT a wobble.Maybe if the owner of the EB would install a steering stableizer he wouldnt have that problem

 

[Jason94sport]

My 94 is stock. I get the shake at 65 to about 70, then it smooths out. Before 65 it's smooth also. I had 2 stock 94's. They both did it at the same speed. I know what you mean. The whole thing shakes. My front passanger seat I can see shaking like a earthquake at 65mph.

 

[cfkane]

Frozen U joints and soft motor/transmission mounts can transmit a vibration that in some cases mimics suspension vibration. This normally increases with speed rather than the peaks and valleys of a harmonic related vibration.

Another thought would be hard or incorrect sizing on the mounts. That can also transmit a great deal of noise through the subframe.

 

[TN_Explorer]

Check out Explorer Maintenance at

www.glue.umd.edu/~singletn/exp.html

I have two '91's. I have experienced this problem, even with new bushings. Read "Radius arm bushings - a little sidewalk engineering." They discuss adding an extra washer behind the stock bushing washer. This totally eliminated the problem for me on one EX and about 90% on the other (it needs bushings, tho). I cheated by cutting a slot in a 1" washer & just backing off the nut enough to slip it into place. Takes about ten minutes, so it couldn't hurt to try it.

 

[Albino 94LTD]

Splorer Man, seriously, do the search. I know there are at least a dozen threads with information, I have read them all.

Here is one of them, http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=118055

 

[Rhett]

Sounds like you have done a lot to try to fix it. Take TN_Explorers advice about adding a second washer behind the each of the radius arm nuts.

 

[xzotictech]

thank u a lot

Check out Explorer Maintenance at

www.glue.umd.edu/~singletn/exp.html

I have two '91's. I have experienced this problem, even with new bushings. Read "Radius arm bushings - a little sidewalk engineering." They discuss adding an extra washer behind the stock bushing washer. This totally eliminated the problem for me on one EX and about 90% on the other (it needs bushings, tho). I cheated by cutting a slot in a 1" washer & just backing off the nut enough to slip it into place. Takes about ten minutes, so it couldn't hurt to try it.

i will try that im a mechanic for firestone and its is driving me insane i replaced t radius arm with some new kit but i went the cheap round.i will defenatily get the moog problem solvers and try the washer thing.i will let u know but that should fix it. again thanks a lot

 

[xzotictech]

ready to do some master rigging

after much discussion and researches i came to find out that the truck was design that way there is a tsb from ford# 96-4-15 addressing that issue.unfortunally the kit was only offer till 2002. it includes revised motor mounts and a damper for the rear differential.ford advises that tires and wheels are the very first step to take.don't know of a solution and the ford parts specialist didn't know what to suggest. i called 4 wheel drive parts to c if the offer a dampening kit for the rear and they dont.so my next step is going to replace the rear differrential for a newer rear disc unit with the third shock mount and i also notice that rangers have a hydraulic dampener for the engine on the left front side by the frame.i understand the frustration but there is only so much we can do with a vehicle thats almost 15 years old.let me know if any of u know someone that sells or makes a kit.thank you

 

[Byrd91]

I 2nd the recommendation of adding the transmission mount to the list of things to look at when troubleshooting death wobble. Pretty easy to replace, pretty cheap, and we're talking 15 years old minimum at this point. Motor mounts could probably all use it too but I think the tranny mount is more vulnerable (worse design). My Advance Auto could order them for less than $30 a couple years ago.

 

[MrShorty]

My '92 had a nasty shake that went away after I got it properly aligned (The previous shop had done a bad job an an alignment which I think started the whole thing).

 

[chrisofdogs]

hey guys, I figured out the death wobble problem, and it couldn't be a simpler fix. tighten your steering gear box! There is no mention of this in any book I've ever seen, but on top of the gear box, is a screw, with a nut around it. hold the screw back the nut off enough so you can tighten the screw down, not hard, just maybe a turn or two, tighten the lock nut back up, and drive it. it might take a couple times, to get it just where you want it feel wise, but my first try at it, and the death wobble was completely gone! I've only done it twice, I might go just a hair more, but what a huge difference. A mechanic friend of mine told me, if you go too tight, it won't straighten itself back out after you turn, but, I haven't gone that far to find out. I hope this helps. good luck!