Defender steering wobble when hitting pot holes

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chrisstdt

chrisstdt

Well-Known Member
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scottish borders
My 90 TDI has a strange problem in that when I hit a pot hole at 40-50 mph it has terrible steering wobble and can veer off course
She has recently been through an mot and I've hacked the front up and can find no obvious play
Any suggestions ?

Thanks
 
I had my D1 polybushed, I’d choose OEM if I have to do anything in the future. Stopped the wobble though.
 
chrisstdt said:
There is no play on the swivels but it there is not enough preload on the bearing would this cause my problem?
Click to expand...

It is a fine line between to loose/to tight, and correct.
But as said above do not concentrate on just one thing, check it all it could be a combination of wear on everything.
 
Also... don't forget the rear of the motor. Might seem counter-intuitive for a wobble on the front but hear me out...

Dick (my Dad) had the death wobble on Trigger (his Disco 200tdi) where - quite literally - he changed everything on the front, from swivels, to bushes and shockers etc. (even changed the steering box)- but still didn't cure it. This went on for months and months, and he ended up driving at 50mph everywhere (saved loads on juice but was always late :D).

He read something online somewhere that mentioned the rear bushes... so he changed one side panhard rod bushes and cured it instantly. Didn't even need to do the other side or the a-frame (although he did anyway).

After he sorted it, he said to me "you might think you've experienced death wobble but until you get it, outside lane of the M25 in Surrey, rush hour, at 75mph, you *really* haven't". Definitely a 'check your pants' moment :D

EDIT: Might sound weird, but something as trivial as uneven tyre pressures also provokes the death wobble - as we found out, also on Trigger.
 
chrisstdt said:
There is no play on the swivels but it there is not enough preload on the bearing would this cause my problem?
Click to expand...
Yes it could, you need to feel some resistance when you try to turn the hub, a look for the right tension and a cheapo fishing scale will see you right.
But as others have said, it could be a load of different things, but all of those things are worth checking out anyway, wobble or not.
 
Only thing I found was the nut that holds the drop arm you the steering box wasnt right!
Tightened up now but haven't driven far since so not sure if shes sorted
Damper works well and my panhard rod bushes arrived so it get those fitted in the near future
 
A good chance you found the problem if the joint was loose. Not the sort of thing you want to come apart when driving.
 
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