Death Wobble

[Swampdriller]

I have a 2018 that is 100% stock except the wheels and tires (20" fuel wheels & 35" Toyo Open Country AT). At around 80MPH I get a wobble from side to side. It almost feels like its starting in the rear when the body truck is twisting from acceleration. Also, If I aggressively entering an on ramp it will happen as well. The ford dealer said there is nothing wrong and checked everything underneath. I tool the tech for a ride and demonstrated it to him. He said "because Raptors have so much power sometimes these things can happen."

CAn anyone help me understand whats happening? I read online something about wheels not being hub centric an causing this?

 

[FordTechOne]

No such thing as a "death wobble" on a truck with independent front suspension. "Death wobble" is an overused term that describes a steering oscillation on vehicles with a solid front axle, most of which have been modified.

What you are most likely experiencing is a vibration induced by your wheel/tire combination. If your wheels are not hub centric, that is a disaster waiting to happen. The hub locates the wheel relative to the axle or hub bearing; without that your wheels will be rotating in an eccentric pattern. The dealer should not even be attempting diagnosis with your aftermarket setup still installed; do you have your factory wheels/tires to install and re-evaluate?

 

[smurfslayer]

except the wheels and tires (20" fuel wheels & 35" Toyo Open Country AT).

FTO beat me to it. Raptors don’t do this, or at least they shouldn’t. I know for sure the worn stock KO2’s don’t do this up to about a buck 10.

You’ve gone at least 2 mods away from stock and from what you’ve said, at the very minimum this condition is disconcerting and honestly, it sounds dangerous. If it’s doing it noticeably at 80, chances are it’s doing it all the time and you’re just not able to sense it earlier.

Suspension is a black art. Few are truly good and capable at troubleshooting suspension issues. They’re rare, and difficult to isolate. You need a known good set of wheels / tires to test against. My bet is the problem goes away once your current combo is replaced.

 

[1BAD454SSv2]

I used to get a sway when accelerating hard like a boat listing side to side only while accelerating . The stock rear shocks were dead no pressure and some oil leakage

 

[Nesc204]

How many miles do you have on it? Mind started doing that around 80k. Got my shocks rebuild and fixed the problem. Mine did what the other guy said, it was like when you go to fast on a really powerful boat and would kinda wobble in the air. It scared the shit out of me at 1st

 

[MasterKeebs]

When I first got my 2011, it had Toyo R/Ts as well on the OEM wheels. Still had decent tread. I also noticed a “wobble” or vibration (definitely not a death wobble) when hitting 70-80 mph. It went away when I replaced the tires. Still went with Toyo R/Ts so I chalked it up to the previous owner not keeping up with regular tire rotations. I have about 30k miles on the current set and still no issues.

 

[Steebo]

Yep FTO explained everything you need to know. I honestly thought you were mentioning a f250 for the exact reason FTO explained

 

[Tracker Raptor]

My 2018 Gen2 does this wobble also. Accelerating while changing lanes will amplify the issue. You have to let off in order to gain control. Was it the shocks???

 

[griffinoil]

I have a 2018 Raptor with the Hennessey Velociraptor 600 package - 35” tires on 20” wheels, and I was experiencing front end wobble (scary situation) under hard acceleration, particularly when accelerating hard from 70 mph.
I‘ve had several front end and suspension shops try to figure out my issue, and the last one finally found the main culprit. My tire pressure was too low. I was running 35 psi, and am now running 50 psi. The wobble has gone away. Apparently the sidewalls of my 35” tires were not handling the stress under hard acceleration, and adding air pressure resolved the issue.

 

[Nex]

50 psi?

Door sticker says 38 psi cold. I would look back at this thread and then have your shocks checked.