NHTSA Complaint #10578183 — 2009 JEEP WRANGLER

AROUND 30,000 MILES I WOULD NOTICE A SLIGHT SHIMMY IN THE FRONT END AT FREEWAY SPEEDS WHEN A SMALL BUMP WAS HIT. THIS WOULD USUALLY LAST A FEW SECONDS AND THEN DRIVE NORMAL. I READ SOME THING ONLINE ABOUT THIS AND IT SEEMED LIKE IT WAS A NORMAL THING FOR THIS 4DR JEEP MODEL. IN EARLY MARCH 2014 ABOUT 39000 MILES I HIT A BIG BUMP ON THE FREEWAY AND THE FRONT END SHIMMY WAS SO INTENSE I THOUGHT THE FRONT PASSENGER TIRE WAS FLAT AT FIRST IT SEEMED LIKE IT WAS COMING OFF. A FEW HOURS LATER THIS HAPPENED AGAIN BEFORE I MADE IT HOME. I DID RESEARCH AND FOUND THE REFERENCES TO THE "DEATH WOBBLE" AND KNEW THAT'S WHAT IT WAS. I WAS THANKFUL NO ONE ELSE WAS IN THE CAR WITH ME. ANOTHER JEEP OWNER I KNOW KNEW THE TERM AND HAD HEARD ABOUT THESE PROBLEMS. THEN APRIL 1ST HIT A BUMP I COULD NOT AVOID ON THE POT HOLE INFESTED MILWAUKEE STREETS AND IT HAPPENED AGAIN THE TIRE FELT LIKE IT WAS COMING OFF AND ALMOST HAD ACCIDENT IN THE CONSTRUCTION ZONE I WAS IN. CALLED DEALER AND THEY KNEW EXACTLY WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT. APPARENTLY CHRYSLER SWITCHED THE DAMPENER/BRACKETS AFTER THE 2009 YR MODELS WHEN THEY NOTICED PROBLEMS. FUNNY HOW THAT REPLACEMENT I HAD TO HAVE DONE COST ME $ 400+. YOU WOULD THINK IF THEY KNOW THERE WAS A PROBLEM THIS WOULDN'T COST THE CONSUMER A PENNY. ESPECIALLY SINCE IT IS MY LIFE IN JEOPARDY. *TR