Dodge and Jeep vehicle owners have been dealing with the “death wobble” for over a decade. The “death wobble” is an uncontrollable shaking of the front suspension that occurs after the vehicle encounters common and expected road conditions causing the steering wheel to shake back and forth. This issue presents a serious safety hazard to the driver as well as surrounding drivers on the road as it impairs the operator’s ability to control the vehicle.
The 2018 to 2020 Jeep Wranglers and 2020 Jeep Gladiators recently had a class action lawsuit regarding the death wobble filed against Fiat Chrysler (FCA). Approximately 192,000 Jeep owners were identified to have experienced the death wobble. A recall has been issued for these vehicles and FCA began notifying vehicle owners in Summer 2019 of the most recent available remedy. The remedy for the 2018 and 2019 Jeep Wranglers was to issue a steering damper that would absorb the shaking caused by the death wobble. This remedy was put into place but has been reported ineffective as customers that replaced the steering damper started experiencing the same problems within months of the repair.
FCA has consistently brought forward temporary remedies in the last decade to conceal the issues of the “death wobble”. All of these remedies have been proved unsuccessful and are meant to be put forth as temporary fixes until warranty coverage expires and the problem lies solely on the vehicle owner. As a result, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has started investigating the issue.
Dodge Ram 1500, 2500, and 3500 model years ranging between 2003 to 2011 have also been known to be affected by the death wobble. As a result, any recalls have been issued for these vehicle models as well.
Contact Young & Young APC for a Free Case Evaluation
Under California lemon law, protection is provided for those who have purchased a vehicle within the manufacturer’s original warranty period. In California, the lemon law requires a manufacturer to promptly repurchase or replace a vehicle when the dealership is unable to repair the vehicle after a “reasonable” number of repair attempts or within a reasonable amount of time. The manufacturer is also responsible for paying reasonably incurred attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses.
If you have purchased a Dodge or Jeep vehicle and have experienced the death wobble, bring your vehicle to an authorized dealership and have them make the required repairs. If the death wobble issue continues after repair attempts, reach out to the lemon law attorneys at Young & Young APC to discuss the specifics of your potential case. Contact us for a free consultation.
