Ford drivers have reported an issue with the company’s vehicles for years: The notorious “death wobble.”
According to the law offices of Terry Bryant, “The death wobble is a violent shaking that happens to the front end of many Ford F250 and F350 Super Duty trucks” that “typically occurs at speeds over 50 miles per hour.”
As noted by the law firm’s website, “More than 1,200 Ford truck drivers have filed complaints about the issue to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).”
Over the years, numerous internet users have posted about the death wobble, from speculation as to what causes it to possible solutions to the problem.
However, few have documented what the death wobble actually looks like on the road—until now.
The Ford ‘Death Wobble‘
In a recent TikTok video with over 3.1 million views as of Saturday, TikTok user @godfamilycountrygirlinpa shows what the “death wobble” looks like when a Ford driver has reached high enough speeds. According to the video, the vehicle in question is a Ford F550.
“We’ve taken it to the dealer numerous times when the shakes were minor and keep getting told they can’t find anything and have taken out for a drive but the shakes do not occur,” the TikToker writes in the text overlaying the video.
“This is a 100,000 thousand dollar truck and have only put in 5,000 miles because my husband doesn’t put it on the road if it’s not needed,” the creator added.
Other Cars with a ‘Death Wobble‘
Strangely, Ford trucks aren’t the only vehicles prone to the dreaded “death wobble.”
Earlier this year, a Jeep Wrangler driver claimed she regretted her decision to buy the vehicle after revealing that she, too, had experienced the “death wobble” when driving her car.
Jeep is owned by the multinational corporation Stellantis, whereas Ford trucks are produced by the Ford Motor Company, indicating that this is not a problem limited to a single manufacturer.
@godfamilycountrygirlinpa #Ford, #contractors, #bluecollar, #fordutilitytruckdrivers, #mechanicsoftiktok ♬ original sound – GodFamilyCountryGirlInPA
The internet‘s response
According to commenters, the “death wobble” is incredibly common on Ford trucks.
“Typical death wobble. Whole front end needs rebuilt every other year,” claimed a user. “Ford knows it’s a problem, they just don’t care.”
“Mannnn they’ve been putting the Ford Death wobble feature in trucks since the 80s man,” joked another. “That’s a premium feature.”
“Ford knows about this design fault and chooses to look the other way! They’ve had this problem since 2011!!!” exclaimed a third.
The Daily Dot reached out to Ford via email and the TikToker via TikTok direct message.
Update 7:24am CT May 22: In an email to the Daily Dot, a Ford spokesperson shared the following statement: “If a customer is experiencing an issue, we advise them to contact their local dealer or the Ford Customer Relationship Center at 1-800-392-3673, if they have a concern.”
In a TikTok DM exchange with the Daily Dot, @godfamilycountrygirlinpa stated that they have not heard from Ford since posting this video. They have also received no confirmation “at all” about what is causing the issue.
“It’s been taken to dealer several times with no luck of being told what may be causing it,” the TikToker wrote. “The only thing thought of was to replace the steering damper but the wobbles still occur but not as strong. But not a real fix to the issue.”
“I want a permanent resolution. Worse case scenario, a rebuild of the front end,” she added. “I requested the dealer to make sure there were no loose joints on the front end components like the drag link, track bar, upper control and mainly in the pitman arm.”
The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here to get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
