okay, so my friend tells me he has a problem with a jeep cherokee laredo

says if he hits a small bump "it will shake like crazy" and goes away when he slows down, so.........What will cause this problem? sounds like the death wobble to me

 

Slop in the steering joints is the typical cause of this condition. It gets worse with larger tires.

 

Yep. Out of balance tires, more so the heavier {ie mass} they are, shake on hitting bumps, which wears the tie rods, which allows more shake which wears the tire treads in weird pattern which causes more shake which wears tie rods more. Until you no longer even need to hit bumps, they just shake on their own at 55-70

- pettyfog, elaborative asst to Kyle.

 

You can have perfectly balanced tires exhibit this phenomenon. The tires are often not the cause of the issue, it is the slop that is already present and/or the inherent design of the steering (think K5 Blazer). Larger tires do have more mass, but that isn't the only factor. The larger the tire on the same size rim, the more flex there is in the sidewall which can exacerbate the issue, magnifying the slop.

I would go through all of the joints in the steering and replace anything that feels loose or sloppy. Also, if the truck doesn't have a steering damper (shock), I would recommend one be installed.

 

Had that problem on my 94' Ram 4x4, it was the track bar.
The track bar keeps your front axle aligned perpendicular to the frame.
Not sure if the Jeep uses the same front suspension.
If it wobles that bad it should be very apparent what the problem is after the truck is jacked up and the steering is run from hard left to hard right.

 

i was thinking either track bar or tie rod