3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

My 3rd gen Camaro has developed a death wobble when the wheels touch down after launch. Everything in the frt. end looks good and it's never done this before, nothing has been changed on the car since a week ago when it had no problems at all. some have said I need a steering dampner. I'll install one but is it masking another problem that needs to be corrected? why did it start all of a sudden?

Re: 3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

Try tightening up the steering box end play. If that doesn't help Ed Quay has a nice kit that will fix it.

rod

Re: 3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

A racer out here had that happen on an '85 Camaro.The bolts holding the steering box to the subframe were loose. Tightening all three of them down fixed it.

Re: 3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

Quay kit. Also check for looseness at the pitman shaft bushing.

Re: 3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

I ordered the Quay kit and their bump steer tie rod end kit. Also found upper strut mounts were cracked, only 29 years old who would have thought? I ordered a set of the heavy steel caster/camper plates to replace the original strut mounts. I'll go over everything in the frt. and already ordered a new center link and idler arm.

Re: 3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

EMan, you are on the correct path.

Re: 3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

Eman,

My 3rd gen always wobbled when it landed. It did this in spite of all new front end parts, a bump steer kit and a steering damper. This past winter I went through the front end again but I made a few changes.

I found that the rod ends included in the bump steer kit did not have enough range of motion. This caused the front end to bind up and pull the wheels in odd directions when it was in the air and then when it landed. I put chrome molly rod ends with increased range of travel (available from Summit), and it helped that problem.

I assume your car does not have a front sway bar. Did you replace it with a support bar to tie the front of the sub frame together? I put in a bolt in one from Spoehn. I welded it in, and I also welded the passenger side mount for it to the sub frame, and I also welded the steering box mount to the sub frame also. It seems to have really made the car more rigid. I had the car out a few weeks ago and it did not wobble.

Good luck. Let us know how you make out.

Charlie

Re: 3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

GM had stifferner parts for the early Gen III cars to stiffen the front ends and help alleviate just what you are experiencing----look into the 1LE cars for maybe some of those parts

Re: 3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

I have no sway bar or bumper support bar. I thought about one of those wonder bars, I can fab one up, to tie the 2 frame rails together.

Re: 3rd Gen Camaro Death Wobble!!
 

Just out of curiousity, is the Ed Quay kit legal for Stock and Super Stock?
I built one of those cars for a customer, first time I took it out to test I almost soiled myself when the car came down. I had no idea that was going to happen (The wobble). Luckily I had a good grip on the wheel or that could have really gotten ugly.