I have a 98 Cherokee with a 3” lift on 31’s. I’m getting a pretty good shake around 55 mph. Above or below it rides smooth. I’ve checked tie rods and track bar, they all seem tight and have no noticeable play. Wheel bearings and ball joints are good. Tires have been re-balanced and switched to a different set with the same result. This leads to my question: will bad control arm bushings cause this? And if so, would there be noticeable play in the arms? The bushings are cracked and dry rotted, but I can’t even budge the control arms by shaking them manually. Any suggestions?

 

Two things to do first to cure the dreaded death wobble you have. First, have someone saw the steering wheel back and forth while you watch all the joints for play. Second post up some pics of your steering linkage so we can see what you have

 

I’ve tried that. Can’t see any play anywhere. I’ll post some pics

 

 

You look like you have a lot of castor. How much is that?

 

I’m not sure what the caster angle is. It’s on stock control arms.

 

If you have death wobble with that stock steering, something is loose somewhere, otherwise it would be problem free

 

Just because you can't see any play doesn't mean they aren't causing your problem. Four of the five ball studs on my '96 had no tension on them at all but I could see no play.

 

It looks to me in the video like there’s play between the body and suspension. Don’t know if it should move like that
edit: video won’t post, but you can see a shift between the suspension and body of the Jeep when I get to full lock with my steering.

 

Pot it to Youtube, then post the link

 

Is that axle tube leaking pinion seal oil filter or axle vent. I see that tube soaked and wonder of that a took a hard hit or was in a crash.

Are upper control arms straight?

 

That is motor oil from the oil filter. Everything is straight

 

here is the video

 

cant see from that video but;

check steering box, frame rail and where the track rod bolts to the other uni-frame rail...all these spots can crack or have loose or broken bolts

imo, those bad control arm bushes could contribute to shake, and you cant rule them out, they should be changed if in doubt

a wheel alignment makes a big difference and they print out the castor

 

The video shows that you're not doing the wiggle test properly.

-Wheels on the ground
-Engine off
-Have a helper move the steering wheel to the left until they JUST feel tension on the wheel.
-Now go the other way until they JUST feel tension again.
-Keep doing this smoothly and slowly until you find the loose component.

If you have been looking and STILL don't find it, replace the control arm bushings. I can see in the picture that your passenger lower control arm bushing looks dry and old.