odd noise, something is going bad... steering?

Kejtar

PostMaster General
NAXJA Member
It's hard to narrow it down: it's a variation on a rumble/gruble/clunk/rattle (very hard to describe) and each time I think I know what's causing it it's not it (as in I can't reproduce under same conditions). So far I thought that when my left tire went over the little bumps in the road that are meant to separate lanes, then I though that it happens on turns only then I though it happens when I stop. The only pattern to it all seem to be bumps as in it's more likely to happen when I hit a pothole or when I ride over the bumps.
Btw, the noise seems to be coming from left front.
So far after getting from the trail last night I jacked up the front and spun the wheel and checked for the play on it (shook the hell out of it) and it all seems on solid. It turns fine, there seems to be no bidning, no looseness nor slop.

What might be related and makes me think steering (combined with the noise while turning over a bump) Is the fact that while on the trail yesterday, amongst other things I got myself wedged in between 3 or 4 rocks and had to really muscle the steering wheel while backing and turning (I was really wedge) and AFAIK this is not "healthy" for steering components (btw I gave a rough inspection to all the rods and everythign udner and they seem to look fine).

Anyways, what could it be? what should I test and how?? One of the thing I will pull just in case and check is a shock (noise from a bump might be shock related although bushings look good) but apart from that I got no clue.....
 
Turn the radio up.

Rev


J/K - The list is almost endless, I would check...
Ball Joints
Rod ends
Track bar
swar bar bushings
control arm bushings
and all the related fastners.
 
Rev Den said:
Ball Joints
Rod ends
Track bar
swar bar bushings
control arm bushings
and all the related fastners.

OK... From the above list I can already eliminate sway bar bushings as the noise was already there before I got of the trail and sway bar was disconnected. In regards to the other ends/joints how do I spot a bad one? The arms and track bad for most part are brand new(6 months or so and 4 trail rides) RE superflex joints. while rest is stock (tie rod and so on). On a related note I saw some grease on the frame bracket bolt of the track bar (also super flex joint). Haven't seen it in that spot before.
 
Hey Remi...what's up?

I think I had a very similar problem. Turned out that the lower control arm bolts (unibody side) were loose. Tightened them up real good. The bolts on the center link adjustment sleeve were loose too. Just did this on Saturday, along with rebalancing the tires and getting the front end aligned. Now everything is solid and my wheel shimmy is gone too.
 
xjohnnyc said:
Hey Remi...what's up?

I think I had a very similar problem. Turned out that the lower control arm bolts (unibody side) were loose. Tightened them up real good. The bolts on the center link adjustment sleeve were loose too. Just did this on Saturday, along with rebalancing the tires and getting the front end aligned. Now everything is solid and my wheel shimmy is gone too.

I think you got it (almost :D) I have spent the whole damn evening and even in the process pulled the cover on the front diff and examined gears and even called a guy that installed them (He lives just around the corner) and he came over to take a look at it........ I took both wheels off and examined ujoints and did the shake rattle roll test for the bearing and still nothing.
Finally after I had buttoned everything back up and went for the final test of the turning and had someone turn the wheel while I had my hands on steering components I realized that my trackbar got loose (the big nut on the RE bar). So I tightened that up, took a look on my UCA's (they're adjustable, while lowers are fixed), greased the hell out of every single zerk I could find... and I'll see what happens tomorrow :D
Next thing (probably Wed) is for me to go and get my tires balanced and rotated..... oh... the joy of the aftermath of wheeling LOL
 
sounds exactly like the problem i've been trying to track down since last weekend. did you happen to find out what it was?
 
Kejtar said:
Still waiting for something to break :D

I think I found it!!!! Damn front swaybar bushings!! The trippy thing is that I had that noise even while drivng with the swaybar disconnected and it zip tied TIGHT to the body.... Anyways, got new swaybar bushings and the noise is GONE!!!!
 
i did the sway bushings also, got a new sway bar also, as it looked pretty worn where it was contacting. ...but i think i heard the noise again while on a washboard road the other day, but it wasn't as rough as the road where i usually hear the clanking. i've talked to a few people since i've had the prob, and a couple have said that the c-clip axle (8.25) can cause a clanking noise. if i grab the top of one of my rear tires and give a couple good shakes, i can hear a clank like what i was hearing, and i can feel that there's a little give. my wheel bearing are like new, so i'm at a loss. have to wait and see if i can dup the original noise next time it gets rough... i was on a really potholed/washboarded logging road @ +/- 20mph. once the noise starts, it clanks until i touch the brakes. as soon as i let off the brakes, it starts clanking again. even heard a ratcheting sort of noise at one point when i was rolling to a stop with my head out the window trying to pinpoint the location of the noise. doesn't make a sound unless i'm on a rough road.
anyone have experience with the 8.25 c-clip causing noise like this? can being rough with the 8.25 like that cause any kind of failure? is there something about the c-clip axle design that allows this? i'm a bit wary, my train of thought tells me that something with play that's making clanking noises under those conditions could break eventually... leaving me in the middle of a game reserve overnight... :eyes:
 
My noise came from a soft sway bar bushing that let the sway bar hit the bushing clamp. Look for contact points between the sway bar and clamp. The second noise, I think, is from non-oem brake pads that have too much play between the mounting ledges of the caliper. This may be letting the pads rattle around too much. No use lubricating the ledge when the breakshoe notch isn't even touching it.
My thoughts, Walt
 
Walt Stanley said:
The second noise, I think, is from non-oem brake pads that have too much play between the mounting ledges of the caliper. This may be letting the pads rattle around too much. No use lubricating the ledge when the breakshoe notch isn't even touching it.
My thoughts, Walt

that's interesting, i wondered about that, the noise 'tone' sounded like a large piece- ie; a rotor, clanking. even pulled a front wheel off and played with the calipers a bit, because the noise seems tied into the brakes somehow, but they were a little hot to handle much :D will have to play with them a bit more in a shop. thanks!
 
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