Some weirrrrrd things going on

[wesman43]

I have several noises that I know shouldn't be (or probably shouldn't be) part of my truck.

1. When I go over a bump, a bump at a low speed, I hear a small clunk coming from both sides in the front. It doesn't seem major, nor does it seem to affect performance. When I was changing diff fluid, I put the front on ramps so I could look at the suspension components...nothing looks bad, but then again I wouldn't know how to tell unless it's physically broken somehow. Could this be bad shock(s)? I should also add that the clunk on the front left is different than the right. The right is more like something is loose and clunking around, but the left is only a small clunk. Both happen only at slower speeds...or I can only hear it at slower speeds.

2. When I accelerate in either A4WD or 4HI or LO, there is a whine that only audible for a certain segment of acceleration. Once I am accelerated I don't hear it anymore. However, the speeds are different at which it happens with 4HI and LO obviously. Also, when I have to make a hard stop in A4WD, it makes the same noise, except several times in rapid succession right before I stop and a small lurch/clunk follows.

3. When I have a make a hard stop, there is a clunk in the rear of my vehicle, usually just as the car teeters back from the stop. This same thing happens when I let go of the brake to accelerate. This only happens when I have a slow down just a tad harder than usual, and it's really hard to reproduce because it's random. Sometimes it does this, others it doesn't do it at all.

I'm just going to say that cars are not my specialty...I know how to maintain a car...but when it comes to things out of the ordinary, computer systems are my specialty

Thanks for any help!

Wesman

 

[dfc739]

I have several noises that I know shouldn't be (or probably shouldn't be) part of my truck.

1. When I go over a bump, a bump at a low speed, I hear a small clunk coming from both sides in the front. It doesn't seem major, nor does it seem to affect performance. When I was changing diff fluid, I put the front on ramps so I could look at the suspension components...nothing looks bad, but then again I wouldn't know how to tell unless it's physically broken somehow. Could this be bad shock(s)? I should also add that the clunk on the front left is different than the right. The right is more like something is loose and clunking around, but the left is only a small clunk. Both happen only at slower speeds...or I can only hear it at slower speeds.

2. When I accelerate in either A4WD or 4HI or LO, there is a whine that only audible for a certain segment of acceleration. Once I am accelerated I don't hear it anymore. However, the speeds are different at which it happens with 4HI and LO obviously. Also, when I have to make a hard stop in A4WD, it makes the same noise, except several times in rapid succession right before I stop and a small lurch/clunk follows.

3. When I have a make a hard stop, there is a clunk in the rear of my vehicle, usually just as the car teeters back from the stop. This same thing happens when I let go of the brake to accelerate. This only happens when I have a slow down just a tad harder than usual, and it's really hard to reproduce because it's random. Sometimes it does this, others it doesn't do it at all.

I'm just going to say that cars are not my specialty...I know how to maintain a car...but when it comes to things out of the ordinary, computer systems are my specialty

Thanks for any help!

Wesman

First off, you should fill out your profile info. That will help immensely in diagnosing possible problems. Are you vigilant about maintenance? How many miles? What year?

The things I would check first knowing nothing else about your vehicle:
1. and 3. Clunking is very common on our vehicles due to the poor design of the sway bar end links. Mine were so bad that I could lay on the ground and rock the body enough to see the play and reproduce the clunk. Are they the originals? They aren't hard to replace... unless yours are rusted on like mine were. Then it's time to break out the sawzall or dremel in my case.

2. Where is the whining coming from? The belt area? The engine? The transmission? You need to narrow it down. Does it only whine when you are moving or can you make it whine in park by revving it at that RPM range? It sounds like it is more RPM dependent because you said it happens at different speeds in 4Hi and 4Lo. The idler pulleys on our vehicles are notorious for going bad and making a "supercharger whine". To diagnose, pull the belt and spin all the pulleys by hand. Do any of them have a rough/grinding feeling or have any play?

 

[wesman43]

First off, you should fill out your profile info. That will help immensely in diagnosing possible problems. Are you vigilant about maintenance? How many miles? What year?

The things I would check first knowing nothing else about your vehicle:
1. and 3. Clunking is very common on our vehicles due to the poor design of the sway bar end links. Mine were so bad that I could lay on the ground and rock the body enough to see the play and reproduce the clunk. Are they the originals? They aren't hard to replace... unless yours are rusted on like mine were. Then it's time to break out the sawzall or dremel in my case.

2. Where is the whining coming from? The belt area? The engine? The transmission? You need to narrow it down. Does it only whine when you are moving or can you make it whine in park by revving it at that RPM range? It sounds like it is more RPM dependent because you said it happens at different speeds in 4Hi and 4Lo. The idler pulleys on our vehicles are notorious for going bad and making a "supercharger whine". To diagnose, pull the belt and spin all the pulleys by hand. Do any of them have a rough/grinding feeling or have any play?

I filled out my info.
Okay, to start...I bought this car from a dealership. I had my mechanic check it inside and out, and underneath...basically the works and the only thing that was wrong on it was the idler pully and the rear brakes needed to be replaced. I have been very vigilant about maintenance...as soon as I brought it home, I changed the engine oil and spark plugs. Soon after, the thermostat went...so I replaced that and no lights etc ever since.

So Sway bar end links..?? I'll ask my dad about how to diagnose that and replace them etc if they need to be.

Now for the whine, it doesn't happen in 2HI at all, ever. And it sure doesn't happen when I rev it in park. I just changed both differential fluids yesterday, and tomorrow I am replacing the transfer case fluid. The car has 95k on it right now. It sounds like its coming from somewhere under the car like middle or front middle. I am thinking it's the transfer case because I haven't changed the fluid yet.

 

[htseat2000]

I filled out my info.
Okay, to start...I bought this car from a dealership. I had my mechanic check it inside and out, and underneath...basically the works and the only thing that was wrong on it was the idler pully and the rear brakes needed to be replaced. I have been very vigilant about maintenance...as soon as I brought it home, I changed the engine oil and spark plugs. Soon after, the thermostat went...so I replaced that and no lights etc ever since.

So Sway bar end links..?? I'll ask my dad about how to diagnose that and replace them etc if they need to be.

Now for the whine, it doesn't happen in 2HI at all, ever. And it sure doesn't happen when I rev it in park. I just changed both differential fluids yesterday, and tomorrow I am replacing the transfer case fluid. The car has 95k on it right now. It sounds like its coming from somewhere under the car like middle or front middle. I am thinking it's the transfer case because I haven't changed the fluid yet.

sway bar end links are in the front and rear. there is a left and right in the front. they attach to the sway bar. very short and have two bushings.

sounds like the whine is in the front differential. my gpa had a van that did the same thing but it was the rear diff that did it. whined at certain rpm's. probably in the gears themselves.

 

[triz]

If you need Swaybar endlinks I highly recommend these.

Suspension Leveling Kits & Suspension Performance Components | Suspension MAXX

They are a quality product and made in the USA. I currently use these in my 2003.

 

[BRomanJr]

I filled out my info.
Okay, to start...I bought this car from a dealership. I had my mechanic check it inside and out, and underneath...basically the works and the only thing that was wrong on it was the idler pully and the rear brakes needed to be replaced. I have been very vigilant about maintenance...as soon as I brought it home, I changed the engine oil and spark plugs. Soon after, the thermostat went...so I replaced that and no lights etc ever since.

So Sway bar end links..?? I'll ask my dad about how to diagnose that and replace them etc if they need to be.

Now for the whine, it doesn't happen in 2HI at all, ever. And it sure doesn't happen when I rev it in park. I just changed both differential fluids yesterday, and tomorrow I am replacing the transfer case fluid. The car has 95k on it right now. It sounds like its coming from somewhere under the car like middle or front middle. I am thinking it's the transfer case because I haven't changed the fluid yet.

Check Transfer Case Fluid level, has it been changed every 50k miles?

htseat2000: Good idea to check front diff.

Edit,
Sounds like you are already on the right track.

 

[tricguy007]

Are ur tires evenly worn front to back if u have a lot more tread on the front or rear versus the other that could cause the x-case to bind and make noise

 

[wesman43]

Are ur tires evenly worn front to back if u have a lot more tread on the front or rear versus the other that could cause the x-case to bind and make noise

They are all exactly the same except one which is only 1/32 off and I just got them rotated As for the sway bar bushings.. They are both bad in the front

 

[wesman43]

Found one from a junkyard from a rear-end totalled 2008 LT with only 60k miles, for 85, It's the most time/cost effective option at the moment

 

[wesman43]

Woops ugh sorry wrong thread.. Meant for rack one

 

[C-ya]

Your #3 noise could also be the shaft coming out of the transmission for the front u-joint. I'm a little brain-dead this morning and can't think of the proper name. Anyway, it seems as though they need to be lubricated to keep this binding from happening. It is a splined part that slides onto the tailshaft in the tranny, and the inside of it gets some oxidation and binds on the tailshaft. There is a thread or 3 on here about that. Mine is doing it occasionally, so I'll be hunting those threads myself.

 

[wesman43]

Your #3 noise could also be the shaft coming out of the transmission for the front u-joint. I'm a little brain-dead this morning and can't think of the proper name. Anyway, it seems as though they need to be lubricated to keep this binding from happening. It is a splined part that slides onto the tailshaft in the tranny, and the inside of it gets some oxidation and binds on the tailshaft. There is a thread or 3 on here about that. Mine is doing it occasionally, so I'll be hunting those threads myself.

I know exactly what your talking about... The slip joint right? I saw a couple posts about the same thing as well