For 2 weeks I have been having rattling and squeeking sounds coming underneath my truck. It squeeks on stopping and going from a dead stop. I have spent over 3 hours doing a search on Ball Joints, End Links, Calipers, Loose Brake Pads, and such. I have gone as far as changing almost everything except the ball joints (they were still good). I have posted questions with a fair amount of help. But I finally tracked it down.

This is the Culprit :frustrate :
http://images.cardomain.com/member_img_a/372000-372999/372697_31_full.jpg

A loose U-bolt! As you could see from the picture it has a gap of 1/4"! If you got squeek and rattling sound give this a check.



Ahhhh, life is good once again. :D

hehehehehe .....;..... like searching for a gremlin in your Ex. I have been searching for a squeek in the front and have resorted to checking all bolts and it turned out to be exhaust manifold bolts that were too loose. So I also now have to replace my manifold gaskets.....tooo fun.

It's a pain to look and check and be embarrassed of the sound. But once you find the problem, WOW! It's all worth it. It makes you wonder why you didn't check there before. :)

Even on the right rear, I was able to get a couple of turns on the U-bolts. Imagine what would've happened if I kept driving it for another few weeks. :eek:

X factor, founds this thread while searching.

I'm getting a noise when stopping that isn't the brakes (checked em). It sounds almost like a differential "winding down" or something. It's kind of metallicy but more like a errrrrrrrrr sound like something slowing down or grinding a little.

Any ideas? Does that sound like what you had?

Nope. It just clanks on stop and go. No sounds when slowing down or grinding.

It's a pain, isn't it? Gotta keep checking, dude. Gotta find the culprit!

Did you torque them down or just tighten them up? You'd be surprised how far "tight" is from "torqued". 1/2" ubolts = 65 lbs./ft. 9/16" ubolts = 90 lbs./ft.

Got no torque wrench... but they haven't made any noises since then so I must've tighten them real good. ;)

For some peace of mind you might consider buying one. Or, at least renting one to torque the ubolts. Having your rear axle shift isn't something I'd want to experience. :eek:

Yep. Been wanting to buy one for a while now. How do I know which one is a good one? I assume Craftsmans are good. Price?

TIA

I got one for $20 from Harbor Freight - standard clicker type. Not the best (Craftsman would be better) but does the job well.

I have two (Craftsman), one bar type and one clicker type. This is one of those tools where "you get what you paid for". Try not to skimp. If could have afforded Snap-On, I would have.