'99 Mercury Mountaineer v8, Front End Grinding Noise

[theway]

hey there, so I've noticed a month ago that she's been leaking a small amount of radiator fluid, not enough to make a difference on the reservoir but enough where i can see it on the driveway and now smell it. Whenever I take her out instantly I start hearing a grinding noise in the front end and I am not sure if its from the calipers or if its something much worse, But as long as the truck is in motion she sounds almost like metal on metal with the abrasive woosh sound. I had the front end tires replaced months ago and the rear drums replaced the front end brakes also replaced a few months back. Now when i hit the accelerator the noise only gets louder to the point now im paranoid to let my mother drive her and with this virus going on it sure aint easy just bringing her to the shop. So if any of y'all have any clue or hypothesis im all ears also if ya think she shouldn't be used that'd definitely be a plus. hope all is well and your families are healthy and safe.

 

[1998Exp]

Edit: there are actually small drums attached to the rotors in the back -- for the emergency (parking) brake.
If someone worked on the front brakes, why not take the truck to them for inspection? And by the way, you don't have drums in the rear -- these have disk brakes all around.

 

[J_C]

You need to jack it up, pull the wheel and inspect the brakes. Brakes are a necessary function and only get worse.

Coolant, can be ignored for now if you keep it topped off. Of course this needs fixed but if leaking externally, that beats internally and you are aware so it won't run out.

Abrasive woosh sound means nothing to me, you might record this and put a video on youtube or wherever.

I wouldn't hesitate to take it to a shop if the choice is driving it with a possible dangerous problem, versus staying a good distance away from anyone at a shop so your risk of infection is reduced. If you MUST use the vehicle, it needs to be safe.

If you had a shop do the brakes, you might ask them if they'll take a free look at them.

 

[MrQ]

Front wheel bearings, put the wheel in the air and spin it. If they are bad you should hear a metal grinding noise. It's pretty easy to change them out, just standard ratchet and sockets set. Only special tool you will need is the 32mm socket for the cv shaft nut and a 1/2 inch breaker bar and a cheap 6" c-clamp for the brake caliper.

-Chock rear wheels
-Break front lug nuts free (if you don't have an impact)
-Use your 32mm socket and breaker bar to break the large CV shaft nut free
-Jack up the front end
-Remove lugnuts and tire
-Put your c-clamp with the threaded end toward you over the caliper. One end should be on the back of the caliper and the other pressing on the brake pad. Slowly compress and alternate between each opening for the caliper as you have dual pistons. It won't take much to release the pressure from the caliper on the rotor.
-Remove the 2 15mm bolts on the back side of the knuckle that hold the caliper bracket on (you do not need to remove the caliper from the bracket) and slide the whole assembly off. Hang the caliper out of the way so the weight is not on the brake hose.
-Remove the rotor
-Remove the CV shaft nut
-On the back of the knuckle there are three 15 mm bolts holding the bearing in. Use a 15mm box end to take them out.
-Disconnect the ABS sensor connector on the frame rail and remove the 8mm bolt for the bracket holding the wire onto the knuckle
-Remove the bearing. If it doesn't come free easily, use a hammer and try hitting its so it rotates in the knuckle. PB blaster helps here
-Install the new bearing, I recommend cleaning the pocket that it sits in the knuckle before install
-Install is reverse of removal, all 15mm bolts get 100ft-lbs as well as the lug nuts, the CV-shaft nut I believe gets 150. Don't over-torque the 8mm, it just needs to be a 1/4 turn past hand tight.

The first time took I did this it took me 2 hours. Now I can do a wheel bearing in about 30 minutes, granted I have impacts that speed the process up.