After a stuck and jerk, what to check?

[rhyno]

Made the mistake of getting a little bold with the new 31 inch MTs this weekend. Not too smart when I was 400 miles from home. Anyways, after getting buried up to the front cross member in a muddy field I had to have a big old F250 yank me out. First we tried from the crossmember after breaking my front towpoint. Would not even budge. After breaking 2 straps, we used a very heavy duty chain and Yanked from my hitch. I thought it would rip my hitch off, but it did not even bend it. Here is my Question. I am a little worried about what may have been damaged as I am hearing a grinding noise when driving, and some serious vibrations over 60MPH. I think the vibrations may just be mud caked into the rims and throwing off the wheel balance. Thats what I hope at least. Please tell me that jerking with a chain could not have bent my frame. What should I check under the front end that could have gotten damaged. Nothing looks bent or broken from the naked eye, and I did drive home with no major incidents. Thanks.

 

[Alec]

You need to check your wheel bearings and repack them. You may need new ones if you've cooked yours already. I'm guessing that's at least one of your problems. Look into this soon as it can cause your wheel to fly off (been there, done that!)!

 

[rhyno]

Alec, when I did a search for repacking the bearings, it said that with AWD there is no way to repack them. Does this sound right? I certainly dont need to lose a wheel!! Sorry I forgot to post that I had AWD, 4-Hi, 4-Low type of drivetrain.

I think I will get an alignment done because it is pulling to the left, and ask them if they see anything that could be damaged.

 

[rhyno]

I just ran over to the MIDAS during lunch. They put it on the lift and took a look. He said everything looked OK. Since I drove over 400 miles at highway speed after it happend, he thought the bearings would already be showing wear, and that I should not worry about it. I guess the mud in the rims threw the wheel balance off enough for me to really notice it. This is a serious relief. Oh, and the guy that checked it out ran 33 in MTs on his International Scout, so I am giving him the benefit of the doubt that he knows what he is talking about. At least the guy who looked at it wasnt some 18 year old that had been working there for a month.

 

[Crankcase]

Originally posted by rhyno
Sorry I forgot to post that I had AWD, 4-Hi, 4-Low type of drivetrain.

You have 4WD, not AWD. True AWD does not have a selector switch for low range, and is only available with the V8's.

 

[jasonb]

Originally posted by rhyno
Alec, when I did a search for repacking the bearings, it said that with AWD there is no way to repack them. Does this sound right?

yeah i'm pretty sure you can't repack the bearings on any of the 95+ models as they use a sealed bearing setup. someone correct me if i'm wrong though.

 

[Doug]

Nope you cant repack them easily. i have heard of one person drilling a hole in one and adding a grease fitting. but since theyre sealed not really worth it imo.

 

[rhyno]

You have 4WD, not AWD. True AWD does not have a selector switch for low range, and is only available with the V8's.

I am not sure if that is correct. My pretty sure my Eddie Bauer is all time AWD and it is a V6. I have a switch that goes from Auto, to 4-Hi, to 4-LO.

 

[jasonb]

auto is not the same as AWD. you don't have AWD unless you have a v8.

 

[rhyno]

Now that I think about it I guess you are right. AWD would mean all my wheels have the same amount of power all the time, correct? Mine simply shifts power to the front as the back begins to slip. What is that, Control-Trac or something?

 

[jasonb]

yes its called control trac. and yes it shifts power only when the computer thinks it needs to.

 

[tomblin1]

Bent Frame Unlikley

If nothing appears bent, the vehicle drives straight, alignment is ok, and the gaps on the front end sheet metal appears symmetrical, you should be ok.

If your frame was bent, 9 times out of 10 the vehicle will not align properly because of the number of suspension components mounted to the frame. The components also move with the frame.

For a little more peace of mind, you can easily do some cross measurements with a tram-gauge if avail (a body shop should have one) or a tape measure if not avail. Take cross measurements on top and bottom. make sure you are using the same points on each side. And remember, Ford has a rather high tolerance from the factory for fit. If your mesurements are within 5mm of eachother, you're ok.

**if 0 is a starting point you could have one side +3mm and the other side -3mm and still be within a 3mm tolerence, yet the sides are 6mm different from eachother.

 

[brendan]

Yeah Alec, I know exactly what wheels falling off feels like. I had that happen to my 95 a little over a year ago while on the highway. The bearing caused the nut to come loose and out comes everything!!! It still stayed semi-connected but the wheel was at a 45degree angle. A little bit scary to say the least! $550 and a weekend later it was good as new, since I was 300 miles away from home and school and I still had 150 miles to make it to my girlfriends it wasn't such a bad break


Anyway, I was wondering if it's hard to check the front wheel bearings on a 2000 because I was going to bring mine in to see how they were holding up. I have a feeling they could use replacement but I don't wanna drop the cash if not necessary.