Bad bearing-like noise in front end

[Dan Whitaker]

You are bringing some? I hope--

I'm glad you said something. I was planning on getting them in Iola.

 

[Hokie]

Could it be cupped tires?

It did it with my Wrangler RT/S's too

 

[Bigg_billy]

So Did We Ever Figure This Out?

 

[Dan Whitaker]

So Did We Ever Figure This Out?

I'll know a week from today.

 

[beckhm1991]

I experienced the same grumbling and vibrating in my 91 Explorer this past week, swapped the transfer case and the noise is gone. To me it initially felt like aU-joint problem because it was speed and not RPM related, I inspected the U-joints, drive shafts, CV's and front diff. couldn't find a conclusive answer and went for the T-case, problem fixed, I haven't taken the case apart yet to see what the problem was. I know there is a big mechanical discrepency between the 1991 and 1998 but it may be worth the look.

 

[Hokie]

I'll know a week from today.

So, using my very scientific method of a calibrated hand/finger I have noticed that my passenger side brake caliper is hotter than my driver's side after driving around.

The passenger's side is the side that I had to remove/install several times in the last few months. A sticky caliper?

 

[MountaineerGreen]

You may can check your slide pins, I had to clean mine last time I had my calipers off.

 

[Hokie]

You may can check your slide pins, I had to clean mine last time I had my calipers off.

The pins/bolts (with a hex head end) that slide inside the rubber boots? According to my Haynes book

Don't wipe the lubricating gel from these bolts or the bolt boots. At the time of publication there was no substitute for this gel

EDIT: On my way back from class today, it would make sense that my front brakes could be hanging up. My truck has felt as if there was drag on the driveline. Its noticeable when you left off the gas, it just doesn't want to coast as well as it should.

Drilled/slotted front rotors have a distinctive sound during breaking (kind of a growling). My mom has them on her Acura and dad ran these Powerslots on the Mounty when he owned it. When slowing down, you can always tell if a vehicle has drilled/slotted rotors. You hear an audible growling and can sometimes even feel a slight vibration in the brake pedal.

That sound is almost indistinguishable from the sound I here when I'm not breaking. IE: I get the same sound whether I'm on the brakes or not. Also, I can feel a slight vibration, at the same frequency as the noise, in the steering wheel.

 

[MountaineerGreen]

Yup, those- I don't know what to tell you to lube em with though, as a matter of a fact, I don't know what I did with mine :scratch:

 

[Hokie]

Yup, those- I don't know what to tell you to lube em with though, as a matter of a fact, I don't know what I did with mine :scratch:

Never-Seez? They make stuff called "disc brake caliper slide grease"... I can't believe that Ford's caliper's would be greased for life.

 

[MountaineerGreen]

Eh, greased and lubricated for life is crap. The caliper grease stuff would be fine, IMO. The best thing is you only have to pull your wheel/tire to take care of that.

 

[Hokie]

I'll call a few Ford service managers tomorrow and see what they recommend.

 

[Hokie]

I'll know a week from today.

Any updates?

Tonight I pulled my brakes apart. Cleaned everything with Brakleen and lubed the caliper slider pins with the synthetic slider pin lube packets that they sell at the counter at AutoZone.

It seems as if the outer pad on the driver's side was rubbing against the rotor. The rotor is worn more on that side and the pad was thinner than the inner one. The passenger side out pad wasn't as noticably worn, but it definately wasn't nice and clean/smooth as it should be.

I needed to drive the truck tomorrow so I buttoned everything back up tonight.

Cross my fingers, took 'er for a drive and.... noise is still there

Maybe I will take the rotors to a brake shop and have them turned. They're PowerSlot slotted/crossed drilled rotors, so hopefully they aren't too worn.

In attempt to explain my poor MPG's, I checked my TPS. Its at 1.05V so it could use a little adjustment. Couldn't get the screws out to save my life. Even tried pulling off the throttle body but it wouldn't budge. I didn't want to try to really work it off as I don't have new throttle body seals and don't want to damage the ones that I have.

Seat of the pants feel after cleaning/lubing everything: the truck appears to coast better, but its hard to tell.

I went ahead and gassed up. We'll know in the next 50-100 miles if what I did tonight has made a difference. I'll be taking the truck up to Breckenridge (250-300 miles round trip) this weekend so that road trip will be a good MPG test.

 

[Dan Whitaker]

I'm headed down to Jon's in the morning.

Puting on new shocks, "B" t-bars, AAL & shackles, new front rotors & pads, new head lights, swapping out my broken down seats for some better ones, checking the DPFE and changing the rear diff lube.

 

[Hokie]

I'm headed down to Jon's in the morning.

Puting on new shocks, "B" t-bars, AAL & shackles, new front rotors & pads, new head lights, swapping out my broken down seats for some better ones, checking the DPFE and changing the rear diff lube.

Let us know how it goes. Is Jon jtsmith?

 

[Turdle]

Yep it is I

You guys---
check your brake rotors--Dans issue was almost certainly an area that was rubbing, but was not in the pad area-there is bare metal showing-I'll get a picture--

 

[Turdle]

On this rotor-the casting was bad or something-
this is a high spot which had been rubbing--

 

[Hokie]

On this rotor-the casting was bad or something-
this is a high spot which had been rubbing--

Against what? Did y'all kill the noise?

EDIT: C'mon don't tease me with a possible solution jt

 

[Dan Whitaker]

The noise when slowing down or stopping is gone but I still have a growling noise which I'm 99.9% sure is a bad hub bearing. I could feel & here some rough spots when I turned the left side hub.

That's what I get for buying a no-name one off Ebay. I'll be buying a Timken one from Autozone and puting it on next week.

 

[Hokie]

I've got Timken bearings on my mounty. $175/ea at AZ

When I originally did it, I forgot to put the stupid spindle nut back on, the truck made it 200 yds and then the bearings pulled out of the race and the wheel was sitting like \\ instead of ||