clicking/ rubbing noise

[willrapppold]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

my dad has a 97 explorer limited 5.0 V8 with a metal rubbing/ clicking noise in the left front wheel. You can drive for a couple of miles before the noise starts, does it turning the wheel, going forward, backward etc, gets quicker faster you go. After the truck sits for 20 minutes or so it will quit, untill you drive it 1 mile or so down the road and it starts again. When the truck is on the lift at the shop and you run the wheels with no weight on them there is no noise at all. We found the caliper got stuck at one time and rubbed on the rotor but that has been fixed and the sound still continues. The truck has new lower/upper ball joints, brake pads and rotors, and a new left front hub. Just put a new LF axle in today. Any ideas?

 

[imp]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

my dad has a 97 explorer limited 5.0 V8 with a metal rubbing/ clicking noise in the left front wheel. You can drive for a couple of miles before the noise starts, does it turning the wheel, going forward, backward etc, gets quicker faster you go. After the truck sits for 20 minutes or so it will quit, untill you drive it 1 mile or so down the road and it starts again. When the truck is on the lift at the shop and you run the wheels with no weight on them there is no noise at all. We found the caliper got stuck at one time and rubbed on the rotor but that has been fixed and the sound still continues. The truck has new lower/upper ball joints, brake pads and rotors, and a new left front hub. Just put a new LF axle in today. Any ideas?

A clicking sound is very often associated with a bad CV joint. If you replaced the LH axle shaft, it came with new CV joints, right? Are you dead certain the sound is not coming from the RH side? Bear in mind, running the wheels up on a lift does not subject the CV joints to the torque necessary to drive the vehicle. The 5.0 option came with AWD, so front axles are always working. imp

 

[willrapppold]

yes when we replaced the axle shaft it had new cy joints. these are not my videos but this is what it sounds like.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oS6gdwNGyoU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vboTBpHWHKM

but is sounds like that in left front.

 

[willrapppold]

We found out its the front differential!!!! How can I tell if it has a Dana/Spicer 35 Axle or not, I'm trying to buy a rebuild kit for the front differential.

 

[willrapppold]

well it wasn't the differential making the noise so we were left with transfer case or the cv joint on the front driveshaft, so we replace the cv joint on the shaft and haven't had a problem since, so if this helps anyone in the future, a new cv joint is a lot cheaper than a junkyard or rebuilt transfer case!!

 

[imp]

well it wasn't the differential making the noise so we were left with transfer case or the cv joint on the front driveshaft, so we replace the cv joint on the shaft and haven't had a problem since, so if this helps anyone in the future, a new cv joint is a lot cheaper than a junkyard or rebuilt transfer case!!

Next time you experience driveline noise, put the vehicle on stands, run it in gear, 4X4 HIGH preferably, and go snooping with a stethoscope. I was able to rule out differential noise in the back which turned out to be a half-shot wheel bearing. Lots of work and $$ saved. imp