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Ford Explorer Community - Maintenance - Modifications - Performance Upgrades - Problem Solving - Off-Road - Street
Explorer Forum Covers the Explorer ST, Explorer Sport, Explorer Sport Trac, Lincoln Aviator, Mercury Mountaineer, Mazda Navajo, Ford Ranger, Mazda Pickups, and the Ford Aerostar
sometimes as im driving i can feel/ hear a clunking noise underneath. doesnt seem to have any effect on drving right now just annoying. but obv theres something not right there or it wouldnt be doing it. does like a tie rod end or a ball joint or u joint make clunking noise if its broken?
somethings def. wrong with it as speed picks up so does the knocking noise. something in my right front wheel i beleive does anyone have any ideas as to what could be broken??
I would suggest jacking up the front end and having a look at things. Check for anything loose or broken. Check your wheels to make sure they don't wobble. Check the brakes and make sure there is nothing loose or broken there.
somethings def. wrong with it as speed picks up so does the knocking noise. something in my right front wheel i beleive does anyone have any ideas as to what could be broken??
Ok, well, if it definitely increases (the "knocking") with speed, then it must be something that rotates. But first, are you sure it's only with speed, and not the fact that maybe your hitting more bumps at higher speed? If it is speed related, and on a smooth road, and you think it's coming from the right front wheel than I would look at the RF hub and/or CV Axle. What happens when you turn kinda hard? ( I would suggest weaving left/right in a empty parking lot. You want the turns big enough to have time to evaluate each direction, but quick enough to load the chassis) If the noise gets worse when you turn left,but gets better when you turn right, then look at the RF hub/wheel bearing. If it's the same both directions, but worse than when you're going straight, and it sound kind like a clicking sound, then suspect the cv axles.
You can also try brake-torqueing it in drive and reverse, stopped, and on the brakes. If you get a clunk when you gas it, then look at u-joints and grease the slip-joints on both driveshafts.
A bad sway bar end-link could also cause a side-specific front-end clunk, but it wouldn't realy be related to speed.
yea im sure the knocking isnt from hitting bumps...its got to be one of the things you mentioned...what are the chances of my wheel falling off if i try to drive it to the shop...id rather do that than pay a ton for a tow there.
yea im sure the knocking isnt from hitting bumps...its got to be one of the things you mentioned...what are the chances of my wheel falling off if i try to drive it to the shop...id rather do that than pay a ton for a tow there.
There is no way I could tell you if it's safe to drive, without seeing it myself. If you caught fairly early in the failure process, then it would probably be safe to get to the mechanic, but if it's really bad, then no. We don't even know what is actually wrong, let alone how bad it is. I can tell you that if the wheel bearing/hub fails completely, the wheel could fall off, but it would have to rip out the cv joint first, since the axle nut, along with the taper on the inboard side of the outer cv hold the bearing/hub together.
If you really want to try to drive it, I would have someone else drive it slowly a little bit (like right in front of your house) while you look at the wheel in question. If you see ANY wobbling of the wheel STOP and call a tow truck, as that, means it IS about to fall apart.
Whatever you do ,be careful and use your best judgment.
