Front Diff Question - HELP

[guelph_ford]

I have a 2000 Ex 4WD.

I'm having some loud noises coming from the front, thought it was wheel bearings, did those, didn't help. I'm wondering if it's in the front differential.

My question is, does the front diff turn, even when I have in 4w auto mode? I was under the impression that the front wheels free-wheel in this mode.

Any clarification on how things all work down there would be amazing.

Cheers!

 

[my98nnj]

Yes, the whole front drive line turns at all times.
I had to replace my front diff at 58K miles due to a failed bearing.
Get the the truck up on a lift and put it in gear. You can easily pinpoint where the noise is coming from with the screwdriver to the ear trick.
The front diff isn't that hard to replace, took us just about 2 hrs total.

 

[gavin]

you could try removing the front driveshaft and see if the noises persists.

it's possible the cv-joint in the front d-shaft is toast.

 

[imp]

........Get the the truck up on a lift and put it in gear. If you do this in "4WD AUTO" a bunch of noise will usually stop you quick, as the wheels each tend to turn at various speeds, depending on which brakes are slightly tighter, etc., and the sensing "hunts" while turning the front-drive electronic clutch rapidly on and off. You CAN do this quite successfully, but use "4WD HIGH", which locks the clutch "ON" at all times. All 4 wheels must of course be off the ground and free to turn. You can easily pinpoint where the noise is coming from with the screwdriver to the ear trick. This is about the most foolproof means of pin-pointing a noise source. imp