Front end noise and its not bearings.

[admsbmr]

I am getting a vibration from the front end, it feels like the all wheel drive is not disengaging but I am not getting any binding at low speeds, I can feel and hear it starting at 45-50 mph. the truck has new wheel bearings on all four corners so I know its not that, I am getting ready to take it on a trip and don't want to burn up the front differential if that is whats causing the noise. Any thoughts?

 

[96743explorer]

by all wheel do you mean 4 wheel drive?

 

[admsbmr]

yes it has the four wheel drive Advance Trac RSC on a 2006 V6.

 

[admsbmr]

when driving at a steady 50 mph I turned on the 4x4 hi and the vibration was stronger then I turned on 4x4 auto and the vibration was still there just not as strong. this all started last night and has continued all day today and has no signs of going away. I suspect it is a sensor somewhere just don't know what one and where to start. (maybe the Ford dealer in the morning is a good start)

 

[Tech By Trade]

The front driveshaft uses a Ujoint on the front and a CV joint on the back of the shaft. The Ujoint is a common failure and will also cause this type of issue.

 

[Flag Gibby]

The front driveshaft uses a Ujoint on the front and a CV joint on the back of the shaft. The Ujoint is a common failure and will also cause this type of issue.

My thoughts exactly given the description and the fact that the front driveline on the 06 V6 always gets some power to it.

 

[admsbmr]

Well the verdict is in, chunks of metal in the transfer case.

 

[Boomyal]

Well the verdict is in, chunks of metal in the transfer case.

Ouch! What's the remedy?

 

[admsbmr]

its getting pulled and opened today to see what failed, I hope it was just a bearing but who knows. as of right now we are into the 4 digit price range for the fix.

 

[thebrakeman]

by all wheel do you mean 4 wheel drive?

Seeing that the 4th gen trucks have no way of forcing things to remain in 2WD, I think AWD is actually the better description. Don't let that cause you to think less of your truck.

I suppose you could pull a fuse or something, to force it to remain in 2WD. But then it's not 4WD, nor AWD.

 

[96743explorer]

FORD EXPLODER! damn, it always hurts when i see this kinda news posted.

 

[admsbmr]

Just picked it back up from the dealer, i'm a little lighter but the explorer has quieted down and hey it now has a 2 year unlimited mileage warranty on the transfer case.

 

[96743explorer]

Good to hear you have wheels again. Can I ask how much did they slap you in the face with?

 

[admsbmr]

1269.02 was the final bill.

 

[admsbmr]

the frustrating part about this whole thing is yes we did catch the transfer case before it self destructed and that was good but didn't fix the initial vibration issue. The thing that fixed the issue was putting in the new universal joint (a $15 dollar part) on the front drive shaft (like Tech by Trade said). I would have thought that the Ford tech going over the car would have caught the bad universal joint, I am glad that I did confirm the transfer case was coming apart so I didn't pay for something that was not needed, just unexpected.