Vibration in steering wheel during acceleration

[joebroni99]

Hi All,

I have a 97 5.0 Ex AWD and something happened last week when i was driving. I noticed that during acceleration between 0 to 45 under load, there is alot of vibration in the steering wheel. When you let off the gas it instantly stops. Also I cant really feel it at all over 50 mph. The harder I get on the gas at low speeds the worse it is. Also I'm not sure if this is related but I will throw it in anyway. I noticed over the few months when I pull out of a parking space real slow turning the wheel I can hear a gringding noise what sounds like coming from the front drivers side wheel. I jacked the front end up and their isnt any play in them. Im not sure what it is, just looking for some advice/tests to diagnose what is causing the vibration. I didnt want to start changing things out for no reason if they arent bad.

Thanks,
Joe C.

 

[joebroni99]

No help for me?

 

[RomeovilleIL]

Given you have vibration going forward and noise in reverse, you likely have a bad CV axel. Remans are $50 + core at most autopart stores. With regular handle tools you can change one out in well under an hour. Axel nut is around 260 ft/lbs so need a long breaker bar and 1-1/4" deep socket. There are good write-ups in the forum if you do a search.

 

[jremington59]

There could be numerous things. CV as stated. Front driveshaft, wheelbearing. Those are just a few.

 

[joebroni99]

I changed the cv axles out both sides with no luck. In fact it kinda seems like it might have gotten worse. I did notice when changing the drivers side, their is wear on the inner side of the tire. Maybe they are related? Could it be ball joints or tie rod end?

 

[McSlug]

Has the grinding noise gone since replacing cv's?

Do any of the tyres have a bubble or any damage. I had a bad shake in my carolla due to a bubble in one of the tyres.

 

[joebroni99]

The grinding noise is still there.

 

[joebroni99]

Ok so i drove the Ex around a lil more. And the problem is really bad now. Their is some popping and banging noises. I threw the Ex up on 4 jackstands all 4 tires off the ground. I put the truck into neutral and tried spinning the front drivers side wheel. It spins a little bit then it binds up. I can force it thru the binding spot but what happens is the whole hub is forced up then drops down once i get past the binding spot. I had a mechanic look at it and he said It seems like the axle i installed might be bad or the front diff is bad. I did notice however that it sounds like the popping noise comes from the transfer case. If the front axle or diff were bad could it be putting stress onto the transfer case making the popping noise? Or is my transfer case toast? Also, If it were the transfer case or front diff, would either one of them cause the symptom of the front drivers side wheel being forced up then dropped?

Thanks,
Joe C.

 

[joebroni99]

So I was reading some other threads on rebuilding the Transfer Case. And I saw a few people posting saying that they had binding when turning and during acceleration kinda what I am experiencing. So I am thinking possibly that the viscous coupler is bad on me truck. If I rip out the transfer case and rebuild it, is their a way at looking at the viscous coupler to see if it is bad?

 

[RomeovilleIL]

When you turn the wheel the hub assembly is moving up/down? Something is wrong with the cv axel. The joints are designed to flex while the tire turns as opposed to a solid axel which is perfectly straight. Leaves 2 questions - is the cv bad or was it accidentally pulled apart? The boots should not be stretched and should easily and smoothly turn side to side at around 30 degrees for the entire revolution of the axel. By chance you dont have a TT lift over 2" up front do you?

 

[joebroni99]

No lift. So I thought possibly i had a defective cv axle. So I went to a different auto parts store and bought a reman cv axle. the reman axle is doing the same exact thing that the new cv axle is doing. So when i installed the reman cv axle and tried turning the wheel it acted the same as the new cv. Since I hadnt bolted anything back on, I went ahead and put the original cv axle on and it doesnt bind. Then something odd kinda happened. I put the reman cv back into the truck. When i was originally testing the cv axles for binding i had the truck on jack stands with the truck in neutral. Then after installing the reman i only had the front end up and the truck in Park. With both front wheels off the ground i could spin the one tire and the other side would spin the other direction freely. No binding at all. Now spinning the tires before when the truck was in neutral the front drive shaft would spin from the transfer case. and in park only the 2 front tires would spin and the drive shaft wouldn't.

Also note, the reman cv and the new cv joints are really tight to move, as opposed to the old cv which is really easy to move all around. kinda like the difference between a new and old ball joint.

 

[RomeovilleIL]

That makes some sense actually. I believe the front differential is open (only the rear is limited slip) so the sides should be able to turn independently.

In your description you mentioned that noise and vibration was only on one side (left) as opposed to the entire front end so I would stick with finding the cause on that side in either the cv or the hub. Did you try turning the axel in differential without putting it into the hub? Does the hub turn freely by itself?

 

[joebroni99]

Yes the hub and axle spin freely. 2 things are making me think it is the transfer case. 1 without the transfer case engaged on the front differential the front wheels both spin freely, meaning no binding. 2 after putting the new and reman cv axles in, when you spin the tires with the truck in neutral and the drive shaft spinning and hit the binding spot it sounds like a popping noise is coming from the transfer case.

Or could something be wrong with the front differential that is binding and putting stress on the transfer case making the popping noise from the transfer case.

 

[RomeovilleIL]

You can always take out the front drive shaft and take a test drive to see if anything changes. That would at narrow down the problem.

 

[joebroni99]

I dont want to sound like a beginner, but im not sure how to take the drive shafts out.

Also, so when i take the front drive shaft out what should i expect to hear in terms of noise? would the transfer case still make noise if it is bad? If it doesnt vibrate should i then assume it is the TC?

Second, Ive noticed people in other threads talking about drive shaft cv joints. how can i tell if it is that joint which is causing the binding and popping noise?

Thanks for all your help

 

[RomeovilleIL]

Check the stickies. There is good info on how to take out the front drive shaft along with a warning that the truck will drift in park with it out so be careful where you park during the test. If noise is gone that shoudl indicate either the shaft itself or the TC. As for testing the shaft, I have to refer you back to other posters stickies and search as Ive done plenty of rear wheel u-joints over the years, but nothing for front shafts.

 

[joebroni99]

So I finally took off the front drive shaft and found the problem. The joint connecting the drive shaft to the transfer case is pretty hurt and has 3 spots that bind up when turning it by hand. Does anybody know if I have to get a whole new drive shaft, or can i replace just that joint? and does anybody know where I can get either of them Im having a hard time finding anything online.

Side note: Can I simply replace the cv joint on the drive shaft or is it pressed in and impossible to do without a press or anything of that nature?

Thanks,
Joe C.

 

[joebroni99]

My problem is back but under a different circumstance. I have the front driveshaft removed from my truck. the drivers side axle seems to be binding again. the 2 front cv axles are about a yr old and only have 10k on them and the one seems to be bad. So now I'm thinking the original problem didnt start from the driveshaft cv axle but the front differential. what would cause this issue? any help would be fantastic as I am clueless. and carless.