Nelp needed ASAP.

[theferg]

Help needed ASAP.

I've recently discovered that my passenger front is leaking something. I'm thinking it is gear oil. It's splashed out on the back side of the tire in 360*. I had a similar thing happening a couple years ago when a rear axle seal had let go. Also, the sucker has recently started vibrating me right outta my seat while I'm driving it. I had some small vibes goin' on for a while now, but recently has gotten really bad. Only thing I can think of is that I drove it around in 4WD last week when I was out late during a snow storm and the streets were covered with ice and snow. As soon as I hit dry pavement though, I pulled it outta 4WD, but I did leave the hubs engaged for about a day longer... And lastly, I've also noticed a new noise that seems to be coming from underneath the rig somewhere (could very well be from the passenger front knuckle/axle area...) that sounds kind of like rattling chain link. I've noticed it when I have just been cruising slowly through a parking lot (though it could still be going on at higher speeds, perhaps I just can't hear it over all the other noises...) I thought at first that it was loose drive shaft bolts cause that happened to me once and it sounded similar, but i've checked my driveshafts 100 times and they are tight... Perhaps it's my bearings in my passenger front....? Or diff bearings 'cause all the gear oil has leaked out the end of the axle tube...? But, the front diff is not engaged, so I wouldn't think it would be rattling all the time...

Anyway, I'm pretty sure I gotta tear into the passenger front for sure, but I just wanted to see what you all thought first. Should I have a kuckle rebuild kit on hand when I do? (Kurt, you got any?)

-Ferg-

 

[woody]

jack the axle off the ground, see if you have play in the knuckles or wheel bearings...top-to-bottom rock of the tire is a bad sign.

I'd wager an inner axle seal has let loose...they are cheap, but if it's been a while the 90wt may have washed the trunions enuf to need replacement....and you may have some added wear from washing the birf as well.

 

[65swb45]

If it's been a while since you've been in the front end, and you don't live in the best of climates, it's quite possible that your locking hub did not completely disengage, even tho you rotated it. The part of the locking hub that actually engages the housing[ the actuator] can get gummed up, and there is enough slack in the retractor spring that the spring will let the head of the hub rotate while the actuator is still engaged.

Having the hub locked will make lots of strange noises, especially if you're not used to it.

 

[IDave]

I can send you some "Nelp" for a mere $350 a pound if you like!

 

[theferg]

Whatchoo talkin' 'bout....? C'mon man. I just woke up.... ;p

 

[IDave]

Your message title said "Nelp" needed as soon as possible! I have gallons!

Oh, but now you change your mind. Never mind

I sell it to the next guy, who knows a deal when he sees one!

 

[65swb45]

Your message title said "Nelp" needed as soon as possible! I have gallons!

Oh, but now you change your mind. Never mind

I sell it to the next guy, who knows a deal when he sees one!

ME! ME!

 

[miletwo]

Mmmmm.... Nelp. Delicious on toast. Sure beats that salty crap they have down under.

 

[theferg]

So (not to get this thread back on topic or anything..... ;p ). I had decided to just go for it and find the brake lines that i have been needing so i could swap in my new calipers, the longs and the hi-steer and I went out to have a look a decide how long of a line i would need to skip the backing plate. I decided around 12" or so (I think I've heard that same number as well somewhere....). Anyway, while I was deciding, I noticed a fresh bunch of drippage and noticed it was on the tire directly underneath my caliper... Felt the bottom of the caliper and it was dripping. Then noticed that the lower bolt on the caliper was loose. No tools with me right now (left 'em at home... ) but gonna tighten that sucker up and see what happens. Dunno what the vibes and noises all were, but obviously somethin' wasn't right with the caliper...

Anyway, for me regardless.

-Ferg-

 

[cruiser_guy]

This is where the nose comes in handy. Give it a sniff and you'll know if it's gear oil or not.

 

[theferg]

Yup. Checked that as soon as I found some drips. Definitely not gear oil. So I tightened up the bolts on the caliper and checked around for other loose bolts. I couldn't beleive how loose all the bolts holding the caliper together were. If it was warmer than 10* outside, I might suspect some one of tampering with my rig... It seriously is odd.

So I took it for a test drive and the same wierd vibration is still there. It's a pretty heavy vibration. Like in between lurching and vibrating whatever that might be. Guess I'll have to keep checkin'. I don't have access to a floor jack and my high lift ain't in my rig, so I can't lift it up at all to check the bearings and such until later. I'm seriously confused and concerned about what it might be...

-Ferg-

 

[rgentry]

Did you wobble the wheels to check for a loose wheel bearing?
I suppose if the wheel bearing grease got really hot it could come
out like oil. That would indicate some real bad stuff going on in
there.

 

[xumFJ40]

theferg,

Like sevral others have said...

1) Wobble the wheel to check for loose bearings.
2) (I didn't see mention of this) Did you check the amount of fluid in the diff?
3) Usually if the inner seal is bad, you should see a big pile of mush behind the (pass side) wheeper seal.

 

[toddslater]

Since your caliper was just about falling off ..at least to the point of loosing fluid....your pistons may be seized that'll make it lurch. The wobble...well thats been covered.

 

[theferg]

When I looked again at my caliper, i noticed that it was not just the bolts that hold the caliper on that were loose, but the bolts that hold the two caliper sides together were loose. In fact they were the more loose of them all. I'm pretty sure those should never be loosened or come loose. I tried to tighten 'em up anyway, but the s***es still leaking. It's a good thing I already bought me some new 93 4Runner calipers now ain't it! Picking up some new discs, a new master cylinder, and the brake lines today and then I'm tearin' into it.

-Ferg-

 

[theferg]

So I got the new brake calipers on and all and still have some big vibes. I didn't really ever think it was just the caliper that could have been causing the whole vibe issue...I think the leaking caliper was just a coincidence. Anyway, I lifted every corner (I have a FF rear) to make sure I didn't have any unwanted movement of the hubs and they were all good and tight. I also checked my diffs to make sure they were full of fluid and they were good (though the rear fluid was pretty dark so I'll be changin' it ASAP seein' as it's a year old now). Knuckles were totally clean minus a small bit of grease that has passed through the felt wiper, but nothing to worry about by any means.

At this point I was gettin' worried about what it might be. So I had a buddy drive it around while I hung on underneath the rig....just kiddin'....but I had a buddy drive it around a parking lot while I tried to stay close and watch for moving things. I noticed my rear driveline looked like it had a little bit of extra movement. I felt it when it was parked and in gear and it felt super solid. Anyway, my buddy stopped and kept it out of gear and I reached under and checked the driveline...and I found that the u-joint had a LOT of movement to it. In a sideways-ish direction--not good. Luckily I already have a u-joint sittin' in my storage unit of crap so I'll throw it in and see if that cures the whole thing... Thanks again for all the help and I'll keep ya posted.

Funny, the u-joints were the first things I thought to check, but with my e-brake not functioning, I have to keep the cruiser in gear when I park it. And with the force/weight of the cruiser resting on the drivetrain, it prevented me from moving anything. Take the force off the drivetrain and voila! Got it.

-Ferg-