newbie noises and feelings (1 Viewer)

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I am a :stupid:new owner of a '97 80 with 68K miles. Great to have a resource like IH8MUD. I bought the truck at a dealer and never met the previous owner but the wiring on the trailer hitch suggests that the PO did some heavy towing with the vehicle. Anyway the truck drives nicely and shifts well but when I come to a stop I can hear a noise somewhere in the driveline. The noise is a very very quiet clunk sound as if the drive shaft is still moving for a second or two after stopping or the transmission is downshifting. There is no squeaking, rattling, or loud thumping but just a really quiet clunk after stopping and sometimes before takeoff. Is this normal or something to be worried about? Please ease my paranoia. I am still getting used to the vehicle. What are the common sounds and the bad ones. Thanks :tomatoe:
 
Does it happen when you stop or just before you stop?
If you are stopped, the only drive line part moving is the torque conveter.
kurt
 
So far the noise has only come to my attention when stopped. I'll check it out and post again. Cheers
 
It could be your u-joints. You may want to crawl under your rig and check them out.
 
Check your spare tire to see if it is lose. Check for broken shocks or springs or motor and tranny/t-case mounts.
kurt
 
There is some drive train slop inherant in the 80 series full time four wheel drive system. it would be worth crawing aroung under it and checking things, including having someone shift from drive to reverse while you watch the engine and trans mounts, but I suspect you're just hearing normal noises.

:givemebeer:
 
The Gumby is a wise man (needs swimming lessons though ::) ) There is lots of stuff to "take-up". 2 diffs, 4 u-joints, 2 slip yokes, transfer case, transmission, torque perverter, and the often overlooked front drive flanges. If there is a bit of loose in several places it can add up to a "clunk" quite easily. Do as he suggests and carefully look at those components to determine how much each one moves. Also, carefully identify the noise to determine a pattern and then try to duplicate it on-demand. That may help in determining if there really is a problem. And, welcome to the forum

Regards, Dan
 
Snowcruiser,
Good points above. One that wasn't mentioned is the tranny kickdown/throttle adjustment. What can happen is the tranny stays engaged a little longer than desired when coming to a dead stop. You'll occassionally feel it as it may also take a little longer to hook up from a dead stop. There is an article in the Tech Pages that has pictures that apply to your vehicle. Remember to make small adjustments.

>> I am still getting used to the vehicle. <<
>> What are the common sounds and the bad ones. <<

Common are the above mentioned clunks as the slack comes out of all the turning bits. A high pitched exhaust whistle during hard acceleration is common.

Bad sounds would be clicking in the birfields; usually heard from the front wheels when making slow speed turns. Brake wear indicators are unusual; brake groaning means you waited too long to replace the pads. There are lots of bad sounds so you'll have to let us know more details.

-B-
 
Got under my truck before the weekend and noticed some side to side play in the spline slip yoke. It's only a little but since we're taking about driveline stuff I'm curious if anyone else has had or heard of this?
 
. it would be worth crawing aroung under it and checking things, including having someone shift from drive to reverse while you watch the engine and trans mounts
:givemebeer:

IMHO, it would be wise to be very nice to your wife the day that
you ask her to shift into drive while you're under there ...
 
I'm with BMT on this... More than likely it's your u joints. Usually driveline slack is heard when going from say reverse to drive. Getting all those bits to go the other way is when it's most noticeable. If you’re hearing it from start to stop or vice versa then it's probably spiders. (Toyota for u joints) Never the less as a new owner it's a good idea to give your whole truck a thorough once over...
 
thanks for the valuable info this forum is extremely helpful. i will check my u-joints but after reading what you all have said i am probably hearing normal noises. i did check to see if the noise could be heard slowing down and sometimes on a downhill when i am almost stopped the noise is there. probably the normal driveline interactions. i will be careful who shifts my truck into drive and reverse while i'm under there. the girlfriend may have a little too much fun with that kinda power. have a good night all. cheers :D
 
Let me know what you find out. I get the same deal with my 96 (70k). I'm also getting a vibration in my drive line....Gonna start with the cheapest replacement, trans mount. I crawled under and stuck a crow bar under the trans to see how much play there was. WAY to much...with how much it was moving, changing the pitch of the drive shafts so forth I'm going to replace it. If this doesn't' t work, I'm trying the U-joints next.....Let me know what you find out. :givemebeer:
 
C-Dan,
I realize that there is many variables to consider, but is there an average life expectancy to the spiders? (u-joints)
Eduardo :beer:
 
Dunno really :dunno: .

Mine are at 111,000 miles and are still nice and tight. I think it depends greatly on the care they get. Properly lubricated ones that never go for a swim could last for ages. Ignored ones for not long at all.
 
Anyone hear about Tranny mounts going bad (no visable cracks just smushed) on a 80 series with under 100K?
 
-H-, C-Dan,
Thanks for the input. Mine is @ 120+ k, Well maintained, no underwater diving (no snorkel here) :G
Although I do wash her underside too!
Just trying to keep up with "Pristine" :G
Eduardo
 

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