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Clicking Noise Thread Marriage And A Lucky Break...
Well....maybe this will assist someone down the road. It all started with the "Guess that noise" thread, linked below. Then, the other day, there was my "driveshaft" thread. Well...in conclusion, same same.
While I thought I'd fixed the mysterious clicking by replacing the transmission mount, it came back a few months ago. Yes, I checked the joint in the shaft by the differential and found no discernible play. It was a bit different, yet still the same symptoms. Mind you, I had 2 great Indy shops and a dealer fail to diagnose the initial noise. NOT due to the shops not being good...it was just...a mystery...spooky. I kept driving hoping it would get worse so I could finally diagnose it properly.
Bringing it back to now. A few weeks ago I'd noticed the occasional clunk when hitting the gas from a stop. Not always, just occasional. I ignored it for a bit until I decided to change the oil and check all suspension parts last Sunday. While cleaning up a bit of oil on the subframe, I found needle bearing pieces. I checked the driveshaft and damn....close call. The video clip is in the other thread.
Here's what I think happened, beginning last year. The initial clicking was the needle bearings starting to give out. The joint was still in tact, but the bearings were dry/frozen/whatever. This caused the initial noise. After a few thousand miles, I changed the transmission mount, which temporarily fixed it. I believe that the new mount changed the angle just enough to silence the bearing clicking. Over the next few months though, I think the joint just started to fail. It failed bad enough to break a cap and throw needle bearings out. The occasional clunk was the broken ear timed to where it spun before catching (then clunking) from a stop.
I ordered a new shaft from a shop in CA and decided against the headache. I dropped it at German Auto Werks in Yorktown, VA and had the shop swap the shaft. I picked the car up yesterday and hit the highway home.....silence. No click, no clack, no nuthin'...perfect. I sent the video to a few shops I know and even the mechanic at the shop here said I got lucky. The ears that hold the joint were close to going. Had that happened on a highway or anywhere at speed, it could have been 10k vs 1.5k to repair.
While this post may look useless, let it serve as a warning for anyone with a funny noise...CHECK THAT FRONT SHAFT. Pull the splash guards down and give it a wiggle. Turn the rear wheels to spin the front shaft a bit and wiggle again. A bit of backlash is normal and required, but there should be ZERO movement at the front joint flange. I may play Powerball next week.... As of now, she's ready for another year of being my hunting buddy.
Congratulations on dodging that (not uncommon) bullet. I can attest that you really (!!!) don't want that driveshaft to take leave of the differential and find a new and exciting path... that's how I bought my 2011 for chump change. In the case of my car, the broken shaft apparently also took out the internal U-joint in the front output shaft gear cluster, resulting in the need to not only replace the front driveshaft and the two O2 sensors it ate, but to also rebuild the transfer case (a $10K estimate from nearly any shop, as they won't touch rebuilding the XC or even the transmission for that matter).
02-25-2024, 12:28 PM
