My front end growls

[Lilnuts2]

The OP said he just replaced the wheel bearings and seals.

[marret]

Eddieturn said he had bearings done up front and it did not eliminate the noise. My first thought was bearings/hub as well.

I will say tires can growl if worn a certain way. I replaced front bearings in a car because of a growl/vibration, no change. It turned out to be the tires.

So on my van, I got a growl. Based on my experience with tires and bearings above, I thought tires. Rotation over and over, no change. Lasted thousands of miles until one of the hub bearings started to fail with obvious play. It was the bearings/hub after all.

Eddieturn could try rotating tires to see if there is a difference...

[eddyturn]

Eddy is in Lander WY and found a 4x4 shop and a guy that understands all this stuff. He wants to test when cold so I will be camping at his place tomorrow night. He checked all the U joints and says they are all tight but did note the right front axle shaft has some slop. The feel was bad this morning but as things heat up, they get better. His online manual says to test it cold so maybe they know a thing or two. Wife will be out llama packing for a week so hopefully this will be a fix. Parts he thinks he would need are readily available here and that’s good.

Growl was present earlier so had the bearings and seals done proactively but that did not remedy the problem. Hoping that the axle shaft is the culprit. We really don’t want to go home yet. Glacier and the Kootenays are calling.

[BrianW]

I had a very similar noise that seemed to be from the front end but was actually from my rear LSD not having the correct friction modifier in it — my idiot mechanic forgot to add it when he changed the diff fluid, so I had to do it myself in a Walmart lot in Pueblo, Colorado [emoji35] It made a sort of growling noise with vibrations when turning. I was convinced it was from the front end but it wasn’t. Adding the OEM Ford friction modifier fixed it. IIRC it was more pronounced when it was either hot or cold, but I can’t remember which one (sorry).

[eddyturn]

OK. Mech checked overnight and the axle shaft is within spec. We will be checking the rear end first thing in the morning. Bearings were replaced and tires rotated and balanced. Good tread so don’t think that is the issue. Getting a little bit of a howl from the rear and given my shop’s inability to find good help makes me wonder about the LSD fluids and friction modifiers. See what happens early in the AM.

This Starlink dish works really well out here west of Lander.

[BrianW]

Here’s my thread from some years ago about the LSD noise:

https://www.sportsmobileforum.com/fo...olo-15305.html

[eddyturn]

Thanks Brian. It is the LSD that is the problem. Clutch material in the oil. Mfg Will warranty and overnight a new unit BUT it’s Friday and the shop is busy and cannot do it for a week. Guess we can drive back home ok and let home shop put the new unit in. What a cluster. Gotta run. Just wanted to let you all know about the results and appreciate all of the feedback.

[Lilnuts2]

Congrats on finding the problem

[SierraHawk]

The most common cause of a rumble from the front end of a SMB 4X4 comes from the tire rubbing on the plastic air dam. As the front leaf springs flatten, the tire tread gets closer to the plastic. It is easy to cut the plastic and create more clearance.

But, I've driven my 2004 SMB RB 4X4 over 330,000 miles and had both my Dynatrac hubs fail multiple times. The outer bearing cages disintegrate, dropping the bearings into the hub. You are left with the weight of the van on the inner bearings. The only thing that keeps the hub running straight are the calipers. When you turn, the disc will get very hot from the increased friction on the pads. The heat can be felt when touching the lug nuts and/or the Warn hub.

When the hub cools, jack up that side of the front diff and remove the Warn hub and outer nut. The spindle will be sitting at an angle, you will see the twisted remnants of the bearing cage and the bearings will be akimbo at the bottom of the hub. I've had different shops do the repair using the instructions that are pinned to this forum. Doesn't matter who does the work, but eventually the outer bearings on one of the front hubs will disintegrate. I've asked Dynatrac if they have created a fix for this problem but so far nada.

[ctb]

The Forum diagnosed a similar noise/problem years ago when my diff fluids were changed and the "additive" was not added at the change. It caused the rubbing like sound when coming to a stop off the HWY driving and turning....