I think my front driver side wheel bearing is going out or it just went out. I have a 2003 Dodge Dakota Quad Cab V6 2wd drive. I replaced the passenger side wheel bearing at 100K, now at 125K I'm hearing a vibration sound, like something is lose or something, when I go over bumps. It doesn't steering any different or make a sound on smoother roads. What is the noise? My first guess is the wheel bearing, but when I had to replace the pass. front wheel bearing it make a noise when it was going out. It made a grinding type sound and made more sound when I turned one way and not as much turning the other way. The new problem isn't like the past one. It doesn't do anything different turning either way, just when I go over a bumpy road or a bump. Any advice on this matter would be great.

 

moe in wichita ks
i had a wheel bering get so hot it twisted the spindle 90 degrees, on a 82 ram 3/4 ton hd. luckly i had ask my mech to check my wheel berg 2 weeks before. long-short HE put a good spindle on. it cost him a ton cause the spindle on 3/4 ton hd are hard to find. the salv yard ended up pulling 3 spindles before they found the right one.

 

at 125 k its due... id start by changing it...

 

Don't let what happened to me happen to you...

Chris

 

what happened to you?

 

Last night I went by a auto parts store, and as I was talking with him, I don't think it is the wheel bearing. After telling the sound and when it does it, he thinks the shock might have gone out, since it is more like a rattle (if you put a bunch of keys down in that area and when you hit a bump it jingles) and not the grinding like you get from a wheel bearing going out. Does that sound right to y'all? I've never had shocks go out before.

When I got home I left the front driver side up to see if I can tell more closely on what it is. When I moved the tire I didn't hear any noise from the wheel bearing area. I lightly taped on the shock to see if I could hear it rattle. Nothing. I did find one spot that did rattle some, that I don't think should be rattling or why it is, and that is a brake/power steering line. I didn't see any lose bolts but when I light taped the line it did make a rattle sound. This might be the reason for the noise, why is it making that noise? I'll try to post a picture of the line.


Here is a picture. It is on the driver front side. It is attached to the upper control arm. From the view I could see (it was dark too) that it goes to the power steering box.
http://shutter03.pictures.aol.com/da...kB0NXH0280.jpg

http://shutter04.pictures.aol.com/da...PkiYNp0280.jpg

 

A rattling sound when driving over bumps would not be a wheel bearing. You should be able to install a rubber isolator on that line, even just temporary to see if the rattling goes away. I've used the large foam PVC pipe insulators before that you can buy at a home improvement store. They work great for things like this.

If that doesn't fix the problem, I would look at the sway bar links and bushings, especially if they are original. You should be able to pick up a set of quality bushings for less than 15 bucks (for the pair) and end links for $50 (for the pair). These should really tighten up the front of your truck. I don't know yet about Dakotas, but on Chrysler's minivans, these sway bar parts almost need periodic replacement as regular maintenance. We're not sure why, but any front suspension noise can generally be attributed to the sway bar on those vehicles. It wouldn't be a bad idea ANYWAY to invest in these parts for your vehicle, given the mileage, and I suspect it may eliminate some play and looseness in your ride that you didn't know you had.

 

check out the images here:
http://checktechltd.com/Truck/