Well I crawled under and poked around today and really thought I had an "Ah-HA!" when I found the forward U joint on the front driveshaft quite sloppy. I removed the driveshaft and took the truck for a spin thinking it must have been making noise at speed flopping all around..... but no dice, noise and shudder still there.

Again, both outer U joints (axle) are good, one is brand new, the other shows no play at all, and looks like it was replaced right before I bought the truck. All 4 ball joints are new and I found no slop in the hub bearings when I had them out.

But something is very loose under there.

On suspicion is the inner axle bearings..... is there such a thing? Must be. Remember I drove this truck 175 miles with left U joint that had lost its "X" part bushings in the yokes. So with nothing to hold outer end of the axle when it was spinning, could it have "flailed" around and damaged in inner bearing? Something in the diff? The diff itself? I am not familiar with the components there (a good exploded diagram somewhere?). I will probably pull the diff cover this week and have a look.... but I don't know what to look for.

Other suspicion is the CAD. Rattling seems to come from there. There is a noise like something dragging on teeth/splines? I did have the CAD actuator out before.. and that noise might not have been there before that (the shuddering was). Could be two different problems? Not sure what holds the end of the right shaft.. and intermediate shaft.

Lastly, are parts for the forward U joint on the front drive shaft available? I have a 4x4 press tool kit, and I really don't need 4WD until winter when I plow. So I'd like to fix that while I have it out.


Thanks again for any help...

JH

 

There is a needle bearing holding the intermediate shaft. The intermediate shaft has a pin on the end of it, that inserts into a bushing on the end of the outer shaft. And if I were you, I'd take the driveshaft to a shop and let them rebuild the cardan joint.

 

Still haven't fixed this but wondering about the wheel bearing. It didn't seem bad when I pulled the hub out to do the ball joints, but I really didn't look at it real close. Will check this weekend.

Question: How hard is to replace the just the bearing in the hub ($13 part) vs. just getting a new hub/bearing/housing ($85). I have a small press.

Also, how to check for a bead bearing, should I feel slop grabbing the lifted wheel top and bottom and pushing back and forth??

 

Pretty sure you can not replace just the bearing itself on a 4x4 hub (which would be good info for your profile btw). This guy did it on a later model 2wd that uses a hub similar to a 4x4. https://dodgeforum.com/forum/2nd-gen...-bearings.html And to check if its bad, it should be smooth and with the wheel on, someone to look while someone else rocks,shakes turns the wheel/tire.

 

Check your track bar yet?
I would.

 

Why bother doing all this work if? you never drive it you said its your house truck more or less you plow your drive way just save your money and drive it to the ground these dodges are tuff its lasted this long

 

I drive it a bit in the summer, I take my dogs to the park and run run a couple exits up the highway to Lowes every now and then. This vibration is driving me crazy and it has become a challenge to find out what is causing it.

Haven't checked the track bar, I presume this is part of the steeling linkage? Saw a pic of one at Rock Auto, what two points does it attach to?

I don't think it is a steering slop type issue, the truck still runs smooth and straight. I think it is something rotational... I'll have a better look this weekend if it doesn't rain.

At least I have fixed a bunch of stuff I knew was bad already!

 

Sounds like the death wobble. Check that trac bar. Also my friend has a similar problem on his truck. His wheel bearing only seems to wobble after being driven a few miles and warmed up. After its been sitting all day we cannot get any wobble out of it. Weird I know but a possibility.

 

The track bar is attached to the axle and frame. Runs laterally from the center of the truck to the right side of the axle housing.

 

Go to the FAQ/DIY section and download the service manual and the parts manual. It will all become clear....