Hey everyone,
I am trying to troubleshoot an issue I have been having. In 2wd I can hear a light whirring noise at highway speeds and in 4wd I hear/feel more of a hard clicking (its not axle u joints!) I'm leaning towards a front axle, differential or driveshaft. I have a picture of my front drivers side axle as I think it looks questionable, please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions!! Also my 4x4 sticks for a short period of time after disengaging, help is greatly appreciated!

 

How are your wheel/hub bearings? These can cause some of the noises that you are hearing. The pictures of the axle splines you have there look fine to me.

When you have a moment, can you please update your profile, so that we know what year, make and model truck you are working with.

 

Sorry, its a 2000 ram sport, auto with the 5.9. I replaced the hubs last summer, they are still good. Since my axles are still good can I rule out the front differential as well? (Still full of fluid)

 

No.... Unfortunately.

You can spin things by hand though, and see how it all feels.

 

Its more prevalent at high speed or under load in 4x4. I took out the front DS, drove it, and I can still hear a whirring noise. Would that maybe point to a bearing? Would the CAD have anything to do with it?

 

I forgot to mention when I disengage 4x4 it feels like the drivers side axle sticks and drags the drive train.. then I hear/feel a "pop" and it feels like normal 2wd again.

 

Mine does that too. Sometimes, if I am moving above about 40 MPH, it can be pretty dramatic. I suspect that the collar binds just a bit on the splines, and when it finally releases..... you notice. Seems that maybe there is just a bit of 'wind up' in the front drivetrain, when it is being driven by the drivers tire, instead of the driveshaft. (which seems odd, considering the open front diff.) Wonder if the bushings are getting worn...

How's the fluid level in the front diff?

 

Yup, that's exactly what I experience.. does not sound healthy. Do you have wind up or an out of the ordinary noise/feeling while in 4x4 as well? Do you have any idea what might fix it, and which bushings are you referring to?

 

And the fluid level is good, I changed it last year and didn't notice any shards of metal or anything.

 

There is a bushing that supports the inner passenger side axle, and then there is another one on the 'tit' where the two axles come together. (inside the cad) If either/both are marginal, they can give a misalignment, that will cause some binding there. Makes it difficult for the collar to disengage.

Mine just kinda thumps when it disengages. Faster you are moving, the worse it is. (going around 50, it almost feels like the front end fell out when it finally lets go....) I found that if I rock the steering side to side some at low speed, it will generally break loose with a minimum of fuss.

I also get the same noise that Thornloe is getting from his 4x4 when engaged. (see his thread, he has a video.) I haven't gone digging into that one too deep yet, but, I don't think they are related either.