Some of the worst news ever. I hope it all turns out well for you keaton.

 

thanks to everyone for your words of encouraging, advise, offers of help, etc. Just reinforces my feelings that this is the best damn automotive forum out there. If I could I'd buy a round for everyone I would, instead I'll drink a dozen or so myself.... Thanks again. I'm just going to play it by ear now, I have a slight vibration under acceleration that I dont think I had before. But it goes away after it warms up. Like I said on fb, I dont know if it always did that but just now I'm super paranoid about every sound and vibration....I'm still driving it like I stole it.

 

Kent, Ill have a drink for you man! We all know how much I enjoy a cold PBR

 

Good luck man. You will be paranoid for a while. When I drive I listen to every shift of my transmission and feel it due to solid mounts, lol.

 

yea when i get mu truck running im gana be extremly paranoid

 

It's the Dakota forum frequenters that help the most.

I was in the Cummins forum and a guy had the same whistle I have on my work truck. The only two people who responded were some forum veteran guys that just told us it was normal. I told them it wasn't and the douche yelled at me cause I called him my "homie" as a friendly gesture haha.

Turned out we both had broken manifold bolts and blown gaskets. I also had a blown EGR valve gasket too.

I've come to find that the guys who hover around this area of the forum would never just dismiss a issue as "normal." I have seen so many helpful ideas and loads of very useful info that gets thrown up here. Things get taken seriously but at the same time we're all having fun.

Checking the new posts gives me a giddy child-like Christmas feeling after work.

 

I'm glad everything is working out.

 

lol...I have df up on my computer all day...and i keep checking so often and saying damn come on someone ask a question....

 

since i lost my job same thing!!

 

ok, i have another update. I talked about an unexplained vibration now, well I remembered now (because I have been i panic mode the last couple of days) that I was hearing a strange sound when moving from a stopped position. A few clicks and clacks (not knocks or clunks, if you know what I mean) like a brake mechanism sticking and breaking loose, well the sound went away, or I was just concentrating on engine sounds too much to pay attention, anyway, I am confident the motor is fine, however, today, the noise came back and is worse now and I think this is the cause of the vibration, it IS driveline related. When I come to a stop and take off around a corner, it sounds like (bear with me here) when I was a kid and used to attach playing cards on my bikes front forks with a cloths pin (some may not know what the hell I'm talking about here), well, this sounds like one playing card, starts out slow and speeds up with my speed, then just goes away, but at speed and under acceleration, there is a real, tangible vibration. This is what I have checked out and ruled out so far with my limited knowledge:

Went off road and put it into 4-hi and 4 low and drove it around for awhile, forwards and backwards (thinking I may be in 4x4 and not know it, or 1/2 4x4, if you get my drift, I would really know if both front wheels were locked.

Have pulled all wheels and checked for brake binding, none that I can see other than the driver side drum was a lot harder to remove than the passenger side.

Checked the drive shaft u joints, no play that I can describe as abnormal.

Spun the front wheels with the wheel off, wheel on, at normal height and at full droop.

Inspected all CV joint boots, no leaks observed, boots intact (no tears or holes).

So....what do you guys think? I dont have factory limited slip so I dont think there is anything there.

When I am just cruising, there is no noticeable vibration, it is only under heavy acceleration there is a vibration that feels like a wheel is out of balance. if I let off, it goes away, so it is definitely driveline related. Put on your thinking caps boys (and girls)...