I have an odd shake in my 03 1500 ram, here's the specs and the problem.

1500 reg. cab
4.7L
5 spd.
4x4
Short bed

It started to develop a sort of tire shake around 85k mile's. I got it w/ 48k on it. I put the 20" stock wheel's on it around 85k. it was slight and the tire's were used so I figured I would wait untill I got new tire's to worry about it.

It had around 100k on it and needed some normal work so I wanted to do all that stuff before I started looking for a shake. Here's a list of the new part's.


4 new goodyear eagle GT II tire's 285/50/R20
2 new rear ujoints
2 new front wheel bearing's
4 new shock's
4 new rotor's w/new front and rear pad's.
I just alinged it this year

The shake stayed the same when I replaced every one of those part's. The only thing it did not need were the shocks. I did them due to the mile's on the truck now, 113k.

It will shake with the feeling of a bacance issue or a bad tire from 65mph and up. It don't matter what gear you are in, netural, on or off the throttle. I had the tire's balanced by someone else and have done them 3 time's myself at work. It will go away when you put it in 4H while druising at 75mph. It will feel 90 % better untill you coast in 4H. So the only thing that make's it feel better is when you are on the throttle in 4H at highway speed. I checked the front driveshaft and it flle's tight. It had balljoint's at one point. Every ft. end part is tight,checked them about 10 time's thinking I was loosing my mind. When you are in 4H doing 65-80 it don't shake when your on the throttle, but when you let off it's still there. So it going away tell's me that the tire's and wheel's are ok beacuse it don't shake at that time. What would the difference be when in 4H compared to 2h on or off the throttle to make this change?

I was not sure if it was something in the transfer case of the front diff. I will probb take both the driveshaft's out and have them checked and balanced after reading all the post's here about problem's with them. I'am at the point where I don't wan't to put any part's in this thing that won't fix it and waste any $$$$. I really wan't to light it on fire.

I hope I explained this good enough for you guy's. Fire away with your idea's, i'am open to just about anything at this point. Thank's, Mike.

 

Have you checked the front u-joints? usually you would feel u-joints anytime past 20 or 30 but its worth a shot i guess

 

I finally had a chance to look at good at work in the air this week.I put it on the alingment rack so the suspension was at the same level as when you were driving. It was the driver side front axle in the front end. It was floping around on the intermidate shaft coming out of the diff. The inside of the joint was good. The spline's where it meet's the diff were shot.I got an axle, the intermediate shaft, shaft bearing and a seal. The truck ride's like new. If you grab the inner cv joint you could move close to 1/2 inch back and fouth. I can't beleive there was nothing else wrong from this wobbling for soo long. I like the ram again. If you got an odd shake in your 1/2 ton ram, I would check the inner cv joint's and the shaft's coming out of the front diff. I saw a post on here about the shaft's being rusty on someone's truck when they were changing the axle's. So i don't think i'am the first or last one that this has happened to.

 

I have this much play on both! Driver's side is worse, but still, DAMN! Mystery wobble found I hope... this sheit is gonna be expensive!! How much did you end up spending? I think I'm going for at least $700+
Oh- and there's serious rust too

 

I have the exact same problem and will for sure check this out. My question is, for as little as it is in 4-wheel drive (Maybe 10 hours per year driving time in the snow) why would these be worn out? When you are in 2-wheel drive does all this stuff still turn out to the locking hubs in the wheels? I always assumed that when you were in 2 wheel drive that anything from the transfer case forward did not spin until shifted into 4 wheel drive.

UPDATE: After going out to my truck and looking at these. My passenger side half-shaft coming out of the front diff totally feels like it could fall off at any minute. I am talking major slop compared to the driver side. SO...............again I ask, do these always turn even in 2 wheel drive? How's it so worn out? Let's get to the bottom of this. How hard are they to swap out? I will go ahead and do both of them at the same time I guess. Might finally have this damn vibration above 65 figured out?

Aaron

 

I just called a reputable shop here in town and they said they would change them both for $299.

Update: After getting it in the shop today, they told me the passenger spline coming out of the differential is totally stripped. Another $199 to change it. I went and looked at it and sure enough it was rusted and stripped out. At least it will be right though when it's done. Will update when I get it back if the vibration is gone above 65mph.

Aaron

 

UPDATE: Got my truck back from the shop today. The vibration I have been chasing for 2 months is completely gone. It was the front passenger CV half-shaft. It's totally smooth now all the way up! Thanks to the OP for the info. I think you have helped a lot of fellows.

Aaron

BTW it does turn everything up front anytime you are moving.

 

Halfshafts are the Usual Culprit, Long Story but Took me 2 years to figure it out on my own. They turn all the time and if you don't want the problem to return buy new ones instead of rebuilds and remember if you can turn the boot on the pot then its gonna leak out grease so make sure those clamps are well crimped during pre-install inspection.

 

OK, so I'm about halfway through this job now. My half shafts were beyond toast, so bad that they took my intermediate shafts too... lucky me

I got the right side tidy'ed up. Destroyed a upper arm ball joint in the process so had to replace one of those too. After some fuss I was able to pull out the intermediate.

New inter and half shafts, control arm with bushings and joint:


Now, the left side (the short one)intermediate is REALLY KICKING MY *** !!
I can not get this puppy to let loose! I had all kinds of prybars on this thing, I'm getting ready to weld something on this b!tch so I can get some real pulling power on it.


Figured that before I pull the rest of my hair out I'd ask y'all, so PLEASE, if you know how to do it, or what I'm doing wrong... please advise!! PLEASE?

Thanks guys!

 

Update:

Got mad at it and welded a hook onto the short intermediate shaft which allowed me to get a good pull with a slide hammer. She didn't come out easy, but she did come out!