2003 Ram 2500 Quad Cab 4x4 8 ft bed with an intermittent grinding noise
Thread Starter
|
Registered User
Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
2003 Ram 2500 Quad Cab 4x4 8 ft bed with an intermittent grinding noise
I towed a 30-foot travel trailer from San Diego to Sacramento without a problem.
While leaving town after 30 days we headed for Lake Tahoe. We were about 8 miles from home when a loud grinding-scraping noise started. It sounds like a brake problem in the front end, possibly the right front wheel.
I parked the trailer on the side of the road and drove to my local mechanic's shop with the truck making the noise all the way. We (Ron, Master Mechanic) and I did a test drive then he exited and I drove by him first on the left and then on the right. He and I both agreed that it sounded like the front right wheel bearing.
The 2003 Ram has single-piece wheel bearings so we could not determine if that was the source of the noise. I had Ron replace both Left and Right front wheel bearings just to be problem free on our trip. Ron checked the brakes, which were fine; I had them replaced about 2000 miles prior. Ron checked both differentials and the hanger bearing (two-piece drive shaft) still no indications of the source of the noise.
We took the truck for a long test drive, pulling the trailer about 60 miles on the freeway and surface roads with no problems.
Well we hit the road for Kansas City and arrived without any problems. After parking the trailer, we drove the truck for several days in KC then headed to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Just outside Ft Leavenworth, the noise started again and lasted until we pulled into the local Dodge dealer when it magically stopped.
A Master Mechanic and I took it for a test drive. We drove on smooth and washboard roads, stopping and starting, fast and slow, freeway speeds and bumpy twisting roads. We were unable to duplicate the noise.
About 60 days later, after I had delivered the trailer in Connecticut and was driving around town the noise reappeared and then stopped within a block. This noise has started and stopped several more time over the past two years always for just a short time, lasting about a block or so.
Now we are preparing to hit the road for several months pulling a 5th wheel and my wife and I are a little concerned that it may leave us stranded driving back to San Diego.
I am well aware of the problems of diagnosing an intermittent noise such as this, but can anyone suggest anything else we should check; something we might have missed?
While leaving town after 30 days we headed for Lake Tahoe. We were about 8 miles from home when a loud grinding-scraping noise started. It sounds like a brake problem in the front end, possibly the right front wheel.
I parked the trailer on the side of the road and drove to my local mechanic's shop with the truck making the noise all the way. We (Ron, Master Mechanic) and I did a test drive then he exited and I drove by him first on the left and then on the right. He and I both agreed that it sounded like the front right wheel bearing.
The 2003 Ram has single-piece wheel bearings so we could not determine if that was the source of the noise. I had Ron replace both Left and Right front wheel bearings just to be problem free on our trip. Ron checked the brakes, which were fine; I had them replaced about 2000 miles prior. Ron checked both differentials and the hanger bearing (two-piece drive shaft) still no indications of the source of the noise.
We took the truck for a long test drive, pulling the trailer about 60 miles on the freeway and surface roads with no problems.
Well we hit the road for Kansas City and arrived without any problems. After parking the trailer, we drove the truck for several days in KC then headed to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Just outside Ft Leavenworth, the noise started again and lasted until we pulled into the local Dodge dealer when it magically stopped.
A Master Mechanic and I took it for a test drive. We drove on smooth and washboard roads, stopping and starting, fast and slow, freeway speeds and bumpy twisting roads. We were unable to duplicate the noise.
About 60 days later, after I had delivered the trailer in Connecticut and was driving around town the noise reappeared and then stopped within a block. This noise has started and stopped several more time over the past two years always for just a short time, lasting about a block or so.
Now we are preparing to hit the road for several months pulling a 5th wheel and my wife and I are a little concerned that it may leave us stranded driving back to San Diego.
I am well aware of the problems of diagnosing an intermittent noise such as this, but can anyone suggest anything else we should check; something we might have missed?
Captain
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 725
Likes: 14
Possibly bent splash guard on front rotors, Or possibly you got a bad bearing. When my bearing started to go, it would grind and catch, then with a bang like a backfire it would release and be fine for a while. New parts can be bad from the get go.
