Front end trouble

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Author Message   dave t Posted on Sunday, February 02, 2003 - 11:48 pm:    I have an 89 RRC and for the past several months whenever I turn a sharp corner at low speeds or back out of a parking space and turn the wheel sharply, there is a loud pop from the front end and the car shakes. At first I thought I didn't have the new bushings tight enough, but after tightening them thoroughly and having a friend watch the front end while I turned I found that wasn't it. Someone suggested it might be the CV joint. Since the pop is louder on the passenger side, I spent 6 hours today replacing the CV joint and swivel ball seal on that side. Got it all back together and hopped in for a test drive and the first turn I took "pop". Nothing had changed. Now I'm thinking there could be something wrong with the diff. I drain the oil looking for metal and find nothing but clean gear oil. I stuck my finger in the drain hole and felt for any chunks of metal and found nothing. Any suggestions on what I should check next.   John Cinquegrana (Johnc) Posted on Monday, February 03, 2003 - 08:25 am:    Have you checked the bushing on the radius arm?   dave t Posted on Monday, February 03, 2003 - 11:44 am:    I have all new bushings and all nuts are very tight.   Paul Grant (Paulgrant) Posted on Monday, February 03, 2003 - 01:28 pm:    How about the drop arm off the bottom of the steering box. The ball joint there might need to be rebuilt.   John Cinquegrana (Johnc) Posted on Monday, February 03, 2003 - 01:56 pm:    Uhhh good one Paul (Family Feud theme in background).... that's an easy fix... I think the kit is around $80.   dave t Posted on Monday, February 03, 2003 - 02:13 pm:    While sitting still, I can cut the wheel all the way to the left and right and everything is smooth. It's when I start moving forward or backward that I get a loud pop or a couple of smaller pops. It seems like it is something in the drivetrain but I have no clue what it is.   Mark D. Mathews (Mdm) Posted on Monday, February 03, 2003 - 05:04 pm:    My 89 did that when the VC locked up.   David Hobbs (Ca_Surveyor) Posted on Monday, February 03, 2003 - 05:37 pm:    The drop arm kit is $25.00 at British Pacific. I have a pop or clunk when I come to a stop and when I come off the line. I have been chasing down steering problems for awhile. I keep finding loose nuts and yesterday found 1 tie rod end and the drop arm end not in the best of shape. I also have some play in up/down (not left/right)movement in the road wheels. Good luck   dave t Posted on Monday, February 03, 2003 - 11:01 pm:    How can I tell if my VC is locked up. Is there any way I can test it?   -bob- (Xavetarx) Posted on Monday, February 03, 2003 - 11:36 pm:    I have the same problem as you David (Hobbs). It just started today... the day after my 3" lift. I thought it might be a shock mount..? -bob-   Mark D. Mathews (Mdm) Posted on Tuesday, February 04, 2003 - 07:59 am:    I am not exactly sure how to check the VC. My truck would chirp or scrub the front tires while making a very tight turn. A tight turn meaning full lock or almost full lock. Mark   John Cinquegrana (Johnc) Posted on Tuesday, February 04, 2003 - 08:24 am:    Mark, have you adjusted the steering stops? Dave T, there was a thread a few weeks ago on this board...do a search on VC.   Mark D. Mathews (Mdm) Posted on Tuesday, February 04, 2003 - 09:17 pm:    The tires were skidding on the pavement. I do not have any contact of tires to the truck. Unfortunately, I am still running 235/70 tires. Mark   David Posted on Tuesday, February 04, 2003 - 10:08 pm:    I started the two quite lengthy posts approx. 3 weeks ago regarding a similar problem as described in this post. When I made slow truns (as in going in a circle in either direction), I would feel what was like a "pop" and a funny feeling coming from the wheels as though they were grabbing onto the pavement and then letting go (scrubbing). When going straight, everything seemed normal. Everyone here on DiscoWeb was extremely helpful and diagnosed the problem for me. It was the VC and once replaced, the problem was completely gone. Keep in mind this is on my 95 RR Classic LWB and I am not familiar enough with a 89 RRC to know if the problem you described may be something else. Hope this helps a bit.   dave t Posted on Tuesday, February 04, 2003 - 11:05 pm:    That's the same thing mine is doing. When I turn a corner, I can here the tire grinding away on the pavement, almost like if I had a locker in the front end. Sounds like the VC is locked up. I found that thread on VC problems. It seems like I could drop the front driveshaft and then put a wrench on the front output of the t-fer case. If it moves freely it's bad, if it won't move at all it's locked up, and if it moves with some resistance it's still good. It's a good thing I've been getting overtime these past couple weeks, I'm gonna need it.$$$$ I still wonder what is popping.