Holiday Fun

St Elsewhere

Member
Oct 31, 2017
8
0
Midwest
My D1 has needed a driver side CV joint for a while. It's been clicking and clacking.

This weekend we took the relatives to Black Friday sales and pulling into a space the clacking got epic. Heads turned. Splines crashing.

We shopped and came out. I forgot all about the big burst of clacking and we drove to a restaurant a couple hundy yards away where.......

I pulled into a spot and the clacking turned to one GIANT THUNK.

I said Oh ****

Here's where it gets fun.

Just out of habit, I reversed out of the space. I mean, I knew I had to do something but all I could think to do was back up. Another CLUNK. I swear the truck lifted a few inches.

I kept backing out and said to the folks, we gota go home.

We went home. I don't know why I drove but I did. Now here's the weird thing. No clacking at all on the way home. No vibration. No shimmying. No problems with turns like I been having. Full turn radius, both sides.

I had it at the shop yesterday and they said it looks fine. They got it up and looked at it and said there's nothing wrong with it. I was sure I broke an axle. There is a little slop in the transfer case on acceleration, but I think that was there before the CV started clicking. In fact, I am sure it was.

The shop is short-hand this week because the guys are out allready for the holiday. They said I could bring it back and they'd tear into the ball, but they said it like you'd talk to a gramma. They don't think anything's wrong with my truck.

So I thought Id ask you guys.

I could haul the family up to where we're staying for the weekend in it. I sort of perfer not to, and yet, the guys were saying there's literally nothing wrong.
 

St Elsewhere

Member
Oct 31, 2017
8
0
Midwest
I should mention that my driveshaft and u joints check out fine. Did reversing jam the CV into place? It feels like it did. I feel like the clunks were it giving up and poppin out, and then jamming back in and good to go. But, really?
 

St Elsewhere

Member
Oct 31, 2017
8
0
Midwest
I hadn't touched the diff lock.

Just pulled into one space with a truly failing CV, pulled into another space and it crapped the bed, reversed out of the space and it all clanked together, I think.
 

WaltNYC

Well-known member
Mar 3, 2010
707
135
NYC
I'm not sure how the shop could fully evaluate the CV without "tearing into the ball". How could they see it inside of a steel ball?

I'd probably make sure it was filled with swivel ball grease and give it a good workout before I'd haul the family in it. I don't think the shop told you anything relevant.

P.S. - I basing this on the notion that we are talking about a D1. You should put what type of truck you have in your signature. (go to the "USER CP" section and edit your signature)
 

the deputy

Well-known member
Sep 20, 2017
86
0
michigan
Most likely the CV joint, one of the balls probably came apart and finally dislodged itself when you backed up. So, instead of there being six...there's most likely only five now...or less. I'd not drive it to far, unless you have good road service.

Brian..
 
Jan 3, 2005
11,745
71
On Kennith's private island
These CV's don't "start going bad". Either the stub breaks or the cage cracks and breaks. Rarely do the balls bust in half. But if any of this happens you'll know it and the noise is not going to come and go.

If the CV is clicking, chance are the CV is dry. I missed what year D1 you have - some D1's have a fill hole located on top of the knuckle while others do not. I *think* this changed in 1998. If you do not have a fill hole you must remove the brake rotor to access the spindle bolts. To check the fluid/grease level remove the center bolt and see if anything runs out. If not, remove the top bolt and fill the knuckle until fluid runs out the center hole. 90wt gear oil is fine, or you can opt for the fancy 'swivel ball grease'.
 

pdxrovermech

Well-known member
Jul 3, 2009
1,807
57
Portland, OR
all D1s have a fill hole on the side and a drain plug. pull both and see if anything comes out. the damage is done regardless if you add a grease pack or not, so youd just be on borrowed time. also check your dif. you could have shot spider gears instead. i would start by jacking the whole front end up and turn the wheel to full lock and spin the tires by hand to see if you can replicate the noise.
 

p m

Administrator
Staff member
Apr 19, 2004
15,617
838
58
La Jolla, CA
www.3rj.org
... and it takes about 20 minutes to tear into the axle and see the CV joint (with an air gun and hopes things didn't rust together).
- five lug nuts.
- two bolts holding brake caliper (1/2", 12 points unless replaced with non-stock).
- clip ring holding the end of CV joint in the drive flange.
- five bolts holding the drive flange.
- two 52-mm nuts holding the hub.
- six bolts holding the stub axle to axle housing.
That's all.
 

KngTgr

Well-known member
May 20, 2005
1,321
14
Fairfax, VA
My previous D1 did the same on and off, loud clunk, felt like it jumped too, but it just kept working, since I couldn't replicate the condition at the shop, it went undiagnosed until we parted ways
 

St Elsewhere

Member
Oct 31, 2017
8
0
Midwest
all D1s have a fill hole on the side and a drain plug. pull both and see if anything comes out. the damage is done regardless if you add a grease pack or not, so youd just be on borrowed time. also check your dif. you could have shot spider gears instead. i would start by jacking the whole front end up and turn the wheel to full lock and spin the tires by hand to see if you can replicate the noise.

Right, the indie jacked the fornt end and we looked at it for a long time and tried and could not replicate the noise. everything seemed solid. There was additionally no bad play in the wheel. It seemed like a healthy joint. There is no noise now. There is full turn ratio, no clacking. There WAS clacking before the clunk. Now there isnot. We're getting kind of sidetracked about grease and my question was not at all about grease, it was about the fact that it clacked and then went THUNK and now is not clacking, and if that could mean a CV coming out of joint and rubbing splines forced itself back into place.

When you say' the damage is done,' what do you mean? what am I on borrowed time?
 

St Elsewhere

Member
Oct 31, 2017
8
0
Midwest
My previous D1 did the same on and off, loud clunk, felt like it jumped too, but it just kept working, since I couldn't replicate the condition at the shop, it went undiagnosed until we parted ways

Wll it's more like there was clacking and then a loud clunk in D and the another in R and then no more clacking at all. It's nt like there's repeated thunking.

I took the clacking to mean my cv was goin. And now -- no clacking.
 
Jan 3, 2005
11,745
71
On Kennith's private island
We're getting kind of sidetracked about grease and my question was not at all about grease, it was about the fact that it clacked and then went THUNK

When you say' the damage is done,' what do you mean? what am I on borrowed time?

The CV joints need to be greased or oiled. Either is fine, personal choice. But when the CV runs out of lubrication they make a clicking noise when rotating. So it is possible this is your problem.

As for damage being done, that's probably not the case here. If there were damage you would know it by now because if any part of the CV/cage breaks you would either 1) hear some loud grumpy grinding and binding, or 2) the truck would not move unless the center diff were locked because the axle is broken.

Additionally, "all D1s have a fill hole on the side and a drain plug". That's not true.

The only other thing I can think of that may be going on is the diff carrier. The Discovery's had some shitty diff carriers and they're known to fail without warning. The center pin in the carrier basically just falls out. Although unlikely without breaking, I guess it's possible the center pin has become loose and the spider gears misaligned causing noise/thunking, then reset itself. I doubt this is the case, but who knows.