Front end popping noise

[puglyfe]

This just started this morning, a popping sound when making a tight right turn at low speed. In a parking lot for example. Had not done it turning left at all. Wife said she felt it in the floorboard when it popped. This is while in 2WD. Have not tried in 4WD yet.

 

No obvious cause when I looked under the truck. Truck has 187,000 mile on all the stock hardware except shocks which I replaced last weekend.

 

Suggestions on what to check for?

[dripley]

Get under the front truck and have some one turn the wheels back and forth. Then start looking at all the moving parts for any movement. All should be tight. Give the track a good look over.  I just replaced mine because it was getting a touch loose on the frame end stud only the find bushing on the axle end was shot. 

[Mopar1973Man]

Check control arm bushings and track bar. Track bar should move at all when steering back and forth. Control arms should wiggle or move. Like my 06 has the driver side control arm with a bad bushing. It pops or clunk when turning feel otherwise the floor. 

[LorenS]

One of the worst jobs on my truck so far has been changing out the control arms, due to rust. All my dad's cool tools from working on yellow iron couldn't blast out a couple of those bolts, so bought new ones and out came the smoke wrench. Should've just started with that.

[Mopar1973Man]

I know the cost is much higher but sometimes it best to just replace the entire control arms as a set with new bushing already installed in the arms. Yeah I know you still gotta get the old bolts out but but trying to press new joints in and old ones out. Sometimes the peace of mind is being able ot pay for arm with bushings already. I'm in your shoes this time going to do Thor's driver side top control arm and the bushing at the cab. Time to break out my new battery powered impact guns. 

[LorenS]

Yeah, when I looked at my arms I skipped right over bushings and knew I'd buy arms. The bolt was so rusted in the metal bushing sleeve that it wouldn't come out, even with nut off. Like a stuck loader arm pin. Couldn't press it out, the mega sized air hammer wouldn't touch it, either. Previous owner used it as a plow truck for a winter or two. My mistake buying such a truck! Thought I'd only drive it 1,000 miles per year, now sometimes I do that in a week!

[Mopar1973Man]

4 minutes ago, LorenS said:

Thought I'd only drive it 1,000 miles per year, now sometimes I do that in a week!

Been here... Sucks driving like that at times...

[Dieselfuture]

On 5/16/2021 at 1:09 PM, Mopar1973Man said:

Been here... Sucks driving like that at times...

Sure does, I'm at 800 a week just to go to work. 

[dripley]

I am down to 650 to 800 now. But the truck keeps trucking along like its daring me to outlive it. Next job will be in New Orleans. It will get a break I have to fly back home to get there.

Just curious if anyone has ever tried to press out the bushings with a ball joint press??

[Royal Squire]

In my experience they are not that hard to remove. Mine had been crimped slightly on the inside end to keep them from moving in arm as arms are fairly light stamped steel. 

[01_Cummins_4x4]

Check the u-joints in your front axles, in your case the front passenger axle. That shorter axle tends to receive the brunt of the force applied to it in 4wd mode. My buddy's 07 Cummins 4x4 just popped his right side front axle u-joint (brand new two summers ago) just trying to back up his 5th wheel trailer uphill in his yard while he was in 4wd low to minimize clutching his G56 too much at low speeds. Now he just ordered the Yukon free spin kit that I get to install for him when it gets here.

[puglyfe]

I have checked for slop in various things and not found any. No visible/obvious issues found. The pop noise has happened one more time since the OP. I have repeated the maneuver every morning at work parking.

I did notice a groaning sound now from the front as it rolls. What does a unit bearing sound like when its starting to fail? As mentioned, the front end is completely Dodge assembly line hardware with 187k miles except for the shocks I recently replaced. 

[Silverwolf2691]

2 hours ago, puglyfe said:

What does a unit bearing sound like when its starting to fail?

 

Usually a grinding feeling/sound with a slight vibration. Its harder to feel in my opinion in these trucks i think because of the weight on the front end, at least compared to my cherokee and 1500 i used to have

[dripley]

Jack the front wheels off the ground and grab them at 9 and 3 oclock. Pull the tire back and forth and it should be tight if the bearings are good. If there is slop they are going bad. My oe bearings went at around 200k but that was back in 09. Time will take as big a toll as mileage sometimes. 

 

If the front bearings are going you are in for an adventure. Dodge used no anti seize on anything and those bastards can get stuck really good. Liked to never got mine apart. So anything you do take apart in the front end coat the new with anti seize. Its a good for anything you replace.

[Silverwolf2691]

^^ This. There's a way to use the steering to force the bearing out too. Need something to fit between the stub shaft yoke and the axle housing. Round bar stock or an extension on a socket has worked. A friend helps here.. hold in place on the yoke, start engine, turn the steering wheel into the "spacer" so it pushes the bearing out. Even on semi rusted stuck bearings they popped right out.

[SilverMoose]

11 hours ago, Silverwolf2691 said:

^^ This. There's a way to use the steering to force the bearing out too. Need something to fit between the stub shaft yoke and the axle housing. Round bar stock or an extension on a socket has worked. A friend helps here.. hold in place on the yoke, start engine, turn the steering wheel into the "spacer" so it pushes the bearing out. Even on semi rusted stuck bearings they popped right out.

And that works great. Replaced ball joints 2 summers ago and did that to get the bearings out.  And as @dripley mentioned, I used anti seize when putting things back together.

 

Later

D

[puglyfe]

So the ball joints, tie rod ends and wheel bearings are all cooked.  Getting  all of that replaced now.  i now know what a bad unit bearing sounds like too.

[Dieselfuture]

12 hours ago, puglyfe said:

So the ball joints, tie rod ends and wheel bearings are all cooked.  Getting  all of that replaced now.  i now know what a bad unit bearing sounds like too.

So what made the popping noise

[puglyfe]

2 hours ago, Dieselfuture said:

So what made the popping noise

My guess is one of the unit bearings letting go. I saw them after they were replaced and one was really crunchy when turned by hand. The popping, when it happened, was only at full lock like pulling into a parking spot. The bearings went quick when they decided to go out.

 

2 hours ago, Dieselfuture said:

So what made the popping noise

 

[Silverwolf2691]

On 5/29/2021 at 3:09 PM, puglyfe said:

My guess is one of the unit bearings letting go. I saw them after they were replaced and one was really crunchy when turned by hand. The popping, when it happened, was only at full lock like pulling into a parking spot. The bearings went quick when they decided to go out.

 

To be honest, I've only had a few instances of wheel bearings going bad, but I've never had them make a popping noise. Near constant grinding, howling, thumping, growling, yes but not popping.. Unless because sounds are subjective when it comes to cars, that we are talking about the same thing. If it was a "true" popping noise, I hope you replaced the u joints on the axle shafts. but usually those are a slight crunching when turning in 2wd, and loud crunching popping noises when turning in 4wd.