Calmini lift w/ grinding noise problem

[drover65]

I just had the Calmini lift installed and have been getting a grinding noise. CV boots wereok but now the right one is has a torn boot. However, the shop that did the instal does not think it was the CV or U joint and wants to replace part of the drive shaft w/ a shaft from a Wrangler that happens to be the right size and will make the necessary height adjustment...they think. This is the first VX they have worked on and Calmini says they are unfamiliar w/ this occurence so they are kind of guessing as to this fix. I was hoping someone here would have info on this noise and may have a solution. Any help would be appreciated!

[Triathlete]

Might help narrow it down if you can give more info. Does the grinding happen all the time, only when in motion, only during acceleration, only when turning...? Does the noise sound like it is coming fron the front, rear...? What does the grinding sound like? Have you checked to make sure the drive shafts are not rubbing the cross members or skid plates (if you have them)? Have you checked the brakes...the back plate may have gotten bent during the install? Did you change tire/wheel size at the same time? They could be rubbing the wheel wells.

[JoFotoz]

They could be rubbing the wheel wells.

....thats where I'd look first.


BTW..the torn CV boot is normal...its been sitting at one angle for years...

...now its tweaked!

Same happened to me:)



jo

[drover65]

most of the noise i have been getting hasn't started until i get up around 50 mph. it starts as a low pitched rubbing/grinding noise then builds in intensity. when i let off the pedal, it will stop but as i accelerate again and maybe gain another 5 - 10 mph, it will start again. it has gotten to where the floorboard will vibrate, which is how i first noticed it, with the sterreo up i did not hear it but turned it down after i felt the vibe. to me it sounded like it was coming from the front, but the tech at my shop said it is coming from the drive shaft because of the new angles.

[JoFotoz]

Hi Drover....

Did you change rims and tires when you lifted ...if so...what sizes?
If you did change ...did you do any cladding trimming?

Just wondering if "at speed"....downforce is causing tires to rub...:confused:



jo

[MSHardeman]

On my way home from Moab I started getting some funny noises/ vibrations that I didn't get before Ldub lifted my VX in the parking lot of the Red Rock Inn. It was a super windy day during the drive and I got out and poked around to try and find the source of the noise. Mine ended up being the rear plastic inner fenders vibrating in the wind. The thing I'm talking about is actually the plastic, or fiberboard, "skirt" that is attached to the inner fender itself and hangs straight down. It was vibrating like crazy in the wind. Yours sounds a little more serious, but it might not hurt to take a look.

[tom4bren]

I probably sound like a broken record about now but ...

Vibration during acceleration usually means U-joint problem. Vibration or clicking during deceleration usually means inner CV problem. Vibration during turn usually means outer CV problem.

Unless your tires are rubbing the cladding - then of course I defer to the expertise above.

[pbkid]

just my 2 cents for anyone having grinding sounds while accelerating...

if the VX has less than a 1% rake from the rear to the front it will cause drive axle problems....so try lowering your front end a few twists....you wont have as much lift but it also wont break your ride....

i know a few others have had grinding problems before and it has turned out being that the front of the VX is taller than the rear...causing a bad angle for the drive axle....

just a thought...

[drover65]

The problem appears to be solved now...thanks for all the input. the problem did seem to be related to the angle to the rear drive axle. the shop installed a terraflex shaft in one of the sections that helped it adjust more properly and the noise is eliminated. i have noticed a tiny bit of vibration but if i had not been looking for it, i would not have noticed it all. the funny thing is when they called calmini about it at first, they denied knowing anything about the problem, the next time i brought it in the person they talked to said this happens with every lift. so if anyone is thinking about doing a calmini lift, they might want to look into getting a terraflex shaft to go along with it.
again, thanks for all the input.

[VX crazy]

Drover, not sure your still on here, but wondering if this teraflex shaft is for a wrangler and just happens to fit ours?? I want to have a tad more info before I go into a shop, I am going bat&^% crazy listening to the noise which sounds just like yours.

[WormGod]

Stir stir stir....

So, aside from getting a Calmini lift kit, you have to drop, say, another $350 - $400 on top for the Teraflex? Eek! Thinking the DIY spring swap/torsion crank would be the determining factor there.

Just on the outside looking in. Stock lift urban mall crawler here.

[Viatcheslav]

I have had the same problem, it happening because you drive shaft have different angle than stock now, and U joint working in different angle too!

[VX crazy]

Stir stir stir....

So, aside from getting a Calmini lift kit, you have to drop, say, another $350 - $400 on top for the Teraflex? Eek! Thinking the DIY spring swap/torsion crank would be the determining factor there.

Just on the outside looking in. Stock lift urban mall crawler here.

yeah, i do have just the rear 912's and t bars cranked, but thought if the teraflex helped, I will do anything to get rid of that noise!

[MSHardeman]

Does anyone know if changing the pinion angle would help ease the stress on U-joints? That would be an easier/cheaper fix than trying to buy a whole new drive shaft.

This question comes with a bit of a warning, though. I thought that I had heard of a member, or two, changing their pinion angles and having problems. I'm specifically thinking of Bimati, but that may have been issues with his front half shafts after his lift. Anyone.....anyone.....? My rusty steel trap of a mind is failing me.

[BigMeatVX]

Changing the pinion angle WILL help some...there are a few ways to do this...

I had issues with my rear slip yoke in the driveline...the splines do wear out and then you have some play in the rear driveline....I am now on my 3RD rear driveline....and have only had one U-Joint wear out....

Keep in mind that I have been running a BIG lift for 9+ years and have 250,000+ miles...

Check your slip yoke and lube your shaft often....:happyface

[VX crazy]

Alan how do I check my slipyoke? I lubed it just before Moab, gonna lube it again this weekend if I can get outside before its too hot lol!

[BigMeatVX]

The best way is to remove the rear driveline, then lay it flat on a bench...notice the "pollished" area near the seal at the slip yoke....this pollished area is the "sweet spot" where your driveline rides most of the time at normal or lifted ride highth...

To check it, move the male and female pieces back and forth it the "sweet spot" and see if its a tight fit, or if she feels a bit loose....also give her a bit of a twist back and forth to check the tightness as your slideing it through the stroke....

Some places in the stroke are or may be tighter than others...

New slip yokes have like ZERO side-to-side movement...FYI

While your at it slip back the seal, and pull the male part of the shaft out for a good look...wipe any old lube off for a good inspection of the splines...wear will be obvious here with a close clean look.

Lastly, give the Ujoints a tug or twist or 2....feel for stiffness, smothness. And side to side (rotational) movement...

Let us know how it goes and feels...;)

[MSHardeman]

GAAAAA....SO many jokes.....SO many insinuations.....must......resist......:_brickwal

[VX crazy]

The best way is to remove the rear driveline, then lay it flat on a bench...notice the "pollished" area near the seal at the slip yoke....this pollished area is the "sweet spot" where your driveline rides most of the time at normal or lifted ride highth...

To check it, move the male and female pieces back and forth it the "sweet spot" and see if its a tight fit, or if she feels a bit loose....also give her a bit of a twist back and forth to check the tightness as your slideing it through the stroke....

Some places in the stroke are or may be tighter than others...

New slip yokes have like ZERO side-to-side movement...FYI

While your at it slip back the seal, and pull the male part of the shaft out for a good look...wipe any old lube off for a good inspection of the splines...wear will be obvious here with a close clean look.

Lastly, give the Ujoints a tug or twist or 2....feel for stiffness, smothness. And side to side (rotational) movement...

Let us know how it goes and feels...;)

You can NOT be freakin serious.....I just pee'd myself

[BigMeatVX]

Seriously...:drool2::drool2: No Fun W/O the Pun....

That's how ya do it!!!

Of course when your all done, be sure to check the nuts for tightness...

[LittleBeast]

Yeah I have been researching fixing this same problem. I took my drive shaft loose on the rear end yesterday actually and turned it a half turn on the rear end side to see if that would help anything, and nothing at all changed. I cannot get the u-joints to budge at all, they seem firm and strong as ever, I guess I will take off the drive shaft and do the check you mentioned this weekend. How much is a replacement, or should we upgrade? Should I remove my 3rd member and have the gear mesh or adjustments or shims or whatever that is they can adjust before investing in a new driveshaft? I had my diffs rebuilt when I put the new 4.77s in, and the grinding was not that noticeable, but the problem was WAY worse when I put the 2" spacers in on top of the 912s. The 912s by themselves were not that bad, the sound was bareable, now it sounds like a tank everytime I let off the accelerator.

Hmmm.....: http://cardone.com/english/club/Products/DRIVETRAIN/Protech/Tech_Bulletins/PT%2065-0001.pdf

http://www.amazon.com/A1-Cardone-659473-Driveshaft/dp/B000C45E5U (rebuilt driveshaft for $365)

http://www.isuzuparts.com/partscat.html (new driveshaft for $616)

I found 2 driveline places here in Houston ( http://www.houstondrivetrain.com/ , http://www.ctdriveshafts.com/ ), I am going to ask them how much they would charge to check mine out if I took it off and brought it to them. NOTE: if you take it off make sure you use the emergency brake! Especially if you are running 2wd like me at the moment ;) Don't want any roll away VX's, and it is super easy to take off and put back on.

Adjusting the pinion angle actually might be the easiest fix all you would need to purchase are these 2 items:

https://www.independent4x.com/merchantmanager/product_info.php?products_id=481 (adjustable lower links $450)

https://www.independent4x.com/merchantmanager/product_info.php?products_id=50 (adjustable upper link for $220)

Installation would be no problem, but guessing what the correct angle should be (aka how much difference in length from the stock links and the new adjustable one's and which should be shorter and which should be longer)? Uh I haven't a clue, should we try to get back to the stock angle? What is that? What is our current angle with lift?

[VX crazy]

Mine is obviously not lifted barely any....its just my OCD that has me actually turning OFF the stereo searching for noises.....so I guess I should be thankful its not as loud as you guys with the big big lifts!

[BigMeatVX]

the noise you folks are hearing is the loose slip yoke...

As driveline rotational speed increases, the loose fit parts start to swing in an egg-shapped motion...

Changing the Pinion angle will help, but you only need the adjustable upper link or lower links, (u don't need both, unless you just want them)...This really JUST helps the angle on the REAR u-joint, and does not help the actual driveline angle much at all, mabey less than 1 degree!!! (Although the splines would have a SLIGHT slip-depth davantage)
And you will STILL have the problem untill you replace the rear driveline....

I run 919 springs, which give almost 5" of lift... So my rear driveline angle is a noticeably steeper than stock.

Like I said, remove it for inspection and you'll see what I mean...


Your local driveline shop should be able to install a new slip yoke, on your driveline for a couple hundred....Make sure the new splines they use are At LEAST as long as the stock VX one...longer is better:winky: as it allows more spline contact area....

[VX crazy]

Well I greased the driveshaft again this morning, ran my errands and the noise is almost totally gone, had to listen very hard to barely hear it......I am wondering if a seal has gone bad....I will see how long it is before it starts with the noise again.

[VX crazy]

Well I greased the driveshaft again this morning, had not greased since a couple months before Moab......ran my errands and the noise is almost totally gone, had to listen very hard to barely hear it (you guys probably wouldnt even hear it)......I am wondering if a seal has gone bad....I will see how long it is before it starts with the noise again.

[BigMeatVX]

You lubed the slip yoke, right? The grease just takes up the clearances on the worn out areas..:yesy:..makes em temporarly tighter and quieter....mine would run for a week or two and then the grease would just heat up and move outta the way a bit...makeing the worn slpined areas loose again...and then noise and vibratioin came back...:mad: a bad seal could also be an issue here, but its too late for that now if you hear noises and vibrations:yesgray:

[VX crazy]

Alan, yes I greased u joints and slip yoke, but this morning driving it is making the grinding a tad....so its coming back......

[LittleBeast]

Mine is getting so bad I am afraid it is going to break in half, I am not driving it again until I figure this out. So I don't need to buy another slip yoke they will be able to replace it with a non-Isuzu one?

[LittleBeast]

Driveshaft place said yoke is perfect, U-joints are shot. Called Merlin, got one ordered from him, but it seems there are 2 different sizes on the rear driveshaft. So I need to figure out which other size I need and order that one from Indy4x.

ALSO:

Looking through the Vehicross Manual and found out that our FRONT PROPELLER (DRIVESHAFT) has CV's much like our front axles and if these go out it can cause driveline shaking. SO I crawled under there and BOTH of my CV's on the FRONT driveshaft are shot and look like they have been that way for a while, the joint is dry and does not look good at all. Looks like after I get new U-joints for the rear I will be having the front driveshaft (or front propeller as the manual calls it) rebuilt. Any suggestions on how to do this or who to go to? Think the same place could rebuild it?