front end grind

[evillecutter]

greased all 3 nipples about 2 months ago - lifted front end and got pressure off wheels, tried to shake and no play (think bearings are good) - then tried to wiggle everything connected to anything in the front end that looks like it moves, including the cv joints and they are all stiff and feel good - is there anything in the drive shaft that could bind up or cause a grinding/popping noise? if just let the vx creep at idle speed you can hear it almost continous (ping ping pop ping pop) when you go faster it gets more intense and sounds like grinding

so the front cv joints could make a noise in the middle of the car? i hear nothing when i put my ear right up next to the front wheels when they are rolling...
are the joints that connect the shaft inbetween the front differential to the transfer case also called cv joints?
sorry to sound dumb but everyone i talk to calls all this crap something different

[tom4bren]

Well, it could still be CV because you're turning the wheel with the front end up so the CVs are riding in a different spot in the outer race.

It could be the front differential since it's function is to divide power between the two wheels even when they are spinning at different speeds (like in a turn). Does one wheel turn the opposite direction from the other when you spin it? Hold one wheel in place while spining the other & listen for odd noises in the differential.

I'd suggest draining the front pumpkin next and inspect what comes out to see if there are any metal flakes or even chunks of metal (that would not be good). If nothing else, it's a chance to change over to synthetic oil. One of the symptoms listed in the shop manual for low or dirty oil in the differential is a grinding noise ... so that's what we're all praying for.

BTW, there are even places you can send a sample of your oil off to & they can perform an analysis to determine if there is anything untoward happening in your diff.

BBTW, is your breather tube still attached to your axle tube? If that's missing, the oil could be contaminated with water.

[VXorado]

are the joints that connect the shaft inbetween the front differential to the transfer case also called cv joints?
sorry to sound dumb but everyone i talk to calls all this crap something different

Yes the front drive shaft uses rzeppa CV joints (same as halfshafts), the rear dirve shaft is u-joints.

When my CVs got really bad, the sound was more of a constant short, light clunk

clunk, clunk, clunk, clunk

I really don't know about:

ping ping pop ping pop

Definitely not what I heard with my CVs but that doesn't mean they're not the problem... in other words I have no idea.

On a side, this is why I got manual hubs. It really helps in troubleshooting & bypassing front end problems. With manual hubs, you could pull the front drive shaft and be completely rear wheel drive to help locate the sound. Alternatively, Jofotos has a method to disconnecting the front axles with a big sponge. Might be useful if you don't want the manual hubs but want to disconnect the half shafts for troubleshooting