OK, so I need some advice regarding some wheel noise. When I drive at, or decelerate through 15 mph I hear this somewhat loud rattling (sounds like a shaking can of rocks) coming from the front drivers side wheel. I also get some noise when I drive through 45 mph, although not as loud. At first I thought wheel bearing but it has new bearings so thats not it. I took a look at the outside wheel bearing and it looks fine, but I didn't look at the inside one. But it is only about 6 months old.

So, Im thinking maybe it is something in the automatic locking hubs, but I honestly know basically nothing about the automatic locking hubs.

Any thoughts???

 

I don't think it is the autolocking hub, as that is just a fixed piece that locks the wheel to the axle. The actual lock/unlock happens near the differential. At least that is how the ADD system is set up. Could it be your wheel is out of balance causing it to vibrate and rub? Out of balance wheels often kick in at various speed ranges, then seem to go away which might explain why it shows up in different ranges.

Thats my $0.02, for what it is worth.

 

Could the fact that when I put the new wheel bearings in I left the original outer races in the hub have anything to do with this? Oh, and I'm pretty sure the tires are in balance because I don't feel any vibrations, but the noise.

 

Well, you are technically supposed to replace the outer races when you replace the bearings, but I've done it without doing that multiple times and never had a problem (shh... I'm lazy). A worn outer bearing race or one that is too large for the new bearing (slight differences in tooling between manufacturers happens), it COULD cause too much play in the bearing and make some funky noises. I would jack up that side and check for play in the wheel - you shouldn't be able to "wobble" it back and forth at all. Spin the wheel by hand and see if you can reproduce the noise like that.

It's not in the hubs - they are actually drive flanges that permanently lock the axle shaft to the hub/wheel. No moving parts, just a solid piece of metal. The disconnect is done in the axle itself.

 

Hmm, thanks. Good to know.