So we got some snow today, went to put my truck in 4wd and start driving down the road, and after about 30km/h the truck begins to shake and wonder. Like a ford wobble. I've gone wheelin' numerous times, but I've never had this issue. I know I have a loose front wheel bearing, but would this cause the issue. If I don't lock my hubs the truck drives fine. Basically the truck pull to one side, then veer back.

 

65 views and no ideas?

 

Yea, one hub locked, the other not syndrome. Just because you turn the dial doesn't guarantee that both axles are engaged. Being cold, that heavy grease is now candle wax. Go home and pull your hubs and clean both sides.

 

ok cool, I will try that. Thanks

 

I checked my hubs and both are locked, still have the issue. Any other ideas?

 

your tires have moisture (or more importantly a pool of water).
and its frozen in the bottom.

this is just my logic though.
if you park any car for a long period, the tires will develop flat spots, and nothing can bring them back.

but, if its just water, or ice, have it broken up by 4xing over a bunch of rocks or a very long drive (if you can handle that).
not sure how rough it is.


anyways,
hope that helps.

 

o-
i re-read your 1st post.

"LOOSE FRONT WHEEL BEARING" will cause this.
and
if you parked in a pool of water,
then it froze
the pressure may have broken your hub further (happened to a car of mine, 81 Datsun 210 in Montana- i had to replace it in the frozen parking lot, in the middle of winter, and got fired for not showing up to work ,....bad times).




so.
raise your wheels off the ground, and set it up on stands.
do not get under your truck for anything.
grab the tire and try to wiggle it. (it should be solid as a rock)

also,
while touching any part of the spring.
hit the tire w/your other hand and if you feel a vibration, the hub is bad.

 

I know it isn't a flat spot or ice build up. The loose hub is VERY minor, maybe a 1/8" of play at the top of the wheel. Also I have had this wheel bearing issue for a year or so and have been monitoring it. It hasn't gotten any worse and I've never had this issue in the past.

 

unlock the hubs, put it in 4 wheel drive, and go drive around. this should tell you if it is your driveshaft that has issues. my bronco had similar problems. turns out the driveshaft was out of balance.

does it shake the same if you are giving it gas or coasting?

 

With the hubs unlocked there is no issue. I found out that my pitman arm bushing is very worn out. So I'm thinking that may be the cause as there is a good inch or so of play in the passenger wheel. I would think that I would feel it though while in 2wd, but it may just be the torque from 4wd is causing the front end to pull

 

different sized tires left to right.

 

Any of the front end steering components being shot could definitely cause this problem. Yeah, I would think you could still feel it in 2wd, but maybe....like you said...the added torque is exaggerating it. And just maybe it's been slacking for a while now and you didn't notice the difference. That does happen. I'd check'em tie rods ends, too. And the idler arm. It's a good idea to inspect everything if one or more of any related components go out and none have been serviced for a long time.

 

The strange issue is, I have never had this issue before. I went wheelin a month ago and had no issues what soever. With the bushings replaced I have little slop left in the wheels,

 

Wait....are the bushings bad or not? In the previous post you make it sound as if you just now found them to be bad. So, IF they have been replaced it is something else. AND, if it were the pitman arm, the play would be on the driver's side. The passenger side is the idler arm.

Now, which side does the vehicle pull towards? Which side is the bad bearing? Is there an inch of play on the side the pulls or not?

Sorry, I'm just trying to make sense of your info.

 

Sorry, it's been a hectic day. I replaced the idler arm bushing today, eliminated that play, the pitman arm has no play.

The driver side wheel bearing is worn, but no worse than it has been since I owned it.

The truck wonders from side to side. I can feel the pull one way, and then back the other.

There is little to no play left in the steering now.

When 1 hub is locked and the other unlocked, I do NOT get the issue.

The pulling starts as soon as I start to drive, but becomes unmanageable around 20km/h.

It really seems like it would be something to do with the steering being loose, but I get no vibrations or shimmys at any speeds.

My only other thought would be that maybe the CV's are getting worn from being at a steep angle? but this shouldn't lead to steering pulling, just no fwd.

 

Right...lol..I understand...hectic.

What do you mean by steep angle on the cv's?

Logically, if I am to make anything out of this, it's related to being in 4wd. Are you checking bearing and steering play with the vehicle jacked up or no? And what about the tire sizes? Are they all uniform?

 

I have cranked my t-bars a bit, but with the truck jacked up, I have no binding.

I am checking the play with the truck in the air. Tire sizes are all uniform, uniform wear, and yes it is only when the truck is in 4wd.

The strange part is that nothing has changed on the truck since the last time I took it out into the bush, and everything worked fine, none of these symptoms. Since then I have not hit anything, done any work to the truck.

 

What sort of surface are you ding this 4WD test on? If hard pavement that you might just be seeing normal part-time 4WD driveline binding.

 

on my gravel driveway. It seems more than 4wd binding on pavement, as the jerking is pretty bad, I can hear tires dragging as it veers each way.

 

wheels arent true? uneven t-bar crank?