Front end noises
 

1993 XJ
4.0
Auto
NP231
HPD30 up front
turdy-5 out back
33X12.5XR15 Mastercraft AT2s

I've been slowly trying to iron out all the wrinkles since i've had this jeep on the road and i'm having issues with the front end. The steering was horrible when i first did the lift. It swayed back and forth, the steering was so loose you could turn the wheel almost a half turn before the wheels would move, it rattled, shook, ect... So i replaced 3 tie rod ends, sway bar link bushings, sway bar frame bushings, and a pro-comp steering stabilizer. It is rolling pretty well now but i'm hitting a little wall. On the highway, the whole vehicle vibrates. i'm pretty sure it's because the tires need balancing. Sometimes when it does this, a loud rattle will show up. I thought it was the driver side brake caliper, so i replaced it yesturday morning. Havent heard the noise again yet but i'm not calling it fixed yet. i also have a weird clunk when i'm backing up and i hit the brakes. it sounds and feels like the axle is shifting forward when i hit the brakes. it does not do this in drive and only when hitting the brakes. There is also an odd noise whenever i'm on an uneven surface. The whole front end just kind of rattles like something is loose. I've checked every bolt a ten times over and they are all good. I'm swapping out all 4 ball joints this week so we'll see how that goes. I'm hoping its not the steering box but i want to do the durango box upgrade anyway. Thanks for any input.

Your issue may lie in the u-joints. While you're in there doing the ball joints, swap out the axle ujoints as well. That probably has something to do with the vibrating on the highway and the clunking noises.

See now i forgot to mention that there are acctually two diff axle shafts. The pass side has a cv joint and the driver is a ujoint. There is no play in any joints on the jeep though.