aquickmopar

Don't know if this is th right place to post if it isn't sorry and could a moderator please move it for me.

Ok so what I have is a Grinding/Rubbing sound coming from the front driver side. It only makes the noise when I turn Left.... it doesn't do it when I turn right. Obviously it does it while driving. Now when I stop some were and turn my steering wheel all the way to the left and get out the tire isn't hitting or rubbing anything so I don't know what it could be coming from. Nothing seems lose anywere either. Has anyone else had a problem like this? And if so what was it?

aquickmopar

Nobody has any input on what could be making the noise? Do you think maybe it could be the wheel Bearing?

chaseg

Front u joints in frnt axles or hubs, front Dshaft u joints possibly

caged

how far are you turning your wheels when you hear the rub?
the steering wheel will relax even if you have it cranked and shut it off to lock then get out to see.
you need someone in there to hold the wheel all the way.

sounds like it's either rubbing on the control arms which is common if you change the rims or lift it up, it will pull the axle to one side a bit. hence having an adjustable track bar.

or it's your wheel bearing hub unit. but you should be able to feel a bad bearing, even if the wheels are turned a bit.

aquickmopar

Myabe but how do I tell if they are bad? What should I look for?


Its not the tire rubbing anything I had my wife turn the steering wheel lock to lock back and forth several times and the tires aren't rubbing or hitting up against anything. There's plenty of room between the tire and control arms even when turned all the way to lock. That's why im thinking maybe wheel bearing. Its kind of a grinding sound really. But you can only hear it when your moving down the road and turning left. It doesn't even have to be a hard sharp turn I can hear even just by turning slightly to the left. But when I straighten back up the sound goes away. And it doesn't even do it if I turn right. Just Left.

anthonyp22

I have the same problem. The tire is rubbing the lower control arm on the driver side

aquickmopar

Its not the tire believe me. Read what I posted. The tire is no way near the control arm. I have alot of room there. Even when turned all the way to lock its not hitting there. Its something elase.

hypersthenos

Sounds like a front u-joint to me. Look up in there and see if there's rust/dry dust coming from the u-joint cups. Not easy to diagnose by feel due to limited room behind the steering knuckle.

aquickmopar

Thanx for the input, i'll do that... if there's dust/rust does that mean there bad? And thanx for not saying it sounds like your tire is rubbing your lower control arm.

redmuck

also jack up the front end and grab the tire and see how much play you have in the bearings for the hub. if you have alot of play then they are bad.

aquickmopar

Well I jacked up the front axel and checked the driver and passenger side front wheel bearings and they both seam fine nice and tight no play. But while I was on the passenger side I did notice my U-Joint was completely shot and has a LOT of play in it. When replacing my passenger side front Dana 30 U-Joint. What's a good U-Joint to get? Do they make Heavy Duty ones? And when pulling the axel shaft out to replace the U-Joint and then reinstalling the axel shaft do I have to replace the inner seal on the shaft?

This is all on a 96 Cherokee Classic with the Dana30 Solid 1pc passenger side axel shaft.

Any Help would be greatly appreciated. Thanx.

chaseg

Spicer

caged

i just use cheap non greasable joints. i change them every season anyways.

just be careful when you slide your shaft back in. you have to keep the end up in the middle of the tube to slide it through the inner seal.
if you fail to do this, you will need to replace that seal when you tear it. and that's not a fun job.

aquickmopar

Hey thanks for the info. Ya I was worried I would have to change the inner seal when I pulled the shaft. But I will definitely make sure I keep the shaft held up and slowly reinstall it to keep from tearing the seal. And I read on some of the forums that the Spicer 760 u joint is an upgrade (stronger) then the spicer 297 u joint which I believe is in there now. Is this true? Is it a direct fit? Or is one of the cheaper hevy duty u joints you can buy pretty comparable to the spicer 760?

no rdplz

The 760 is quite a bit stronger than the 297, but the downside is that it's not greaseable. The 297 can be gotten greaseable or non-greaseable, but I'd still go for the stronger 760 joints. And x2 on being careful putting the axle shaft back in. I ripped my inner seal the first time I changed my joints and caged is right, that is not a fun job.