Hi. I am getting a clunk noise on my '95 Cherokee when I start in 1st gear. It is just once in each start as I let out the clutch an everything torques up. I don't hear anything once the clutch is out and the jeep is moving. The clunk sound is definitely coming from under the vehicle and from behind the driver seat but I can't tell exactly from where. I opened up the differential to inspect the gears. They may be worn but otherwise in good shape. No metal in the drained oil and no chipped out or broken gears. There is some play in the diff gears when I rotate the drive wheel back and forth but I not familiar with how much is too much. I'm posting a video showing this and would appreciate some expert feedback on whether this play is normal or likely the source of my Clunking noise. By the way, it is a 3.5 diff behind an AX-5 tranny. The jeep has 178k miles on it. Thanks for looking.

p.s. I am trying to upload the video, but it isn't working.

 

Check the u-joints?

 

x2 on the ujoints. Also have a look at the engine and transmission mounts, and the exhaust as it passes over the crossmember. I haven't seen a 2wd AX5 in a while, but I think it has the same slip joint at the transmission as the xfer case setup. You can get some clunking from the splines, an greasing them helps that.

 

Hi.. I checked both front and rear u-joints and they both appear to be tight. There is a lot of rotational slack in the shaft-to-differential joint. When I turn the shaft, I can get about 5/16 to a 1/4" of movement before the spline of the drive shaft will engage with the differential gears. Of course, there the shaft is just as free to turn at the transmission end too. Even though the drive wheel was up and the transmission in neutral, I didn't turn the shaft hard enough to move either. This all was just rotational free play in the shaft. I am posting two videos of this, one of the differential end of the shaft and one of the transmission end.
So... is this slack excessive? Is seems liike a lot, but odd that there is just as much free play at both ends.

 

I would suggest that diff play is marginal, and could account for the noise for sure

personally I would use a dial gauge and marking compound to check if the internal specs are out

You can also take it to a diff repair specialist, these guys can usually tell within 5mins if it needs a rebuild..although they are a bit biased toward a yes answer