grim

#1
So I just did a 1500 km haul pulling a heavy trailer through the mountains. At the very end of the trip I started to notice a cracking sort of sounds coming from the middle underside of the truck. It happens as I'm beggining to accelerate. And then a few time I heard it in 4th gear but way more rapid. Also only in the bottom end of fourth gear now I feel a rapid rumble in my seat. Best I can pinpoint is that the noise is from the carrier bearing on the driveshaft? And also the ujoint near there has a tiny bit of play now. Has anyone heard similar sounds? Is it safe to say its the carrier bearing?

#2 also on the last stretch of the trip. I had to pull the trailer up a steep muddy hill. I did it in 1st gear in 4x4 low. Once I got to the top, I drove a bit further befor noticing my temp gauge was almost maxed. I quickly shut down, and popped the hood to notice coolant sprayed everywhere and rad cap was cool to touch. (and also half empty upon further inspection)
Any ideas what this was? thermostat not opening? Weird cause it worked fine the whole trip.

Thanx in advance for any help.

shackwrrr

The cracking noise definitely sounds like u-joints or carrier. Rapid rumble is a big sign of a seized one. Check for orange dust around the grease seals.

The coolant thing, If you didn't pop a head gasket I would say the coolant was weak (mixture wise) or the cap lost its seal thus lowering the boiling point of the coolant, once this happens you get steam pockets in the head and it snowballs from there.

j_martin

I had a hot weather coolant loss problem one time in Kentucky Brown Grass country when it was 104 in the shade and there was no shade. After about 5 tries at emergency repair, I finally traced it down to a real fine pinhole leak in the upper hose near the t-stat housing.

When things get hot and high pressure, the weak spots are found.

grim

Wondering if there is an article on replacing the center or carrier bearing? I've tried searching a bit but no luck. The book says I need to press fit the bearing. Is there a way around that? Any other tips or tricks?

gorms

It is technically a press fit, but a good hammer and long drift can smack it off pretty easy. Drive shaft needs to be out, and seperated with the bearing assembly still on the front shaft. Always index your 2 shaft prices before you seperate, make sure it goes back the way it was for balancing.

grim

how abouta assembling the new one? I've read some folks heat it up with a torch to get it to slip on? seems like that will ruin the temper.

j_martin

Steel expands quite a bit with heat. If you heat the bearing to about 250°, which won't hurt anything including lube and seal, and chill the shaft in a freezer or with dry ice, it'll slip together with finger pressure. (gloved of course)

Less aggressive warming and chilling, and a brass drift is just as effective.

grim

alright thanx for the tips. the shop is asking what size my bearing is. are there a ocuple options for our trucks? or is there a standard?

maybe368

I thought you said that it was hot. ...Mark

j_martin

I had 7 kids in a van with no air conditioning. Believe me, it was hot.

maybe368

117 is hot, 104 I need a sweater...Mark

j_martin

When the kids are used to going barefoot in the snow, 104 is hot.

I thought you lived in paradise. 117 is more like he!!

maybe368

It is all relative to what you are used to. If you want to know what hell feels like, come on down when it is 110 and a dew point of 65 in August. Just like you think it's hot at 104, I think it is cold at 65...Mark

j_martin

We put on our short trunks and go swimming at 65°

The last time i was in Phoenix, i arrived late in the evening in the summer. I remember it was about 11 pm, and still far north of 100°. The rental rice burner made it just outside the gate when the main fusible link parted. Car rental company gave me a Lincoln to replace it.

I was in a 3 piece suit and liked to have died from the heat.

maybe368

Yup, Phoenix is one of he only places where casual friday is every day. It is ridiculous to wear a suit in the summer here. The vast majority of the people here are NOT used to the heat, because they spend all their time in ac. I spend a lot of time exercising in the heat of the afternoon. I put 25 year olds to shame in the heat, I'll be 60 in May and I consider the heat my ally.All that said, I still like the other 9 months here . We usually go at least a week during the summer where the temps never get below 90. That is bad enough, but the worst is the accumulated heat from never cooling down at night. That is what sets us apart from other hot places in the US...Mark