Saw the sticky showing energy suspensions can mount bushings. The previous owner handed me the kit when I bought the truck in 2006. Just installed them a couple of weeks ago. New popping noise coming on the passenger side at the bushing locations. Happens at low speeds when turning left into a driveway or turning leftwards in a windy mountain road. Any suggestions on a fix?

 

Were the mounts rusty and crusty? Or, maybe the botl worked a little bit loose?

 

Or you cracked your cowl with the additional stiffness...........

Look for the cracked sheetmetal, it is there.

 

Definitely Cowl Cracks.

Mine did the same thing after I hit a big curb. Wouldn't stop creaking until I fixed them.

Should only take about an hour to get a fender off. Once you have the cracks fixed, another hour to put it back together, and they're gone..

 

Hmmmm?.?...
This just started in my truck,while turning left into a parking lot every morning at work.
Might be another reason to consider the generous offer I just got 2 days ago for the ol W.

 

Here's my experience..

https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...ht=cowl+cracks

 

The way Dodge made those cowls is just dumb engineering.

Maybe if a bunch of us e-mail LMC they will reproduce the discontinued patch panels.

 

I just cut out some sheet metal from a rusted out door I was going to scrap and made my own patch panel.

I welded up my cracks, then installed my patch panels using a two part body panel / sheet metal adhesive.
I riveted the panels on to get them to hold tight while the adhesive dried.

Worked great.

 

Great responses and thanks a bunch, all. Will now be diving into the cowl crack research. Man! Just came off of the freeze plug issue. Seems lately as one problem gets resolved its almost guaranteed something else will need addressing. Anyway, my curiosity is the location of the popping noises. Only coming from passenger side, directly under floor board, at the bushing mount location, not up by the cowl. I am curious if and when I torqued the thru bolt that goes from the bottom up if the nut at the floorboard popped loose. If I pull up the carpet what will I see as far as that thru bolt nut? How do I know if it popped out of its oem mount design? I'm thinking that's probably part of it cause I could not get the torque wrench to "click" at the set tourque

 

Sometimes the support bracket on the frame for the mount rots also,
my early 91 had to have three changed many years ago.

 

Mounts not rusty nor crusty at all. I even lubed the bushings with SilGlide and blue lock tite on the bolt threads. I'm going to take them apart and look into the tube that runs through the bushings. Saw somewhere that when you tighten up the bolt and the tube is too long the system bottoms out on itself and doesn't allow you to tourque it tight to spec, which may leave a hairline gap between bushing and mount, causing a pop every time the truck flexes

 

Where did you get the bushings? I need to replace the bushings as well.

 

I believe this is what you are looking for ? Make sure you check your application

 

Well, most of the popping noise went away. I'd say about 2/3 gone. Disassembled thru bolt, lower bushing and bolt guide tube. Trimmed 1/4" off of thru bolt tube and was able to get the 60 ft lbs tourque the shop manual spec'd and was able to compress the lower bushing when before I could not even get to the torque setting nor compress. I will go another 5-10 ft lbs and see if I can get the 1/3 leftover of popping noises to go away. So far the ride difference is noticeable. Tight, especially around twists n turns down windy roads. When you hit a pothole definitely feel the stiffness. All I have left as far as energy suspension products left to do in the kit the previous owner handed me is the leaf spring bushings. For the life of me I do not understand the shop manual in the steps required to remove the front leaf spring bushings or how to assemble that homemade tool to shove out the old bushing and assemble the new. The book does not give any dimensions in lengths, I.D., O.D. of tool, nothing. Anyone with tips on how to disassemble leaf spring bushings and how to fab up the tool?