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Vibration from hell!!

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Dad got truck back.



Total axle rebuild even though bearings and all looked OK. They thought if they were in there may as well do it... .



Drove home. F*&^#$! vibration is still there. He is NOT a happy camper to say the least.



Signed, son of the pirate mouth ;)



Was it the same tech rebuilding the axle that flubbed up the axle seal?
 
The Mega and the Quad cab have the same chasis under them. My 08 with an auto in a quad cab had a vibration that they could never find until total failure. Here is the story if you would like to read.



https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/6-7l-engine-transmissions-2007-5/218688-vibration.html



https://www.turbodieselregister.com...ve/224779-engine-noise-smoke.html#post2171034



I my opinion, it is a misalignment between the engine and the transmission. Just enough to cause a wiggle in the torque converter making the flex-plate flex at the crankshaft until it was fatigued enough to crack around the crank.



Many years ago I had a very similar experience when I was starting out in a truck shop, I replaced a flywheel housing without dialing it in, making sure it was centered to the crank ( didn't know it was suppose to be done ). Well 900 miles down the road, he needed a new clutch again, took the centers out of the discs.





Wow. Interesting. In you case it was rpm based, this one is speed based. Manually selecting gears at given speed does not change anything.



Put another driveshaft in it from a new truck that does not vibrate. That will confirm or eliminate the DS as a problem. A converter problem or flexplate problem should be able to be reproduced without even moving the truck.



As previosly mentioned, this is driveshaft 3. It is now a brand new one from Dodge. It is not the drieshaft.



Anyway my guess is a motor/trans mount. Let me know if I win!!!



LOL. OK







Random though. Do vibration dampeners ever go bad?
 
Have done that already but that was back at the start of all this. Vibration was still there.



I do plan on pulling it again though for the heck of it. Running out of options.
 
Just a thought, if you could locate a Chassis Dyno to run the truck on, get it to vibrate, you may be able to see what is causing the problem.
 
Well, we did some testing on the weekend. I fully inspected everything under the truck. All looks good.



We then puleld the front shaft for the heck of it. Took it for drive. No change. So its not the front driveshaft.



Next, put the back end on jack stands and drove. No vibration. Even at 45-55 mph, the "pronounced vibration zone", it was good.



Next front end up in the air. Put in 4wd. Vibration at 45-55.



Pulled front tires and rims. Still there.



So, it would appear it is front end related, or T case. I dont suspect t case as it seems to be there even when the driveshaft is out so it should not be that.



So it leaves front axle bearings, wheel bearings, etc.



Thoughts?
 
I had a strange vibe that hit it's worst at 41 mph though it doesn't sound like mine is as bad as yours. Did everything you did with the truck on jacks at the local Les Schwab tire place and we couldn't find anything. Everything was smooth up in the air. I replaced wheels, tires, driveshaft. Finally, I installed a set of Centramatic balancers on my wheels and it's gone. So I really have no idea what was the cause but I wonder, can rotors be that far out of balance?
 
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Running it in gear on jacks will not show anything, you need a load on the wheels, not just the axle hanging in the air, also the pinion angle is changed, the only way is a chassis dyno, in California all the shops that do emission testing have them, in your area I don't know, but without the load on the tires, and pinion angle the same as when it's being driven your not going to see anything.
 
Running it in gear on jacks will not show anything, you need a load on the wheels, not just the axle hanging in the air, also the pinion angle is changed, the only way is a chassis dyno, in California all the shops that do emission testing have them, in your area I don't know, but without the load on the tires, and pinion angle the same as when it's being driven your not going to see anything.



In my case, no. I positioned the jacks under the axle tubes. Was not hanging, there was load on the suspension, and the pinion was at road angle.



In my case we had jack stands under the axles so no change in pinion angle etc.



Exactly.



Come the weekend I think we will continue to play. We have narrowed it down to the front axle. Process of thought is as follows:



Not driveshaft.

Not rear.

Not trans.

Not T case rear output.



Proof: all rebuilt or new from the t case back and still have it. Also can put only rear axle on stands and it runs smooth. Front side not turning. Next we look there.



Put front and rear on stands and it is there.



Not front driveshaft as we pulled it went for drive, vibation still there. This also elliminates t case as the front output was not turning as the prop shaft was out.



Not tires. Proof: We put back on jackstands and pull front rims tires off and put truck into 4wd and still there although not as noticiable. I say due to virtually no load on axle as tires are off. Still can be felt.



This leaves axle. U joints were replaced in the spring. Unlikely as they are premium greasable. Possible one bad one though.



Ball joints were done.



As the nature of it seems to be an up and down type of motion, and more noticable under load, I am leaning toward maybe front pinion. Ends of the axle were open due to the U joint change, so this area being untouched would be my first thought. Also symptoms seems right as do conditions.



Next step is to put back on stands and test this theory.



How much runout should be measurable taking a dial indicator off the front diff yoke?
 
Yoke is cast, there can any amount of runout on the outer portion. Most is taken out by centering u-joint during machining, and then balancing shaft..... I think... . is that a flat flange, though... machined? It might tell you something... .....



In reading this, I'm thinking there is also the possiblitiy that the axle yokes around the u-joints were/was bent during the u-joint changes, misaligning it, or putting the new joint in a bind. I've bent several installing Dynatrac hub kits, including my own. I've lost track as to when the vibration came in..... before or after spring when they were replaced?



Also possible the new ball joints have changed alignment, allowing the axle shafts to come in contact with the housing at some point in rotation. Again, replaced before or after vibration appearance?



Did you pull the pinion yoke and install a pinion seal on the front? Crush sleeve could have been overtorqued if using a large impact wrench and the tech just ran it on... ...
 
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Strange thing is, is how fast it happened. Truck was in the shop for a rear seal repair without any vibration. Then Robert leaves, it's vibrating.



When I drag raced Robert at Cayuga Dragway, I used 4x4 to launch hard off the line, only to have a u-joint in the front axle seize up instantly. When turning, truck felt like it was still in 4x4, bucking on pavement and took a while to smooth out.
 
This is going to sound real dumb but check the lug nuts they might not be the right ones . This happened on my jetta , went to the tire shop they told me the wheels i bought need special lug bolts problem went away except for crappy tires .
 
HH

It's dads truck, so I can't really say if it slowly developed from the front end work in the spring, but I do know him and he is picky when it comes to his vehicles. He took it to dealer, they worked on back end, left, was not 5 miles down the road and said we have a problem. If it was a front end part from spring, he would have noticed it sooner I would think. And I would have likely as I played chouffer for him a few times between spring and this service.

Possible to all the thoughts. Just coincidental timing? Possible.
 
HH



It's dads truck, so I can't really say if it slowly developed from the front end work in the spring, but I do know him and he is picky when it comes to his vehicles. He took it to dealer, they worked on back end, left, was not 5 miles down the road and said we have a problem. If it was a front end part from spring, he would have noticed it sooner I would think. And I would have likely as I played chouffer for him a few times between spring and this service.



Possible to all the thoughts. Just coincidental timing? Possible.
 
Well, I went back and reread it... . I'm confused as to how it could have happened from them working on the rear..... WTH? Obviously, it's got to be rotational mass, but where, and how does the front get affected by the rear? Did they run over a small car in the shop or bounce it off a lift?!? Did they bend the exhaust up against something or is a 4 link bent?!? Did they adjust the front axle alignment?!?



Confusing, it is... ...
 
Yeah. I agree. Not following why the front would be off now short of coincedence. Maybe he took note of it then??? Mabye something did happen. Not sure. Maybe my above theories are not even accurate. Dont know anymore!!
 
As a thought..... here lately, I've seen several unitized front wheel bearings that were bad, right off the shelf. Mopar included. THey'll run 10k or so, and then start rolling noise. Have any of those been replaced, or are they low miles?!? It's a shot in the dark, but spin 'em on a stand and see if they make any noise.....
 
I would have them check the harmonic damper! THEY have been know to go bad. They are replacing them with a fluiddampr At GENO'S I thank. You should check them at 30 60 90. 000 good luck
 
As a thought..... here lately, I've seen several unitized front wheel bearings that were bad, right off the shelf. Mopar included. THey'll run 10k or so, and then start rolling noise. Have any of those been replaced, or are they low miles?!? It's a shot in the dark, but spin 'em on a stand and see if they make any noise.....



Yes. I believe they were done in the spring as well.



Will try this.



I would have them check the harmonic damper! THEY have been know to go bad. They are replacing them with a fluiddampr At GENO'S I thank. You should check them at 30 60 90. 000 good luck



Possible. Does not follow the trend of front vs rear vibration though. A possibility to consider though.
 
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