Front end whine?

[JJMaine]

I’m not sure where this thread belongs.

Since buying my Ranger, I have noticed an odd sound when I put the truck in drive or reverse like a “wuh wuh wuh wuh” sound. Not sure how to describe it but I know that all of the trucks we have at work (2wd and 4x4) don’t make that noise.

I have also noticed a whining noise from the front of the truck at low speed. Its very noticeable coasting down my driveway in the mornings leaving for work. When I get up to speed its hard to tell what is tire noise and what isn’t. It almost sounds the same as turning an electric motor by hand.

The truck shifts great, transmission fluid looks good (previous owner said it was flushed and had a fluid/filter change at 96k so 6k miles ago).

4wd seems to work fine, it goes in and out of 4lo with a light clunk and 4hi works as it should. At first I thought I might be stuck in 4hi but after switching back and forth from 4hi and rwd and trying to make tight turns in a praking lot, its obvious I’m in 2wd.

Are these noises just normal for a 4x4 truck? Maybe i’m just TOO aware of every little noise the truck makes but I driven plenty of trucks and never noticed. We some pretty old, abused trucks at work too haha.

I also, have everything I need to change the front and rear diff and t-case fluid this weekend. Any ideas of things I can check would be appreciated as always! Thanks!

 

[sunnybrown0613]

I am having the same issue just a little diff I got a 99 ranger auto with 4.0 and today when I left work it started whining it’s been slipping between 2-3 and 3-4 for a while now and changed the fluid when it started that and all been good for past few
Months and then I got to leave this morning and I’m losing reverse and got a really loud whine too it and I was going to try and change the fluid again and maybe change the valve body gasket but don’t want to waste money if it ain’t going to work and just save up to get a rebuild kit. If anyone knows what it might be would love to hear from you. I’m thinking maybe the front pump or torque converter but hoping it’s just the valve body but doubt I could ever get that lucky lol

 

[sgtsandman]

I’m not sure where this thread belongs.

Since buying my Ranger, I have noticed an odd sound when I put the truck in drive or reverse like a “wuh wuh wuh wuh” sound. Not sure how to describe it but I know that all of the trucks we have at work (2wd and 4x4) don’t make that noise.

I have also noticed a whining noise from the front of the truck at low speed. Its very noticeable coasting down my driveway in the mornings leaving for work. When I get up to speed its hard to tell what is tire noise and what isn’t. It almost sounds the same as turning an electric motor by hand.

The truck shifts great, transmission fluid looks good (previous owner said it was flushed and had a fluid/filter change at 96k so 6k miles ago).

4wd seems to work fine, it goes in and out of 4lo with a light clunk and 4hi works as it should. At first I thought I might be stuck in 4hi but after switching back and forth from 4hi and rwd and trying to make tight turns in a praking lot, its obvious I’m in 2wd.

Are these noises just normal for a 4x4 truck? Maybe i’m just TOO aware of every little noise the truck makes but I driven plenty of trucks and never noticed. We some pretty old, abused trucks at work too haha.

I also, have everything I need to change the front and rear diff and t-case fluid this weekend. Any ideas of things I can check would be appreciated as always! Thanks!

Are you sure it isn't a wheel bearing? The wuh wuh sounds could be a wheel bearing and the noise can be hard to isolate since it tends to travel throughout the vehicle structure. Jack the wheels up off the ground and see if the wheels move in ways that they shouldn't. The front wheel bearings are pressed in bearings that tend to be fine until all of a sunden they aren't. They are not a bad job to replace if you have a shop press.

 

[JJMaine]

I was thinking I might check the wheel bearings anyway but that noise happens when the truck isnt moving. When you step on the brake and put it in drive or reverse, the noise starts. It sounds like something spinning around if that makes sense. Not sure how I could get some audio of it happening to share on here.

I wish I had access to a lift so I could run it woth all four wheels in the air and pinpoint where the noises are coming from. They arent too alarming but Id like to know what it is for peace of mind

 

[JJMaine]

Another odd noise I have noticed (maybe connected, maybe not) mainly first thing in the am leaving my driveway is when pulling away and accelerating I get a small chirp noise and sometimes feel a very slight bit of a thump or movement in the gas pedal. Not sure what that is either lol. The chirp noise is def. coming from the front of the truck and I thought maybe it was something to do with the belts/pulleys. My AC compressor is loud too clicking on and off when the AC or defrost is on. Lots of noises haha.

 

[Uncle Gump]

Stone cold engine... take the belt off. You can run the engine for short periods with no belt. Start it up and see if the wuh wuh wuh sound is gone.

 

[sgtsandman]

Another odd noise I have noticed (maybe connected, maybe not) mainly first thing in the am leaving my driveway is when pulling away and accelerating I get a small chirp noise and sometimes feel a very slight bit of a thump or movement in the gas pedal. Not sure what that is either lol. The chirp noise is def. coming from the front of the truck and I thought maybe it was something to do with the belts/pulleys. My AC compressor is loud too clicking on and off when the AC or defrost is on. Lots of noises haha.

The chirp is probably either the idler pully or tensioner pulley. The bearings go bad over time and that is a classic noise for them.

Do like Uncle Gump recommened and see if it stops. If it does, spin the pulleys. They should have no side to side movement in them and should rotate smoothly. If they make any noise while spinning and/or feel like they roll a bit rough, the bearings are going bad. The tensioner pulley is often plastic, so won't amplify rough bearing noise like the metal idler pulley will.

 

[JJMaine]

Thanks I'll try that and hope it narrows it down!

 

[JJMaine]

So I haven't pulled the belt off to check that yet but I have noticed something else when it makes that chirp/light thud felt in the pedal when pulling away from a stop. When it does this the revs drop from say 2000rpm to 1700 and then it picks back up again. It doesn't feel like a shift but could be just a coincidence that it happens at the same time? I couldn't imagine the truck shifts that early when barely accelerating?

I don't think it happens everytime I take off, it does seem to happen every morning when the truck is cold and I'm leaving for work

 

[JJMaine]

My AC compressor clutch air gap is over .035". That's the largest feeler gauge I had and it fit easily. Could that cause the loud click and thump noise every time it kicks on? I took a video of the AC compressor running but not sure how to share it on here. Also wondering if it may be low on refrigerant and if it's safe to use those refill kits? Some say they're fine and others say you HAVE to dump it all and refill it complet with the correct amount.

 

[pentode]

My AC compressor clutch air gap is over .035". That's the largest feeler gauge I had and it fit easily. Could that cause the loud click and thump noise every time it kicks on? I took a video of the AC compressor running but not sure how to share it on here. Also wondering if it may be low on refrigerant and if it's safe to use those refill kits? Some say they're fine and others say you HAVE to dump it all and refill it complet with the correct amount.

Oh yeah, the compressor kicking in will definitely click and thump. Also it tries to correct the idle so I think you might feel it in the pedal, I never really paid attention, I'll have to check that out tomorrow.
Re: A/C, HVAC techs look away now, I've gotten away with a lot of crazy stuff charging A/C systems. Best to do it right with a vacuum pump, gauges etc, but you can dump a few ounces (at a time) of something like R-134 in and it's probably going to make cold. Depends on how much risk you can live with. Personally I think the risk is pretty low if you go slow and use common sense. I've used Duracool for years, which is basically a propane/butane mix, to top off half full systems and it works very well. Obviously YMMV and if you want it done right, do it right.

 

[JJMaine]

The AC blows very cold so maybe that isn't even the issue. I think I may try to shrink the air gap in the compressor clutch to within factory specs.

In a video on Ford AC compressors, he turned the key on and AC on and it locked the clutch so he could get the bolt out. When I try it on my truck nothing happens. Key on and AC on the clutch spins freely and I cannot back the bolt out. Strap wrench to hold it?

 

[pentode]

The AC blows very cold so maybe that isn't even the issue. I think I may try to shrink the air gap in the compressor clutch to within factory specs.

In a video on Ford AC compressors, he turned the key on and AC on and it locked the clutch so he could get the bolt out. When I try it on my truck nothing happens. Key on and AC on the clutch spins freely and I cannot back the bolt out. Strap wrench to hold it?

I recommend strap wrench. I think I was able to do it by hand but it wasn't easy. IIRC it's an 8mm bolt? Also, IIRC the gap is set with shims. I think I had 2-3 in there and I've just run with it. Not even sure what the gap on mine is but I figure the worst that can happen is it'll wear that clutch plate out, which is replaceable anyway. That's assuming the clunk doesn't bother you. I like a nice reassuring clunk.

Edit: you can definitely activate the clutch by applying 12v at the clutch connector if that helps.

 

[JJMaine]

The click and thump doesn't bother me a bit as long as I know it isn't going to cause any major issues. The clutch plate I'm guessing is the plate you take off with the shims behind it? If I had to replace that in the future it wouldn't bother me.

I'm thinking these Rangers are like an old house. Just takes time to get used to all the creaks and bangs lol. I love this truck already but it sure isn't as "refined" as most other cars of the same age which is one of the reasons I wanted one.

 

[JJMaine]

I changed the transmission fluid and filter this weekend and now I know that the "wuh wuh wuh" sound is definitely the transmission. When I started the truck and put it in gear after adding 4qts of Mercon V instead of making that sound it made a tick tick tick lol. I added another 1/2 quart and the sound is almost non existent now and the level is dead on checking it per the manual. I guess if you strain you can hear it but the fresh fluid seemed to help and the shifts feel more positive unless it's just me. I think the previous owner was telling the truth about the tranny getting new fluid and filter at 96k because it wasn't too dark and the filter was obviously aftermarket.