growling noise coming from 2000 4x4 ranger front end

[camoman5392]

my truck's been making a growling sound, not sure if its coming from a wheel bearing or the front differential. it seems to get worst around 2500 rpms, and on the highway it gets real bad. kinda like a pulsing waahhh wahhhh wahhh noise. im new to 4x4's so any help would be great. i dont wanna take it somewhere for them to figure it out speacially when i can fix it myself
thanks, jay

 

[Ranger44]

Usually they are wheel bearings.

Try and veer a little on the road, kinda zig zag side to side. Does the noise change? One direction it'll quit the other it should get worse.

Another thing to listen to is first thing in the morning it'll make a metal bar on concrete sound, it'll freak you out.....lol

 

[camoman5392]

i tried that but the noise is constant. haven't gotten a chance to try it at highway speeds tho(carefully lol) sometimes it'll make a poppin noise but i just assumed thats something with the body lift or bushin or somethin

 

[Captain Ledd]

Growling is usually the signature of a wheel bearing.

The safer way to check is to jack up a tire off the ground and give it a wiggle, if there's play or wobble in it and you can't see the knuckle moving, it's the wheel bearing.

 

[Ranger44]

Yeah, that is the safer way. I just suggested the driving test because it's quick and easy and can be while driving. It can be done at about 30-40mph. Don't try it at highway speeds though......


I just replaced my RF wheeling bearing yesterday. It WAS obviously bad. Just jacking up the front tire, I could move the wheel back and forth quite a ways. I instantly decided to order a Timken bearing from the first parts store I could get it from.

Mine was bad enough it would clunk, rattle, scrape, and growl.

 

[strvger]

if it's been going on for awhile, you can also look at your front tires and check for uneven tire wear. another good indicator for bearing issues.

 

[camoman5392]

my passenger tire is wearing on the inside pretty fast. ive been working so i havent had a chance to jack it up and check the wheel bearings. however, i did roll under the truck n saw that i have a leak from where the u joint connects to the differential housing, and the diff. lube is milky looking like water has gotten in there or something...

anyone know what other axles will bolt up, or with little modification? like the 90's explorer running gear or what else?

thanks for all the replies and advice
-jay

 

[strvger]

should be info in the tech library for axle swaps. lots of folks on here do it for sure.