Wierd thump... & Out of Ideas.

[1pokeyRanger]

So my 2000 4x4 3.0 auto makes two thumps when starting from a stop and accelerating. One about 3mph, one about 7mph. Won't do it when it's cold outside untill the truck warms up 15-20 min. Won't do it in 4x4. Feels like it's from the rear axle - but my Bro though it could be a motor mount. I went under the truck the other day and I could move the tranny mount about an inch up and down, not side to side. Not too much play in the driveshaft, and unable to wiggle it at the rear pinon. I was unable to budge the engine from underneath the motor mounts with man power.
The tranny does seem to take a while to shift in higher gears every so often. The truck has 75k miles.

Any new ideas?

 

[88gt]

first tighten down your trans, second, take it to aamco and get a free transmission diagnosis. and go from there. might just need to drop the tranny pan and put in a new filter

 

[kawasakiman27]

does it do it when you brake? You might need to take the driveshaft off and than take it apart from the boot and grease the slip yoke. These trucks tend to thump on take off and braking due to insufficient slip yoke lubing from the factory. Even if the yoke slides smoothly that can still be the prob (I was skeptical when taking mine apart but sure enough thats what the prob was). Give it a try before you go spending alot of money for no reason like i did. I changed leafs thinking thats what it was. Oh and the trannys can move up and down a little bit (mine does) Thats prob not the problem.

 

[1pokeyRanger]

Lube is always good, I'll check the driveshaft boot.

The tranny & filter was changed about 3 months ago.

Thanks for some ideas..

 

[1pokeyRanger]

it does it when braking to a stop, under 10mph. Only seems to do it once and not as hard as accelerating.

 

[Toms01PSD]

Funny, when braking, my truck shudders, like the entire front end shudders and I can hear a clunking noise...may be what you described kaw

 

[88gt]

front end could shutter from a bad vacuum hub. mine does and is getting replace this weekend with new manual hubs.

 

[TomB1269]

Extended cabs were known to have a thump while braking to a stop and at start from a stop. Its due to the slip yoke as mentioned. The change was an aluminum drive shaft which helps but does not clear it completely. You can lube and should if it is excessive, but be aware it will return.

 

[1pokeyRanger]

I've heard Explorer driveshafts are a bolt in, would this fix the problem for good?
Or,
Is this thump bad a bad thing - going to grenade any parts or should I learn to deal with it? I don't mind swappin the shafts if it will fix it.

 

[kawasakiman27]

I've driven around for over two years with no prob, just an annoyance. Ive been driving it for six months without a thump after lubing the $%# out of the splines. Make sure you put the new boot clamps (crimp kind) on pretty tight but not tight enought to tear the boot. You should be fine.

 

[rurouni20xx]

my a4ld clunked everytime you put it in reverse from in gear or park and did the popping thing as described here that yall are talking about, my dad and i drove it for 8 yrs just accepted that that was just the way the trk did and no prob. the front end shuddering can be caused from sticky calipers/pins too, i lubed my pins and no more prob. my pins used to back out on me on occasion too so i kept an eye on them then redid the front pads/rotors and changed the pins, no more prob.

 

[Toms01PSD]

my a4ld clunked everytime you put it in reverse from in gear or park and did the popping thing as described here that yall are talking about, my dad and i drove it for 8 yrs just accepted that that was just the way the trk did and no prob. the front end shuddering can be caused from sticky calipers/pins too, i lubed my pins and no more prob. my pins used to back out on me on occasion too so i kept an eye on them then redid the front pads/rotors and changed the pins, no more prob.

Pins? my front end still shudders, should I get those anti-rattle clips or whatever the heck they are?
and I figured out what the "clunking" noise was...POS exhaust hanger...everytime I hit the brakes the shuddering from the front end would shake the truck and the loose hanger was knocking against the muffler.

 

[Viva*the*Ranger]

My truck makes a clunk about 30 seconds after I start it. It never happens when I'm driving. It sounds and feels like it's comming from the front end. Any ideas while we are on the subject of clunks?

 

[Toms01PSD]

My truck makes a clunk about 30 seconds after I start it. It never happens when I'm driving. It sounds and feels like it's comming from the front end. Any ideas while we are on the subject of clunks?

I didn't figure out it was the muffler til I moved back there. Try turning the driveshaft(s) to check for play. Check motor mounts. I tried moving the trans, see if that mount is loose. I remember seeing someone else had a problem with there trans mount.

 

[1pokeyRanger]

where do I find/buy those crimp connectors & the tool for the bands on the driveshaft boot?