1982 CJ-7

Until 8 months ago, I faithfully locked in my hubs and drove 5 miles to
lubricate the axle while driving off road. Last September I moved from the
AZ desert to Washington State. My Jeep has been parked for 7 months after
driving it 1500 miles to get it here.

I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking noise
when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my transfer
case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few hundred yards
and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was not
fully engaged.

My wife bought our Jeep new in 1982, so we know it's entire history. We have
never had any problem like this before. Am I looking at a simple
adjustment, or do I need to have major hardware replaced?

Thanks in advance,
Norman

That really sounds like one of your hubs came loose and blew up or the
grease inside is sooo dry it isn't letting the lock ring slide down to
fully latch. The hubs are supposed to be periodically cleaned to get
the mud out and they call for a 'little' light white grease.

To verify, I would go in 4x4 with the hubs open and see if you have
noise, then lock one hub at a time to find the stuck or busted one.

I blow the stupid stock ones up all the time. I now have one Warn lock
with the other going in as soon as I bust the next one.

Mike
86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's

Norman wrote:
>
> Until 8 months ago, I faithfully locked in my hubs and drove 5 miles to
> lubricate the axle while driving off road. Last September I moved from the
> AZ desert to Washington State. My Jeep has been parked for 7 months after
> driving it 1500 miles to get it here.
>
> I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking noise
> when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my transfer
> case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few hundred yards
> and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was not
> fully engaged.
>
> My wife bought our Jeep new in 1982, so we know it's entire history. We have
> never had any problem like this before. Am I looking at a simple
> adjustment, or do I need to have major hardware replaced?
>
> Thanks in advance,
> Norman

Hi Norman,
If you can't find an obvious loose universal joint, then I'd find a
service station that'll put it up on a rack and run it in gear to help
you find where the noise is coming from. Noise equals damage.
God Bless America, ßill O|||||||O
http://www.billhughes.com/

Norman wrote:
>
> Until 8 months ago, I faithfully locked in my hubs and drove 5 miles to
> lubricate the axle while driving off road. Last September I moved from the
> AZ desert to Washington State. My Jeep has been parked for 7 months after
> driving it 1500 miles to get it here.
>
> I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking noise
> when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my transfer
> case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few hundred yards
> and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was not
> fully engaged.
>
> My wife bought our Jeep new in 1982, so we know it's entire history. We have
> never had any problem like this before. Am I looking at a simple
> adjustment, or do I need to have major hardware replaced?
>
> Thanks in advance,
> Norman

"Mike Romain" > wrote in message
...
> That really sounds like one of your hubs came loose and blew up or the
> grease inside is sooo dry it isn't letting the lock ring slide down to
> fully latch. The hubs are supposed to be periodically cleaned to get
> the mud out and they call for a 'little' light white grease.
>
> To verify, I would go in 4x4 with the hubs open and see if you have
> noise, then lock one hub at a time to find the stuck or busted one.
>
> I blow the stupid stock ones up all the time. I now have one Warn lock
> with the other going in as soon as I bust the next one.
>
> Mike
> 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
> 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
>
> Norman wrote:
> >
> > Until 8 months ago, I faithfully locked in my hubs and drove 5 miles to
> > lubricate the axle while driving off road. Last September I moved from
the
> > AZ desert to Washington State. My Jeep has been parked for 7 months
after
> > driving it 1500 miles to get it here.
> >
> > I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking noise
> > when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my
transfer
> > case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few hundred
yards
> > and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was not
> > fully engaged.
> >
> > My wife bought our Jeep new in 1982, so we know it's entire history. We
have
> > never had any problem like this before. Am I looking at a simple
> > adjustment, or do I need to have major hardware replaced?
> >
> > Thanks in advance,
> > Norman
--------------------------------------------------------
Thanks Mike, I'm going to try your test and and take Bill's advice to get
her on a rack. I have her lubed every 3000 miles and I have only driven her
5000 miles a year for the last 10 years. The last 1500 miles has been hell.

I'll report back here once the problem is found.

Thank you very much for the quick response.

Norman

"L.W. (ßill) Hughes III" > wrote in message
...
> Hi Norman,
> If you can't find an obvious loose universal joint, then I'd find a
> service station that'll put it up on a rack and run it in gear to help
> you find where the noise is coming from. Noise equals damage.
> God Bless America, ßill O|||||||O
> http://www.billhughes.com/
>
> Norman wrote:
> >
> > Until 8 months ago, I faithfully locked in my hubs and drove 5 miles to
> > lubricate the axle while driving off road. Last September I moved from
the
> > AZ desert to Washington State. My Jeep has been parked for 7 months
after
> > driving it 1500 miles to get it here.
> >
> > I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking noise
> > when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my
transfer
> > case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few hundred
yards
> > and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was not
> > fully engaged.
> >
> > My wife bought our Jeep new in 1982, so we know it's entire history. We
have
> > never had any problem like this before. Am I looking at a simple
> > adjustment, or do I need to have major hardware replaced?
> >
> > Thanks in advance,
> > Norman
---------------------------------
Hello Bill,

There's nothing loose, so I'll get her to a garage and on a rack this week.
Thank you very much.

Sincerely,
Norman

"Mike Romain" > wrote in message
...
> That really sounds like one of your hubs came loose and blew up or the
> grease inside is sooo dry it isn't letting the lock ring slide down to
> fully latch. The hubs are supposed to be periodically cleaned to get
> the mud out and they call for a 'little' light white grease.
>
> To verify, I would go in 4x4 with the hubs open and see if you have
> noise, then lock one hub at a time to find the stuck or busted one.
>
> I blow the stupid stock ones up all the time. I now have one Warn lock
> with the other going in as soon as I bust the next one.
>
> Mike
> 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
> 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
>
> Norman wrote:
> >
> > Until 8 months ago, I faithfully locked in my hubs and drove 5 miles to
> > lubricate the axle while driving off road. Last September I moved from
the
> > AZ desert to Washington State. My Jeep has been parked for 7 months
after
> > driving it 1500 miles to get it here.
> >
> > I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking noise
> > when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my
transfer
> > case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few hundred
yards
> > and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was not
> > fully engaged.
> >
> > My wife bought our Jeep new in 1982, so we know it's entire history. We
have
> > never had any problem like this before. Am I looking at a simple
> > adjustment, or do I need to have major hardware replaced?
> >
> > Thanks in advance,
> > Norman
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----
I engaged 4 low without locking either hub, stomped on the gas and heard,
the same awful clanking noise. I'm assuming that the transfer case is the
problem.

Thanks
Norman

Norman wrote:
>
> "Mike Romain" > wrote in message
> ...
> > That really sounds like one of your hubs came loose and blew up or the
> > grease inside is sooo dry it isn't letting the lock ring slide down to
> > fully latch. The hubs are supposed to be periodically cleaned to get
> > the mud out and they call for a 'little' light white grease.
> >
> > To verify, I would go in 4x4 with the hubs open and see if you have
> > noise, then lock one hub at a time to find the stuck or busted one.
> >
> > I blow the stupid stock ones up all the time. I now have one Warn lock
> > with the other going in as soon as I bust the next one.
> >
> > Mike
> > 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
> > 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
> >
> > Norman wrote:
> > >
> > > Until 8 months ago, I faithfully locked in my hubs and drove 5 miles to
> > > lubricate the axle while driving off road. Last September I moved from
> the
> > > AZ desert to Washington State. My Jeep has been parked for 7 months
> after
> > > driving it 1500 miles to get it here.
> > >
> > > I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking noise
> > > when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my
> transfer
> > > case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few hundred
> yards
> > > and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was not
> > > fully engaged.
> > >
> > > My wife bought our Jeep new in 1982, so we know it's entire history. We
> have
> > > never had any problem like this before. Am I looking at a simple
> > > adjustment, or do I need to have major hardware replaced?
> > >
> > > Thanks in advance,
> > > Norman
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> -----
> I engaged 4 low without locking either hub, stomped on the gas and heard,
> the same awful clanking noise. I'm assuming that the transfer case is the
> problem.
>

Don't eliminate a bad u-joint. You are spinning up the drive train only
now, so your hubs are fine. A dead u-joint will make a pile of noise
before it explodes. You have 4 u-joints up front, two on the driveshaft
and one on each axle.

The next test would be to remove the front driveshaft and put it in 4x4
with the hubs open.

Mike
86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's

"Mike Romain" > wrote in message
...
> Norman wrote:
> >
> > "Mike Romain" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > That really sounds like one of your hubs came loose and blew up or the
> > > grease inside is sooo dry it isn't letting the lock ring slide down to
> > > fully latch. The hubs are supposed to be periodically cleaned to get
> > > the mud out and they call for a 'little' light white grease.
> > >
> > > To verify, I would go in 4x4 with the hubs open and see if you have
> > > noise, then lock one hub at a time to find the stuck or busted one.
> > >
> > > I blow the stupid stock ones up all the time. I now have one Warn
lock
> > > with the other going in as soon as I bust the next one.
> > >
> > > Mike
> > > 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
> > > 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
> > >
> > > Norman wrote:
> > > >
> > > > Until 8 months ago, I faithfully locked in my hubs and drove 5 miles
to
> > > > lubricate the axle while driving off road. Last September I moved
from
> > the
> > > > AZ desert to Washington State. My Jeep has been parked for 7 months
> > after
> > > > driving it 1500 miles to get it here.
> > > >
> > > > I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking
noise
> > > > when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my
> > transfer
> > > > case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few
hundred
> > yards
> > > > and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was
not
> > > > fully engaged.
> > > >
> > > > My wife bought our Jeep new in 1982, so we know it's entire history.
We
> > have
> > > > never had any problem like this before. Am I looking at a simple
> > > > adjustment, or do I need to have major hardware replaced?
> > > >
> > > > Thanks in advance,
> > > > Norman
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
> > -----
> > I engaged 4 low without locking either hub, stomped on the gas and
heard,
> > the same awful clanking noise. I'm assuming that the transfer case is
the
> > problem.
> >
>
> Don't eliminate a bad u-joint. You are spinning up the drive train only
> now, so your hubs are fine. A dead u-joint will make a pile of noise
> before it explodes. You have 4 u-joints up front, two on the driveshaft
> and one on each axle.
>
> The next test would be to remove the front driveshaft and put it in 4x4
> with the hubs open.
>
> Mike
> 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
> 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
------------------------------------
Thanks Mike. I will try that next!


Norman

Mike Romain wrote:
> Norman wrote:
>
>>"Mike Romain" > wrote in message
...
[snip]

>>>I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking noise
>>>>when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my
>>transfer case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few hundred
>>yards and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was not
>>>>fully engaged.
[snip]
> Don't eliminate a bad u-joint. You are spinning up the drive train only
> now, so your hubs are fine. A dead u-joint will make a pile of noise
> before it explodes. You have 4 u-joints up front, two on the driveshaft
> and one on each axle.
>
> The next test would be to remove the front driveshaft and put it in 4x4
> with the hubs open.

It could also be a bad transmission mount. Years ago my CJ made a noise
in 4WD that sounds like the OP's description. It turned out that the
bad mount was letting the transmission swing far enough to the right to
let the U-joint on the front shaft whack the floor pan.

"Mike Romain" > wrote in message
...
> Norman wrote:
> >
> > "Mike Romain" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > That really sounds like one of your hubs came loose and blew up or the
> > > grease inside is sooo dry it isn't letting the lock ring slide down to
> > > fully latch. The hubs are supposed to be periodically cleaned to get
> > > the mud out and they call for a 'little' light white grease.
> > >
> > > To verify, I would go in 4x4 with the hubs open and see if you have
> > > noise, then lock one hub at a time to find the stuck or busted one.
> > >
> > > I blow the stupid stock ones up all the time. I now have one Warn
lock
> > > with the other going in as soon as I bust the next one.
> > >
> > > Mike
> > > 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
> > > 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
> > >
> > > Norman wrote:
> > > >
> > > > Until 8 months ago, I faithfully locked in my hubs and drove 5 miles
to
> > > > lubricate the axle while driving off road. Last September I moved
from
> > the
> > > > AZ desert to Washington State. My Jeep has been parked for 7 months
> > after
> > > > driving it 1500 miles to get it here.
> > > >
> > > > I went to an off road park to lock in my hubs and heard a clacking
noise
> > > > when I increased the RPM's in 4 high and 4 low. It sounded like my
> > transfer
> > > > case was not fully engaged. I unlocked the hubs, drove a few
hundred
> > yards
> > > > and tried again. I heard the same clacking noises like the gear was
not
> > > > fully engaged.
> > > >
> > > > My wife bought our Jeep new in 1982, so we know it's entire history.
We
> > have
> > > > never had any problem like this before. Am I looking at a simple
> > > > adjustment, or do I need to have major hardware replaced?
> > > >
> > > > Thanks in advance,
> > > > Norman
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
> > -----
> > I engaged 4 low without locking either hub, stomped on the gas and
heard,
> > the same awful clanking noise. I'm assuming that the transfer case is
the
> > problem.
> >
>
> Don't eliminate a bad u-joint. You are spinning up the drive train only
> now, so your hubs are fine. A dead u-joint will make a pile of noise
> before it explodes. You have 4 u-joints up front, two on the driveshaft
> and one on each axle.
>
> The next test would be to remove the front driveshaft and put it in 4x4
> with the hubs open.
>
> Mike
> 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
> 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
-----------------------------------------
I now have 2 new U joints on the front drive shaft. When I engage 4L
without locking the hubs, I still hear the same awful clanking noise.

Have I now narrowed the problem down to the transfer case, or should I check
the mounts next?

I appreciate the guidance.

Norman