Drivetrain noise?

[Gerbil21]

07 yukon 4x4 161k, got a bad gear howl kind of noise on right turns and a wind up noise while braking.

The background story all fluids have been changed and the front diff never looked bad, I also drive this truck hard everyday. A few months ago ive noticed the inboard boot was torn on the pass side cv I wrote it off to repair later, started to notice a slight hum/vibration noise from the front at 25mph exact and would go away past it, also noticed a slight metallic noise on right turns at hwy speeds, again write these off as the cv.

Fast forward to now, upwards of 120 driving to work as pretty much everyday, music was up so must of missed any noise however I come out of work and the truck sounds like it has a backing plate mangled up, found a pretty bad pass side hub and a gritty sounding driver side hub. Both replaced with timken, diff fluid changes too, looked like new not much on magnet.

Sounded much better but Wind up sound was present on right turns, week later sounded as bad as before, replaced with moog hubs, windup. Sound present and also howl on right turns, replaced driver side hub again with carquest and still same noise, no noise when turning front diff, driver side axle stub bearing looked and felt fine no wear on axle stub either

I'm lost rn and it snowed hard so work is limited now, I'm guessing it is the front diff but I'm not sure any help is appreciated

https://youtu.be/N6-wgXMBO5I

 

[OR VietVet]

Welcome to the forum from Oregon and for finally posting after 4+ years.

That sure sounds like a gear noise but have no idea why it only happens when turning right. At that point you are loading the left front. Someone else will chime in. I would look at that diff fluid and TC fluid.

 

[swathdiver]

There are of course bearings on each side on the inside of the axle and they can go bad. Mine are pretty noisy, I just turn up the radio and am collecting parts to rebuild it someday. Still works, still goes into 4x4 whenever I need to.

 

[Doubeleive]

rear axle bearings and/or pinion gear and/or rear end. you already replaced the front, when you turn the rear axle moves too, take a rear wheel off, unbolt the brake caliper and push/pull on the rear axle it should only move a tiny bit (as far as I know), but regardless I have had the pinion gear sound just like that and rear wheel bearing. also check your universal joints
another thing to check is grab the driveline right where it enters the rear diff (where the pinion is) and try to wiggle it, if there is play the pinion is probably worn, another sign would be grease being slung all over in the pinion area.

**I suppose it could still be the front but since you already fixed that it makes it less likely.

 

[swathdiver]

One thing I forgot to mention was torque specs. Especially the spindle nut for 4x4s. If you do not torque to manufacturer's specs you will wear out the hubs prematurely.

 

[Gerbil21]

Welcome to the forum from Oregon and for finally posting after 4+ years.

That sure sounds like a gear noise but have no idea why it only happens when turning right. At that point you are loading the left front. Someone else will chime in. I would look at that diff fluid and TC fluid.

Lol yea it's been a while also My guess was one of the preload adjusters went bad but idk, driver side looked fine

 

[Gerbil21]

rear axle bearings and/or pinion gear and/or rear end. you already replaced the front, when you turn the rear axle moves too, take a rear wheel off, unbolt the brake caliper and push/pull on the rear axle it should only move a tiny bit (as far as I know), but regardless I have had the pinion gear sound just like that and rear wheel bearing. also check your universal joints
another thing to check is grab the driveline right where it enters the rear diff (where the pinion is) and try to wiggle it, if there is play the pinion is probably worn, another sign would be grease being slung all over in the pinion area.

**I suppose it could still be the front but since you already fixed that it makes it less likely.

Rear wheel bearings and seals were replaced when I got the truck around 2yrs ago, new c clips aswell, rear u joints had a bit of play from when I checked them before all this but nothing crazy all u joints are original also rear pinion was making noise from before but again nothing crazy and seemed to always be independent to the noises I've had before also it wasn't that loud, my 05 z71 was def louder and didn't have the rest of these problems. I got to recheck the rear pinion tho

 

[Gerbil21]

One thing I forgot to mention was torque specs. Especially the spindle nut for 4x4s. If you do not torque to manufacturer's specs you will wear out the hubs prematurely.

Everything was torqued correct everytime so idk

 

[Gerbil21]

Also one other thing I've noticed is the front driveshaft on the tc side has some up and down play and noise not sure how normal that is, 4wd still works fine.

 

[Doubeleive]

Also one other thing I've noticed is the front driveshaft on the tc side has some up and down play and noise not sure how normal that is, 4wd still works fine.

sometimes these sounds can be really hard to pin down, if you are going to try and pinpoint it then you might want a set of chassis ears
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Steelman-E...348224?hash=item3b532a3fc0:g:8bUAAOSwPbBfymbG
these trucks have a tendency to "throw sound" I have had mine up on 4 jack stands in 4wd in gear running and got under it and swore up and down the sound was coming from the transmission but nope it was the rear end.

 

[swathdiver]

sometimes these sounds can be really hard to pin down, if you are going to try and pinpoint it then you might want a set of chassis ears
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Steelman-E...348224?hash=item3b532a3fc0:g:8bUAAOSwPbBfymbG
these trucks have a tendency to "throw sound" I have had mine up on 4 jack stands in 4wd in gear running and got under it and swore up and down the sound was coming from the transmission but nope it was the rear end.

Took the words right outta my keyboard!

 

[Gerbil21]

*bump* any ideas?

Noise is on acceleration mainly and also changes with suspension movement, can hear it quiet and louden going over lumps in the road while acceleration and turning right

Also chasis ears is ordered

 

[OR VietVet]

So, I am assuming you have yet to inspect for some of the options we threw out there? Had a shop look at it yet? Fluid condition? Checked hub bearings?

 

[Gerbil21]

So, I am assuming you have yet to inspect for some of the options we threw out there? Had a shop look at it yet? Fluid condition? Checked hub bearings?

It's been hard to do much working 2 jobs each 12hrs and with all the snow still around in nyc, (don't have a driveway), front wheel hubs are good, front diff fluid from the fist time I've checked it was good as well, I do need to check front and rear diff fluids again However just don't have time. I'll see if I can poss go to a cleared parking lot and get under to check the fluids again

 

[Gerbil21]

Also haven't been to a shop yet either, don't trust allot of the shops around me and most other places are expensive for even basics rather at least be on the right track myself first which is why I got the chassis ears as recommended

 

[OR VietVet]

It may still be worth it to have a shop inspect it ONLY. Should not be more than $75 to $100 to do so and make sure they document what they found and say the problem is.

 

[Gerbil21]

It may still be worth it to have a shop inspect it ONLY. Should not be more than $75 to $100 to do so and make sure they document what they found and say the problem is.

Yea I'm hoping the chasis ears can help to put me on the right track but if not it's def going to a shop

 

[Gerbil21]

Well I guess I'm getting a bit closer, pulled the rear diff fill plug and found this pretty glitter, def am gunna have to pull the cover soon, can the carrier bearings cause the noise on turns?

 

[OR VietVet]

Ys they can but I would lean toward the axle bearings. Makes no difference either way though, IMO, when the noise starts and shavings are floating in the fluid, all bearings are suspect and the surfaces of all gears are as well. When the work is done the inside of that housing needs cleaned out really good. Those axle tubes will have shavings in them as well that will mix again with the new fluid if you don't clean them out.

 

[Gerbil21]

Ys they can but I would lean toward the axle bearings. Makes no difference either way though, IMO, when the noise starts and shavings are floating in the fluid, all bearings are suspect and the surfaces of all gears are as well. When the work is done the inside of that housing needs cleaned out really good. Those axle tubes will have shavings in them as well that will mix again with the new fluid if you don't clean them out.

Yea it def needs a thorough going through but at least I can narrow the problem down some what, hopefully I'll have a clear answer when the cover is off, I know I did have pinion noise prior but it was minor and have def drove other trucks with it much worse, idk why it would just go bad so sudden.

Also I suspect the fluid is much worse, what I could touch was kind of low which was surprising however it was also sitting for a day so I suspect what was suspended in the fluid is def by far less than what's settled in the bottom