Unknown rattle

[lfhoward]

Hi All,

I replaced upper ball joints and sway bar links lately, which improved the ride a ton. Now I am hearing a random rattle, sort of like a rattling heat shield or something, from the passengers side. I can’t find any loose heat shields. The only thing that seems a bit loose is the right side CV shaft.

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Is there supposed to be that much space between it and the differential housing (about 1 cm)? Thinking maybe it got pulled out a bit when I had the ball joint disconnected and what I am hearing could be play where it connects to the intermediate shaft or the diff itself. The noise is definitely on this side, but doesn’t appear to be rotational and seems sort of random.

Could someone take a peek under their KK and tell me if that much of a gap between the passengers side CV and diff housing is normal? Thanks!

Edit: the CV boot on the transfer case end of the front driveshaft is intact. I wanted to put in this detail as it is a common failure point that causes noise, but it seems ok on mine.

 

[huntert98]

I noticed a lot of wobble where my passenger CV enters my diff housing. replaced the CVs and still the same wobble lol. My only guess is that its supposed to be like that?

 

[lfhoward]

Thanks for the info on the wobble!

Does the “can” of the passengers side CV sit 1/2 inch out from the diff housing like mine, or is yours in closer? Trying to figure out if I have to tap the axle shaft in a bit or not.

 

[huntert98]

I think mine has the same gap you are talking about. Heres a video of the wobble too

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[lfhoward]

Awesome, thanks Hunter. That looks the same as mine. So no noises from yours? I wonder if my CV is slowly going bad. Right now I can only hear the rattle sound with the windows down and driving next to a barrier so the sound reflects back. I think I am only noticing this now that I took care of worn out ball joints and sway bar links, because this subtle noise was overshadowed before by other louder noises.

 

[huntert98]

I dont hear any rattle from mine. A while back I had an intermittent rattle from the driver side that i thought was that CV wobble.

During the heat of covid i replaced almost evrything underneath the front: CVs, all balljoints, tie rods, steering rack and differential bushings, wheel bearings. It did go away after that, so I can confirm the CV may wobble when you poke it, but not on the road.

Do keep looking into this though, I realized the rattle i was hearing was bad after passenger tire had severly abnormally worn

Maybe inner/outer tie rod? sure its not either driveshaft?

 

[lfhoward]

Thanks, I’ll report back if/when I figure this out. The Jeep is getting aligned now as I type. I didn’t replace the lower ball joints or tie rod ends as I couldn’t detect any play. But they certainly do have the miles on them, and eventually they will need to be replaced. Looking back at my records, LBJ’s were replaced with Moogs in 2012 and I have never done the tie rods! But the UBJ’s I just replaced were utterly trashed and had like 1/8” of play. It was only a matter of time until they failed.

 

[lfhoward]

Just for reference, the noise is on the passengers side, and:
The drivers side CV is original (182,000 miles now)
The passengers side CV and intermediate shaft were replaced in 2013. (They now have 125,000 miles on them.)
The rear CV on the front drive shaft was replaced in 2016 at 122,000 miles and seems to be still good.
I have been 4 inch lifted since early 2013 (60,500 miles on the Jeep back then).

 

[Cobi Heckmann]

It sounds like you’ve checked this, but on my front right cat the heat shield is loose enough to make a rattle sound. I hear this a bunch during the first few minutes after start up, but then (I’m guessing) the metal expands enough to tighten the gap and it’s hidden by the other noises too. Hope you find it!

 

[huntert98]

Just for reference, the noise is on the passengers side, and:
The drivers side CV is original (182,000 miles now)
The passengers side CV and intermediate shaft were replaced in 2013. (They now have 125,000 miles on them.)
The rear CV on the front drive shaft was replaced in 2016 at 122,000 miles and seems to be still good.
I have been 4 inch lifted since early 2013 (60,500 miles on the Jeep back then).

wow your gettin up there in miles too! im just a hair under 200k now

 

[pippo0871]

I think mine has the same gap you are talking about. Heres a video of the wobble too

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That is way too much play. You should replace that CV and the intermediate.

 

[John P.]

I had a rattle after replacing my sway bar links on the front. I ******* up and didn't use the one piece design as a replacement. The bore the bolt's went through was too large causing my rattle. I ordered one piece links and matched new bolts to them and tapped the control arms to match the bolt's. M12 with a 1.5 pitch fit the links and have no play. Long shot but figured I'd share.

 

[lfhoward]

Update:
It actually is this.

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There is 1/16” of play when I try to move it, and I can hear the ball bearings clattering around.

Fixed it back in 2015. I can fix it again.

 

[John P.]

Good deal, always great to find the issue.

 

[lfhoward]

Ordered a new CV kit from driveshaftparts.com. $45.10 shipped.

Jeep Liberty KK 2008-2012 / Dodge Nitro 2007-2012 Front Driveshaft CV Joint Kit

Jeep Liberty KK 2008-2012 / Dodge Nitro 2007-2012 Front Driveshaft CV Joint Kit

www.driveshaftparts.com

 

[lfhoward]

That was fast. Two day shipping.

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