bdbrooksy Posted June 30, 2006 Share Posted June 30, 2006 I am absolutely furious. Some joker decided to partially lock my drivers side Warn manual hub(which I only installed last weekend). The result was that when I was on the highway on my 10 mile commute last night, a knocking began from my drivers side hub/cv axle area. Well, I guessed what the problem might be by the time I was pulling in my driveway and the banging had gotten much worse, so I hopped out and sure enough--the hub was partially engaged--about 3/4 of the way to the locked position. So, I disengaged it and hoped for the best. Well when I got in this AM to go to work, the hub is now unlocked, but the banging is still there(sound like a freaking helicopter under my left front) and almost seems to be getting worse. (It seems to stop when I brake or turn the wheel hard) So, my question for anyone out there that may have some true mechanical knowledge is----What has this situation damaged? Is it the Warn hub, inner hub or possibly the cv axle, or something else. Any insight would be greatly appreciated, I am so f...ing pissed and I hope that it is not a major fix. Thanks alot! BB NC USA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted June 30, 2006 Share Posted June 30, 2006 I would remove that hub completely, all the way down to the studs: Make sure the other hub is unlocked also, then try to rotate the front driveshaft by hand, checking to see if it binds as you rotate it. Do the same thing to the left-side CV axle. Finally, drive around the block to see if the sound remains. If the sound is gone, it was the hub you removed, which you should check for damage. If the sound remains, further diagnosis is required. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebaz Posted June 30, 2006 Share Posted June 30, 2006 Well with my experience with 4-Wd components ( over 30 years)it shouldnt have mattered if the hub was unlocked or not unless you were actually driving in 4-wd. Park the truck and find out what the issue is. The pathfinder system is designed to run without hubs and all components turning and that is all that will happen if the hubs are locked whether its one or both hubs. Partialy ingaged hubs could concievably chew up the gear cogs and send powdered metal into your wheel bearings but this is unlikly. I am more worried about loose lug nuts or loose wheel bearings since you broke into these parts when you put in your hubs. Not knowing what you have done or had done in there let alone lift issues ( I am assuming Lift because otherwise you wouldnt be putting hubs on) I cant comment too much. If it is something serious it will probably the inner axle shaft and with hubs it shouldnt be turning unless in 4WD so it shouldnt make any noise. From where I am sitting the whole assembly should be pulled down and reassembled. We are talking about the part time transfer case here and not the full time case right. Hubs on the full time case wont do any good and parts will still be turning. Anyway since this work was done such a short time ago I suspect assembly error. Retrace your steps that got you here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted June 30, 2006 Share Posted June 30, 2006 it shouldnt have mattered if the hub was unlocked or not unless you were actually driving in 4-wd.... I am more worried about loose lug nuts or loose wheel bearings since you broke into these parts when you put in your hubs. That's not necessarily true. Installing hubs on the Pathfinder does not require removal of the wheel bearings. Also, if only one hub is locked and the transfer case is not in 4WD, then the locked-hub wheel will cause only one of the CV axles to rotate, which in turn rotates one side gear in the differential, which in turn causes the other side gear and CV axle to rotate in the opposite direction. Unlike the ring gear, the gears in the differential case weren't meant to spin constantly. The constant "differential" action can cause the diff to get too hot, spin bearings, etc. This is bad. If the hub was partially engaged, it may have damaged the hub internals. Hopefully this is all that happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted June 30, 2006 Share Posted June 30, 2006 If the hub was only partially engauged, I bet it was making noise from partially latching onto the axle. The diff should be fine, regardless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdbrooksy Posted June 30, 2006 Author Share Posted June 30, 2006 Thank you guys very much for taking the time to respond to my situation. I guess that my course of action will be to strip the hub down and see if there is anything obvious. Dean, I will follow your recommendations, but one question, do I actually drive around the block minus the outer hub completely? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted June 30, 2006 Share Posted June 30, 2006 do I actually drive around the block minus the outer hub completely? Yes, just don't drive through mud, dirt, or water while doing so. The outer bearing is exposed to the elements, but a quick spin around the block shouldn't hurt. If you're lucky you may find the problem after removing the hub, so you might not need to drive around the block at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4x4le Posted July 3, 2006 Share Posted July 3, 2006 ooh, let me know what you find. hey b, remember when i told you that hubs are just something else that can f up? and you dont really NEED them? well i hope the best for you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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