AndyLandy46 Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 My Defender has developed an odd rumble whilst driving along, fine at low speeds, but more noticeable at 40/50mph and when cornering right. My initial thoughts were wheel bearings but checked all 4 wheels today and the is no wobble side to side and no nasty noises when they are rotated, end float at the rear seems to be about 3-5mm which I believe is OK, so this has been discounted. I have checked all propshafts for play and nothing there either. The noise seems to originate from the rear and is accompanied by a vibration, could it be something rear diff related? Is there something else I should check? Anyone in South Warwickshire fancy coming out for a drive to lend another ear? Thanks for any help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanuki Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 The "jack-it-and-wheel-wobble" test for shagged hub bearings is really rather crude - specially at the rear when the driveshaft will stop you actually loading the hub bearings as they will be loaded when the vehicle's weight on them. [ My non-Land-Rover daily-driver has a 'semi-floating' 9HA Salisbury rear axle and the hub-end bearings started to 'hum' at high speed - despite the chromed surfaces of the outer bearing-races being horribly pitted it still passed the MoT with flying colours! ] Bearings are cheap; labour-cost to strip-and-rebuild is horribly expensive. I'd strip-and-replace if your bearings have been in place for more than 50,000 miles/10 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyLandy46 Posted November 16, 2014 Author Share Posted November 16, 2014 For the sake of £20 i'll do the RH rear bearing next weekend and then go from there. I feel this may be an issue that I chase for some time... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orgasmic Farmer Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 I'd be checking for a worn prop UJ too. Park it on the level, chock a wheel and make sure it is out of gear and handbrake off-very important. Then crawl underneath and give all 4 joints a damn good wiggling. If any are worn it should be obvious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyLandy46 Posted November 16, 2014 Author Share Posted November 16, 2014 Aaah, I checked them earlier with the handbrake on. Out of curiosity whats the importance of the hand brake being off? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketomcat Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 It's impossible to check the rear prop with the hand brake on as everything from the hand brake drum down to the wheels is under load. Unless you lift a wheel off the ground. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orgasmic Farmer Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 If there is any load on the prop shaft, which will certainly be the case with the handbrake on if there is even the smallest amount of slope, then you will not detect any movement in a worn UJ. If you can rotate the prop a few mm and feel the backlash in the diffs then the UJs are not loaded and any play in the UJ will also be apparent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyLandy46 Posted November 17, 2014 Author Share Posted November 17, 2014 So checked the UJs on the flat, tbox in neutral and handbrake off, no play in the UJs. Did a bit more listening this morning. Noise is more apparent on bends but could possibly be there in the background on the straight but difficult to hear. When the noise appears and I drop off the accelerator and dip the clutch the noise remains. I had a rear RH brake binding, could it have cooked the bearing on that side? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 When was the last time you had the hubs off and repacked the wheel bearings, both in time and mileage. You should be doing that at least every twelve months. Although spinning the wheel is a test. It doesn't give the whole truth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyLandy46 Posted November 17, 2014 Author Share Posted November 17, 2014 I've checked the history for the vehicle (from 150,00 to 24400) I've run it until 246000 so far. All hubs were checked at 240K and fronts re-checked at 243K If I take the hubs off to re-pack and adjust the bearings then what consumables do I need, new lock washers and drive flange gaskets? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewHorsfield Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 Ideally new lock washers, though the old ones can be reused if they are in reasonable condition. You can use sealant on the drive flange instead of a gasket. The tolerances are not that fine, so the gasket is only serving to seal the hub. I tis worth having a tool or socket to fit the hub nuts, if you don't have one. It makes it a lot easier to judge/set the tension/torque. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyLandy46 Posted November 17, 2014 Author Share Posted November 17, 2014 Do I need new inner and outer seals too? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJM90V8 Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 If you buy a kit like the Britpart DA2380 then you will get all the bits you need - bearings, seals, washer, gasket, grease even - plus some that I don't understand why like a new nut - and all for £12-15 each side! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve b Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 you shouldn't need seals , but it's worth having some in your spares box anyway just in case , and I wouldn't use Britpart for anything that rotates . OEM supplier for brgs/ujs and seals . Get a box spanner , it's much easier and some good quality grease . cheers Steveb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 As steve b says. I keep 4 oil seals in stock I buy 10 lock rings and ten gaskets at a time. If you have a 300Tdi then keep 4 calliper bolts to hub in stock as well. Do not re-use the old lock ring, you can't set the bearings correctly as the nuts fall into the old indents, yes even if you flatten them with a hammer. Use gaskets, just a smear of grease to hold the gasket. That way you only need to wipe the surfaces when you next do the job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 If you buy a kit like the Britpart DA2380 then you will get all the bits you need - bearings, seals, washer, gasket, grease even - plus some that I don't understand why like a new nut - and all for £12-15 each side! Please don't, just don't. £15 for a full wheel bearing 'kit', seals, bearings, washers gasket and grease -no wonder you'll be lucky to get a few thousand miles out of it. Of course you can always put the failure down to 'water ingress' or similar, but what it really is, is awful parts. Timken bearings only and quality other parts, no desperate need to go with genuine stuff IME. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retroanaconda Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 Timken for bearings as above. Corteco do good oil seals. For gaskets use either genuine or nice thick ones in proper gasket material from Bearmach or the like - not the Britpart ones that are made of chip paper. Like Mike I keep these parts in stock, that way I can just replace them if they're and then replenish the shelf rather than have the vehicle sitting with it's wheels off for a few days waiting for bits. Slotting the brake pipe bracket is a good modification if it's not already fitted with one, allows you to take the hub off without bleeding the brakes or disturbing the swivel pins. I probably wouldn't go to the lengths Mike has described for wheel bearing checks but it will certainly prolong their life of they are regreased regularly, especially if used in very muddy conditions or for wading. For the cost of a gasket and a locking ring it's cheap preventative maintenance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 it may sound stupid but it might be worth checking that the eggsauce isnt the culprit, it may be resonating or vibrating against something, more so when cornering due to its rubber mounts, that is if wheelbearings dont sort it. exhaust resonation can be sometimes very subtle but bleeding annoying. mine has started resonating through the cabin and is on its way out, i need to make a nice one up properly (current one is solid mounted to turbo and supported by a rubber mount to the bottom of the seatbox - a flat panel - of which has a resonant frequency which matches the engines frequency in top gear at exactly 50mph - constantly - all the time - (FYI the M1 is 50mph avg speed for something like 30 miles AND DONT I KNOW IT!!!... haha) not sure whats caused it to become an issue now but it does need renewing, safe to say the new one will include a short braided flexi and 2x rubber exhaust mounts (mounted to chassis NOT a panel) and stainless so the tip doesent rot away! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyLandy46 Posted November 22, 2014 Author Share Posted November 22, 2014 Doh! Rear Wheel bearing replaced on O/S, and the noise was still there. However, after a test drive I came back and changed the oil in the rear diff and I reckon there was a large reduction in the noise. Does this mean my rear diff is on its way out?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 might be worth checking the prop flange bearing on the diff, and if thats okay its not a massive job to pull a rear diff out and give it an inspection for peace of mind, it oculd be the carrier bearings by the sounds of it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyLandy46 Posted November 23, 2014 Author Share Posted November 23, 2014 Urgh...Just been reading up on the replacement of carrier bearings on a Salisbury 110 axle. Sounds like an absolutely awful job to try and tackle, plus the cost of bearings and ancillaries is almost the cost of second hand axle (drum braked). After all, the axle has done 246K miles and may be time for a replacement. Does anyone sell refurb units? or do I go with a second hand unit from a 135K 110 that has got disc brakes on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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