Intermittent alignment/vibrations - bad passenger side cv axle?

[Kenny782]

Truck: 2005 chevy silverado 1500 (not HD) 5.3L V8 - automatic trans - manual 4WD

 

So the CV axle needs to be changed without question, I'll get to it this weekend.

 

I discovered that yesterday when I found a pile of grease well cooked on the side of my front passenger shock lol

The small clip on the inner side of my CV axle was broken.

While the boot itself isn't torn from what I could tell but I was still in my work close so I didn't get my hands in their too far.

But if that grease has been there as long as I've had these problems... Plus how much I used 4WD with the weather this winter I have no doubt it's not worth my time repacking it with grease since it's already screwed up I'm sure.

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Now my real question is do you think this has been causing my other problems which starting a while ago but with the weather I haven't been able to get under there.

1) At times all of a sudden while braking my truck will pull to the left - I thought it was a caliper until I found this yesterday.

2) Shortly after that starts I will find the front of the truck and the steering wheel vibrate at low speeds.

3) I may need to keep the steering wheel cocked slightly to the left to go straight down the road even at highway speeds.

 

Now I thought number 3 was just a bad alignment but this morning I was driving to work, 60mph steering wheel centered and lifted my hands slightly off the wheel and she went 1/4 mile down the road perfectly.

 

So since nothing here is consistent I'm hoping it's this cv axle pretty much dead from a lack of grease that's been causing all these issues off and on.

[Jsdirt]

Sounds like you've got a couple issues going on there. Vibration, and pulling to the left tells me you might have a caliper hanging up. Although a completely trashed CV will vibrate, it shouldn't pull unless it's REAL bad ... which from the sound of it is a distinct possibility. Replace that CV axle, and go from there.

 

Check the rotors after a drive - try to go light on the brakes ... or depending on where you live, maybe you can drive a bit not using them at all ... and then check the side that it pulls to - see if that rotor is smoking hot. Check the other rotor for reference. Light or no brakes for a several miles shouldn't be hot at all. If you cannot hold your fingers on the rotor, replace the caliper on that side, and do pads & turn the rotors (both sides).

 

Just an FYI, if you go too long with a hung up caliper, you'll smoke the hub bearing on that side. A few weeks after you do your brakes, the thing will begin to let go rather rapidly, and could trash your new pads.Guess how I know that one?

[Kenny782]

I did see some very light smoke looked like it was coming out of the passenger brake pads. But I figured it was a drop of that glob of grease that might have landed on it.

I know those pads should have a good bit of life in them so if they are worn way down I'll know the caliper is garbage.

My floor jack is at my brothers or I would have pulled the tire off lastnight.

 

I've got the pads and rotors sitting in my garage ready to go if I need them (jumped the gun a few months ago) lol

And thanks for that last warning I'll sleep well tonight LOL jk

 

Seriously all of you thanks alot. I'll work on it saturday and post an update mid week when I see how she's driving.

[Kenny782]

This is kind of a duplicate post my two threads seem to be unintentionally merging lol

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Rolled through a parking lot yesterday just idling almost with the window opened, driver side pads are definitely rubbing, touch the brake pedal at all and it's gone.

And I heard some very mild intermittent clunking from that passenger CV (another thread)

 

Maybe I need a mute button for that magnaflow I could troubleshoot these things alot easier lol

 

So I'll switch out that axle and caliper this weekend. I have a spare set up calipers and pads down in the basement anyway so if the wear is excessive I'll take care of both sides.

I need an oil change too so I'll take care of all this saturday and save the PS pump for next weekend.

 

I will drop some conditioner or something into the PS reservoir though I think and see what happens over the next week.

[Kenny782]

The driver side hub was in fact clearly bad and some very strange were on the pads and the rotor so ended up doing more than I expect. What a b**ch getting that hub the new one is in.

So I got a new hub assembly, rotor and pads on that side (and a new hardware kit). The caliper seems fine so I'll just return this one.

 

New cv axle went on nice and easy on the passenger side as well as a new hub and pads so front brakes are clearly matched.

Wheel does so to be spinning a bit easier now, and the old one did seem a bit screwed up to me after half a turn you would see the inner side of the axle kind of jump.

 

Between the drag with both sides I know where my gas mileage had gone the last few months I took a 40 mile drive lastnight to test everything out. She's running nice and smooth steering is straight so far (but that was an intermittent thing) vibration is gone when braking and noise at low speeds on driver side.

 

And what makes me really happy is that drive last night used probably 25% of what I have been using on that run the last few minutes.

I must have been getting 2 miles per gallon before, I couldn't figure out for the life of me why I was burning so much gas.