DAMNIT!!!
started to hear a clunking noise from the driver's side rear on dips/bumps at low speeds and started to hunt...
FOUND IT! cracked axle housing where other's have cracked...with the lube leaking...its only on the driver's side.
How to fix? I know I saw an earlier post about this, and the crack was welded.
exactly, how to go about this? I don't know how to weld, so I'll prolly go to a muffler shop or something. how much is involved? would I need to take everything apart? how about preping it? or, do i just have someone lay a bead down over the crack...
And, would this be the cause of the clunking sound?-it only happens when the left rear hits a dip/bump at lower speeds (like in that good ol so cal traffic)

not sure about the clunk. remove the lower shock bolt. then remove the ubolts, and bracket that holds the lower shock mount. undo the brake line from the axle (not from the brake cylinder) and get it clean it up out of the way. clean everything with brake cleaner. use a wire wheel to scuff it all up and clean off paint, etc. i then did three passes with TIG and connected into the old weld on the sides. then check your fluid level.

i hadnt realize this has happened to others , but i found fluid leaking on my passenger side rear axle so i took it to my local tire shop, and low and behold it was a cracked axle housing , where the shock mount is attached. my buddy and i welded the shount mount to the axle where the crack was . we removed the u bolt after jacking the vehicle up to take off the pressure , and cleaned it up with a wire brush, added the weld and put it back togther.
it looked to me like the weld had never gotten completed fro mthe factory, or was a real bad welder . my tire shop said they hadnt ever seen that happen before , so i never made a big deal out of it . have alot of other people encountered this ?
i guess ill have to take a look at the drivers side now too , i probably should have done that while i was under there doing the other side.

erik b of oregon

oregon erik,

yes, i think about a dozen of us have seen it on one side or the other. do you have a lift?

no lift as of yet , i am running a 31 nch tire on 15 inch rims though . to me it looked as if the welds jsut hadnt been completed from the factory.

but no signs of bad welds on the dirvers side yet .

erik b of oregon

Someone rang???

Cracked axle housing under the spring mount. most have been on the passenger side.

Clunk? no fluid in the rims? I lost a seal once...but not a clunk.

<img border="0" title="" alt="[Razz]" src="images/icons/tongue.gif" />

The axle tube is just a tube before the perches are welded on, so an incomplete weld wouldn't leave a hole...

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Tahoma, Arial, Helv, Helvetica, Sans">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Tahoma, Arial, Helv, Helvetica, Sans">Originally posted by ErikB:
<strong>The axle tube is just a tube before the perches are welded on, so an incomplete weld wouldn't leave a hole...</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Tahoma, Arial, Helv, Helvetica, Sans">erik is right. my crack was below the weld, not part of the weld. an incorrect welding procedure may have left it brittle in that area.

One thing that I was taught by an old person who use to repair a lot of stuff where I worked was you should drill a small hole at each end of the crack. This stops the crack from continuing out of the weld.

If you look at many of the welds on your truck, you will see places that it looks like the weld was not finished. The reason being if the weld does start to crack, the crack will stop where the gap in the weld is and not go all the way around the welded part. I learned this from a person that I worked for as a kid building frames for Double A fuel dragsters.

just did some more checking under my truck and my buddies weld job didnt fix the leak , it slowed it down a ton but i think he missed a spot .

erik b of oregon