Expert: Carl Brandt - 6/23/2005

Question
1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee with all the time 4 wheel drive.

I have a front end/wheel noise: it sounds like a metal rod is slapping from on hub to the other in the front end.
It only happens when I first start to roll and the wheel is turned to the left or right - doesn't have to be a sharp turn but it is a lot more noticeable on a sharp turn.

As soon as the wheels make a full revolution it goes away.

Once in a great while it will make the noise if I sit still and turn the wheel.  There is no vibration transfered to the steering wheel.

5 mechanics have given up.

I have replaced: brakes, rotors, wheel bearings, cv joints and the spider gears.

If you remove the front drive shaft it still makes the noise.

Any help will be greatly appreciated by me and the mechanics who are standing around, scratching their heads and muttering profane syllables.  

Answer
Patrick,

Since you have replaced most of the parts that I would suspect, your next step, is to check out all of your steering components, and the u-joints in the front drive line.  This is a tough one to diagnose without seeing, or driving the Jeep.  Another possibility, is one of your front brake calipers is hanging up, or binding.  The Grand Cherokees did have some problems with the front brakes.  See if you can get a friend to stand near the front end of the Jeep while you do what you can to make the sound, and have them try to pin point the location the sound is coming from.  If you can do this, then you can try to troubleshoot the problem from there.  

If this doesn't locate the problem, then I would go to a reputable front end shop, and have the Jeep's front end aligned.  When this is done, they can check the ball joints, along with the steering components to see if there is a worn, or broken part in the steering system.  Any of these parts can cause this type of noise.

To a lesser degree, I have seen broken, or loose suspension components such as the shocks, or steering stabilizer cause similar noises.

Carl