1994 grand cherokee,5.2
hi all.. glad i found this forum.. ive been having a problem with my front axle for a while. Ive had the front drive shaft disconnected for about a year.. (ive had the front differential replaced,splines) i then re-connectected the shaft & im still having the same problem..there is a rumbling noise(sounds like gears are grinding)... how do i know if its the VC, or the transfer case??

(ive had the front differential replaced,splines)


Does this mean that the bearings and gears are new and correctly adjusted?

What splines are refering to??

The noise must have disappeared when you disconnected the drive shaft - right??

Have you drained the transfer case oil into a clean container and let it settle any "stuff" out?? Put in new DextronII (capacity I show for a np249 is 3.4 pints)

If something is actually grinding in the transfer case, you should see the result in the bottom of the drain pan.

A bad VC usually shows itself when the vehicle is turning a corner....

JD

Theres an imposter, get em'!

ya see, I'm JOJO, I drive a 94 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited 5.2L....haha thats funny.

Sorry to impose...lol

Does this mean that the bearings and gears are new and correctly adjusted?

What splines are refering to??

The noise must have disappeared when you disconnected the drive shaft - right??

Have you drained the transfer case oil into a clean container and let it settle any "stuff" out?? Put in new DextronII (capacity I show for a np249 is 3.4 pints)

If something is actually grinding in the transfer case, you should see the result in the bottom of the drain pan.

A bad VC usually shows itself when the vehicle is turning a corner....

JD
hey JD, thanks for your reply..
Ok, I believe there are new bearings & gears.. The reason why I say "believe" is because my dad had work done to it & I'm not sure if it was both the bearings & gears (but i will find out). The truck is not driveable when the drive shaft is connected ( the truck sort of jerks).. but it's fine when disconnected.
I'm going to drain the transfer case this weekend & check the fluid. When you say "A bad VC usually shows itself when the vehicle is turning a corner.".. what does it do exactly when you turn? Because I have not noticed anything really.. Again.. thanks for your feedback

Theres an imposter, get em'!

ya see, I'm JOJO, I drive a 94 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited 5.2L....haha thats funny.

Sorry to impose...lol

hey Jojo.. wow that is a coincidence.. but what color do you have? Mine is white!

Black

hey JD, thanks for your reply..
Ok, I believe there are new bearings & gears.. The reason why I say "believe" is because my dad had work done to it & I'm not sure if it was both the bearings & gears (but i will find out). The truck is not driveable when the drive shaft is connected ( the truck sort of jerks).. but it's fine when disconnected.
I'm going to drain the transfer case this weekend & check the fluid. When you say "A bad VC usually shows itself when the vehicle is turning a corner.".. what does it do exactly when you turn? Because I have not noticed anything really.. Again.. thanks for your feedback

if you have not notice any problem when turning then your VC is most likely still good. A bad VC is very noticeable, you will have hopping and binding when cornering.

If you have a problem when you connect the front driveshaft, take a good look at the VC. It will keep the front and rear diffs from working together which leads to hopping, jumping, and a grinding sound.

If you have a problem when you connect the frint driveshaft, take a good look at the VC. It will keep the front and rear diffs from working together which leads to hopping, jumping, and a grinding sound.

hi Beach, im going to drain the transfer case this week &see if there is anything in the fluid.

VC failure is a well documented problem with the NP249 transfer case. If your ZJ only has probelms when you turn, I am 99% sure that it is the VC. The VC allows the outer wheels to turn faster than the inner wheels during turns. If it is failing the wheels will hop and bind in tight turns. The VC oil is sealed inside the VC. Once the VC fluid starts to leak the only fix is to replace the VC or the TC. Sometimes, it will only show a problem after it gets hot from driving awhile. My VC was fine until I took a long drive at highway speeds for 45 or more minutes. Most of use test it by doing very tight figure eights in a parking lot. Turn the wheels lock to lock and see what happens. If every is fne you are not home free yet. Now take it for an hour so drive on the open highway and do the test again. This test requires both drive shafts. VC's start to go after 100K-150K. They all go sooner or later. If you plan on keeping the ZJ a long time consider swapping in a 242, a 231 or a NP249 with 247 guts. If you rebuild the 249 the problem will come again over the next 100K or so. I hope this helps.