In November 2004, I purchased a 2000 Jimmy SLE. I had 83,00 miles on it. I had the Jimmy 6 weeks and someone tried to steal it. They backed up into a neighbors garage and then put it in drive and drove it up in the back yard over a small evergreen tree. The auto body shop has had my Jimmy more than I've had it. Anyway, when I picked up the Jimmy from the autobody shop (the first time) there was this grinding noise and then, after the Jimmy warmed up, there was this horendous rattle when I went over bumps. The gear shift vibrated when the rattle was present. The mechanic at the autobody shop said it was the brakes and rotors. He fixed the breaks. The noise continued. One day, I had a heavy person in the passenger side/front and the noise was even worse and when I accelerated, it felt like there was something holding back the Jimmy from going forward. I was driving in 2 wheel drive and then I put it in 4 wheel drive, after a few seconds, it locked up. Finally, after several attemps to get him to hear the same noise I did, he said it was the differential. Well, I just got my Jimmy back today and it still makes the grinding noise and the horendous rattle. It rides better but the same noises are still there. I am so furious. I have had nothing pbut trouble since the accident. I love my Jimmy but I losing my mind with this noise! Any suggestions?? HELP!

Elizabeth

Check the transmission cross member, it runs from side to side across the frame in the back of the transmission. In the middle is a rubber mount which is bolted to the member and transmission, if the bolts are left loose or forgotten the transmission is free to jump around when it feels it has a need to.
I know from experience (red face) that this will cause the problem your experiencing. Also, a bent or dented drive shaft could cause a rythmic rattle and driving over a tree could sure bend a drive shaft. Or...on a trip last year I noticed some rattling from the rear end, I said slow down and limp it home, then.......BOOM. The locker rear end shreaded itself, I mean it twisted a 1 inch steel shaft off then dug 1/8 inch grooves in it with the ring gear. There's a lot of power stored up in a 3000 pound truck going 65 MPH.
My Jimmy has over 200,000 miles on it so it's not unusual for things to go boom, but that could be your problem also. Check the differental oil and look for any metal fillings or junk which could have once been bearings. Check the U-Joints to see if they are OK, also while your under there, check the drive shaft for any sign of trauma, it dosen't take much of a dent or bend to cause a lot of wobble in the shaft, which will damage the bearings in the trany and diff.
Good luck, this is a strange one, let us know what you find.
see ya
94

Thanks for the info. I'm not the one who is getting under the Jimmy. I have no clue what I am looking for. I wish I did know more about automobiles, though.

The differential was replaced with a used one. There were metal shavings in there when they opened it up. The autobody guy took myself and the mechanic for a ride. The rattle was coming from underneath the driver's seat. They looked under the Jimmy and said the cross member was bent. The cross member has become weaker and is rattling more often and louder. So, we will see after they put a used cross member on if it fixes the problem. Another question: When there is a person on the passenger side of the truck (after it's been driven awhile and everything is warmed up) the engine runs like it is being stressed. Also, when the truck is accelerated, it feels like there is a force pulling it back and the noise is a hundred times worse. Does that still sound like the cross member is the whole problem? The mechanic said that the extra weight put on the differential was causing that. He changed the differential and that did not get rid of the noise.

Elizabeth

Ya, we replaced ours out of a junk yard, excuse me an auto dismantler yard, it was about $400 and a couple hours.
I think you might be going to the wrong place, a body shop works on sheet metal, they specialize in getting the outside looking like new. It's like going to a plastic surgeon for a heart bypass. They’re both surgeons, but work in different areas.
Try finding a good suspension shop, or transmission shop, each should be able to give you an idea of the problem in less than an hour. Problem areas might be
-Torsion Bar Mounts, the torsion bars act as the springs in the front of the truck, their cross member mounts can deteriorate and cause noise.
-Transmission Mount, we talked about that one
-Differential, are you sure they got the right ratio, if the front and rear differentials have different gear rations it'll be trouble when you go the 4wd.
-Exhaust system, the catalytic converter will sometimes break internally and allow a piece of the ceramic innards to rattle around, it's usually associated with throttle position when the exhaust blows the chunk around inside the steel housing. Also it could have damaged hangers which allows the exhaust pipe to rattle against the bodywork.
What baffles me is the temperature relationship of the noise. The engine and transmission are the only things which are temperature sensitive. Possibly after the engine warms it develops a miss fire which causes something to shake and rattle.
Try putting it up on a lift, get under it and shake a few things to see if you can duplicate the rattle.
good luck
94

The insurance is paying to have this fixed, that's why I am taking it to the body shop. He has a mechanic that works with him.

They decided it was the cross member that was rattling. My question is: Why does the front end have this grinding noise when I break? And the noise is 100 times worse when there is someone sitting in the passenger seat. Can the cross member cause all of that noise? Now, it doesn't matter if the Jimmy is warmed up or not it makes the grinding and rattling noise all of the time (worse after driven awhile and worse when someone in passenger side).

Another question: What kind of test can be run to check if the Jimmy is idling right and if the transmission is shifting right? I've never had a truck before so I don't know how it should idle, shift or ride. Seems to have a rough ride over bumps. I've been in my brother-in-law's Ford F-150, it rides much nicer.

You should contact your insurance agent and tell him what is happening. He should be able to get an alternate suspension shop approved to complete the repairs properly.

Take this to a auto shop, NOT A BODY SHOP!!!

THEY ARE SCREWING YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY!!

Have a professional take a ride in it from a real mechanic.

When does it grind? Acceleration? Breaking? Left or right turn? How 'bout coasting to a stop (where possible), as opposed to braking?
If he fixed the brakes and rotors, and the noise continues, are you sure he fixed the brakes???
Which differential did he say was a problem - front?
Or rear? A front diff problem wouldn't show itself when in 2WD.
Extra weight on the differential??? That's a good one.

Thanks for all of your help.

The cross member was loose and letting other things shift out of place. The cross member was fixed and the noise is gone!!!!!!!!!!!

Elizabeth