vufgew

Long story short i have the ticking from the right rear wheel allllllllll the time no matter what. i know you guys are gonna tell me about the axle nut TSB but what i wanna know is whats causing it. the reason is because im replacing my wheel bearing now because the same wheel has developed a wom-wom-wom noise at 40mph and up. what i wanna know is what is the actual tick from? is it form the wheel bearing or is it form the actual axle cv joint. i was expecting to swap the bearing and hub, tighten down the axle nut and not hear anymore clicking. but from what ive been reading it might actually be the axle. im also already replacing the driver side axle at the same time due to a torn cv boot. this morning i checked for axle play and not only did it not make the click that i hear on the road but the play didnt seem excessive. it moved slightly(millimeters) on the diff side but thats it noithing that seemed outta spec. im scared that it may not be the bearing and hub at all just bad axles but i wont be able to tell untili swap out the bearing and hub and see if the noise persists. what do you guys think?

i would really appreciate the help and im sorry about bringing up anther thread about this i know theres plenty. i just couldnt find any that answered my question.
thanks in advance and dont be afraid to get technical.

S2oooNvegas

The "click" is from the axle rotating in the hub itself. Can you picture what im saying? shrink yourself down and imagine you are standing on the splines. There isnt supposed to be much give there at all, but when the axle nut comes loose it allows the axle to begin to move when it shouldnt. And it slowly wears itself some more room in there. Then when you back up, the splines are tense against that side of the hubs teeth. Then when you go to go forward, the axle rotates 2 or 3 thou and when it contacts the other side of the hubs splines and comes to an abrupt stop.. CLICK.
Torquing it down tighter cures the issue.
Now if you have a failed axle joint then you may also have a click from there. An experienced ear that has heard many clicking s2ks would be able to discern between the 2.
If your wheel bearing is bad, that will get you the nodular vibration you were hearing.

So yeah, fix the wheel bearing, replace the axle with bad boot while your in there and then torque it all back down to supa tight spec and youll be back to normal once again.

vufgew

so apart from the hub being damaged on the splines, due to the back and forth movement, is it safe to say that the axle splines may also be getting damaged from the same movement?

also, will it be necessary to get a camber kit when i get my car aligned? im only dropped an inch but when i went to the tire shop they told me that due to the camber that they saw on my car that it may need a camber kit to be able to put it into spec. ???

thanks for the response btw ,you answered my initial question.

Billman250

The axle will be fine, and the hub splines will be fine.

The initial click is the axle movment as stated.

Rotation noises at LOW speed (5-10mph, creek creek creek) is the inner bearing race shifting on the hub. After some time, the race will lose it's press fit to the hub and the hub will be shot. Wheel bearing damage is soon to follow.

no camber kit needed for 1" drop.

Bottom line, the hub might be shot.

Here's a bad hub. Note the shiny ring on top, that is the un-worn part. All the dark area is the hub worn away from a shifting race.

vufgew

thanks billman as i was fearing the worst i bought a new hub and bearing from honda. im getting like 4 different noises just from the passenger rear so im sure it'll all be gone to hell.
im also swapping cv buckets causing minor vibration due to my drop. is there any special tool that ill need for the boot clamps? or can i just use needle-nose pliers do disassemble and reassemble them?

S2oooNvegas

Yup, bill said it and showed it.