Nissan Titan Forum banner

Clicking sound and transfer case play

12K views 9 replies 7 participants last post by  Kevkno 
#1 ·
Hello everyone,

Please forgive me if these questions have been asked before, I did some searching but could not find a solid answer. And I'm sorry if this is some what long winded.

The vehicle =4x4 2011 titan king cab with 65,000 miles with no mods that I bought 2 months ago, overall in good condition.

The issue= a clicking sound that seems to happen at random times, it seems to be coming from under the cab near the driver seat or further forward. This clicking sound will happen at various times when driving, some times during acceleration, some times when going over bumps (seems to happen more so then), some times when just driving normally. It is not a constant clicking, but rather just happens once or twice (unless on a very bumpy road, then it happens more often). It also seems to happen when I put the vehicle in gear from park.

What I've fixed =
-Torn transmission mount,(after searching on here, and finding great information) this was indeed torn and I replaced it with a new mount of the same manufacture. (At first this did seem to fix the clicking unless I went over a very large speed bump, but now the clicking has started again. I have looked to make sure the mount and cross member are still secure and not damaged and all look good).


Possible cause questions?
1) Worn front u joints=I have looked at these, there does seem to be some play in them, not much but a little bit, but could this be the issue?

2) Transfer case clicking/ problem = I have noticed that when I push up on the transfer case output front drive shaft there is a clicking sound from inside the transfer case, the movement of the shaft upward is not much maybe 1/16 inch, but when I push upward the clicking from inside the case happens every time. Is this normal or is there an issued in the transfer case (perhaps a bearing)?

3) Play in the transfer case out put shaft= when the vehicle is in park, I can turn the front drive shaft from side to side a good bit, is this also normal or is this an issue as well?

4) Axle wrap= I have replaced the transmission mount (which helped at first), is it possible the mount has become less stiff in a couple of weeks and is causing the trans to move around again? I have started building traction bars, but have not installed them yet.

5)some other front end component wear= I have a list of possible other causes in the front end outside of the transmission area, but I wanted to address the transmission questions first as this part is still under warranty.

Im sorry that this is such a long post, but I was hopping that someone with more knowledge than myself could shed some light on what may be causing this issues, Im more worried about the slop and play in the transfer case being the cause of the clicking noise.

So if anyone has any suggestions or experiences please let me know!

Thanks again for reading
 
See less See more
#5 ·
Johaun thanks for replying.

Its more of a dull thud with a pop to it. Some times it wont happen for a while, but then if I go over a rough spot or a pot hole (something that really shakes the truck) it will start happening again more often, usually when going over bumps, turning, or when first accelerating.

Thanks
 
#6 ·
Nick name,

I appreciate the response. The suspension was one area I was going to look into, it seemed like a possible cause as the click will often happen when making hard left turns, but I thought it maybe something outside of the suspension possibly as the turn may be cause the body of the vehicle to twist. Either way, the suspension was one of the first places I hope to look, as I think it might be the easiest to trouble shoot.
 
#8 ·
I had a popping sound which was inconsistent and happened during suspension articulation. Turned out to be front struts.
 
#10 ·
Hello everyone,

Please forgive me if these questions have been asked before, I did some searching but could not find a solid answer. And I'm sorry if this is some what long winded.

The vehicle =4x4 2011 titan king cab with 65,000 miles with no mods that I bought 2 months ago, overall in good condition.

The issue= a clicking sound that seems to happen at random times, it seems to be coming from under the cab near the driver seat or further forward. This clicking sound will happen at various times when driving, some times during acceleration, some times when going over bumps (seems to happen more so then), some times when just driving normally. It is not a constant clicking, but rather just happens once or twice (unless on a very bumpy road, then it happens more often). It also seems to happen when I put the vehicle in gear from park.

What I've fixed =
-Torn transmission mount,(after searching on here, and finding great information) this was indeed torn and I replaced it with a new mount of the same manufacture. (At first this did seem to fix the clicking unless I went over a very large speed bump, but now the clicking has started again. I have looked to make sure the mount and cross member are still secure and not damaged and all look good).


Possible cause questions?
1) Worn front u joints=I have looked at these, there does seem to be some play in them, not much but a little bit, but could this be the issue?

2) Transfer case clicking/ problem = I have noticed that when I push up on the transfer case output front drive shaft there is a clicking sound from inside the transfer case, the movement of the shaft upward is not much maybe 1/16 inch, but when I push upward the clicking from inside the case happens every time. Is this normal or is there an issued in the transfer case (perhaps a bearing)?

3) Play in the transfer case out put shaft= when the vehicle is in park, I can turn the front drive shaft from side to side a good bit, is this also normal or is this an issue as well?

4) Axle wrap= I have replaced the transmission mount (which helped at first), is it possible the mount has become less stiff in a couple of weeks and is causing the trans to move around again? I have started building traction bars, but have not installed them yet.

5)some other front end component wear= I have a list of possible other causes in the front end outside of the transmission area, but I wanted to address the transmission questions first as this part is still under warranty.

Im sorry that this is such a long post, but I was hopping that someone with more knowledge than myself could shed some light on what may be causing this issues, Im more worried about the slop and play in the transfer case being the cause of the clicking noise.

So if anyone has any suggestions or experiences please let me know!

Thanks again for reading
Was this ever resolved? I’m getting clicking and popping as well. I too have observed that pushing up on the front driveshaft where it enters the transfer case makes a similar clicking/popping sound. I plan to replace the u joints due to age and rust but there is no play in those. Shocks, control arms all mounts, cv axles are new. Mainly hear it at acceleration from a stop.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top