[Firemt27]

Yesterday for the first time ever I had my Titan (08' CC 4x4 big tow) engaged in 4x4 at highway speeds for a long period of time. I've had her in 4x4 many times before this but usually its just tooling around town at low speeds. At speeds 30-45mph (45 was as fast as I was going) there was a rough sound coming from the front axle/diff. Hard to describe but when the 4x4 was engaged only at those speeds it produced this noticeable noise. A dull rough/moaning/rubbing type sound. Almost like the rear was cruising on dry pavement and the front was cruising on hard pack dirt roads. No vibrations, no metal banging, no creaking, etc just a noticeable new noise/feeling. Is this normal for our trucks?

 

[bestatchess]

Some people say it is normal, I don't have it.

http://www.titantalk.com/forums/titan-engine-transmission-drivetrain/104359-front-driveline-groan.html

 

[Scan999]

Yesterday for the first time ever I had my Titan (08' CC 4x4 big tow) engaged in 4x4 at highway speeds for a long period of time. I've had her in 4x4 many times before this but usually its just tooling around town at low speeds. At speeds 30-45mph (45 was as fast as I was going) there was a rough sound coming from the front axle/diff. Hard to describe but when the 4x4 was engaged only at those speeds it produced this noticeable noise. A dull rough/moaning/rubbing type sound. Almost like the rear was cruising on dry pavement and the front was cruising on hard pack dirt roads. No vibrations, no metal banging, no creaking, etc just a noticeable new noise/feeling. Is this normal for our trucks?

I had a similar noise and it turned out to be the front u-joint.

 

[Firemt27]

Ok, so possibly normal but maybe not lol. I have a rear vibration that might be my u-joints. When I do the rear axle u-joints, I'll do the front too. There is a small amout of oil leak on the front diff that I will bring to the stealership and have them give the front diff a once over too. With all these know drivetrain, front,and rear axle problems, I'm super paranoid with the slightest issue with my truck.

 

[rynomx785]

I don't have any noises or vibrations in 4wd.

 

[HRTKD]

My front end hums a bit in 4hi. I've driven at highway speeds in 4hi for a few miles. Once while towing. Always with at least some snow on the road.

 

[Northern Titan]

Hey, I am new to this forum and having the same issue. I just bought a 12 Titan CC SV 4x4 a couple months ago and threw it in 4x4 for the first time last month. Heard a rubbing noise coming from the front end when I gave it gas. You can feel it too in the floor boards and steering wheel. 2 buddies of mine have the same trucks and neither of there's do it. Took it to the dealer and they changed the front diff but it still does it. Now they have ordered a front drive shaft for it. We will see if that fixes it. I live in a place where it is winter 8 months of the year so I need 4x4 all the time and the noise is driving me nuts. Plus sounds like something is going to break when driving at 60 km/h.

 

[SSNOS]

OP, I'm curious as to what type of surface conditions you were running on. I'm in MA and I know we haven't had enough snow here to be able to run 4wd and especially at highway speeds. 4wd is a no no on dry or even just wet pavement.

 

[Northern Titan]

OP, I'm curious as to what type of surface conditions you were running on. I'm in MA and I know we haven't had enough snow here to be able to run 4wd and especially at highway speeds. 4wd is a no no on dry or even just wet pavement.

I was on a mix of hard packed snow and ice. It was pretty slick out. I was stopped when I engaged it for its a brand new truck. The moment I gave it gas I herad the rubbing in the front end. At 60 km/h and higher it became pretty loud.

 

[FishnAlaska]

OP, I'm curious as to what type of surface conditions you were running on. I'm in MA and I know we haven't had enough snow here to be able to run 4wd and especially at highway speeds. 4wd is a no no on dry or even just wet pavement.

The original post was 2 years ago, so yeah there proibably was snow on the ground in January of 2011.

 

[Elite130]

I put my '12 SL into 4x4 a few weeks ago for the first time as well. I get the same humming noise as others have mentioned. Referencing other posts, it seems like it is a normal sound. I have to take the T in next week for some warranty work on the rear driver's side window. I'll have them take a listen then.

 

[Northern Titan]

One of my buddies has a 2010 Pro-4X and another buddy has a 2012 SV, same as mine. Neither of them do it. One dealer says its common and it usually ends up being the front drive shaft. Will find out soon enough...

 

[SSNOS]

The original post was 2 years ago, so yeah there proibably was snow on the ground in January of 2011.

Thanks. I totally missed the original post date. In that case I would say it's normal. My 08 did the same thing, my 11 is much quieter in 4wd, but as expected it's still louder in 4wd than in 2wd.

 

[Northern Titan]

So the dealer changed the front drive shaft but it still makes that groan while accelerating in 4x4. While they were working on it I took a 2013 out and played around with the 4x4. No noise or vibration. So they have changed the front diff, drive shaft and even popped open both diffs to make sure the right gears are in there. Does anyone have any ideas? Could it be a bearing? It's definitely coming from the drivers side wheel.

 

[HRTKD]

Could be the transfer case. You say that the sound is coming from the driver's side wheel, but have you had someone else drive it while you stuck your head out the passenger window?

I won't rule out a bearing but if it was bad I would expect it to sound bad all the time. The entire front axle assembly (axle shafts, differential, drive shaft) is turning when ever the Titan is moving. It isn't under a load, but it is turning. I'm not sure if that helps you or not but I figured I would throw that out there.

 

[Northern Titan]

Thanks HRTKD for your input, makes sense that I don't hear it for its not under load in 2wd yet everything is still spinning. I am going to get a buddy to stick his head out and listen to see if he hears anything out the p.side. Man, its frustrating. The Titan is the truck that I have always wanted and finally I get one. And brand new to boot. And it makes this terrible sound in 4x4. Oh well, good thing its all under warranty. Perhaps my next attempt will be to take it to a different dealer...

 

[Phil'sFrontier]

Ours makes that humming noise too. Doesn't sound like anything bad to me...

 

[Northern Titan]

...so my saga continues. I took my 12 Titan to a different dealer to see what they say. the tech heard the groan right away and said it doesn't seemk to be drivetrain but rather I am getting a transfer of vibration through somewhere. He showed me a service bulletin where the tech will put shims into the rear leaf springs. Only thing is in the service bulletin it doesn't mention anything about having to be in 4x4. I guess it can't hurt to try but I really don't think thats the problem. And while I was there I drove another new one and it was silent.
I am wondering if it could be just a bad tire? Or wheel out of balance? Only does it while I am accelerating.

 

[Spackermen]

Your not alone... I had my '12 SV in 4hi last night on wet roads, while snowing. Not sure if the road was slick, but when I accelerated, at around 40 mph it sounded horrible. Like something was very wrong. Did you get something figured out with your situation? Maybe there was a bad batch of front diffs or something, cause it can't be normal.

 

[Elite130]

I guess I should give you all an update on my situation...

As I posted earlier in this thread, I had a front-end humming/vibrating noise that only happened while in 4wd and, like Northern Titan, under acceleration. I took the Titan to the dealership to take a look at it. After taking the technician for a ride and demonstrating when the noise occurred, he started digging in to find the cause. After an hour, he came out and identified the humming/vibration was from the transfer case. The technician drained the oil and found the oil smelled burnt and it was a grayish/black color with a lot of metal shavings floating in it. Also, the plug had a lot of metal on the magnetic plug. To sum it all up...the transfer case was shot. They ordered a new transfer case and got it installed a few days later. The technician took the truck out for a test drive and found there was still a vibration. It was less than before, but still there. After some additional research and speaking with Titan engineers, they instructed the technician to swap out the B-pipes. I don't know why the B-pipes would cause a weird vibration while in 4wd, maybe an exhaust scavenging issue, but regardless, they swapped them out for the new design. The engineers said they found this issue on a few of the '12s and this will solve the issue. I have been driving the truck around for the past month with the new transfer case and B-pipes. The vibration is indeed less, but still there. I was going to drive it around for a while and try out the 4wd in a few snowstorms and see if anything changes. I keep meaning to test drive another '12 or a new '13 to see if the noise is there.

Northern Titan...let me know if the shims on the rear leaf springs help. That may be my next fix.

Spackermen...my noise/vibration got worse the faster I went and while under acceleration. The other thing I noticed when I went on a test drive with the service technician, you can only really feel the vibration on the driver's side. This makes me wonder, like you, if it is a differential or bearing issue. The vibration is mostly felt at the feet.

Lets keep this thread going and see if between us 3 find a solution.