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I have a 1978 ford f150 and have had it for almost a year, yesterday it started making a clicking noise while driving down the road, it gets louder when I speed up, if I really baby it and barely press the gas it is not as bad. If I put it in park and press the gas it does not click at all, only when driving. checked the belts and they seem a little old but not loose.
Why don't you take your ride to a hill and coast down it with the engine off to make sure the noise is not present then ---- you'd be surprised to hear all the noises that are present. This would help you isolate without-a-doubt it's an engine / tranny / diffy noise...?
well i can tell you this much when i get going down the highway and let off the gas and coast it doesn't make the noise at all, only when i press the gas as the truck is moving.
Personally, I would suspect either a vacuum leak somewhere or maybe the timing advanced just a shade too much. Let's wait for some more Ford gurus to chime in here....
I think since it does it ~only~ as you accelerate, you can rule out
flywheel / tranny / diffy problems. Have you checked for loose items under the hood ---- something loose could be fluttering under a load -- sometimes the baffle in oem air cleaners will vibrate under a load and create this noise....
That's about all I can suggest at this time..... let's see what the old-timers say....
If it doesnt make the noise when you are sitting still or coasting... then I would look at the u-joints and possibly the rear end gears...just a thought but I have had u-joints that only made noise while under load.
If you have an automatic, a cracked flex plate can make a noise like a card touching a bicycle spoke. A worn crank thrust bearing can cause the flex plate to touch the bellhousing. Note, I experienced this exact thing on a C$%vy.
If it's road speed related it's probably U-joints. You might have to pull the driveshaft to find it 'cuz it might be dry and ready to fail but still tight. If you pull the shaft and move the joints you'll feel where it's tight.
If it's engine speed related it could be an exhaust leak or possibly something else mechanical. If the clicking stays the same speed at the same road speed in 2 different gears, it's in the driveline.
Hope this helps.
Greg
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Thanks for the suggestions guys, pretty sure its not the U-joints because I just replaced them about 3 months ago and the ride is still real smooth and there is no play in the drive shaft. I'm going to take it and have it checked out today and see what the problem is.
Look at the brakes. Mine does the same, pretty loudly. It is a slow click that increases with speed - only while driving. I suspect it is the pads loose in the calipers.
Sometimes when the drums have recently been turned, the turning sets up a screw pattern which pulls the shoes away from the backing plate until they snap back.
Just another idea.