I have a 2003 F250 Ext Cab 158" wheel base, 5.4, auto. 2wd

Last week I noticed a squeak squeak squeak while driving through town, sounded like the u-joint.

I got home, jacked it up and pulled the rear shaft. Unfortunately I, bone-headedly, did not mark it when I pulled it. I took it into town and had a shop put in two new U-joints from autozone.

I got home and, forgetting to mark it, put the driveshaft in 180 degrees out.

This caused the whole assembly to get out of balance and tear up the carrier bearing.

I replaced everything, pulled the complete shaft and disassembled it to put the new carrier on it...again, for some reason I didn't mark it. I knew I was supposed to, but for some reason me and Murphy were helping each other out that day.

It destroyed the carrier bearing again. So I limped it to my mechanic the next morning.

He went through and replaced the front u-joint and carrier and called it good. I picked it up that afternoon and it was vibrating again.

I took it back and they kept it overnight and fixed it again. The problem they had was the driveshaft was coming back on the 'flex' and rubbing into the carrier instead of sliding back and forth, it was sticking.

They got that all fixed up and the wife picked up the truck while I was at work Friday. I called her at lunch and she said it was still squeaking like before I took it to the shop. I get home that evening and drive it and, sure enough, it's squeaking like it has a bad u-joint.

But the squeak didn't start right away, I had to drive it about 5 miles for it to start, and then I didn't hear it until I slowed down enough to get rid of the wind noise.

I took it back to the mechanic this morning. He called me around 4 and said they drove it about 25 miles around town and on the highway and couldn't duplicate the noise.

He said they went ahead and hit the grease zirks on all 3 u joints(even the ones they didn't install on the rear shaft) and they couldn't hear any squeaks.

So I pick it up, drive through town a bit and start heading home. No squeaks.

I get about 20 miles out of town and slow down going over a bridge with the windows down, and there is the squeak again. Still sounds like a bad u-joint. But I didn't hear it until I drove it about 25 or 30 miles.

Does anyone have any idea what this noise is or what I need to be looking for? This is driving me crazy

 

So, the noise has been found.

After my mechanic said he couldn't duplicate the noise, I came home and parked it.

The next day I called another mechanic that I don't deal with very often(not because he's a bad mechanic, just located in the wrong spot for convenience) and took it in to his shop and he rode with me while it was making the noise.

DEER IN HEADLIGHTS, accompanied by, I have no idea what that noise is.

He did, however; say that he's heard a similar noise on 4wd's around the front wheel bearings and it's some type of dust cover.

So, about 5 yesterday, he calls me and tells me they found it.

It's some type of dust cover/seal going into the differential right at where the yolk plugs in.

I should have my truck back today.