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Hubs?

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Old Dec 2, 2009 | 04:02 AM
  #1  
WyoExplorer's Avatar
WyoExplorer
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Hubs?

well a few months back I started having a problem with my 1998 Ford Explorer Sport.
I was taking a corner and it make this humming and grinding sound, making the truck slow down and a popping sound.

I was told by many it's the hubs, is this true?
if so, would having them re-packed do the trick or would they need replaced.

and while on the subject, is there any way I can make them manual locking?
thank you!
 
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Old Dec 2, 2009 | 01:09 PM
  #2  
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1Aauto
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From: Westford, MA
Originally Posted by WyoExplorer
well a few months back I started having a problem with my 1998 Ford Explorer Sport.
I was taking a corner and it make this humming and grinding sound, making the truck slow down and a popping sound.

I was told by many it's the hubs, is this true?
if so, would having them re-packed do the trick or would they need replaced.

and while on the subject, is there any way I can make them manual locking?
thank you!
I'm not sure if you can convert them over to manual.Maybe someone will chime in that has done this.

If you need a set of hubs we carry them.Here's a link to them on our site.

Ford Explorer Sport Trac Hubs
 
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Old Dec 2, 2009 | 04:11 PM
  #3  
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mrshorty
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From: UT
I was told by many it's the hubs, is this true?
if so, would having them re-packed do the trick or would they need replaced.
Symptoms sound consistent with bad hubs. 2nd gen's came with a sealed, non-serviceable type bearing/hub in the front, so there's no provision for "re-packing."
and while on the subject, is there any way I can make them manual locking?
My understanding of later 2nd gen front ends is that they are "live" meaning that they are always engaged. '95 and '96 used a vacuum operated center axle disconnect (CAD) in the differential to disengage the driveshaft from the axles. I expect you could swap in the older diff if you wanted, in conjunction with the so called "brown wire mod" to disable the 4Auto feature. Rangers of that era use a PVH (pulse-vacuum hub), I believe, in conjunction with a 13-54 traditional part time t-case, but there seem to be a lot of complaints about the PVH hub set-up. I think there is an aftermarket "manual" hub option for the PVH set-up, but I know nothing about it.

If I have grossly misrepresented anything, I hope someone more familiar with the 2nd gens will chime in.
 
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Old Dec 3, 2009 | 12:00 AM
  #4  
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WyoExplorer
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Originally Posted by mrshorty
Symptoms sound consistent with bad hubs. 2nd gen's came with a sealed, non-serviceable type bearing/hub in the front, so there's no provision for "re-packing."
I was afraid of that, and by looking at 1A has for the picture, it looks like manual hubs are NOT an option.

Originally Posted by mrshorty
My understanding of later 2nd gen front ends is that they are "live" meaning that they are always engaged.
Maybe the BWM is my best bet, I was looking into that before. I'll get the front shaft back on and go from there, for that price that 1A has it's not half bad.

The auto 4WD sensor may be bad, I'm not even interested in knowing the price of that.

Thanks guys.
 
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