Clicking noise when letting off throttle (video)

[evharris7]

Hello,

I have a 2005 LJ with a 2.5" OME lift, JKS adjustable track bars front and rear, and 32" tires. Since I got it, it has had a click when you let off the gas. The previous owner said it was the e-brake, and it just needed to be replaced. I know the rear driver side e-brake is frozen open, and the cable is not hooked up to the driver side, only the passenger side. I have them on order to replace them however I think this noise is coming from something other than that. I have replaced the Upper and Lower ball joints, drag link, and tie rod ends because they needed to be done, and I was hoping they were the culprit. The upper and lower control arms were replaced by the previous owner, and as far as I can tell, they look new, and in good condition. It only makes this noise when letting off the throttle after accelerating, or sometimes when shifting from 1st into 2nd. To me it seems like something is shifting to create that sharp click noise, but everything seems tight underneath and to torque spec.

The only other thing I noticed is the front axle is about 1/2" of center to the drivers side, I plan to adjust that this week and recenter it. Is it possible that it adding stress to the control arms and causing the click? I am open to any suggestions, the clicking is driving me insane.

Video link:

Thank you for any input.

 

[mrblaine]

Hello,

I have a 2005 LJ with a 2.5" OME lift, JKS adjustable track bars front and rear, and 32" tires. Since I got it, it has had a click when you let off the gas. The previous owner said it was the e-brake, and it just needed to be replaced. I know the rear driver side e-brake is frozen open, and the cable is not hooked up to the driver side, only the passenger side. I have them on order to replace them however I think this noise is coming from something other than that. I have replaced the Upper and Lower ball joints, drag link, and tie rod ends because they needed to be done, and I was hoping they were the culprit. The upper and lower control arms were replaced by the previous owner, and as far as I can tell, they look new, and in good condition. It only makes this noise when letting off the throttle after accelerating, or sometimes when shifting from 1st into 2nd. To me it seems like something is shifting to create that sharp click noise, but everything seems tight underneath and to torque spec.

The only other thing I noticed is the front axle is about 1/2" of center to the drivers side, I plan to adjust that this week and recenter it. Is it possible that it adding stress to the control arms and causing the click? I am open to any suggestions, the clicking is driving me insane.

Video link:

Thank you for any input.

Noises like that are a result of something loose or worn typically. Don't overlook as you get on and off the gas, the left front rises and lowers. The noise could be as simple as a dying sway bar end link.

 

[Chris]

I have a 2005 LJ with a 2.5" OME lift, JKS adjustable track bars front and rear, and 32" tires. Since I got it, it has had a click when you let off the gas. The previous owner said it was the e-brake, and it just needed to be replaced. I know the rear driver side e-brake is frozen open, and the cable is not hooked up to the driver side, only the passenger side. I have them on order to replace them however I think this noise is coming from something other than that. I have replaced the Upper and Lower ball joints, drag link, and tie rod ends because they needed to be done, and I was hoping they were the culprit. The upper and lower control arms were replaced by the previous owner, and as far as I can tell, they look new, and in good condition. It only makes this noise when letting off the throttle after accelerating, or sometimes when shifting from 1st into 2nd. To me it seems like something is shifting to create that sharp click noise, but everything seems tight underneath and to torque spec.

I had a clicking noise like this once. It turned out to be the track bar bolt at the axle side was not torqued down properly. When you would accelerate or turn you'd hear this click noise. I found this out by doing a "dry steering test". This is where you have someone else sit in the vehicle while it's running and turn the steering wheel back and forth over-and-over as fast as they can. While they're doing that, you get under the front of the vehicle and look around at everything. Look carefully and listen for any sounds. In my case it was extremely obvious which bolt was loose when they were steering.

It could also be a number of other worn out suspension components as Blaine suggested. Your beat bet is going to be to get under the vehicle and inspect. Look for extremely worn out bushings (sway bar bushings, control arm bushings, etc.). Also look for any other worn components such as u-joints, driveshafts, etc.

The only other thing I noticed is the front axle is about 1/2" of center to the drivers side, I plan to adjust that this week and recenter it. Is it possible that it adding stress to the control arms and causing the click? I am open to any suggestions, the clicking is driving me insane.

The axle being off center is due to the lift having moved the axles slightly. If you have adjustable track bars (which I'm assuming you do), fixing this should be easy).

I doubt this has anything to do with the clicking noise in all honesty.

 

[evharris7]

Thanks for the input. I did do the turning check while laying under the jeep, but I did not have them do it quickly back and forth. I will try that and see if I can't find another loose/worn area. I will check the sway bar bushings as well

 

[Chris]

Let us know if that produces any results!

Another thing to try... Pop the hood and have someone sit in the Jeep pressing and releasing the gas pedal over and over. Listen for any clicking noises while they are doing that.

I'm just trying to rule out the possibility that it could be something like a sticky throttle cable or something along those lines, that occurs even when you're not actually driving.

 

[Jorge Bolivar]

@evharris7
Be sure the JKS front track bar on the frame side is torque down pretty good. Same with the rear, also check the nut that tight the end rod vs the tube. I do have to go below the LJ time to time looking behind this bolts does not get loose. the noise sometimes is lot louder than what I could appreciate on the video. I notice mine more when I do reverse.

 

[evharris7]

I wanted to update everyone, finally figured it out, thanks for all the help. The JKS Trackbar had a oversized bushing in it on the Axle side and the hole was drilled on the axle, however the previous owner still had the stock 3/8" bolt in it. I put the proper sized bolt in, and the clicking is gone. Its funny because I checked the torque multiple times, and even laying under it doing the steering turn test, nothing moved. It wasn't until i pulled it out to grease it that I saw it was undersized.

 

[Jorge Bolivar]

I wanted to update everyone, finally figured it out, thanks for all the help. The JKS Trackbar had a oversized bushing in it on the Axle side and the hole was drilled on the axle, however the previous owner still had the stock 3/8" bolt in it. I put the proper sized bolt in, and the clicking is gone. Its funny because I checked the torque multiple times, and even laying under it doing the steering turn test, nothing moved. It wasn't until i pulled it out to grease it that I saw it was undersized.

Thanks for the update @evharris7.
Now that you mention this I will go back and look mine, knowing me I bet I do notice the same swap the bolt (grade 8) fix and let it go.
What bolt size you end up using?

 

[Chris]

Glad you figured it out, that makes perfect sense what the issue ended up being.

 

[gwolff]

Just checking in, in 2021, to say this threat helped me with a similar issue I had related to the improper torque of my rear upper control arms on the axle side. Thank you evharris, for closing out your thread with a solution.