Hi,
An '85 Golf 8v, auto transmission. 262,000 kilometres. When
accelerating or pulling up a hill, I can feel and hear a slight whomp
whomp whomp in the front, most likely from the area of the left front
tire. I can feel the thumping through the steering wheel. The whomp
whomp is at the same frequency as the revolution of the tires so I
don't think it's an engine problem which would be at a much higher
frequency. At low speeds the steering wheel will wobble a bit back and
forth. Initially I thought it was a separated belt in the tire, but
doing a tire rotation and switching the axles the tires sit on didn't
change anything. Also the tire shop said the tires were not the
problem. I've lifted the car and rotated the tires and the left front
wheel bearing sounds fine and quiet, though I haven't entirely
eliminated the wheel bearing as the culprit.

When easing off the throttle after accelerating or after pulling up
a hill, the whomp whomp whomp goes away. The whomping is also absent
when going down hill and using the engine as the brake.

If I slowly turn in a circle with the steering wheel turned fully to
the left, I can hear a click. That is, there is one click per tire
revolution instead of a click for every ball in the cv joint . I don't
think the tire is rubbing on anything when the steering wheel is
turned fully left or right.

So looking for some thoughts? Left outer CV joint? Wheel bearing?

My other thought is the tranny. Since the time of the last
transmission service a couple of years ago I've noticed the tranny
fluid is way over the full mark. Could an overfull tranny be causing
some backlash in the torque converter? However, the whomping noise is
more recent than the tranny service so probably unrelated to the
tranny.

Thanks in advance for any diagnostic tips or confirmation it's the CV
joint.
-Tony

On Mar 23, 12:49*am, bajor... (AT) gmail (DOT) com wrote:

Likely as you suggest, CV joint(s) going.

But that should be diagnosed with the vehicle on a lift and both axles
free. Given the age of the vehicle and the mileage, you might check
both axles.

In any case, don't drive anywhere 'at speed' until you get a proper
diagnosis. If you lose a joint you won't go, or possibly worse.

Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA

On Mar 23, 5:27*am, "p... (AT) aol (DOT) com" <p... (AT) aol (DOT) com> wrote:
Thanks Peter,
I had the front end on jack stands and was rotating the left then
right wheels while having the steering wheel cranked to the locks one
side then the other. The bearings were silent and there was no
clicking noise. I can only hear the click when turning a tight circle
with some power applied. Again it's not click click click, but
click.....................................then click on the next 360
deg of tire rotation, which I initially thought was something with the
tire.

Also, would a failing cv joint cause wobble in the steering wheel?

I have 20,000 km on the right outer cv joint and 10,000 km on the
left outer. My understanding is the inner cv joints are un-affected by
the position of the steering wheel? The inner cv joints are original.

thanks.
-Tony

On Mar 23, 1:58*pm, Tony49122 <tony49... (AT) gmail (DOT) com> wrote:

Well.... Hmmmm....

Thump that you can feel at the wheel. So. Please forgive some silly
questions as I expect all the 'right' answers.

a) The tires are balanced?
b) Haven't hit any pot-holes recently or bent a rim/wheel?
c) Wheel bearings (NOT CV joints) are all present, correct and intact?
d) Do the axles have the correct 'play' (in/out)?

Sometimes when they spin free of load there is not enough load on them
to show the 'flat' spot.

Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA

CV joints are probably the problem. Might be an inner one with dried or
contaminated grease since that is the one that usually gets neglected.
Might be a bent hub but the wheels should wobble when rotated. It is easier
to see if the wheel is spinning fast.
Might be a defective brake rotor causing the brake pad to jump when it hits
a low/high spot. It should be felt when rotating the wheel.

SO my vote is the inner CV joint.
Maybe you can take off that half-axle (driveshaft) and examine it more
closely.
If not the left side then check the right side too!

JMHO which is free and worth every cent! lol
--
later,
(One out of many daves)

<bajords9 (AT) gmail (DOT) com> wrote

On Mar 23, 12:47*pm, "p... (AT) aol (DOT) com" <p... (AT) aol (DOT) com> wrote:
Hi Peter,
Good questions.
a) It's been a while since I've had the tires balanced, but the tire
wear suggests they are okay.
b) No recollection of hitting any major pot holes or protruding man
holes.
c) I'm not so sure the state of the wheel bearings. I've lifted the
front end and hand-spun the wheels. All sounds normal, but there was
no load on the bearings. Shaking the tire/wheel doesn't reveal any
thing lose.
d) Axle nuts torqued to 195 ft.lbs. I did the outer CV joints so
torqued the nuts myself.

I have a wheel bearing on the shelf and can put that on (have never
done it, but have recently bought a 12 ton press that's dying to be
used), but I'm not entirely sure that's what is the problem. I don't
mind replacing parts to rule out problems. The shop would probably do
the same at higher cost to me.

On Mar 23, 1:22*pm, "dave AKA vwdoc1" <vwdoc1nos... (AT) pleasehotmail (DOT) com>
wrote:
Hi Dave,
Hmm, both inner cv joints are original with 262,000 km on them. I
did clean and regrease the left inner one when I replaced the left
outer. And replaced the boot. That was about 20,000 km ago.

Regarding the brake rotor, the brake pedal doesn't oscillate so I
think I can eliminate the rotor. For wobble, I've had my wife drive at
me while I watched for up and down out-of-round in the tire and for
wobble in the wheel and tire tread. Nothing obvious.

I'll check out prices on a rebuilt left side half shafts versus a
new inner cv. If not too different, I'll try a half shaft to eliminate
both the outer and inner cv joints at the same time.

-Tony

thanks.

To double check to see if the front wheel bearing is bad I usually take off
the brakes and remove the CV Joint out of the hub so I can spin the hub
freely by hand. Then I can both listen to it AND feel it as I rotate it.

I would not think that the front wheel bearing would create a whomp noise
though, but at least you can also try moving your CV Joints around to see if
they bind. ;-)

BTW I prefer to TEST parts before ordering new parts, but I am a CB. ;-)
--
later,
(One out of many daves)


"Tony49122" <tony49122 (AT) gmail (DOT) com> wrote

On Mar 23, 12:47 pm, "p... (AT) aol (DOT) com" <p... (AT) aol (DOT) com> wrote:
Hi Peter,
Good questions.
a) It's been a while since I've had the tires balanced, but the tire
wear suggests they are okay.
b) No recollection of hitting any major pot holes or protruding man
holes.
c) I'm not so sure the state of the wheel bearings. I've lifted the
front end and hand-spun the wheels. All sounds normal, but there was
no load on the bearings. Shaking the tire/wheel doesn't reveal any
thing lose.
d) Axle nuts torqued to 195 ft.lbs. I did the outer CV joints so
torqued the nuts myself.

I have a wheel bearing on the shelf and can put that on (have never
done it, but have recently bought a 12 ton press that's dying to be
used), but I'm not entirely sure that's what is the problem. I don't
mind replacing parts to rule out problems. The shop would probably do
the same at higher cost to me.

Check the rims for dents. I once ran over a concrete block and had a small
dent on the inner side of the left rim which caused also a wobble on the
steering wheel.

SFC

"Tony49122" <tony49122 (AT) gmail (DOT) com> schreef in bericht
news:d2ff9c51-9147-4dc7-9ad8-e0b251295b29 (AT) w35g2000prg (DOT) googlegroups.com...
On Mar 23, 1:22 pm, "dave AKA vwdoc1" <vwdoc1nos... (AT) pleasehotmail (DOT) com>
wrote:
Hi Dave,
Hmm, both inner cv joints are original with 262,000 km on them. I
did clean and regrease the left inner one when I replaced the left
outer. And replaced the boot. That was about 20,000 km ago.

Regarding the brake rotor, the brake pedal doesn't oscillate so I
think I can eliminate the rotor. For wobble, I've had my wife drive at
me while I watched for up and down out-of-round in the tire and for
wobble in the wheel and tire tread. Nothing obvious.

I'll check out prices on a rebuilt left side half shafts versus a
new inner cv. If not too different, I'll try a half shaft to eliminate
both the outer and inner cv joints at the same time.

-Tony

thanks.

If replacing your front wheel bearings is like on my '97 Jetta, you don't
need to take your steering knuckle off of the car to press the bearing if
you borrow a press system from your local Advance Auto or other shop. It's
like a Greenlee Punch, if you're familiar with that. Basically a threaded
rod and various sized punches to push the bearing out and back in. Saves a
lot of work, possible damage to joints and no alignment needed. I got mine
from German Auto Parts with a deposit and freight charge but the local shops
have them now.


"Tony49122" <tony49122 (AT) gmail (DOT) com> wrote

On Mar 23, 12:47 pm, "p... (AT) aol (DOT) com" <p... (AT) aol (DOT) com> wrote:
Hi Peter,
Good questions.
a) It's been a while since I've had the tires balanced, but the tire
wear suggests they are okay.
b) No recollection of hitting any major pot holes or protruding man
holes.
c) I'm not so sure the state of the wheel bearings. I've lifted the
front end and hand-spun the wheels. All sounds normal, but there was
no load on the bearings. Shaking the tire/wheel doesn't reveal any
thing lose.
d) Axle nuts torqued to 195 ft.lbs. I did the outer CV joints so
torqued the nuts myself.

I have a wheel bearing on the shelf and can put that on (have never
done it, but have recently bought a 12 ton press that's dying to be
used), but I'm not entirely sure that's what is the problem. I don't
mind replacing parts to rule out problems. The shop would probably do
the same at higher cost to me.