This morning something on the front end of my 04 Liberty Sport began to howl, almost a clunking.
I immediately thought it was a loose wheel caused by loose lug nuts because I've heard the sound before. But when I checked my wheel lug nuts only a couple of ones on the rear wheels seemed loose and required some re-tightening. The lug nuts on the front wheels were fine.

So what else could it be? A bad wheel unit bearing? Bad CV joints?
I was going with bad wheel bearings. If you drive with larger than stock tires and stock axles you become familiar with wheel bearing failures and good at replacing them. I checked my local parts supply store and found a replacement wheel bearing available for $139 but first I had to confirm which side the bad bearing was one. This is done by raising each wheel on the front and checking the wheel bearing for play or noise while rotating the wheel. The right side was fine but the left side wheel and lug nuts were loose. Huh?
With the wheel on the ground the lug nuts weren't loose.
I tightened up the front lug nuts and took the Jeep for a drive to verify the problem was fixed.

So I guess the moral of the story is that should you remove a wheel you should recheck the lug nuts 100 kms afterwards like the garage suggests. It's probably also a good idea to check your tire pressures at the same time.

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my trail & highway ride (and occasional tow rig)
04 Liberty Sport with a 2.5" lift, ProComp 245/75R16 AT's and two Hella700FF lamps (more accessories to come)

my trail queen
95 YJ with a RE 4" lift, 33" ProComp Extreme's, M8000 Winch, Lockrite Locker up front, Super35 in the rear and 4.88 gears

Are you using a torque wrench to tighten lugs to proper specification?

Bob


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No but I should. When I get home I'll look for my torque wrench.
Does anybody know the torque specs for the wheel lug nuts?

I had my rear wheels off because of a brake job and the driver's side front wheel off for a tie rod replacement. Which explains how they worked themselves loose.


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_________________
my trail & highway ride (and occasional tow rig)
04 Liberty Sport with a 2.5" lift, ProComp 245/75R16 AT's and two Hella700FF lamps (more accessories to come)

my trail queen
95 YJ with a RE 4" lift, 33" ProComp Extreme's, M8000 Winch, Lockrite Locker up front, Super35 in the rear and 4.88 gears

I had a similar problem once.
But instead of a howl or or clunking, I had a loud bang and horrible shaking while driving home from work.
I pulled over and checked all my wheels.
On the right front wheel I found 4 of the 5 studs broken off.
I dont know if they all broke off at once or one at a time but I had no warning it was going to happen.

Prior to that, I had been the last monkey to tighten down all the wheels.
I guess I tightened that wheel too much.

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U.S. Army Retired

100lbs-ft(actually 85-115 but the middle is best).

Always torque. Too tight is as bad as too loose. Too tight leads to warped rotors, pulled threads.

Bob


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I'm guilty of using an electric impact wrench. I have heard of pneumatic impact wrenches can warp brake rotors.

It's been my experience that only tire shops use torque wrenches.

100 ft/lbs, thanks for the number

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_________________
my trail & highway ride (and occasional tow rig)
04 Liberty Sport with a 2.5" lift, ProComp 245/75R16 AT's and two Hella700FF lamps (more accessories to come)

my trail queen
95 YJ with a RE 4" lift, 33" ProComp Extreme's, M8000 Winch, Lockrite Locker up front, Super35 in the rear and 4.88 gears

Use a torque wrench , your wallet will thank you...

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Black '05 Renegade. Front suspension: Frankenlift, Moog HD LBJ's, Audiboy cut CV's
Rear suspension: OME 948's, 2 extra upper ISO's, Rancho RS 5000 shocks.
31X10.50X15 Duratrac's/ProComp 152's
ARB bumper, Mopar skids, JCR stage III's, Reese hitch with tractor lights, Champion shackle insert, "homebrew" on board air, 1000 watt inverter