sorry, another broken vc?

Post by **raddo j** » 09 Nov 2007, 19:41

this is my first syncro, and I'm not that hot on the whole mechanics of the vc and drive system and you've probably all heard this crap a thousand times so i apologize in advance.
right, i was driving to work this morning and suddenly i got this almighty whine like I'd just ran over a werewolf or something, by the time I'd turned the radio down the whine faded but was followed by some clunking which then also stopped. also, it might have been cause it was early in the morning but i could swear that the engine sounded a bit rough momentarily too? i slowed down for a while but the van seemed to carry on fine so i kept going to work.(I know, but it was cold and dark and i really wouldn't have known what i was doing if I'd stopped and gotten underneath it) while parking it at work it was scuffing and bouncing quite badly, which I've worked out by now can be a sign of a knackered vc.
the van is a 2.1 caravelle it's done 117,000mls, and is mostly only driven on tarmac, very occasionally on grass and since i bought it about a year ago, never off road.
i suspect the vc's gone but am a bit concerned that I've broken something else too. something else that might be connected is that when i get to bite on the clutch, i get a faint mechanical clunk? this I've noticed happening for the last few weeks.
to make things a bit more confusing, my wife just took the kids to swimming in it and came home reporting nothing out of the ordinary going on with the van???
any advice at all would be greatly appreciated. cheers.

p.s it's my turn too cook dinner, and my wife's not letting me off with it. so if i don't reply straight away, please be aware that i'm not ignoring you

Post by **KarlT** » 09 Nov 2007, 20:51

FFS.

What the hell are you doing letting the mrs take out your syncro?

That's where its all gone bloody wrong!!!!

(Sorry I'm no use to you.)

Post by **raddo j** » 09 Nov 2007, 21:26

Post by **JustSharon** » 09 Nov 2007, 22:04

KarlT wrote:FFS.

What the hell are you doing letting the mrs take out your syncro?

That's where its all gone bloody wrong!!!!

Excuse me, syncros are not just a male thing you know...

Post by **syncrodoug** » 09 Nov 2007, 22:43

Hello Sharon - trust you and the family are all well.
What engine do you have in the DOKA at the moment?
Doug

Post by **Mrs Futbus** » 09 Nov 2007, 22:44

KarlT wrote:FFS.

What the hell are you doing letting the mrs take out your syncro?

That's where its all gone bloody wrong!!!!

(Sorry I'm no use to you.)

Hey I freaked my hubby out driving his syncro!!!

and its NOT JUST a man thing!!

us women like to get down and dirty too!!

R

Post by **HarryMann** » 09 Nov 2007, 22:50

raddo_

Those symptons sound suspiciously like a rear diff-lock coming 'on' I hope I'm wrong, maybe only a small possibility, unless the difflocks have been worked on lately?

As far as VC being the culprit, how bad is any driveline vibration?

The first thing I'd do in that situation would be to drain, check and change the diff and transaxle oil, as well as maybe the engine's. Giving all the drivehsafts and CVJ's a good rattling check at the same time.

Hope it's not too cold next week

Post by **raddo j** » 10 Nov 2007, 00:35

thanks for the reply.
no ones done any work on the diffslocks at all. what would cause the diff-lock to come on on it's own?
i can't say i notice any serious vibration at all to be honest, there's always been this background hum that doesn't seem to be the engine, i suppose it gets worse when the van's bouncing. but that's all.
i changed the engine oil last week. i'll do the diff and transaxle this week. i did get under it this afternoon and there was a small bit of lateral play in what i presumed to be the front driveshafts.
i'll check the wiki for how to do the oil changes. thanks again

Post by **Ye Olde Syncrospares** » 10 Nov 2007, 09:12

check tyre pressures,check tyre depth (their all the same ),jack up front of van check front wheel bearings for play,check cv joints front,rear,inner,outer,for loose bolts,cj.

Post by **raddo j** » 10 Nov 2007, 12:21

thanks, will do.

Post by **PC52** » 10 Nov 2007, 21:59

Hello Sharon - trust you and the family are all well.
What engine do you have in the DOKA at the moment?
Doug

I would like to tell you but it's top secret.

Post by **syncrodoug** » 10 Nov 2007, 23:14

As long as it doesn't smoke too much!

Post by **PC52** » 11 Nov 2007, 21:17

syncrodoug wrote:As long as it doesn't smoke too much!

It will be so far in front you won't see the smoke.

Post by **HarryMann** » 11 Nov 2007, 21:36

no ones done any work on the diffslocks at all. what would cause the diff-lock to come on on it's own?

The vac pipes being connected up in reverse and then finally freeing themselves up one day (happens!)... if you know they work in the correct sense when off-road and come on and go off quickly and reliably then worry not... you just happened to quote symptons similar to inadvertant rear difflock selection on tarmac.

No driveline vibration ? Lucky, lucky...

Like CJ says, at least check all CV bolts.

Post by **Hacksawbob** » 11 Nov 2007, 23:09

I had a duff HT lead which felt like a drive train problem vibration and poor engine performance, might be something to rule out, check resistance accross HT lead.