[mnstroker]

Are you supposed to be able to move the automatic hub to the lock position from outside the truck when the switch is in 2wd? Mine cant be turned from the outside. i will be doing ball joints soon and was wondering should i replace any parts to the hub while its apart?

 

[cblackb]

Yes, the hub locks are supposed to turn. Remove them and soak them down in PB Blaster. If that doesn't work there's a good article on how to disassemble them and grease them internally. This should be done anyway every 60,000 miles or so, it's not hard. Check the maintenance forums and go to guzzles website, it's got detailed instructions. PB blaster should get you working though and make sure you replace the O-ring around the hublock unit before putting it back in.

 

[mnstroker]

so are my hubs always locked in right now?

 

[cblackb]

Well not necessarily, I'd say probably not. There is writing on the hub, it will say "auto" and "lock" and an arrow pointing to one of them. Chances are yours are stuck in the auto position. This is quite common. Once you get them freed up make sure you lock the hubs in once in awhile just to keep them loose. Some people never manually lock in the hubs but you never know when the vaccum assisted set up on your truck might go out and you would NEED to lock them in manually. There are quite a few people who ditch the autos and go buy a set of warns. However, as long as you properly maintain the autos they'll work fine.

 

[mnstroker]

if it was locked would that make a sound like bad ball joints?

 

[cblackb]

No, probably not but balljoints are another common wear item on a superduty. If you're hearing noises coming from the front-end I'd check everything before you start replacing stuff. There's a lot of stuff up there than can start going bad and making strange noises.

 

[mnstroker]

its a clunk clunk sound at low speed while turning both ways

 

[cblackb]

Yep, I'd get under there and check balljoints, tie rods and wheel bearings. Search in the "7.3 Drivetrain Problems" forum. There's tons of stuff in there that will help you.