Mike1998XJ

Start with the exhaust u-bolt clamp... If that's the one near your Rear axel and it's broke you may have it there. Grab the tailpipe and shake the exhaust. See if it hits anything back there. Then crawl under the jeep in the middle from the Passenger side... Look at the exhaust right in front of the catalytic converter which is just forward of your muffler. See where the exhaust pipe is close the the crossmember? (The cross member being that black piece that gholds the transfer case up)
Shake the pipe again... Does it hit that crossmember?
Let us know...
Think in your mind what kind of sound you are hearing in your turns... Imagine in your minds eye a hollow exhaust pipe hitting something metal. Take a hammer underneath with you and hit the exhaust pipe. Is that the sound your hearing?
Like I said...Take a drive with someone else driving and ride in the back, near where you think the sound is coming from. Listen for the sound and the duration of the impacts. Come back here and describe to us the type of sound and the frequency of it. Also tell us the speed you are traveling when you hear the sound. Tyr and notice if it happens over bumps or on smooth pavement.
If you suspect the e-brake, try taking a right hand turn and drag the brake... See if that does anything.
Start thinking and experimenting and you will feel very good when you figure this out.
You will have joined the school of higher thinking and troubleshooting.
Did the guy check the rear U-joints?
Mike
Bye the way... If you send me a PM I will give you my phone numer if you would like and I can walk you through the steps if you need more help. Where do you live? Maybe someone is close to you that can show you how to check...

tucker973

Thanks so much for all the feedback. I had a buddy ride in the back seat on the way back from work, and he said it is definitely near the wheel well and it's definitely like a rubbing/stretching sound then the clunk is like a give.

I'm reasonably sure it's not the pipes hitting; not really a metal on metal. I'm going to try to crawl around underneath and check some of the spots mentioned here.

I'm in the Scranton, PA area, and am not above taking a spin an hour in any direction to check it out. I'm going to keep working on the inspection methods everyone has mentioned. Thanks again everyone, this is well worth the trip to the forums... Once I get some cash banked I'm going to be looking at stepping into the world of JKs, so all this knowledge is going to be useful (especially for the next 100k I'll be putting on the XJ, as I'm sure more things will start popping off and making noises!).

tucker973

Alright, I looked underneath and realized how little I know. I've posted pics of most of what I think I've been asked to check. Everything feels tight by hand, but obviously that's not necessarily a good indicator. First pic is of what I guess IS a small gas shock, but without taking it off I'm sure I can't know if it's shot.

Second pic I believe is the e-brake cable is pictured in that black rubber housing attaching to the bottom of the wheel hub? I don't see anything out of the ordinary, however I guess I'd have to take off the wheel to get a look at anything else.

Three is U-clamps holding up the axle?

Four... no idea.

Finally pictured is a new-looking rubber piece keeping the exhaust assembly in place; there is no clamp holding it farther back, though it appears to have a rusted-off u-clamp on there. When I give the assembly a good shake, it does smack the heat shield next to the gas tank, but it's naturally a good metallic clang rather than the more mechanical rhythmic chunk-chunk-chunk I get when making those right turns.

Mike1998XJ

Ok, that's more information... He heard the clunk on the right rear? Did the sound start immediately after you had your breaks done? How long ago were they done? One option may be to take it back to them. Brake shops usually give free inspections. Maybe something they did isn't right. If you drag the brake with your left foot while keeping your right foot on the gas going through the corner does the clunk go away?
Did you check to see if if that guys idea about the emergency brake cable rubbing? (where it plugs into the back side of the tire/ brake area). Look at it for any scuff marks.
Do you tow something? I see the bumpstop (the rubber thing that stops your axels upward travel) has been hitting the axel. YThere are two of them bolted on the body above the axel. You have to work these Cherokees pretty hard to do that unless a spring is broke or your shocks are really worn. That would seem to coroborate the shop guys story about the shocks. Bounce up and down on your front and rear bumpers. When you jump off does it stop bouncing right away? Or does it take a stroke or two to stop? I don't think we have reason to disbelieve the guy in the shop at this point... He did take it for a drive didn't he? I hope!
Those muffler clamps are cheap. Like $3.00, Go get the right sized one and put it on to eliminate that tonight.
Mike

tucker973

The brake lines were done by the Jeep dealer we bought it from many moons ago; most service has been done there, in fact. I do tow a popup trailer occasionally, but not as much recently since I've had some overheating issues I never was able to run down, even after having the cooling system re-done (though I'm told a transmission cooler may help with that problem).

I couldn't really see anything to do with the e-brake cable, but I'm not really sure where to look. I saw nothing that looked rubbed or scuffed under there as far as I could tell, and I'm sure I'd have noticed an area where all that rust was worn down or scraped off.

The exhaust clamp.... that I don't think is going to be a DIY-er for me:


My next move is going to be to drop it by the chrysler/dodge service center nearby to take a look tomorrow... If nothing else it'll be worth the second opinion.

Mike1998XJ

Did you look near the middle of the Jeep to see if the exhaust pipe was banging on the cross member?
Mike

How many miles are on this Jeep???

tucker973

Everything seemed sturdy and well attached in the middle. It had some exhaust service approx 1.5 years ago or so. Jeep has 108k on it, but it's been kept outdoors in some pretty bad winters over the past 12 years. Was a daily driver from 97-2005, and has done mostly weekend driving from then til now.

dmndd26

check the drums

Mike1998XJ

That's a good idea since he had rear brake work, but I think at this point he will need to take it to the Dealer tomorrow. He wants to learn but has no experience at this time. Let the Dealer diagnose it and we can walk him through it from there.
Mike

tucker973

Talked to the service manager at the dealership, and he listened and asked a lot more questions than the last shop. I also shared some of what's been suggested here. They can get me in tomorrow to take a look, luckily the place is close enough to work that I can bike in from the shop.

I took an extended drive on the way to work this morning, paying close attention to the noise and when it occurs. It definitely happens only under moderate to hard turns at speed. I also hear it, however, when I hit a good size bump with that tire. In that case, it's just one single "chunk" rather than the sustained "chunk chunk chunk" I get through the duration of a right turn.

dellstopjeep

Could it be the jeep falling apart to do heavy heavy rust???

tucker973

Haha, not a bad suggestion! Yeah, there are a lot of things that have ultimately rusted through or broken, but on the whole (believe it or not!) it's been very well maintained. Most of the components you see there have a real nasty looking surface layer of rust, but nothing is really 'through'.

It's been taken for regular service throughout its life at mostly the same place, and they've been pretty good about giving us the heads-up on when things need replacing. Unfortunately, that was back in Jersey, so it's not easy to get out there. I may ultimately take it there for this service, but we'll have to see how things go locally tomorrow.

EndlessMtnFab

By chance ... do you know if the rear is a limited slip unit?


My B.I.L. had a very similar sounding issue. Was the factory trac-loc grenading.


Not saying that it is the issue .. but one to consider. Everyone else has excellent suggestions to look into as well.


Joe

muddeprived

I'm betting it's the exhaust. Just cause it feels tight doesn't mean it's not flexing or positioned against something due to that broken hanger. Start from the tailpipe and follow it all the way to the motor and check for anything it could hit within a inch away.

tucker973

Just got a call from the local dealership - they said it IS the exhaust. Needs a new hanger assembly. He said it's been rubbing against the axle to make the clunk - the tech temporarily suspended it and drove it around again and said he didn't hear the noise anymore. They're ordering in the parts for tomorrow, so hopefully my next update will be a case-closed.

Thanks everyone for all the help; I'll definitely be sticking around these forums!