70mph + vibration

[HILLY]

Another discreet culprit could be the front pinion bearing. I just replaced my front pinion seal due to it leaking with the help of an experienced mech friend of mine. We pulled out the oil slinger and pinion bearing while at it to inspect and all looked good. When we put the nut back on and tightened down we noticed the yolk had an ever so slight radial wobble. We weren’t sure at the time what this would mean with the front shaft back in place or if this was acceptable. We just didn't notice this prior to taking everything apart before hand. Driving the car from about 30 mph up to highway speeds a vibration was felt through the pedals and floorboards that would increase with speed. First thought was that we didn't have the pinion nut on tight enough.

I went to the dealer to pick up a new crush sleeve and pinion seal to redo this job, and while at, I also bought a new pinion bearing that they had in stock since all of this added up to only ~$30. We redid everything, and with the replaced bearing the yolk was tight and after a test drive everything was back to normal feel.

 

[Pawpaw]

So far so good with my BFG KO2's. 20K miles on them and still look new. Smooth riding and being a FX4 model they look more like a tire that should have been on from the factory. Went up one size to a 275x70x18 (33x11) on the stock wheels. Maybe lost 1 mpg due to the extra weight and rolling resistance. Very pleased so far!!