Cold Weather Noises

Recently when my XJ has been cold/sitting for a while it makes a grinding/chirping noise for the first few minutes I drive it. I'm pretty sure I've narrowed the noise down to something drivetrain related as it only makes the noise when it's moving. Also, reving the engine has no affect on the noise. After driving for a minute or so the sound goes away. It's winter here in MI so I haven't had the motivation to lay in the slush and slop to figure out exactly where the noise is. I jacked up the front end today and spun the wheels but couldn't replicate the noise. Just wondering if anyone else has experienced this or as any suggestions as of what to look at. Thanks!

If its just a constant chirp while driving it could be a caliper slightly sticking open untill it warms up....mine does this sometimes in the cold mornings of Ohio.
Just paint it Scarlet and Gray then it will be unbeatable for 5 years in a row!!..GO BUCKS!! :moon:

Sitting how long? After a few days, my son's Escort makes a real grinding sound because of the cheepass Chinese rotors I put on the front brakes. You can see them get rusty in a couple of days sitting.

It doesn't have to sit incredibly long. It does it in the morning when I drive to class after sitting over night, and will usually do it again on my drive to class in the evening. I've had these rotors on the Jeep for a while so it seems odd that they would suddenly start "acting up"

Could be rust/dust/ice issue.

Next time, right after you get moving apply the brakes for long enough to make a complete rotor rotation--maybe 2 seconds.

If the sound is gone, then don't worry about it. Come spring it probably won't be there, at least until next winter.

here in the mid west there is a noise made by the Wookies that live in the steering column but only when it is really cold out.

Almost all jeeps from the late 90s have a family of Column Wookies

Haha Column Wookies, excellent. It doesn't seem to go away after a short period of breaking, but it did seem to show up not long after a car wash, if not right after which is why I'm hoping its just ice issues. When looking under it some more I did notice that my steering damper was leaking pretty bad, any possibility this could be making the noise?

JAS good to see another Ann Arbor XJ on here.