new to me ax15..noise q's

just recently picked up a 97 all stock with 4.0 ax15 @230K. ive done a search and read up on a bunch of stuff but would still like to post my noise situtation cause im not really sure

first off, theres a slight knocking sound which seems to be coming from the tranny when its idling in neutral. makes it sound like a diesel. could this be caused by something like loose flexplate bolts like on an AW4?

theres also a 'shhhushing' sound which starts to be noticable above 15mph and all the way through highway speeds. it is quite loud through all the gears and gets louder when the clutch is pushed in or when its coasting in neutral.

to start im going to change out the tranny fluid (mt90 if i can find it locally, or mobil 1 10w30) any advice on the noises for a ax15 noob?

all gears shift smooth apart from the reverse syncros (definately have to go from 1st or 2nd to R)

look into the throwout bearing that can the cause the 'shhhushing' noise and while your in there get the clutch replaced with 230k on the clock it's only a matter of time. and as for the oil if its really bad chage it more than once to get the junk out of it hope it helps

That whooshing sound can be fairly normal, but it's accentuated by the wrong oil. Make sure you use synthetic or GL3 oil, NOT GL-5 dino oil, whose sulphur content will digest your synchros and seems also to contribute to shift fork noise. I've had good luck with Valvoline synthetic 75W-90, which quieted my 95 right down.

If you're having trouble getting into reverse, it's quite possible your clutch is not disengaging all the way, and, as I found out to my dismay and considerable expense recently, that might be a bad throwout bearing, eating its way through the clutch diaphragm.

i had the clatter to in nuteral i relaced the transmission mount and it went away but then the mount i got was too tall and pushed the transfercase so it would it the floor pan when you went over bumps and make a terrible noise =( soo i lowerd it and all goood. i have a 99 ax-15 and i have a like drivetrain whirr but nothing supper loud.

The shhhhing sound you are referring to is more than likely caused by the throwout bearing...
The TO bearing on my 98 was so bad at 100K that it was growling loudly....
When I replaced the bearing along with the clutch and pressure plate. I also replaced the adapter housing seal (adapter housing/transmission output shaft ) along with the sector shaft seal for the transfercase (selector for shifter linkage) since both were leaking... and the Crank Position Sensor since you should remove it when removing the transmission...

thanks for all the great responses. im kind of hesitant to tear into it for the TO bearing cause im lacking funds and the clutch seems fairly new and grabs pretty close to the floor. correct me if im wrong, but doesnt a hydraulic clutch like these grab higher and higher as it wears?

Try putting your hand on the transfer case lever and see if the "knock" quiets down.

joe_peters said:

Try putting your hand on the transfer case lever and see if the "knock" quiets down.

Click to expand...

nope, hand on the lever had no effect at all, nor was any vibration apparent on the transfer case lever.

ill be changing out the tranny fluid with mobil 1 10w30 tommorow cause i couldnt find any redline around. ill see if that helps