Clicking sounds

[doughairfield]

I'm having this clicking sound coming from the back half of my TR4. The faster I go, the faster the clicks go, but when I put my foot on the brake, even just a little, they stop, and when I go around a turn it seems to stop. Any ideas?

 

[AltaKnight]

My rear brakes do the same on my TR6.
I had the drums turned and it didn't help.
I'm sure one of the drums must be slightly oval even after the machining.
The clicking goes away as you go round the turn because the drums flex a little under cornering and it pushes the shoes in a bit.
I've figured I have to change the drums to stop it, or just live with it.

 

[CinneaghTR]

I have the same thing happening. Let me know when you figure it out. It has been driving me nuts for months. When I get my parts catalog in front of me, I'll compare notes with you.

Good luck.

 

[doughairfield]

Oh I will stuff like that drives me crazy too. I'm actually starting to think it may be coming from the front brakes instead of the rear, but it's definitely something rotational.

 

[Adrio]

Just a WAG with no knowledge here, but what about U joints. I had something like that on my Ford ranger and it turned out to be the rear u joint on the prop shaft.

 

[doughairfield]

That's definitely possible. The thing that has me thinking brakes though is that the noise goes away immediately when I start to press the brake pedal. Would that rule out U Joint?

 

[Adrio]

Might be. On my Ranger it went away as soon as I took my foot off the gas. I confess I never figured out the problem until it got a lot worse and at that point it would not go away when I let off the gas but it would get better.

 

[Twosheds]

I can't see if you have wire wheels or not, but I know Jeremy has wire wheels.

I don't remember if applying the brakes had any effect, but a loose wire wheel adaptor lug nut will cause a clicking sound.

Doug, is The Good Ship Lollypop based at Dough Airfield?

 

[doughairfield]

I don't have the wire wheels unfortunately. I guess I'll be pulling the wheels off this weekend to try and find the noise. It has also started to have a screeching sound coming from the front brakes that also goes away when I apply pressure to the brake peddle. But I think after a while that goes away. Don't know if they are related.

Not sure about where the ship is based.

 

[suzi6]

I have had a clicking sound since rebuilding my 74. First thought it was
the u joints. It would not make a sound while on jack stands. Checked
the u joints,they are lessthan a year old and appear to be fine. Finally
removed the new trim ring and the clicking stopped. Doesnt make sense
but moving the trim ring to another wheel also moved the clicking. I am
now in the process of buffing & polishing my old original trim rings. It is a slow process but will be worth the effort.

 

[AltaKnight]

I don't have the wire wheels unfortunately. I guess I'll be pulling the wheels off this weekend to try and find the noise. It has also started to have a screeching sound coming from the front brakes that also goes away when I apply pressure to the brake peddle. But I think after a while that goes away. Don't know if they are related.

Screeching noise on disk brakes is usually related to worn pads; there's a small metal tab that touches the disc when the pads are work to give an audible notification.

 

[CinneaghTR]

I have the same thing happening. Let me know when you figure it out. It has been driving me nuts for months. When I get my parts catalog in front of me, I'll compare notes with you.

Good luck.

I've been thinking the clicking sound was coming from the handbrake cable lever because the dust cover is missing and the lever appears to be resting on or close to the backing plate. I have been thinking of a way to isolate that to see.

I'll check the u-joints next time I have the car on the lift.

 

[Tinster]

I also am a non-mechanic TR6 owner and had a
clicking noise I could only hear when driving
beside a concrete Jersey wall; on the driver's side.
Slow to moderate speeds clicking. Speeds over 40 no
clicking. Sounded like rear brakes/suspension.

I dug into my new rear brakes, new suspension and
new hand brake. Everything tightened to specs and
everything looked good. Test drive----clicking still there.

Started to dig into the everything new driver's front.
When I removed the hubcap, the wheel bearing's grease
cap fell onto the garage floor. Put grease cap back on,
test drive- clicking gone.

Just my instance of a clicking.

dale (Tinster)

 

[doughairfield]

Nice, I'm planning on putting it up on the jack stands this weekend anyway so I'll pull the wheels off and see if anything falls out. I have also procured a grease gun and am planning on cleaning up and greasing up all the suspension joints this weekend. I report back with my findings.

 

[NickMorgan]

I think that jacking up a corner at a time and spinning the wheels by hand would be a good move.
Take off the drums and check that all of the springs are in place, particularly the ones that hold the brake shoes onto be back plates. If those are missing then the shoes can move from side to side within the drums and make a sort of clicking noise.
Give everything a good clean up, but be careful of the dust. Then once back together you can adjust up the rear brakes.
At the front you should check for rust around the outside edge of the brake rotors. As rust expands it could be catching on the pads. If there is rust there you could give the edge of the rotors a light tap with a small hammer or screw driver to remove it.
The squealing noise could be caused by a bit of rust that has dropped off and become lodged in the caliper. It is always worth having a good look around while you are there. It may be worth taking the pads out, checking that the pistons move in the calipers and putting it back together. You can put a very thin smear or copper grease on the back of the pads, which can help with squeals.

 

[Twosheds]

Doug, is The Good Ship Lollypop based at Dough Airfield?

I reckon I'm the only one who found this to be amusing.

Must be an aviation thing.

Sorry.

 

[conan69]

The last one I had was a cotter pin tail from the E brake making contact on the drum.[MGB] Drove my best friend nuts for a month. Put the car on the rack, Sniped 1/4 inch off no more noise.[ He hates it when I find the problem before he does.]He also hates it when I put TR parts on his MG and tell him its a better car now! What are friends for? You might check your rear hubs also. I have had all kinds of odd sounds from rear hubs.

 

[doughairfield]

Yeah, I'm planning on pulling all the wheels off tonight and seeing if I can find that click. I did jack up one side the other day and turn the wheel. I could feel a rough spot where the wheel would stop turning so at speed it may sound more like a click than just the grinding feeling. I'll check for that cotter pin though, thanks.

 

[pjsmetana]

Doug, is The Good Ship Lollypop based at Dough Airfield?

I reckon I'm the only one who found this to be amusing.

I thought it was rather amusing. More so that it seemed no one else noticed you asked

 

[doughairfield]

OK, so I went to pull the brake drums off last night, and well can't. Is it just the 2 slot head screws keeping them on there or do you have to remove the cotter pin and unscrew the nut to release some type of retaining cap to get them off? I read the VTR page about removing them and thought it was just the 2 screws and then tap the drum with a hammer. Correct here?