Hi all! Long time lurker, infrequent poster here.
I picked up a 2003 4.7L QC 4x4 Dakota late last year. It's at 102,xxx miles. It had a very faint rubbing noise at the time that has gotten progressively worse. It's not a constant noise, it sounds like something rubbing at a specific point in the rotation of the wheel. It gets louder when I turn left, almost goes away when I turn right.
I've got a faint recording of the sound at
http://www.unspunproductions.com/dakota/noise.mp3
>From searching the DML archives and the internet, I'm assuming it's a bearing/hub going bad up front. Does that sound reasonable?
While search the AZ website for new parts, it looks like the replacement part is different depending on whether or not I have 4-wheel ABS. I have an ABS like that flashes when I start up the truck, but when I pulled the FR wheel off I saw no electrical wires running to the bearing/hub. This means I only have rear-wheel ABS right? Pics below in case I missed something.
http://www.unspunproductions.com/dakota/front.jpg
http://www.unspunproductions.com/dakota/side.jpg
http://www.unspunproductions.com/dakota/behind.jpg
Finally, How can I tell if it's the left or right side? I lifted both sides of the truck with the jack under the frame, and neither wheel seemed "lose", no play at all. I read conflicting reports on which side is bad based on when it gets loud. I'm assuming left turn getting loud means the right side is bad, but I'm no expert.
Thanks for any help,
-Matt Brenneke
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