I have a 2008 Sahara with 86,000 on it. Those miles are almost all highway miles. The vehicle is stock. I bought the vehicle when it had 40K on it from a woman who never had it in four wheel drive. She had the vehicle serviced religiously by the dealer until the warranty expired and then had the service's done when they were due at Jiffy Lube or one of the similar places. I know this because I have all of the service and repair records for the vehicle. I always felt the transmission was noisy but these units are noisy when new so drove it on several cross country trips with no problems. When I was looking at the receipts that came with the vehicle I noticed that Jiffy Lube had "serviced the transmission" but they had put the wrong fluid back in it. They used a product that was similar but it contained sulphur. MOPAR requires you use a certain fluid that does not contain sulphur. The vehicle had traveled about 15K with the wrong lube by that time. I changed it and everything seemed to be okay until a couple months ago when a rattling and clunking noise started. Its the worst in 1st gear, a little better in 2nd gear and not quite as bad in 3rd gear. I don't notice anything in the rest of the gears. The noise is pronounced when the gears are under load like when you take off from a stop sign. The dealer says it is probably a bearing but they haven't been right about anything on it so far. The transmission has never been abused. Before I do anything I thought I would ask for some advice. Thanks in advance.

 

It could be a throwout bearing, they're notorious for being a poor design and noisy. Mine is making a ton of noise now. When you press the clutch in, does the noise change? It should sound "rotational" because the bearing rolling around the shaft there.

The bearing itself is relatively cheap but labor to drop the transmission and all related components to change it is not cheap.

 

After spending hours trying to isolate the cause I think we have ruled out the throw out bearing and clutch. The "ball bearing rattling" sound and thunking seem to be associated with the loading of the first three gears only as best we can tell. Everyone who has listened to it and helped try to isolate the issue seem to agree that the sounds have something to do with the shaft or bearings particular to the first three gears. If anyone knows a good transmission rebuilding shop close to Northern Virginia I would appreciate having the recommendation.

 

If you're thinking tranny shop then I've got to suggest you check out novajeepers dot com. It's a group of folks just up north there and they take care of their own. It may be cheaper to get a used trans. Keep it updated here or there please, I'm always listening for new info.

 

didn't you get lifetime powertrain warranty on your 08?

 

Looks like it was bought at around 40,000 miles - the lifetime wasn't transferable. If the receipts show wrong lube and it caused the damage the Jiffy Lube may be on the hook. I am guessing the sulphur content may have caused embrittlement of the gears or ate away at the synchros. If you don't trust the dealer definitely hook up with a club and see if someone will help you learn. Surely it will be cheaper than the dealer and you'll get to turn a wrench on your own Jeep - double bonus!