While driving I am hearing a warbling sound coming from the tranny/transfer case area. If I push in the clutch, it goes away. I'm thinking that it could be the throw out bearing. The fluid levels in the tranny and transfer case are good and the driveshafts are well lubed.The Jeep has 52K miles on it and it is the original clutch and it is a 1999 with the 5 speed. any help is appreciatted.

Should go alot farther than 52k on that clutch- I got 160k out of mine.

What have you done to it recently- Lifted it? Do you wheel it hard?

I haven't done anything to it recently. I also have not had the chance to wheel it for several months. ( Iraq deployment/school)
I do have the Tera Low 4-1 kit in the transfercase, but I do not remember it making any noise while in 2 wheel drive.

Originally posted by Rugger99
While driving I am hearing a warbling sound coming from the tranny/transfer case area. If I push in the clutch, it goes away. I'm thinking that it could be the throw out bearing. The fluid levels in the tranny and transfer case are good and the driveshafts are well lubed.The Jeep has 52K miles on it and it is the original clutch and it is a 1999 with the 5 speed. any help is appreciatted.

When you push your clutch in the noise goes away. This indicates it is not your throwout bearing ( the throwout bearing only operates when your clutch pedal is pushed in).

Is your Jeep in 5th when you hear the noise? If so, over the next few months, the noise/vibration will go to fourth, third, second.

This has happened to two AX-15's in my 99 TJ. Next tranny will not be an AX-15. I have heard a lot of people tell me they got over 100k out of the AX-15, but I have toasted two of them in 70k miles. If this tranny was so good Jeep would not have dropped them in 2000.

Start saving your pennies for a new tranny. I will bet this is your problem and not the clutch.

Try putting your TC in Neutral and run through the gears until you hear the noise. It will be easier to tell where the noise is coming from with the Jeep standing still.

:eek: Rat- you are tough on trannys!

I've got 200k on my AX15 - sure it makes some noise but I can't hear it over the swampers, or the gear driven d300 for that matter.


I'll be getting another one for the simple matter of needing only 90 wt gear oil for all my drivetrain fluids. No pricey mopar propriatary ATF for me.

I think the main reason DC went to the NV3500/4500 is noise. Same reason they chose a chain driven case. Same reason for the infernal (internal) slave cylinder. Customers (most)simply want a quieter cab in trucks these days. They expect them to behave as cars do.


But back to the problem- No noise in 4wd makes me think it is your tcase. Might be a stretched chain or bad output bearing if you have been fully getting it!

Do at TJRat said and check the noise when the clutch is depressed and in different gears. That might help you pin down the sound.

I am having the same problem with my AX15 did you guys figure out what the problem was?

A warbling sound? That's one way to put it I guess...

Does it happen just when the jeep is moving, or at idle too? The fact that it goes away when you hit the clutch makes me think that it's not something with the transfer case chain...if you can isolate which component (bellhousing, trans, t-case) it's coming from, and maybe a slightly better description of the noise, that'd be good. :)

TJ Rat's right about the throwout bearing. When the clutch isn't depressed, the throwout bearing is just sitting there. Probably not the issue.

TJ Rat, what the hell did you do to those trannies? Good God, I've got 150k on mine, with no small share of rough driving and hard wheelin, and the thing still shifts awesome and goes down the road very quiet. Never found any metal shavings at all in the thing. Granted, the NV3550 is a better unit, but still...you gotta admit that the AX15 whoops ass all over the BA10/5...

Oh yeah, the BA10/5 had a production run in Jeeps for like two years, the AX15 was closer to 11. Proof that they will change stuff if it's crap. I think they stopped using it because they wanted to switch suppliers from BW to all NVG products, or something like that.

Move this chit-chat 'bout POS boxes to noob.