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Hummer H3 is falling apart.

joe315

Member
Messages
15
Location
us
Well, maybe not... but it sure feels like it. 2 months ago I bought a 2006 Hummer H3, and about a week ago I started having problems with it. Like most used cars the worst thing is not knowing who owned it before you, what they did to it, and what ticking time bomb problems it has. A few have already surfaced, all of these in less than a week.

Last week I was driving about 30 mph and had to brake hard, and when I did the whole front end locked up and made a grinding sound. I thought I had slid on some dirt or something, but with ABS and the fact there was no dirt to slide on, that can't have been the case.

Then a few days ago I was backing out of my driveway and when I shifted from reverse to drive the car came to a slamming stop and made a bang so loud my girlfriend thought I backed into another car. The bang sounded like it came from the rear, but I can't be sure. Not sure if it's related, but when shifting from P or N to D or R, it shifts fine. When I shift from D to R or vice verse, there is a faint banging sound.

Now I noticed the rear end of the car is bottomed out. If you push / sit / jump on the rear bumper the car will not go down any farther, almost like there are no shocks in it. The rear end hits bumps harder and when going over big bumps there is a metallic banging sound coming from whichever wheel(s) hit the bump. The rear wheels are about 1.5-2 inches from the rear fender because it's sagging so bad. It's been sitting 2" high since I got it home, and now the whole car is sitting lower than when I got it. WTF could cause that?

Between 25 and 30 mph there is a vibrating / grinding feeling in the pedals.

Now the worst part, and I am at fault for this one. When I first bought it, I noticed that if I turned the wheel all the way to the left or right, the car wouldn't move. Since the Hummer turns so sharp I figured it was because the wheels were turned so far. I think the car has been in 4 hi lock for the entire 2 months I have had it, or even longer, even thought the 4 hi button was lit up. I've never owned a 4wd truck before so nothing seemed out of the ordinary. I took it out the other night and backed it up for 25 feet and it's now unlocked.

So, what am I looking at? Messed up transfer case? Transmission? Are the rear shocks bad or is it something else? I will try to add pics of the sagging rear if there's isn't some "50 posts to post pics" rule.
 

freeze

Well-Known Member
Messages
46
Location
New England
Sounds like at least like your leaf spring is broken. I've seen it happen on the trail. It was pretty loud like the sound you were describing.
 
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joe315

Member
Messages
15
Location
us
Sounds like at least like your leaf spring is broken. I've seen it happen on the trail. It was pretty loud like the sound you were describing.

I looked underneath and couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. Both leaf springs looks to be fine. Would it be obvious if it was broken?
 

joe315

Member
Messages
15
Location
us
Is this the front bolt they wrap around? The first 3 are of the left, the last 2 are from the right.
Left (1).jpgLeft (2).jpgLeft (3).jpgRight (1).jpgRight (2).jpg
 

alrock

El Diablo
Staff member
Messages
10,677
Location
Scottsdale
I think you either have a broken transfer case or differential in addition to a broken spring
 

alrock

El Diablo
Staff member
Messages
10,677
Location
Scottsdale
Dude, your rear axle moved! It's off a couple of inches. Get that thing towed to a shop and do not drive it. Fix the axle first and then see how the rest is. Minimally need new u-bolts
 

amrg

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,317
Location
Qatar
You think the whole TC is shot? What do those run? $2k?

Here's some more pics.
View attachment 11400View attachment 11406View attachment 11409

You can tell from the above pics that your entire rear axle is no longer in the proper location. It moved backwards (you can even see from the last picture that your rear bump stops no longer rest on the location they are supposed to be. As alrock said, don't drive it, tow it, if its a spring issue U DONT want it snapping while driving and ending up in a huge mess.
 

telemike

Hummer Enthusiast
Messages
466
Location
Greensboro, NC
Yup, you need two used or new Leaf springs packs. Search junkyards for donor leaf packs. Yours are destroyed. Fix that, then check the transfercase.
 

rascole

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,850
Location
Bellflower, CA
WOW, never seen that on a street truck. Seen it once on a desert race truck that hit a boulder at 60mph. TC may be trashed as a result of the rear axle trying to pull out. That sucks.
 

joe315

Member
Messages
15
Location
us
Dude, your rear axle moved! It's off a couple of inches. Get that thing towed to a shop and do not drive it. Fix the axle first and then see how the rest is. Minimally need new u-bolts

That was my first thought when I saw the tires shifted back, then I thought "no effin way" and figured it must be from sagging. I'm going to have it towed to a shop tomorrow to get at least the axle fixed.

Yup, you need two used or new Leaf springs packs. Search junkyards for donor leaf packs. Yours are destroyed. Fix that, then check the transfercase.

What's the difference between a leaf spring and a leaf spring pack? Trying to price stuff before I head to the shop, I hate surprises.

Holy ****!

You been jumping dunes in that thing?

:whaa:

I wish. Would make for a better story than "Iunno what happened".

WOW, never seen that on a street truck. Seen it once on a desert race truck that hit a boulder at 60mph. TC may be trashed as a result of the rear axle trying to pull out. That sucks.

I think the previous owner messed with the axle and didn't bolt it back in properly. Are there any kinds of lifts that would require removing the rear axle? When I bought it, it sat about 2" high.
 
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joe315

Member
Messages
15
Location
us
Sent the photos to my dad (mechanic for longer than I've been alive) and he says the axle is fine, the airbags just fell of their plate because they got too low and now the truck is bottomed out. Agree? Disagree?

Here's the pic.
hummer (9).jpg
 
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SuperBuickGuy

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,403
Location
Woodinville, WA
Last week I was driving about 30 mph and had to brake hard, and when I did the whole front end locked up and made a grinding sound. I thought I had slid on some dirt or something, but with ABS and the fact there was no dirt to slide on, that can't have been the case.check the bushing that keeps the front differential from rotating - that rubber dies pretty quickly, and that sound tends to originate from that failure

Then a few days ago I was backing out of my driveway and when I shifted from reverse to drive the car came to a slamming stop and made a bang so loud my girlfriend thought I backed into another car. The bang sounded like it came from the rear, but I can't be sure. Not sure if it's related, but when shifting from P or N to D or R, it shifts fine. When I shift from D to R or vice verse, there is a faint banging same diagnosis as above

Now I noticed the rear end of the car is bottomed out. If you push / sit / jump on the rear bumper the car will not go down any farther, almost like there are no shocks in it. The rear end hits bumps harder and when going over big bumps there is a metallic banging sound coming from whichever wheel(s) hit the bump. The rear wheels are about 1.5-2 inches from the rear fender because it's sagging so bad. It's been sitting 2" high since I got it home, and now the whole car is sitting lower than when I got it. WTF could cause that? shocks

Between 25 and 30 mph there is a vibrating / grinding feeling in the pedals. check your brakes, but my guess is again that bushing (all these noises point to that one issue)

Now the worst part, and I am at fault for this one. When I first bought it, I noticed that if I turned the wheel all the way to the left or right, the car wouldn't move. Since the Hummer turns so sharp I figured it was because the wheels were turned so far. I think the car has been in 4 hi lock for the entire 2 months I have had it, or even longer, even thought the 4 hi button was lit up. I've never owned a 4wd truck before so nothing seemed out of the ordinary. I took it out the other night and backed it up for 25 feet and it's now unlocked check your CV joints, that's also a classic failure - especially on the first year rigs. Before you fix it - DO NOT TURN SHARP

If it is a transfer case problem, it could be stuck in 4 lock. There's a plastic shift fork in the transfer case that breaks - good news - that's cheap, yet a PITA to fix (you have to pull the t-case, split the case and replace the part)


So, what am I looking at? Messed up transfer case? Transmission? Are the rear shocks bad or is it something else? I will try to add pics of the sagging rear if there's isn't some "50 posts to post pics" rule.
 

atvspeed4

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,214
Location
massachusetts
Your leaf springs snapped at the front eye. This is not a maybe or if! Your damn rear axle is just floating in there. There is nothing wrong with the axle or u bolts YOUR MAIN LEAF SNAPPED!!! Do not drive it! Like Freeze said I had the same thing happen to my 2006. It is actually pretty common on 2006 H3 that live in the rusty areas of our country.
 

Gunner_45

Super Moderator
Staff member
Messages
1,932
Location
Texas
Sent the photos to my dad (mechanic for longer than I've been alive) and he says the axle is fine, the airbags just fell of their plate because they got too low and now the truck is bottomed out. Agree? Disagree?

Here's the pic.
View attachment 11410

With all due respect, I do not think H3's have airbags.

However, if someone did not know that, I can see where the photo above would "look like" an airbag instead of a bump stop.

That axle has shifted several inches and is not safe.
 

06 H3

a.k.a. "The Jackal"
Messages
9,505
Location
Meridian, ID
I know there are a lot of different responses and it can be overwhelming.

I would first replace the leaf spring. They can be bought for under 200 bucks. I would also inspect the t case. Due to it overextending the driveshaft it MAY have pushed up on the t case with force and cracked it. I doubt it but I would check. As for other clunks, I would say start there replace the spring and see what you hear after. You may or may not have to track down other issues. Who knows....that sucks man.


...General Rant...

Off topic to your direct issue but we can't have this **** happening on the trail. You can really **** your **** up driving off a trail this way. I know the hotchkiss design we have is pretty good but maybe a military wrap would help more. Rust seems to be the issue here which can destroy break a coil spring or any type of suspension type product and leave you stranded but a military wrap leaf spring can allow you to break the main leaf and still drive safely off the trail...something for us to think about as this problem is starting to show more and more.

I wouldn't want to imagine this happening driving up an obstacle on a trail...
 
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alrock

El Diablo
Staff member
Messages
10,677
Location
Scottsdale
Or in the front . . .. Joe, the rear axle does not sit on the bump stops like in an airbag setup. There's always lots of room and the bump stop plate should line up with the bump stops.

Flatbed it to a mechanic. I think it will take about 30 seconds to diagnose the primary failure when someone sees it in person - it isn't rocket science, it will be obvious. Used springs, from what I've seen, are not necessarily a good deal unless you can get them locally as the cost of shipping kills the benefit.
 

joe315

Member
Messages
15
Location
us
Thanks guys I really appreciate the help. Calling around right now trying to figure out when I can get this fixed.
 
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