what are the symptoms for a bad drive axel, i.e. any sounds.....ive been getting an odd sound from the front right....sounds like it could be a spring, or even the shock going bad....but the left drive axel busted off about a year ago (when the car was my dads ).....and id like to avoid the fiasco he delt w/...im planning on getting new shocks and springs neways, but i just wanna rule out anything else....thanks

 

visual inspection-> check cj axle, check for leak and tear on the rubber.

driving test-> go to a flat, empty parking lot at night, drive the car in cycle, almost like doing "donut" but you dont have to be hard on the gas so all the rubber is buring. the idea is to put a load on the individual axle and spot the problem.

do one side first and look for clicking sounds, then do the other.

 

if you need how to's for testing springs and damper, i can get you some more info.

It's time to inspect the bushing and mount point on the suspension too