Problems after mud

I

Ikshaw

New member
Hey all, I made a dumb mistake and drove through a big mud pit today. The radiator got caked with mud which caused overheating issues which I believe I can fix. On top of that, my wheel speed sensors no longer seem to be working and I am experiencing some strange harsh vibration, only sometimes, but it will even continue when the vehicle is turned off momentarily. Has anyone experienced any of these issues? If so, a little help would be greatly appreciated!

Ian
 
Have you cleaned the mud yet? If not it will probably fix your vibration issue. It’s possible you broke a wheel speed sensor, what makes you think that you broke one?


Sent from my iPhone using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
I-Eat-Mud said:
Have you cleaned the mud yet? If not it will probably fix your vibration issue. It’s possible you broke a wheel speed sensor, what makes you think that you broke one?


Sent from my iPhone using WAYALIFE mobile app
Click to expand...

I still need to really clean it all off, but I have cleaned it a little. The ABS, Traction Control, and hill descent assist lights are on, and it seems to grab when taking off from a stand still. I had no idea driving through a decent sized mud pit could cause so many problems.
 
That does sound like wheel speed sensor. You need to clean it all out thoroughly first, mostly on the inside of the wheels and the hub area. Mud can cause problems on newer vehicles for sure. That’s how I got my username.

I always clean off mud ASAP. Once we went through some nasty shit, and were going to eat at a hooters after. I split off and cleaned the mud on my way there. The joke since has been that I just ate the mud.


Sent from my iPhone using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
Ikshaw said:
Hey all, I made a dumb mistake and drove through a big mud pit today. The radiator got caked with mud which caused overheating issues which I believe I can fix. On top of that, my wheel speed sensors no longer seem to be working and I am experiencing some strange harsh vibration, only sometimes, but it will even continue when the vehicle is turned off momentarily. Has anyone experienced any of these issues? If so, a little help would be greatly appreciated!

Ian
Click to expand...

If you have issues getting all the mud out, i built a little wand out of copper pipe for about 20 bucks. It has holes drilled in it and hooks up to a garden hose. Works really well to get around the condenser and radiator.

IMG_20180513_172124_426.jpg
 
Last edited:
WJCO said:
If you have issues getting all the mud out, i built a little wand out of copper pipe for about 20 bucks. It has holes drilled in it and hooks up to a garden hose. Works really well to get around the condenser and radiator.
Click to expand...

I did something similar with PVC pipe about five feet long. Helps get the mud off the underside. Of course, slowly dragging a sprinkler under the Jeep seems to work just as well.

Pay particular attention to the inside of your wheels... dried mud can produce a pretty nasty, speed sensitive vibration.


Sent from my iPad using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
I-Eat-Mud said:
That does sound like wheel speed sensor. You need to clean it all out thoroughly first, mostly on the inside of the wheels and the hub area. Mud can cause problems on newer vehicles for sure. That’s how I got my username.

I always clean off mud ASAP. Once we went through some nasty shit, and were going to eat at a hooters after. I split off and cleaned the mud on my way there. The joke since has been that I just ate the mud.


Sent from my iPhone using WAYALIFE mobile app
Click to expand...

Funny story behind your username! I’ll get it cleaned as best I can ASAP!
 
WJCO said:
If you have issues getting all the mud out, i built a little wand out of copper pipe for about 20 bucks. It has holes drilled in it and hooks up to a garden hose. Works really well to get around the condenser and radiator.
Click to expand...

That’s a good idea, I’ll have to look into making one of those!
 
RonG said:
I did something similar with PVC pipe about five feet long. Helps get the mud off the underside. Of course, slowly dragging a sprinkler under the Jeep seems to work just as well.

Pay particular attention to the inside of your wheels... dried mud can produce a pretty nasty, speed sensitive vibration.


Sent from my iPad using WAYALIFE mobile app
Click to expand...

Cleaned out the wheels pretty well, the only problem is that the vibration is not speed sensitive, it seems to come and go, and will even continue when I turn the thing off, until all electronics are off. Really have no clue what it could be, it seems to be a pretty powerful vibration though..
 
May be a dumb question, however this is after all a brand new wrangler, would this be covered under warranty even though it was my stupid idea to go through the mud in the first place?
 
Clean the mud out of your wheels, preferably before it sets, a putty knife can be of great assistance for this. Probably haven't broken a speed sensor but if the 'gear' is full of mud it won't function properly.
The longer you wait, the harder it will be to clean. Ask me how I know.
 
Mud is always best to be removed when it is still fresh.

After it dries out it is a whole new hell to remove.

I dropped one front tire of my work truck in a mud hole once. Backed out and went about the day. I didn't realize that the inside of the wheel was nearly half full until I left to go home. By 30 mph it was shaking so bad I thought the wheels were coming off.
By then the mud was dry, and I had to take the wheel off on the side of the road and scrape it clean just to go home.

Now about the OPs problem, it sounds like the speed sensor is not reading. The abs and traction control will have a fit.
 
Okay a bit of an update, cleaned it off as best I could without removing the wheels. Still has not solved either the wheel speed sensor problem, or the overheating/ vibration problem. I believe the vibration is from the fan, which has a gritty feel when spun by hand. I’m thinking that will need to be replaced. Also, I cleaned the radiator assembly as best I could but it’s rather hard to get to. The car still is overheating non stop, so any advice or experience would be appreciated!
 
Keep running your garden hose at the radiator until the water comes out clean. Check if any of your wheel speed sensors got disconnected/ripped out

Post pictures of your radiator.
 
Last edited:
be sure to clean the backside of the radiator and the fan really well.

leaving the sprinkler on underneath between the radiator and pulleys will help soften loosen the mud so you can wash it off easier.

Take the wheels off so you can see where it's still caked on.

Mud infiltrates everything and dries fast enough to cause all kinds of issues.
 
FB_IMG_1528159891851.jpeg dont get me wrong I dont mind a bit now n again but that mess takes forever to get outta things ... ... as for the abs /traction control lights those are a bad sensor.. stealership should replace under warranty of still under it .. as for the overheating I would do like a few have already said run that hose till its showing clear then run it some more just to be certain.. make sure belt isn't slipping due to being wet when ya check things .. verify fluids are gtg, visually inspect every thing to be sure the only mud left is what ya cant see ..

Sent from my SM-G892A using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
Thank you for all of the helpful replies, I found that removing the top fan shroud gave much more access to the radiator for cleaning, which I proceeded to clean of course. It is now much better than it was, however the temperature will still will just climb and climb if I’m using the AC. When I don’t use the AC I just run the heat on full blast, to utilize the heater core as a second radiator, which seems to be able to keep it tame for long enough. Has anybody had anything similar happen? There still, is a vibration as well, I think it must be the fan, I may just have the dealership replace the fan and look over everything to get it fixed. I just want my Jeep to work again. :(
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom