New rear end?

[Kach]

So the same shop that fixed my no OD/Lockup problem let me know that I have a rear end issue. I rode with him while diagnosing the earlier problem with a code reader. He seemed to notice it right away. I'm probably just too used to it to really notice, but can kind of feel it coming on/off the power. I have 190k on the odometer now and have always ran amsoil gear oil with more changes than should be needed. What kind of mileage is everyone normally getting out of a rear-end? He pulled the diff and says I need a ring and pinion... quoted $1900 for the job, looks like the parts are the majority of that.

Not sure what I'm asking, maybe I just need a hug!

 

[Killer223]

so... why does he say you need a new one? what's it doing? are you sure it's not just u-joints?

a ring n pinon are only about 500$, i'm not sure about the bearings... but i'm not sure what he is noticing...
mine has 240K and not issues i run cheap walmart oils.

was there a lot of metal shaving in the oil? have proof of that? or just his word?

 

[lpennock]

Has your drive shaft support bearing and u-joints been checked? Check the cheap stuff first.

 

[KATOOM]

I'd have to know what he noticed to understand why he feels the R&P needs to be replaced. Differentials rarely need attention beyond oil changes every 50k - 100k miles.....unless you tow heavy a lot whereby the change interval should be more often. But that said, differentials last for hundreds of thousands of miles, especially ones that are treated nicely. The only reason for a R&P change at your mileage is if there was something wrong from the get go upon factory assembly.
Get more information from your mechanic before dumping a lot of money.....

 

[cerberusiam]

Depends on what is wrong with it. The early AAM axles had some problems, you might be one of the lucky ones if there is discernible wear on the R&P. He is a little high on the $$ though, R&P and bearing set is about $900 but he may be quoting MSRP for parts.

 

[Kach]

To clarify, he did pull the diff cover to inspect - didn't charge me extra from my original service and even refilled so I can take the truck if needed. He said there is wear to the faces of the gears I believe (I don't know rear ends well so may have missed some semantics. When he pointed it out on the drive I could notice a feeling of play/looseness coming on and off the throttle.

Mechanic seems knowledgable and reputable - was reccomended by my neighbor that's pickier and more knowledgable than I am. I checked the prices on parts and looked like about $1200 in parts if I bought on my own plus oil... so maybe not too far off. Due to living in a rural area now, I'd have to save a couple hundred bucks to be worth driving elsewhere anyways so I'm not too worried about that. May call around just to see.

 

[cerberusiam]

This might have been one that incorrectly setup from the factory and you now see the results. If you have too much backlash in the diff then it needs to be fixed. Slack with on-off the throttle may NOT be backlash, that could be center support or spider gears or even carrier bearings.

 

[ColemanR]

I'm at 895K fluid changes every 30K....

 

[KATOOM]

I'm at 895K fluid changes every 30K....

Thats impressive. Do you run the stock cover?

 

[ColemanR]

Oversize cover since day one.

 

[KATOOM]

Nice..... I was wondering how many times it would take to pop the cover and re-seal before you got tired of doing that every 30k miles. I have a Mag-Hytec and I love the convenience of draining and re-filling without removing the cover.