2008 Yukon Rear End Howl

[PReal]

It has always made the noise as long as i can remember. We purchased the car last September with 69k and its got 81k on it now.

I've changed the pinion seal and bearing on my 65 mustang. No big deal at all there. This is my wife's dd and I just cant have it torn down for a couple days in between time to work on it.

What would happen if i just ran it. The noise isnt too loud at the moment.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: PReal
I'd rather pay 400-500 on a pinion bearing replacement then buy a junkyard axle. If this was my 97 pathfinder I'd go the junkyard route but this is still a $25k car...


Well, yes. This was on a 14 year old Jeep with a lot of miles.

My situation was also different because I could get a much better front differential (and axle) from an older model year Cherokee. If I had to rebuild the junkyard axle , it would have been worth it opposed to rebuilding the weaker original equipment axle.

 

[A_Harman]

I say if the howl can only be heard between 55-60 mph, and can't be heard over the radio if played at a reasonable volume, it's probably not too bad. (I'm not suggesting that the radio be used to cover up the noise, just trying to provide an approximate reference to how loud the howl can be!) The howl I'm thinking is a result of imperfect contact between the ring and pinion, so there would be some extra scrubbing and possible wear. In this case, the gear oil should be changed on a more frequent basis. And make sure you have a magnet in the center section to catch the steel wear particles.

 

[meep]

if the howl changes on different road surfaces I would look at the tires first.

otherwise it's pinion alignment to me. You can drive a car with a mis-aligned pinion for a long time and not have any problems. or you can put it up in the air and go ahead and have the work done.

pretty much what A_Harman says.

You *will* want to check it for particles more frequently -- to notice any signs of accelerating wear that could leave you stranded or seized (I've never heard of either happening but that doesn't mean it can't).

 

[WiskyBadger]

A mechanic and myself did it. I paid him a hundred bucks and I wanna say the bearing was only like 20-30 with the race too. As others have said you have disassemble the rear end and have some special tools. It's worth taking it to fix it. I got lucky.

 

[threeputtpar]

Originally Posted By: PReal
What would happen if i just ran it. The noise isnt too loud at the moment.


I ran a Ford rear end with this noise for 100k miles and it never got any worse. I changed the fluid twice and never had any significant particulates in the fluid.

It was just a nuisance to me as my wife wasn't able to even hear the noise that I was referring to.

Drive on and worry about bigger things.

 

[SteveSRT8]

We have one 3500 van with the big Dana rear end and it has howled since new. I never worried about it.

Just shy of 200k miles and still howlin'...

 

[PReal]

These posts are giving me some comfort. I am a little too sensitive to automove noise and although minor, this one annoys me. I will more then likely keep running it and change the fluid regularly.

 

[PReal]

Used the vacuum bleeder last night to suck around 2 quarts of gear oil out of the rear en and replaced with mobil 1 75w90. Noise is still there but I'm just going to drive it!

Vacuum bleeder made this job easy. Now I'll do the same thing on my truck' rear end and maybe the trans too...

 

[paulo57509]

Originally Posted By: PReal
These posts are giving me some comfort. I am a little too sensitive to automove noise and although minor, this one annoys me. I will more then likely keep running it and change the fluid regularly.

Originally Posted By: PReal
Used the vacuum bleeder last night to suck around 2 quarts of gear oil out of the rear en and replaced with mobil 1 75w90. Noise is still there but I'm just going to drive it!

Vacuum bleeder made this job easy. Now I'll do the same thing on my truck' rear end and maybe the trans too...


If you have a limited slip diff there's an Eaton Gov-Lok (aka "Gov-Bomb") in there. No need for an additive for these limited slip differentials. GM also recommends not using additives in these axles (TSB #91-4-109).

Check the Recommended Fluids and Lubricants section in your owner's manual for recommended rear axle lube. It will most likely list a synthetic lube but there will be no listing for an additive.

Find the SPID sticker (might be on one of the the door jambs or in the glove box) and look for "G80" (RPO Code for limited slip differential).

From my '03 GMC Safari:


FWIW, I use Red Line 75W-90 which has some kind of friction modifier in it. Additives will not make it explode. It may wear the locking mechanism faster, though.