Rear end whine

[Burnsy]

I have a whine in my new but old old HR rear end bummer because I like the 3.55 diff and don't want to put my old 3.89 back in.

Can rear wheel bearings whine and if so how do you tell if it is the diff or wheel bearings?

Also, any rough ideas on what it would cost to have the diff repaired if that is what it is?

[nicko]

this ones easy,take it for a drive and while going at steady speed,put clutch in if whine dissapears then its the diff,if sound stays the same then its a wheel bearing,also check that you have enough oil in diff and right type ( not LSD type)much cheaper to get good second hand centre than repairing old one.this is not a perfect test but is fairly reliable way of checking

[collecta]

Burnsy,
unfortunately it is your diff whining, the whine sould come in at a certain speed and get noisier, sounds like the pinion and crown wheel lash needs setting up, as wheel bearings give a different sound altogether a bit hard  to describe in words. good gearbox, diff shop about  $200 aprox, ill ask a mate who works for one of these shops and get a better idea for ya.
reminds me of an old joke

trucky comes across these to old drunks under their car out in the sticks. thought he'd stop to lend a hand, whats up fellers, one bloke sticks his head out and say's  " not much mate just tryin to get the wine outa the diff"   cheers Scott

[Burnsy]

It's in an auto but when you back off the power (if what the grey produces can be called that!!) the whine disapears so looks like it is the diff.  Oh well, for $10 you can't expect too much, I will see what else I can scrounge up to replace it.

Collecta, going on what you are telling me, am I correct in the assumption that when a diff whines it is beacuse it is not set up/ adjusted correctly and not because it needs new bearings?  Diff centres do have bearings don't they?

[surferboy]

gday burnsy
i fixed the whine in my diff easily
i bought a loud stereo system.
then i drove the wagon for 5 years with no problems.
   
                  surferboy  

[collecta]

correct Burnsey, preload on pinion bearings slacken or develop end play causing pinion and crown wheel to incorrectly mesh causing drive noise,coast noise or float noise.

the diff centre does have bearings one either side of the diff case, and one on the pinion.

cheers Scott

[EJ_Dave]

Another cause of diff whining is scuffing of the teeth due to running out of oil. I'm embarrassed to say I have done this (I had been meaning to fix that leak!). There was not much visible damage but did it roar- even after I topped up the oil. $55 for a new 2nd hand centre (probably cheaper than getting someone to change a pinion seal- or set the preloads for that matter) fixed the problem. It can take a while to find one that doesn't whine though- and you can't tell until you've fitted it- so maybe getting the preloads set would be money well spent if that's the problem.

David

David

David