Front Diff(s)

[churious]

Can you explain whining??? I am hearing a noise that may be either a bearing or my diff... id like to know exactly what your diff sounds like.

Is it a high pitched whining? A low chug wine? Does it change upon speed or wheel revolutions? etc etc

Thanks!

 

[Houm_WA]

I hear all kinds of $hit these days. I hear groaning at low speeds sometimes, I hear this dull whine at higher speeds only when the accelerator is pressed.

 

[brettmess24]

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[Houm_WA]

brett, you're saying that noise is the diff? ...or balding tires?

How do you know this? Did you experience it? Others have said that the diff noise is constant, not upon accleration.

 

[brettmess24]

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[EIGHTLUG]

The whining noise coming from the diff, either front or rear, could be constant or only during acceleration depending on what is out of tolerance or going bad. If it's the pinion to ring gear mesh you would hear the whine under acceleration, while it's in it's early stages. Left alone the whine will eventually get louder and happen all the time. If it's the bearings going out on the diff you will hear the whine almost constantly, at all speeds, coasting, decelerating, and accelerating. The sound, from my experience is more of a low drone or a hummm.
For some quick troubleshooting, just pull your diff fill plug and check for excessive metal shavings. From what I've read, it looks like a lot of these diffs were being put together with excessive pinion lash, causing premature wear.

 

[Houm_WA]

@EIGHTLUG: That's the thing, despite a behavior similar to what you describe, my fluid was fine (recent change).

@brettness: Man I think you're crazy. Nobody is attacking you or thinking that you are full of ****. Just looking for complete answers. Changed my mind; looked through the thread and now I think that you are indeed full of ****.

 

[franklin]

I had a high pitched whistle that would happen on and off, regardless of speed. I thought is was a wheel bearing or something caught in the brakes as the sound would go away when I pressed on the brakes. Took it to the dealer-low and behold the front diff needs to be replaced. It is covered under my extended warranty. I hear that there are more and more of these diff failures popping up. I am going to say this is a big design flaw. My vehicle is an '05-hopefully this has been corrected in newer vehicles.

 

[roverman]

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I'm not sure why Brett has to keep editing 12 dots. I can do it every time without need of edit.

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See?

 

[EIGHTLUG]

Just as a heads up, I dropped my front and rear diff fluid this past weekend. My rig has 94K on it now and I was also experiencing a dull humm coming from the diffs under acceleration, but only at highway speeds (70+) It's been like that for a while.


I replaced the fluid with Royal Purple 75W90. 3 Qts total F/R.... And it quieted both diffs down considerably. I mean to the point of silence @ highway speeds. Nothing else was done to the diffs. No metal was found, lash seemed normal. I'm not saying this would be the case with every diff, but for the 60 bucks to give it a try and about a half hour of your time, I'd say it's worth it.