Rear end woes

[newfie glass]

Believe it or not, my wife prefers to drive our lifted zj and so I didnt notice the howl from the rear end. After driving it this weekend it certainly noticeable to me. It's a Dana 35 and I guess my question is what should I do,  Rebuild or replace? Im a little intimidated by doing either choice myself and can't afford to have a shop do it. Is there anyone that could lend a hand? I want to do it sooner then later to prevent damage. If a rebuild is the right choice, what kind of bearings are the best choice? Thanks in advance guys.

[Rubi03 jef]

well best thing for you is . 

go source out the parts you need .. and since you dont know what parts you need then its time to jack up the truck drain the rear diff and pull the cover off and see whats loose or wearing out .. good chances its a axle shaft bearing and there like 18 dollars and are easy to change out .

but if its a bearing on your carrier or even the pinion bearing then that will be more work and more time but you wont nkow until you open the rear end up and check .

thats my addvise and only after knowing that the problem is do you choose to rebuild of swap ..


thats where i would start

[Pookapotamus]

or just buy my thirty five for $50 and toss it in! 

[newfie glass]

Sounds like a deal. Any chance you could help me install it. I can do a better deal for your projects.

[newfie glass]

false alarm. we realized his xj diff was not an easy swap into my zj. 

[tubby]

Jay at Chanda just pulled his Dana 35( I believe they are 3.73 gears) out of his ZJ for his 8.8 swap. Couldn't hurt to call the shop and inquire about it?

[WhiteOut]

Johnny has the 44a pulled from the one we stripped. Bolts right in.

[jkrubi]

If you want a quick way of telling if it's a wheel bearing ( front or rear) drive it, and make turn left and right. ( get some body roll and weight transfer) When it get louder that is the bearing that is going bad. I've never found a good way to tell if it's a pinion brg yet.
If it's an axle brg it's easy to change if it's an pinion it's a pain. If it just the gears well your choice drive it or live with it. Have you tried rotating the wheels? Some times a tire can make the noise that you might mistake for brgs.
Hope it helps

[BlackYJ]

Dumb question but did you check to make sure there is enough fluid in the diff?  I was starting to get some noise in mine and it was down a fair bit.  Added some fluid and all better

[Bnine]

Telltale signs for pinion bearings are;

Leaking pinion seal

Movement of the pinion by hand

[FirstTimer]

Check out this thread, great info
http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f9/howling-whirring-noise-deceleration-45-60-mph-328055/

[newfie glass]

i dont see any leaks from the pinion seal and it seems to get louder when im at 80+ and let off the throttle. im hoping its just axel bearings. thanks for the great info guys, keep it comin

[cLAY]

ZJs are notorious for loud rear ends due to bad pattern setup from the factory.
 
Unless the noise is something new or growing louder I wouldn't worry about it.

It would be wise to check the fluids and axle bearings. Easy to do and rule out.

[FirstTimer]

Also check the axle seals if the diff fluid is low. Happened to my old zj. Most of the fluid leaked out from there.

[Rubi03 jef]

who are we all kiding   its a ZJ   you should just burn it to the ground and by a real jeep                               WRANGLER