REAR AX LE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
page page
REAR AXLE
DIAGNOSIS AND TESTING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
STANDARD PROCEDURE - DRAIN AND FILL . . 13
REMOVAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
INSTALLATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
SPECIFICATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
SPECIAL TOOLS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
SHAFT-AXLE SINGLE REAR WHEEL
REMOVAL-SINGLE REAR WHEEL . . . . . . . . . . 23
INSTALLATION-SINGLE REAR WHEEL . . . . . . . 24
BEARING/SEAL-AXLE
REMOVAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
INSTALLATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
SHAFT-AXLE DUAL REAR WHEELS
REMOVAL-DUAL REAR WHEEL . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
INSTALLATION-DUAL REAR WHEEL . . . . . . . . 28
BEARING/SEAL-AXLE HUB
REMOVAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
INSTALLATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
DIFFERENTIAL
REMOVAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
DISASSEMBLY
DISASSEMBLY-SINGLE REAR WHEEL . . . . . 32
DISASSEMBLY-DUAL REAR WHEEL . . . . . . . 33
ASSEMBLY
ASSEMBLY-SINGLE REAR WHEEL . . . . . . . . 34
ASSEMBLY-DUAL REAR WHEEL . . . . . . . . . . 36
INSTALLATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
BEARINGS-DIFFERENTIAL CASE
REMOVAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
INSTALLATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
SEAL-PINION
REMOVAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
INSTALLATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
GEAR-PINION/RING
REMOVAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
INSTALLATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
REAR AX LE
DIAGNOSIS AND TESTING
NOTE: Axle seals, axle bearings, pinion seals and
differential cover are the only serviceble compo-
nents. If differential is damaged/noisy the axle must
be replaced.
GEAR NOISE
Axle gea r n oise ca n be cau sed by in su fficien t lubri-
cant, in correct backlash, in correct pinion dept h, t ooth
contact, worn/damaged gea rs, or t he carrier housin g
not having the proper offset and squ areness.
Gear noise usu ally happen s at a specific speed
range. The n oise can also occur du ring a specific type
of driving condition. These conditions are accelera-
tion, deceler ation, coast , or constan t load.
When road t estin g, first wa rm-up t he a xle fluid by
dr iving the veh icle at least 5 miles a nd th en a cceler-
ate t he vehicle to the speed r ange where th e noise is
the great est. Shift out-of-gear and coast t hrough t he
peak-noise ra nge. If th e noise stops or changes
gre atly:
• Ch eck for insufficien t lubricant .
• Incorrect ring gea r ba cklash.
• Gea r d a m a ge.
Differential side gea rs a nd pinion s can be checked
by tu rning t he vehicle. They usually do not cause
noise during stra igh t-ahea d dr iving when the gea rs
are unloaded. The side gea rs ar e loaded du ring vehi-
cle tur ns. A wor n pinion shaft ca n a lso ca use a snap-
ping or a knockin g noise.
BEARING NOISE
The axle shaft , differ ential and pinion bearings can
all produce noise when wor n or damaged. Bea rin g
noise ca n be eit her a whining, or a growling sound.
Pinion bearings have a con st ant-pitch noise. This
noise chan ges only with vehicle speed. Pin ion bearing
noise will be higher pit ched because it rota tes at a
faster rat e. Dr ive the vehicle a nd load th e differen-
tia l. If bearing n oise occur s, th e rea r pinion bea ring
is the sou rce of the n oise. If t he bea ring n oise is
hear d du ring a coast, the fr ont pinion bearing is the
sou rce.
Differential bearings u su ally pr odu ce a low pit ch
noise. Differen tia l bearing noise is similar t o pinion
bearing noise. The pitch of differ ential bea ring noise
is also consta nt and varies only with vehicle speed.
Axl e shaft bear i ngs produce noise and vibr ation
when wor n or dam aged. The n oise gener ally ch anges
when th e bearings are loaded. Roa d test the vehicle.
Turn t he veh icle sharply to the left and to the right.
This will load th e bea rin gs and change t he n oise
level. Wher e axle bea ring damage is slight, the n oise
is usua lly not noticeable at speeds above 30 mph.
3-12 REARAXLE VA
To Next Page