I have a 2000 Dakota 4.7l 4x4 auto, rear end was making all kinds of noise. Tore it down and found the pinion bearings and left wheel bearings **** the bed, and there are some sort of clip around the spider gears most of which have one end broke off. I know I need to replace the bearings, but what about the gears? They look ok to me, no sharp edges, no broken teeth, and no visual distortion of the teeth, but I am not having much luck finding info on ring and pinion inspection. I am also a little worried about the broken clips on the spider gears. Any advise?

 

Hi,

The clips you found are likely the clutch pack retaining clips. They are known to fail, mine did. You can rebuild the clutches and replace those clips or get a rebuilt carrier. Dodge has supposedly redesigned the clips.

Basically all you can do with the gears is give them a thorough inspection. If you don't see any problems go ahead and reuse them.

 

a factory service manual should have all the info you need. i found a paper one for my 2001 dak. a paper manual are hard to find. mine cost $150, but well worth it.