Got the Dakota back and immediately noticed the whine the service guy described to me. He says it's due to the new bearings and axles making the "new" rotation location with the spider and pinion gear. The splines got used to where it was and now they're learning a new location.

Sounds like BS to me. The spider was replaced due to wear, so a new one should tighten things up, but now (essentially) cause a bind and grind?

Did they not set it up correctly?
Is their story complete BS?
Do I actually have to now purchase a pinion and ring gear to alleviate this whining if I don't like it? He said I wouldn't have to change the gear if I didn't mind the whining.
Am I now whining about the whining? lol

I hope to hear some knowledgeable input.

Thanks in advance!

 

Sounds like BS.

Think about this: the spiders gears, when you are going straight, don't move.

New bearings and axles shouldn't be making noise. It has to be the ring/pinion. Did it make noise before?

They may not have set it up correctly.

 

1. It could be they need a bit of wear to quiet down

2. They grabbed the cheapest ring and pinion to install if thats what they did cheap ones are known to be noisy was the ring and pinion replaced?

3. Not calibrated correctly like 00DakDan says

If you notice it its loud so I question the job

 

they did not replace the ring and pinion.

the guy said, as far as he knows, the ring and pinion would have to be replaced if I wanted it gone.

I will call them tomorrow to complain. Hope to get some more replies on here so I can have a little more back up with me during the call! LOL

Thanks!

Added: never made noise at all before.

 

What exactly did they do to it? If the ring and pinion weren't noisy when you brought it in, and they didn't replace them, there's no reason they should be noisy now.

Definitely BS.

 

Not quite. If the spider gears had to be replaced, the carrier had to be removed.

I don't care what kind of shims you use, when you pull the carrier out, it's not going in EXACTLY the way it was before. Which means the wear pattern is going to change.

 

I've removed and reinstalled lots of carriers and never once had one develop gear noise. If you set the backlash the same as it was when you took it apart (yes, you have to measure it before you take it apart), the gears should be just as quiet as when you started.

If the pinion bearings were replaced, it might be a different story, which is why I asked him exactly what they did.

 

Itemized receipt:

Rear differential bearings kit
Rear differential axle bearings 2x
rear diff axle seals 2x
both rear axles
OEM Pinion Flange
Remove and replace rear diff.

$1,237.87

 

These two items kind of stand out to me. They may have set the backlash wrong, or they may have overtightened the pinion flange and screwed up the pinion bearings.

 

I agree with TOM A i set my own new diff (trac-loc) and didn't replace the pinion but i set the backlash correctly, and didn't check before i pulled it, if it's not set right it'll whine, you can get a manual off this website for the dakota and it'll explain how to set it..I'd check it..all you need is a crayon or paint marker ..you'll definitely see it