hello,
i have a 95 ram 1500 (360) with the limited slip 3.55 rearend.here recently i am getting a loud howling from the rear end.it kind of sounds like a truck with oversize tires,however,my truck is a 2 wheel drive with stock tires!has anyone else experienced this same problem with this rear end???if so,what will be needed to fix the problem?(new pinion bearing,axle bearing,gears,etc)thanks in advance.

 

Check you rear differential fluid. I had this happen to my mazda, it started to howl and the it locked up on my on the highway. Found out that I lost the rear diff. fluid, which caused the gears to overheat and expand, which locked up the rear end.
Also, my dealer asked me, on my 1996 Ram 1500, if the rear end howled. I told him no. It was becuase my rear pinion seal was worn and he was worried about the rear end having damage.

 

thanks for the reply. i have checked the fluid level in the diff and it is serviced correctly...with that being said,any other ideas????a friend thought he had heard of the dodge having this problem but was unsure of what was wrong inside the housing.i guess i will just have to take it apart.

 

check the pinion nut, a friend of mine had his work loose

 

i have this same whine in my 99 1500 Sport, its really annoying when I have the rear slider open, i checked oit out to everything seems fine,also have a nice annoying hum when Im in reverse, anyone ever heard of this one...

 

I have a 98 1500 4x4. I had the same thing happen on mine, coming from california back home to Michigan. I was pretty proud of it though made from about the south/ middle portion of Illinois when i heard the howling. It sounded like I was running my swampers. I took it into the dealer and had to have the rearend replaced. They never exactly told me what went bad just that i was lucky to have gotten it that far with out it taking a big crap in the middle of the highway. sorry I couldn't be of anymore help.

 

Whatever it is the average joe cant fix it himself. Bring it in and get it done right. The towing bill could be more than the repair if you break down in the middle of nowhere and most likely then you gotta tow it plus fix the locked up part. Howling is always bad - I wouldnt be asking people for advice Id be driving to the dealer - No slam intended - If I cant trust my truck 100% ( or so I think ) its off to the repair shop.

 

Another one of the MANY common problems with these trucks is the rear pinion and carrier bearings going to **** prematurely. The carrier bearings on my '97 3/4 ton started howling and vibrating back in January. I'm guessing that's probably your problem, sounds like it from your description.

An easy check is to block the truck so it doesn't roll on you, and put it in neutral (not running). Climb under it and see how much play the pinion has from side to side, top to bottom, in and out, and when you rotate it. If it has any play side to side, top to bottom, or in and out, the pinion bearings are bad. If it rotates more than about 8* from contact to contact, then either the ring and pinion need to be replace, or the carrier bearings are bad. If it's none of these things, jack the rear of the truck up, and see if you can move the wheels side to side or up and down. If you can, you may have bad wheel bearings in the ends of the axles. You should see lube coming out of the seals if you take the wheels and brake drums off. If this isn't it either, your posi might be worn.

It's really not that hard to replace any of these things. It just takes a lot of time and patience, and you have to be careful. If you find it is any of these things and want to tackle the job yourself, PM me and I can walk you thru it.

 

Do what others suggested on checking the pinion nut and changing the rear fluid. I stumbled across metal chunks in my 2000 half-ton along time ago by just servicing the rear diff. Come to find out, the chunks of metal were from the limited slip clutch plates. (thank god for ext.warranty) Good luck with it all.