My front differential is making a whining noise when I go forward. The faster I go, the higher pitch it is. We thought wheel Hubs at first, but replaced those and it didn't change. The U joints in the front axle shafts are also replaced. I opened the front differential and it didn't have much fluid in it. So we completely cleaned it and replaced the gasket, then put the cover back on. We also replaced the pinion seal because it was leaking. And lastly, replaced the seal in the 4x4 actuator because that was also leaking. So there are no more leaks in the front end and the front differential is full. It's quieter than it was when we started, but it's still there. It also has a slight clicking noise up front that recently started. Any ideas?

 

Likely two separate problems. The whine is probably a bearing that took a beating from being low on fluid. Those are neither fun, nor easy to change..... Gears are really picky about their setup, and if you do it wrong, you'll munch 'em up in a hurry. Clicking is probably one of the outer u-joints on the front axle.

 

Get up to speed and slip it into neutral. If the whine changes, or goes away, it will help track down the issue. If it doesn't change, like HeyYou said, you probably have a worn bearing or gear inside.

 

Yeah, that's what I was thinking as well. I don't want to have to change the gears in the front end, but it's starting to seem like I may have to.

 

I'll have to try that. Thank you. I hadn't thought of that.