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Rear Differential, help?

1K views 7 replies 3 participants last post by  Lce 
#1 ·
Hi,

I have a 2006 Nissan Titan 4x4

It just started making a clunking sound the other day going down the road...under 20 mph it could faintly be heard and got louder as you got up to speed.*

Today I pulled the driveline but decided to pull the cover off the rear differential and I found 3 large pieces of metal in the bottom...

Looking at the pinion (?) and drive gear they both look fine...

Reading up on this (more confussed then anything now) I'm making a wild guess that it is the spider gears (?)...


I wont beable to tell until I can pull the whole thing apart to get a better/closer look.


Can anyone help with what I should do? I am going to do all the work myself.


What do I need?

Whats the most cost efficient?*


Would this work to replace the spider gears? If that is the problem...


http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00E0EO9J0/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?qid=1419045155&sr=8-6&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70



I'm mechanically inclined and know I can do the work myself, I just dont have the money for high performance parts let alone to pay a shop.

This is my only transportation and is my daily driver.


Any help would be appreciated


I guess first things first is to pull the rear differential apart...does anyone know of a good step by step tutorial for this?


I can also take a picture of the metal pieces if that would help?


Thank you
 
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#2 ·
My understanding is that as long as the ring and pinion are in good shape then you can put in a Detroit Truetrac.

How many spider gears do you have? The old version had two and the upgraded version has four.
 
#3 ·
I can guide you through the rebuild of the center section, it's actually quite easy compared to many other axles.
 
#4 ·
Hi,

Will the Spartan Locker I posted a link to above work?


I'm pretty sure the ring and pinion are still good from what I could tell initially...I'll get a better look when I get it all disassembled, but for now I'm pretty confident they are good to go.


I'm not sure if I have the old or upgraded version of the spider gears.*

Is there an easy way to tell how many spider gears there are before disassembly?*


LUBECAKES,

If you could help guide me through it that would be great and very much appreciated.*



I'm going to have to work on it slowly as money allows and between rainstorms as I dont have a garage to work in.

We are in need of rain here in Northern California but im not ready for it and am already ready for summer :)


Thanks guys I very much appreciate your help*

This being my only rig I am really grateful of your help.
 
#5 ·
To begin, you need a magnetic dial indicator, bearing driver, torque-ometer, and the appropriate hand tools.

Remove your brake rotors and abs sensors. Set up the dial indicator perpendicular to the ring gear teeth and take a backlash reading, then write it down. You hope this reading is no more than .015, but if it's more like .020 don't sweat it. Take the axles out, and mark the side bearing caps up down left right. They must go back exactly the way they came out.

Remove the caps and pull out the chunk. You may have to loosen the side adjusters to do this. The side adjusters are self explanatory at his point....no shims!

I gotta go, but getting the pinion out isn't rocket science either....I'll be back, gotta do some shopping.
 
#6 ·
Thanks LUBECAKES,
I don't have a magnetic dial indicator so this will all have to wait until I can get one ordered.

If the locker I posted a link to above wont work I found a LSD that is a direct replacement from Auburn that's around $600 that should work...here is a link to it...

Auburn, AG5420137

If I go with either the locker or this LSD the only other parts I should need to buy are axle seals and bearings for both sides?

Thanks again for you help
 
#7 ·
You can get away without new axle seals and bearings if your stuff is still good.
I don't know much about the carriers/diffs, mine was good. All I did was replace the pinion bearings.
You'll need the pinion and carrier bearings plus a pinion seal. You'll also need a new crush collar (preload collar) for a Dana 44. If I recall, the shaft size is 1-1/8th. I shimmed mine and crushed it again, or you can use shims....all that matters is getting the pinion preload correct with at least 200lb/ft on the nut.....which you need to buy new or use red loctite on. YouTube is your friend btw.
I'll be back.
 
#8 ·
Hi,
I just ordered a Digital Indicator (I have been needing one anyways for doing work on my guns and for other tasks so this was the final push in buying one) and a magnetic base to go with it so they should be here in about a week or so.

Here is a picture of a couple of pieces I pulled out of the bottom of the housing...there was a third piece about this size but I seem to have lost it.



Direct link to full size picture...

http://imageshack.com/a/img538/6379/q2XP7q.jpg

I think these are from the spider gears (?) Differential/Carrier/LSD (?) but I am not sure...

These pieces are what make me think there's more to it then a bearing or seal but again I'm not sure.*

Thanks for sticking with me and helping
 
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