Common problem. It is a poor design in respect to the retaining ring/clip which secures the axle inside the diff. Many members have experienced this issue. It was redesigned in 06 or 07. I'm not sure why it wouldn't be covered on your extended warranty though. And they should be able to just replace the clip and put it all back together.

 

If the clip fails and the shaft pulls out, the gear oil can run out, leaving the diff to run w/o lubrication. Perhaps the splines in the side gears might also get messed up.

 

I'm curious why this would require replacing the diff though? If the 4wd still works and there's no grinding noise, couldn't they just fix the retaining clip and call it a day? I will be following this thread carefully so please keep us posted on what you do and what they find.

 

Thanks for all the replies. I called another dealership and relayed the story and symptoms to a service manager. He looked up my warranty and said it would be covered and was a bit surprised they diagnosed it that fast, simply by putting it on the lift and not opening the diff up. He thought it was either the clip or possibly a wheel bearing. What would be another indication of wheel bearing problem? play in the wheel? I canceled the order for the diff and will get the truck back as soon as I can and take it to this new dealership.

mdemeglio- I will see what this dealership says and post back here with the findings.

 

Bad wheel bearing typically makes noise. The front wheel bearings are integrated with the hubs and sealed, so you have to buy the whole thing. The retaining clip issue is typically associated with the shaft pulling out and an obvious gear oil leak.

 

Pretty amazing how just going to a different dealer will affect a repair and it's cost. I don't trust dealerships at all and that's unfortunate because their techs have the benefit of some pretty decent factory training. You were wise to be suspicious of such a quick diagnosis.

 

Yeah...definitely no harm in getting a second opinion. Alot of the time it will save you a HUGE headache and a few bucks!

 

hey, i have a front diff/housing that i am selling if that goes sour.....

 

Theres good news, then there is frustrating news. Good news is the 2nd dealer can't find anything wrong with the differential, and found everything to be with in "manufacture's specifications." The frustrating news is they cant figure out the noise and blamed it on the radflos. I checked the torque on all the nuts related to the shock. Bounced up and down on the bumper and you can barely make a noise out. I am almost positive the noise was there before the radflos where installed. I say almost because I have been theorizing about it so long the details are getting fuzzy. I crawled under there again to knock and shake everything I could get my hands on and no noise or unusual movement. I don't see any rubbing, no coil bucket contact. I know its not the swaybar endlinks. So what the heck is it! I took it to a local tire/auto repair several weeks ago. And they blamed the shock because they thought the bushings looked better than average considering my mileage. Any ideas? There is another shop I may try and shoot an email to PRG.

 

If your CV axle boot is torn and has been torn for a while all the grease inside that boot could be gone and it will bind and make clunking noises. Might wanna check that out (boot closest to the tire).

 

I will check the CV boots this morning. Tuning one way or the other doesn't seem to effect the noise much. The Radflos are less than 2 months old. My gut feeling is its a bushing or ball joint. Grabbing the tire while the front end is off the ground, I don't get any play, but the steering will turn so its a bit hard to feel anything. There is a 1/4 mile stretch of Highway that I usually go over a few times a week. The asphalt has peaks or ridges in it at consistent intervals. Every time I drive over it, it feels and sounds like a flat tire. ta-clunk, ta-clunk, ta-clunk... A co-worker was riding with me once, and pokes fun at my anal-retentiveness regarding my truck. He heard the noise and said his wife's Tahoe makes that noise... Dealership said it was wheel bearing, replaced, noise is still present.

If it were a ball joint, I would be able to feel some play pushing the top or bottom of the tire right?

If the cause is a bushing in the LCA, wouldn't I have alignment issues?

mdemeglio, I'm determined to figure this out. It sounds like you can't get the LCA and UCA bushing separate from the Control Arm from Nissan. Have you tried the Delrin spacers from PRG?

Off to check CV boots.

 

Sounds like it could be your shocks "topping out". Is there any sort of rebound stop on your coilovers? I know my OEM coilovers top out occasionally over speed bumps.

 

On a side note if the clip on the front axle goes you might just as well get the new diff. If the clip falls off once it will do it again. Been there, done that.

 

Another chapter in the saga...
Had my inspection done yesterday and asked the mechanic to check out the shaft to the driver side, he immediately said there was too much play and probably worn out bearings. I explained the story and he just shook his head in disgust. I went back to dealer "b" that said it would be under warranty but couldn't find a problem. Again, I get the "its the aftermarket struts" I told him to go back and put his hand on the shaft and push up. Bingo!.... but wait there's more... its due to the "lift kit" and we cant touch a truck with a lift kit" and that caused the pinion leek... ya know 1" in lift and stress on the drivetrain. :huh: Give me a break! I may have fallen off a turnip truck but it wasn't yesterday!

:bang:
Anyone know of a good shop in the Houston area that I can trust? The shop that did the inspection said he could put in a new diff but didn't have the specialty tools to replace parts in mine. Id like to see if it can be fixed first, this is really putting me off on a 4wd titan.

 

Could I simply keep the truck in 2wd till I can afford a new Diff? I have been doing just that for at least 6 months trying to figure out the problem anyway. Help me out guys.

 

You should be fine doing that as long as you like really. My front diff first started giving me problems in 4WD last winter, and I just changed the unit this past weekend. During that period I put about 13K miles on the truck, complete with a 2500 mile round trip camping vacation to the Rockies, including a few fire roads. The only thing that reminded me of my front diff issue was the occasional rattling of the drivers side output shaft (my problem side with the diff).

 

My problem is the driver side shaft as well. The clunking noise over harsh roads is the reason I replaced the struts in the first place. The bearings are probably already wallowed out. I figure if I have to replace the differential unit anyway might as go as long as i can, as long as it wont tear up anything else outside the differential. I may wind up removing it as well. What a PITA huh?

 

The cir clip is only part of the issue. Heres the other. The machining on the axle is very bad. I had the entire end of the right axle shear off. First the left axle popped out. I was able to pop the cir clip back in. Then I read the front diff issue here on the Titan talk forum. I ordered new clips but before I could up them up from the dealer the right axle broke. So it's actully two problems. The centering hole in the axle is rifle drilled so deep the end that sheared off has a hole through it. This in my opinion reduced the strength of the part. Also the cir clip groove is cut with a square shoulder instead of a rounded grooveed base which gave the end of the axle a natural shear path. This whole thing stinks on ice. Both the left axle and right axle popped and sheared at like 3-4 mph in 4wd on the black top.

 

Do you have a lift or levelling kit on the truck? In all reality, I don't think this part should be under so much stress. I'm not saying that it shouldn't be able to handle a little bit of lift, but then again those axleshafts should not normally be under that much pressure.

Derek