Emergence Rear Diff Prob

[adam45356]

My rear diff has been clunkin real load and now is spilling all of its fluid out on a parking lot wat can i do im stuck away from home do i need to have it towed

 

[410Fortune]

Sounds like it needs to be towed on a FLAT BED.

Something has come undone most likely

Where is the leak coming from? where the rear driveshaft attaches?
You can remove the cover (catch the fluid) and inspect inside. If it is a ring gear bolt or something that has come undone it may be possible to nurse it home.
But since you said it is leaking, I highly doubt it is something that simple.

 

[adam45356]

the diff case is still ok but the rear cover is cracked and chewed up a little and all the fluid leaked out and the rears looked up it seems like

it has been lose latly shifting between d and r

 

['97 V8]

if its locked you have no choice to tow it on a flatberd. sorry to hear about your truck.

 

[adam45356]

well not looked but i tried to drive away from school tured and it felt like it went in park so i backed it back to my spot
The rear diff cover looks torn up but the rest of the case is in tackt what could this be i know nothing about diffs?


Thanks for the help

 

[410Fortune]

Something inside came loose and slammed into the rear diff cover?
Or did you peel the cover ope on the rocks.

If the rear diff is locked up you will need a flatbed tow truck, and it will be interesting to see how they get it up on the bed.
I guess they could tow your truck from the rear, the tow comapny will know best.

If you try to drive it you could make it worse.
If the rear is locked up the truck is not going to move under its own power.

It could be many things, but I can tell you this, your diff imploded Sounds like a gear broke, and chunks of metal were flying around in there until the gears got completely locked up. the only way to know is to remove the cover and look.

 

[adam45356]

ok i will try that if i get it home and the cover will not be hard to remove becase its split in the middle

 

[Hartman]

if it split in the middle and all the fluid leaked out, you won't make it far.

call a flatbed, they will drag it up onto the bed. really no other way to do it.

 

[DeRocha]

You need it towed as the others have already suggested...If you try and drive it you will cause more problems and will surely destroy whats left of the ring and pinion.. You may have towing on your auto insurance, or Find someone with a AAA (Triple A) card. AAA will tow you like 5 miles for free then a few bucks per mile after that... AAA platmnum can tow 100 miles free... The best part is the card holder can be anyone... I've had buddies call me up broken down and I call AAA give them the location and meet the tow truck at the breakdown... They take down your card's info and its a done deal...

 

[adam45356]

ihave aaa any estamates on cost becase i dont want to have it towed homeif its cheep but mayif its going to cost me a crap load

 

[adam45356]

one more question what is the diff cover made of it looks like fiberglass

 

[DeRocha]

From AAA Membership benefits:

Towing
If your vehicle cannot be started after any of the services listed above, or because of an accident or when in the service facility's judgment the vehicle cannot be placed in safe driving condition, it will be towed to the responding or nearest AAA service facility at no charge. (In case of an accident, the member should request the police to call AAA to dispatch tow services.)

If the member desires to have the vehicle towed to a destination other than as stated above, it is not considered emergency towing, but a "tow of convenience." However, Club members will not be charged for the first three miles, and will only be charged $3 per mile after the third mile. Rates may differ from Club to Club, and members may be asked to pay whatever rate is in effect in that territory. Any subsequent towing for the same breakdown will be at the member's expense.

In instances when the vehicle becomes disabled while towing a light duty trailer, service will be provided for the trailer (excluding fifth wheel trailers). You may be required to pay for towing the trailer.

Towing service is not rendered to improperly registered vehicles, vehicles that do not display a current state inspection sticker, or vehicles ordered towed by the police for alleged violation of the law.

BTW the OEM rear diff cover is Steel..

 

[410Fortune]

Not all OEM covers are steel, some were ABS plastic.

For new gears (ring and pinion) and to have them installed setup with new bearings and seals you are looking at $700-1000.

You can likely buy a Explorer rear axle at the junk yard for your truck for half of that and bolt it in if you would rather consider that route.

it is likely that your rear end has had a problem for a while, a loose pinion bearing or leak and putting miles on it eventually caused this catastrophic failure.

 

['97 V8]

like 410 said, just hit a junk yard. it will save you a head ache. make sure you know exactly whatthe gear ratio is on the "new" axle you buy.

 

[adam45356]

ok i all ready went to the junk yard theres a problem my axle code is 45 wich is 3.55.gear ratio and the only one at the junk yard is d4 or 3.73 ls so sence mines 3.55 my front is 3.55 so i am screwed cause thats the only yard around that has an explorer

 

[410Fortune]

Keep looking, there have got to be more. 3.73 is the MOST popular, but you can likely find a 3.55 in a 2wd Explorer (same rear axle)

 

[adam45356]

well hes got one more explorer its a 2wd sport and thats it so i may have to put in the d4 and never use the 4x4 wich sucks beacase i just got it fixed

Ok one more qustion the explorer at the junk yard with 3.73 was 4x4 how hard would it be to open up the diff on the front of it and swap the 3.73 gears in to mine and do away with the 3.55s all together

 

[adam45356]

sorry about my spelling im having a relly bad day

 

[Vanquish502]

If you've never done it before, don't bother trying unless you are pretty mechanically inclined and have the right tools. What sucks is I have a full 3.55 axle on my parts truck, and you're in Ohio

 

[410Fortune]

Put the 3.73 acxle under your truck = bolt in, bleed the brakes, adjust parking brakes DONE.

Get the front differential with the 3.73 gears from the same truck (must be 91-94 Explorer) and then yuo can bolt in the new differential (3rd memeber) into your truck.
You will then have 3.73 gears for likely less then the cost of repairing your 3.55 rear.

Of course the cost starts going up once you get into your truck and the new axles and find you need new brake pads, bearings, seals, etc.