new owner- The Explorer Humming

[jholden47]

Hi everyone.

I have had a 2002 Explorer XLT 4.0 for a couple of months. Never owned one before. The last SUV I owned was a 1998 Discovery!

This forum is great! I have been doing a lot of research on common problems. However I could do with some help. I am pretty sure I have the standard Explorer rear differential hum. When driving at low speed its quiet, at 25mph a whining starts along with a humming. Both stop when I take my foot off the gas and coast. The noise is not that loud at 40mph my noise app on my phone is measuring 70db. I have also noticed that the diff also leaks oil, and gets pretty warm.

Could someone tell me if this is all normal for an Explorer. Or is there a issue?.....There are lots of posts on this but I guess I am just having difficulty distinguishing between normal humming and problem humming.

 

[linlmercer]

To jholden47, 2002 Explorer hum

I also have a 2002 V8 Eddie Bauer Explorer since 2005. Until recently, it had an annoying but slight hum in the rear which I guess is the rear differential hum you referred to. I now have a louder hum which is annoying as it gets louder with heat and speed above 50mph. My mechanic ran it on the lift and said he had traced it to the transfer case. The hum is loud enough to sound serious. If you find anything out about your vehicle I sure would appreciate a shout. I don't know if I need to replace the case or not. Already had problems with the front drive shaft. She has 122,ooo miles.