usa1
Member
- Joined
- October 30, 2010
- Messages
- 11
- Reaction score
- 0
- City, State
- Rochester, MN
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 2004 XLT
I took my 2004 Explorer XLT into a shop to look at an issue with a squeak in the engine compartment. They noticed during their road tests what they thought was excessive noise from the rear differential. They checked the oil and found it was in very bad shape (smelly, black, etc) and there were metal shavings in it. They did not remove the cover to see the condition of the gears, but recommended a gear change based upon their oil/shaving observations and knowledge of the issue on other Explorers. Cost of repairs is about $1,100. They are a good shop, so I have no reason to think they are scamming me.
The Explorer just passed 100K miles and is not driven a heck of a lot now. It's used mainly during bad snow conditions and I do a bit of towing (less than 3500 pounds), but not often. I have no aspirations of keeping this vehicle indefinitely, but would like it to be reliable for another 2-3 years.
The noise they mentioned from the rear is not one that I noticed, even though I was on the lookout for it when I purchased the Explorer a few years ago.
Knowing my situation, would you guys recommend a simple oil change on the diff and wait until the noise gets worse or do you think the metal shaving in the oil is a sign of a possible catastrophic failure coming up and warrants the $1,100 repair now?
Thanks in advance for the advice!
The Explorer just passed 100K miles and is not driven a heck of a lot now. It's used mainly during bad snow conditions and I do a bit of towing (less than 3500 pounds), but not often. I have no aspirations of keeping this vehicle indefinitely, but would like it to be reliable for another 2-3 years.
The noise they mentioned from the rear is not one that I noticed, even though I was on the lookout for it when I purchased the Explorer a few years ago.
Knowing my situation, would you guys recommend a simple oil change on the diff and wait until the noise gets worse or do you think the metal shaving in the oil is a sign of a possible catastrophic failure coming up and warrants the $1,100 repair now?
Thanks in advance for the advice!