Differential Stub Axle
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 350
Likes: 0
From: Louisville KY
Differential Stub Axle
Ok....I've been told mine is/are in need of replacement by my mechanic..He told me that the part(s) are not the bad part, but it's the high cost of the labor involved since it seems that it's a rather labor-intensive type of work....I have absolutely no idea how to even think about doing this myself, but perhaps with coaching it may not be too bad....So, is it really that labor-intensive? Are the part(s) expensive? Can a novice at this type of work actually do it? Thanks for the input, as always. Peace
Le Mans Master
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 6,355
Likes: 425
From: Seattle Area WA
If you are mechanically inclined, have a GM shop manual for reference, have some basic tools, a good 90 degree snap ring pliers, a floor jack and jackstands along with more help than you'll need from the forum you can easily save yourself lots of money on labor to remove the stub axles and differential if required.
Sometimes there may be more worn than just the stub axles, but you won't know until you get the back differential cover off. Worst case your differential is full of metal fillings, the bearings are shot, the posi clutch pack is bad and you need a entire overhaul
Best case scenario is the improperly case hardened stub axles are just worn and you can get by with a replacement set.
Sometimes there may be more worn than just the stub axles, but you won't know until you get the back differential cover off. Worst case your differential is full of metal fillings, the bearings are shot, the posi clutch pack is bad and you need a entire overhaul
Best case scenario is the improperly case hardened stub axles are just worn and you can get by with a replacement set.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Aug 1999
Posts: 15,173
Likes: 3,982
From: Connecticut, USA
Ask your mechanic what the endplay is in yours. 040,060, .125" more? If he doesn't know then do the job yourself or find another guy.
I have found a lot of the lower endplay figures are not always worn yokes but rather slop in the posi setup. Addressing one and not the other is only 1/2 the fix.
Look up my pictures, you'll see the yokes installed and what they should look like.
To replace them you have to remove the diff, there is a procedure for removing the rear cover on the car but that's not the way I'd do it. More chance of injury that way.
If indeed the yokes are worn a lot then they could be mushroomed on the ends and may require force to drive them out. Another reason to do this on the bench. Figure in new seals as well.
I have found a lot of the lower endplay figures are not always worn yokes but rather slop in the posi setup. Addressing one and not the other is only 1/2 the fix.
Look up my pictures, you'll see the yokes installed and what they should look like.
To replace them you have to remove the diff, there is a procedure for removing the rear cover on the car but that's not the way I'd do it. More chance of injury that way.
If indeed the yokes are worn a lot then they could be mushroomed on the ends and may require force to drive them out. Another reason to do this on the bench. Figure in new seals as well.
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 350
Likes: 0
From: Louisville KY
Thanks for the replies so far...The suggestions so far have been awesome
Is there an obvious way to tell if they're bad, or will I need to get into the guts of the differential before I'll know for sure?
Is there an obvious way to tell if they're bad, or will I need to get into the guts of the differential before I'll know for sure?
Last edited by 79SharkMan; Feb 27, 2008 at 06:30 PM. Reason: additional comment
Racer
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 427
Likes: 32
From: North Alabama
St. Jude Donor '24-'26
You didn't say...how many miles are on this rearend?
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 350
Likes: 0
From: Louisville KY
Drop your stub/half axles and pull them back and forth, you'll know. You can do it without pulling the pumpkin, its not that bad really. There is a potential for other issues once you get it open. When your existing stub axles wore down, that metal went somewhere and could have caused other issues.
You didn't say...how many miles are on this rearend?
You didn't say...how many miles are on this rearend?
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 350
Likes: 0
From: Louisville KY
I didn't ask him for specifics....He had it for about a week after I bought it and was replacing mostly front-end safety-related stuff...As far as why he said they needed to be changed, I couldn't really tell you without calling him to ask. (it has been awhile since he told me this) I'll try to do that in the next day or two to find out, and then I'll get back with you guys. I just remember him saying it was/could be labor intensive because of the amount of work it would probably take to replace the parts. Of course, there's no telling what could actually be found once that puppy is opened up.
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