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This is a question which probably has one answer -"none"; or depends upon what you are willing to put up with. I had my differential professionally rebuilt on my '82 CE and went from 2.82 gears to 3.56. Now when I let off the gas or am cruising/coasting between 40 to 60 mph I hear a gear whine. Is that adjustable or a bad gear set? Any point in pulling it and returning it for checkout/adjustment? I'm willing to do that but dang, good driving weather is here. Thanks for any opinions.
-Chris
Sounds like it may not have been set up just right. Depending on how loud or how much it irritates you will dictate whether to pull it back out for a redo. There's no adjustment you can do perse', they need to set the gear mesh for the right wear pattern. It's possible the pinion is too deep. See the attached so you can consider what to do.
Jim
Last edited by jimvette999; Sep 22, 2016 at 09:03 AM.
Don't remove the differential if you don't absoulutely have to.
Drive the car for an hour.......then.....feel the housing near the pinion "nose" for excessive heat/also feel the areas of the housing where the side shaft bearings are for excessive heat......then........
Change/suction out the differential oil and check it to see if there are any metal particles in the oil.
Thank you for the installation info and suggestions. I'll see what I can do with it. The rebuild work is still under warranty so the major effort for me is to yank it out again and hope it is done right the second time. I'll definitively check for heat. I've only got about 20 miles on the rebuild so far. Cheers.
Thank you for the installation info and suggestions. I'll see what I can do with it. The rebuild work is still under warranty so the major effort for me is to yank it out again and hope it is done right the second time. I'll definitively check for heat. I've only got about 20 miles on the rebuild so far. Cheers.
I've read, not sure if it's true, if you've driven it with a whine and it's because of the pinion depth to deep or shallow then you've created a permanent wear pattern that will always whine. My point?... don't expect them to be able to open it up, reset the lash then you'll be fine....if what I've read in more than one place is true. Some say Richmond gears are noisy.... I personally installed a set of 3:73's in my car and it's quiet as a mouse. One other word of caution, make sure the shop knows your changing out the oil or they may say you added the "wrong" type to get out of repairing it. Or they may come up with some "other" excuse.....may sure you have their blessing to A.) keep driving it. B.) Mess with the fluids. There is a break in procedure they should have told you about, at least there was with my gearset. A heat cycling, but I never had any whine to deal with. Good luck.
Jim
I've read, not sure if it's true, if you've driven it with a whine and it's because of the pinion depth to deep or shallow then you've created a permanent wear pattern that will always whine. My point?... don't expect them to be able to open it up, reset the lash then you'll be fine....if what I've read in more than one place is true. Some say Richmond gears are noisy.... I personally installed a set of 3:73's in my car and it's quiet as a mouse. One other word of caution, make sure the shop knows your changing out the oil or they may say you added the "wrong" type to get out of repairing it. Or they may come up with some "other" excuse.....may sure you have their blessing to A.) keep driving it. B.) Mess with the fluids. There is a break in procedure they should have told you about, at least there was with my gearset. A heat cycling, but I never had any whine to deal with. Good luck.
Jim
GOOD IDEA ABOUT TALKING TO THE REBUILDER BEFORE YOU DO ANYTHING!
(Sorry....I didn't even think about possibly voiding the warranty....don't change the oil----just check the housing for excessive heat build-up after driving the car.....20 miles is not a lot--it could quieten down...stay in touch with the rebuilder)
This is the break-in procedure from a well-known differential expert in Connecticut. Slowly drive the car for 20-30 minutes to get the oil and gears hot. Stop the car and let it cool for at least 60 minutes. Then repeat the procedure 3 to 5 times. Also, note that the oil should be changed at 500 miles.
I did the procedure 5 times and kept the rpm below 3000 on each run. I had an IR gun and the temperatures never went over 162F with ambient between 70 and 85F. After 300 miles, temperature was 185F, after a 60 mile drive with speeds at 80mph the majority of the time.
I now have about 8000 miles on the rear after 3 years and no noise or problems.
This is the break-in procedure from a well-known differential expert in Connecticut. Slowly drive the car for 20-30 minutes to get the oil and gears hot. Stop the car and let it cool for at least 60 minutes. Then repeat the procedure 3 to 5 times. Also, note that the oil should be changed at 500 miles
That sounds like more fun that pulling the gears right away. I think I'll give this a try and see if it quiets down. I wasn't given any break-in procedures when I picked it up or talked to the tech. Thanks!
Mine does it too, my rebuilder says that it will quiet down after about 10,000 miles or so, and it has gotten quieter by the 3300 or so miles I have on it now.
You said between 40-60 mph . Does it do it in both overdrive and 3rd gear? And does it get worse when shifting into 3rd? It might be the pinion bushing needing to be shimmed.