Rear Diff Bearings Already

[16PW]

I took my 16 PW into the dealer for a recall and a few other issues. One of them being a whine coming from the rear. The truck only has 29k miles and only 3k is from me. Just got a call from the dealer today saying the rear needs new bearings. Pretty crazy with a truck with such low miles, but oh well. That will be a new rear end and my rental is a new challenger with a 5.7 hemi so thats pretty fun to drive. I'm glad I stuck with buying a used truck that still has a bumper to bumper warranty.

[Reloaderguy]

What are the odds the gears were set up wrong from the factory and the dealer is incompetent so they're throwing parts at it? Makes you wonder if that's why the truck was traded in after the dealer couldn't fix it and told the previous owner it was normal.

[16PW]

What are the odds the gears were set up wrong from the factory and the dealer is incompetent so they're throwing parts at it? Makes you wonder if that's why the truck was traded in after the dealer couldn't fix it and told the previous owner it was normal.

That is definitely possible. I have a little faith in them since they are a big dealer and have probably the biggest shop in AZ, but I do know how dealers are and how much their mechanics can suck so we'll see. If I continue to have problems, I'll just take it right back to them. Its been in the shop for a few days now so I signed up for a rental agreement with them that only costs about $110. That will provide a rental car for the next 2 years whenever I need when dropping my truck off. Keeping my fingers crossed though!

[DamageWagon]

You could have them show you the rear end, if it’s ring gear wear it will be very visible.

Good bearings tend to either last a VERY long time, or die a crib death. Imperfections in material, assembly, install, damage before/during install can all manifest that way. You could also get 500,000 miles out of a normal set in the same application.

[TwinStick]

So, if oil level was at proper "factory height", & there is no obvious wear in ring gear or pinion, how would this be possible ? Did previous owner do some water crossings ? I think i'd ask about the fluids condition & level, if they inspected it.

Keep us posted please.

[RustyPW]

So, if oil level was at proper "factory height", & there is no obvious wear in ring gear or pinion, how would this be possible ? Did previous owner do some water crossings ? I think i'd ask about the fluids condition & level, if they inspected it.

Keep us posted please.

I've seen brand new roller and taper bearings fail with in hours of install at the power plant. And seen roller and taper bearings operating non-stop 24/7 for the whole time I was at the power plant. 13 years. Doing a lube change. A spec of dirt floating around in the lube gets on a ball of the bearing or the race. Puts an imprint on the ball or race. From there, it's down hill to failure. Everytime that imprint makes contact with either the ball or race. It leaves another imprint. It only takes a few seconds to wipe out a roller or taper bearing.

Be nice if they started to do a bearing vibration analysis on it. Then you could pin point which bearing was failing. But the equipment and training isn't cheap.

[Reloaderguy]

This has been discussed extensively on other forums. Dealerships are rarely qualified to set up gears. They normally throw parts at the problem until it's fixed or they give up. If after the bearings are changed it still isn't fixed you're better off paying an axle shop to reset up the gears.

[16PW]

They did tell me the fluid was pretty dirty. Other than that they didn't give me much info. I will definitely give you guys an update once I get the truck back next week.

[TwinStick]

Maybe i am just dumb & outdated........but how expensive can rear wheel bearings be & how hard are they to install in a "free floating" rear axle ? I thought you just remove the tire, unbolt the free floating hub, pull out the axle shaft, remove clip, use spanner wrench to remove spindle nut, remove hub, pull out the bearings & punch out the races, clean thoroughly, re-install new races & pre-lubed bearings & re-assemble, maybe with a new axle flange gasket if needed ? Catching the axle rear fluid - if you forget to high side the side your working on. Top off fluid & that's it, right ? I would also change fluid & clean the lockers. No sense installing new bearing & races if there is debris in the oil.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIT8djTxt6o I don't exactly approve of every method he uses in this vid, but it shows the process.

Dealer should have checked this & done it, if needed. NOT difficult, just time consuming. Shame on the dealer & it's workers if they won't or can't do this ! Shame on FCA if they won't "authorize" this repair. I have had ZERO formal training & I could do this job.

[RustyPW]

Nothing was mentioned about wheel bearings. The talk is about the carrier and pinion bearings. Whole nother ball game.

[TwinStick]

So, then if it is the bearings on either side of the diff, they should be submerged in oil right ? How could they be bad already unless they were set up wrong from the factory ? Could a worn pinion bearing allow enough slop to cause things to shift enough to trash the carrier bearings ? I'm just trying to learn here.