I have 110,000 miles on this truck and think I need to replace the pinion bearings inside the axle. Is it safe to leave the existing shims and drop the new bearings in there or do I have to start from scratch and calibrate everything? I really don't want to have to measure everything and start with new shims if I don't have to. Any input?
1998 GMC Sonoma with rear axle whine
Oct 31, 2005
10 Replies
Im anxious to see your feedback too. For years, we would not have accepted anything but a total setup.
Maybe not anymore, or ???
If I were giving the advice, I'd say keep the old shim, change the bearings and use a new crush sleeve and nut. If he is not equipped to set the pinion depth, he's in for a worse time if he tries to set it.
But, I'm not giving that advice because we have no idea what is wrong. It may have a bad gear set and good bearings. And, he has to pull the carrier and put it back in. My real advice would be to take it to a professional and pay the price. Or, swap in a different axle. If it's not a 4X4 it would also give him the opportunity to analyze the ratio he has and change it if it he could find a better choice for his use of the truck.
Al
Rear axle are not that hard if you can be logical in working on them. If you can used tools and understand how to read gear patterns and how to adjust it (ie folllow a good service manual), they are not that hard to do. But if you lack the proper tools and patience to do it correctly it is best not to do it at all and farm it out. Usually too when pinion bearings do go bad, you are likely to have other problems too.
and dont forget the old sayin......a little wine goes a long way to tippararry!...hic!.....
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