Rear end just rebuilt w/3.55 gears and T-Lock!

[Car Nut]

Well, in a few minutes I am going to pickup my car from the shop. I had 3.55 gears installed, T-Loc rebuilt, new bearings, and a few other small items replaced. I also had a new Aluminum Driveshaft installed, since I couldn't break the bolts loose myself.

The shop owner called to tell me it was ready AND is keeping a few of the parts nearby to show me just how bad some of them were! I told him everything in the rear was bone stock, meaning it was 10 years old with over 135,000 miles of wear and tear. Fortunately, nothing was bad enough to cause serious damage. The axles are fine, but the bearings were "well past damaged". They also said the front tires were wearing wrong, but I figure that is because of my absolutely poor overworn stock suspension (which is about to be replaced with H&R's, Bilsteins, C/C plates, and several bushings).

Can't wait to drive it home. 3.55's may not be outrageous, but it's got to be a major leap from the stock 2.73's.

I'll post the results once I'm done. The real reason I thought this might be of interest is due to how bad my rear components were. I've never been to a drag strip or road course, just the normal beating on the streets. In fact, for the most part, I take pretty good care of it to the point I've not done a full-on burnout yet. Just thought that there might be many people who haven't touched the axle assembly components in a long time (or ever) who may want to consider this info.

 

[iwashmycar]

Tell me what you think of the 3.55's because those are the gears my dad has in mind for my car.

BTW, how much did this all cost if you don't mind me asking?

**Posted on brother's name again, this is Kevin R.**

 

[ponypowa2]

How much was the labor cost, I am considering gears within the next 2 weeks

 

[Car Nut]

I paid $250 for the install which included the labor for replacing bearings, gears, clutch pack, T-loc stuff, etc. So, this was a good size overhaul. The parts came to about $200 and I believe I got a good price on everything. The owner showed me the old parts and they were worn pretty bad.

HOWEVER:

I had other problems that I wasn't too surprised about, namely an oil leak and a coolant leak. Now I am getting the following fixed:

1. New oil pan gasket
2. New rear main seal
3. New motor mounts
4. New waterpump
5. AND all of the following suspension stuff that is sitting in my living room:
H&R race springs, Bilsteins, C/C plates, endlinks, quad shocks, and several bushings.

OMG, my oil pan gasket was sticking out of part of the pan and there appears to be a significant amount of oil from the rear main seal. My waterpump is leaking from the bottom, but should be replaced.

The good thing is the owner worked it out so that a lot of these repairs also coincide with the suspension stuff, so I am able to save a lot of money on labor costs. Originally, the suspension install was going to be $400, but now all of the stuff above will only cost me $600 more (I was expecting a whole lot more) which includes parts and labor.

The worst part..............my front alignment appears to be bad, because my front tires are absolutely worn to the belt on the inside. I've got to buy two new tires later this week.

Guess I won't actually get to drive my car for another week. But I do finally get my suspension stuff installed. Now I've got to find a good alignment shop.

 

[mo_dingo]

Which bearings went bad? The carrier bearings or the pinion bearing?
Scott

 

[Car Nut]

I could be wrong, but I believe the carrier bearings were bad. Whichever part also contains something called a "race bearing" is the location (or race something).

 

[mo_dingo]

The race is what the carrier bearing spins inside. The pinion bearing doesn't have one ("pinion bearing race" is actually the differential housing).
Scott

 

[Car Nut]

Aaaahhhhhhhh........

Then that's what was really bad. It was dinged up pretty good and had some chipping too. Of course, the rear started making a good bit of noise a few days ago. I figured I'd better go ahead and get things done right the first time.