Rear Differential Noise

[Cliff R]

Hate to be a "newby" and log on with a gripe, but I'm having a problem with my 2017 2500 5.7 Hemi Powered Ram truck.

The rear differential has developed a "whine" and it's getting worse. It only occurs at very light load, and shuts up immediately if you coast or apply load.

The noise doesn't start till about 55mph and is most pronounced between about 62-68mph. It's loud enough that you can hear it above the radio at moderate volume.

It's been to the dealership twice to correct the issue. First time they did nothing more than drive it and tell me that it's not making any noise that anyone can hear.

Before taking it back the second time I checked the oil level and it was way below the fill hole, far enough I couldn't reach it with my little finger so I added a quart of gear oil. Still couldn't touch the oil so added another and it came up to about 1/2" blow the fill hole. About half way thru the 3rd quart it started to run out the fill hole so I stopped filling it.

Now I'm smart enough to know that it's got a little too much oil in it at this point, but I wanted to drive the truck knowing it had PLENTY of oil in it to see if the noise went away, which it did not.

So back to the dealer it goes and once again they said there is no noise they can detect and it was over-filled with oil. Yes, I told them I did that because it was pretty low on oil and I wanted to try and shut the differential up but filling it to the level of the tread for the fill plug made no difference.

The dealership went ahead and removed the cover, took pics of the internals, filled it with new Mopar oil, and gave it back to me.

That was about 2 weeks ago and it's still whining just as bad if not a tad worse.

Anyone else have one of these trucks whining at light load on the highway? If so what did you or the dealership do about it?....tks in advance......Cliff

 

[tidefan1967]

I've added/changed the oil in many a rearend and always filled it until it ran back out the hole and never had a problem. If it was me I would drain it again and put some Redline in it and drive it for 1000 miles and I guarantee you it will be quieter than it is now. I think noisy gears are pretty common in the 3/4 and 1 ton trucks.

 

[Cliff R]

I've been the proud owner of a 1987 gas, 1993 diesel, 2001 diesel, 2004 gas, and now a 2017 gas and NONE of the other ones made any noise like this one is making. Matter of fact none of the others made any noises that my retired on disability from the Military/plagued with tinittus/ 70 percent hearing loss self could really notice.

It's too loud for my liking, and at certain speeds and load will drive you nuts till you either apply more load, coast, or change speeds.

I fully understand the dealership not wanting to do much about it, seems to be the trend with that sort of thing, unless it's broke in half it's not really an issue, correct?

Just wondering if anyone else has had one this loud or doing something similar and what if anything Chrysler did about it?......Cliff

 

[RAMTRPR]

I just had 4.56’s put in my truck and the gears used were bad from the factory. They got the same loud whine which turned into a sound like a grinder on metal and when taken out they had developed a step in the pinion gear and the backlash which is usually set at .006-.009 was over half an inch.

Now not sure why OEM gears would all of the sudden do this, but my gear set got overheated because of a manufacturing defect. Yours being low on oil could have over heated them and done the same thing.


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[tylerlewis_89]

Have had similar problem on my 2011 auctually not just once but 3 times I had to take back to the dealer for rear end noise.
It was somthing to do with the pinon gear every time . Mine would even sometimes lock up when backing up in reverse


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[Pull Ya]

Find another dealer! Or drive it till it destroys all the inners in your differential and hope your still under warranty. I vote for the first option.
Jay

 

[Cliff R]

If I take this truck in again for the same thing it's NOT coming back till they fix it. The noise it's making is unacceptable, but no one that looks at it at the dealership can hear it or thinks anything is wrong. That puts me in a precarious position as the owner.

I'm not trying to be difficult, stubborn, or anything else. I've had five trucks that never made a peep from either differential, got a brand new 2017 and it's whining like crazy and driving it like this isn't making it.......Cliff

 

[huntergreen]

Cliff, far as I know, a whine means the rear isn't lined up correctly. I would ask the the service manager to go for a ride so you can duplicate the issue so they hear it.

 

[Cliff R]

Pretty complicated arrangement back there on these newer 2500's with the coil spring rear ends.

The noise sounds like incorrect mesh between the ring and pinion gears. It is very specific to driveshaft speed and load. Pretty darned loud at specific speeds combined with very light load, and when it's whining like crazy you can apply the throttle or let off the throttle and it immediately goes dead quiet.

For now I'm just dealing with it and trying to decide whether to go back to the same place a 3rd time or to another dealer for a second opinion......Cliff

 

[Pull Ya]

You could always try "Ram Cares" here on this forum. They may be able to give you some assistance.
Jay

 

[rotwiler]

Is it even possible to overfill the rear? I have always heard and myself have always filled rear ends in vehicles I have had until it reaches the fill hole and starts to come out. If that's not correct, then my Ram is overfilled now since I just changed it, unless the 2500 had different fill setup.

 

[RamCares]

Hate to be a "newby" and log on with a gripe, but I'm having a problem with my 2017 2500 5.7 Hemi Powered Ram truck.
The rear differential has developed a "whine" and it's getting worse. It only occurs at very light load, and shuts up immediately if you coast or apply load.
The noise doesn't start till about 55mph and is most pronounced between about 62-68mph. It's loud enough that you can hear it above the radio at moderate volume.
It's been to the dealership twice to correct the issue. First time they did nothing more than drive it and tell me that it's not making any noise that anyone can hear.
Before taking it back the second time I checked the oil level and it was way below the fill hole, far enough I couldn't reach it with my little finger so I added a quart of gear oil. Still couldn't touch the oil so added another and it came up to about 1/2" blow the fill hole. About half way thru the 3rd quart it started to run out the fill hole so I stopped filling it.
Now I'm smart enough to know that it's got a little too much oil in it at this point, but I wanted to drive the truck knowing it had PLENTY of oil in it to see if the noise went away, which it did not.
So back to the dealer it goes and once again they said there is no noise they can detect and it was over-filled with oil. Yes, I told them I did that because it was pretty low on oil and I wanted to try and shut the differential up but filling it to the level of the tread for the fill plug made no difference.
The dealership went ahead and removed the cover, took pics of the internals, filled it with new Mopar oil, and gave it back to me.
That was about 2 weeks ago and it's still whining just as bad if not a tad worse.
Anyone else have one of these trucks whining at light load on the highway? If so what did you or the dealership do about it?....tks in advance......Cliff

Hi Cliff R,
We are glad you've taken the time to reach out with this. We would like to offer an additional layer of assistance should you choose to revisit your dealer. If this is something that interest you, just send us a quick PM with some additional details. We want to suggest that you set up a ride along as well. This will ensure you can duplicate exactly what you are hearing for the technicians.
Julie
Ram Social Care Specialist

 

[Cliff R]

Thanks for the reply, a lot has happened since my last post.

The noise continues and to be perfectly honest I don't have the time for all this and got very frustrated.

So instead of taking it to another dealer, or giving the original dealer another crack at it, I decided to trade it in.

I reached out to 4 different dealers attempting to trade the truck in for a 2018 Tradesman diesel with about the same MSRP as my 2017 fully loaded Big Horn gas. I quickly found out that NONE of them would touch my truck for anywhere near where it should have been for trade in value.

Every single one offered my almost the exact same amount which was WAY below the market value on any of the websites such as KBB, etc. After their initial offer not a single word back from any of them after I bellyached a little and tried to negotiate a better deal.

Since my phone wasn't ringing and inbox stayed empty I decide to "jump ship" and bought another brand....sorry folks.....Cliff

 

[johnny_wilson]

Mine is at the dealer right now for the same thing. They say it's normal but I guarantee it's not. Ram Cares gave me a case number so now I'm waiting on the dealer to call. They said they will replace the pinion bearings just to "give it a try". I'll let you know what my outcome is. I think they should be replacing the ring and pinion as well but they didn't want to do that yet.

 

[Timmegacab 3500]

I took my 2017 ram 6.7 mega cab to the dealership 4 times to the dealership for the rear end howling. They rebuilt it they said it's good but same noise. Since I bought this thing brand new it has been bad even causing vibration when let off throttle I got so tired of being at the dealership and them telling me its normal that I gave up. You can't tell me its normal when everyone who gets in my truck says what's that noise. I finally gave up and lifted it. After all of the same complaints about these I'm trying to see if another axle out of a ford or Chevy will work because they know this rear is terrible but until it blows out the back cover there is nothing they will do. Last ram I buy I love the truck just can't stand being lied too.

 

[CVX20]

Is it even possible to overfill the rear? I have always heard and myself have always filled rear ends in vehicles I have had until it reaches the fill hole and starts to come out. If that's not correct, then my Ram is overfilled now since I just changed it, unless the 2500 had different fill setup.

Yes it is possible.I've seen people pump the oil into them until it starts running out and then jamb the plug in before the level drops to the plug level.Or have the front end jacked up while filling.Truck should be level.But even being level with the bottom of the hole is more than you need.As long as you can stick your little finger in the hole and reach it(1" below) that's all you need.More than that and you have more of a chance of seal leaks.

 

[CVX20]

Cliff, far as I know, a whine means the rear isn't lined up correctly. I would ask the the service manager to go for a ride so you can duplicate the issue so they hear it.

Once you get a gear whine no amount of adjusting will get rid of it either.The only cure is a new crown and pinion.

 

[El Huapo]

Once upon a time in the foothills....I overloaded my 2001 Dodge 1/2-ton with full pallet of concrete block and drove it home thru the hills and valleys, about 40 miles. Thought I was OK, plenty of power, good shifts, etc. After I used up the blocks and drove it, the rear end whined like crazy. So I changed the oil, using Redline, no improvement. Bit the bullet and paid a local shop to do a complete bearing changeout and no more noises. Cost me $750 and I didn't overload it anymore and so I lived happily ever after.

 

[Craig olsen]

Just picked up a 2018 2500 and noticed with the first 2 min of test drive that it had a whining noise. Sales guy said they would take it into the local dodge dealer to have looked at. When I went back to pick the truck up I asked if they had it looked at. Sales guy said absolutely noise is perfectly normal. I completely disagreed but purchased anyway knowing I have a good warranty left.

brought the truck in yesterday to my local ram dealer to have all the recalls done that had been neglected. Mentioned to them the whining noise and within 2 hours I had a call back saying my rear diff needed to be rebuilt. Appt is for next Tuesday I’ll keep you posted on results.

constant whining noise from 35mph to 65mph only under slight acceleration.