I've been noticing a rumble type sound only when I make turns. I was towing a small trailer yesterday, with considerable weight, and the rumble sound was worse when making turns. Any ideas??

 

Spider gear in axle is damage. Remove inspection plate and inspect. remove broken parts and go from there.

 

Is that an easy fix? I never messed with a rear differential. Any ideas on the cost of parts??

 

Remove and replace axle, 1000.

 

WHAT!!!! That sucks....

 

Good grief.. here we go again. Lets start with a little more info... this "rumbling", is there some particular part of the truck the sound seems to be coming from? g_k loves to make "worst case" assumptions honestly I think to scare people for no good reason. Whatever the reason before you go assuming as he has that you are stuck in a worst case scenario, lets concentrate on establishing where the noise is coming from.

 

The sound is coming from the back of the truck.

 

I'm pretty sure it's the differential, probably the crown lost some teeths, and yes, the work can be expensive, but i don't think it will get to be as expensive as it was stated before (search around, you'll find the parts for less money, the labor can be costly and it's a MUST if you never touched a diff. before).

 

Truck is already at the shop waiting to be diagnosed. Will probably know tomorrow what the problem is.

 

Any shop that's in business to make money is going to suggest that the broken axle be taken off and a replacement used axle be put on. This may not be the cheapest route to go but it makes the most sense to a business owner interested in fixing the problem correctly with the least amount of skilled labor required.

Worst case scenario may be assumed, then when it's not, then happiness may occur.