Question1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.2L V8 with Rear Trac Loc limited slip rear diff for trailer tow package, ratio 3.73?
if i have to change the pinion bearings on the input to the rear diff, these are the innner and outer taper bearings, is it possible to change these bearing without having to mess with the bevel miter setup? can i knock the input pinion shaft out, change the bearings, and reinstall in its same position, or does the miter and shimming have to be looked at.
AnswerI'm not 100% sure about this because my differential building experience is limited. But there measurements that have to be taken on almost every diff. rebuild I've seen anyone do properly. Pinion depth being a major part, painting the ring gear with special paint (normally yellow from the dealer) and verifying the pinion sits center of the ring gear both on the accel and decel side.
If I'm not mistaken the ZJ's all got Dana's, either a 35 or a 44. Both of which required measuring proper turning torque of the pinion PRIOR to installation of the ring gear/differential and then shimming it accordingly in order to assure the pinion rides pretty center of the ring gear. This is normally done with diff paint so you can see where the paint gets squished out on both the accel and decel side of the ring gear.
With the Dana's I'm fairly certain measurements are a must. With the corporates some people can "feel" a bit more and shimming an option with the side bearings since it's threaded.
Bottom line is that it's alot of money on the line either way and I wouldn't build a differential without proper measurements unless it was a farm-use only situation.
Doug
