Well, i took out the Differential and attached the axle tube and installed this weekend, sounded good saturday night and sunday morning. My wife took it out of town, and says its making a noise. I took a test drive this morning and there is a sound i'm not sure what yet. When i come to a stop its more of a winding down sound, almost like tires (could be, but i didnt' here this the day before) , maybe more mechanical. I plan to test drive again tonight. It's probably nothing, but i wonder is putting the new diff in might of awaken another problem, like CV joints? I did not replace the needle, i know..I Know.....there was only one i could see, and it looked and felt fine. Also when i poped the tube/axle out with a rubber mallet i assumed the snap ring stayed in the groove, because it was not on the shaft. When I put the shaft in, it did stop, and i had to smack it back in. Any thought????
You raise an interesting point that I think I can shed at least a little light on. I am in the process of replacing the right front axle seal on my 2004 Tahoe Z71. In doing so, I relied on different sources that said I could simply drive the axle out of the extension housing, replace the seal and reinstall. Great. Well, that's not what I experienced. Why? Because my right axle is held in by a ring clip that MUST BE RELEASED FROM THE AXLE BEFORE THE AXLE WILL SLIDE OUT OF THE TUBE. I drove my axle out with brute force and the ring clip damaged the thrust washer and tabbed washer that prevented the axle from sliding out. See below. This is what I found inside the extension housing (the damaged washers are in upside down in the pic. the tabbed washer seats into the grooves and the flat washer goes on top of it) after I beat the hell out of the axle to get it to release:
DSCF7076 by
rzgkane, on Flickr
There seems to be two types of right axle setups in these vehicles. Making matters more complicated is the fact that the GM parts system, using my VIN, thinks my truck has a different setup than it does. To illustrate, look at the images below. The top image (which I believe is of a 9.25 axle) is exactly what my setup looks like. The bottom image is what GM says is in my Z71 and what most other owners have found inside their 8.25 front diffs.
Notice that there are two washers (#5 and #6) behind the axle's retaining ring clip (#7)? Well, if you drive the axle out using force, those two washers will become damaged and will fall out of place. If you simply slide the axle back in after replacing the seal and you think you are done, wrong, those washers (and maybe even the ring clip) will be bouncing around inside the extension tube. Luckily, the ring clip stayed on the axle and prevented me from being able to slide the axle out past the outer bearing. That forced me to remove the extension housing and discover the damage inside. You probably were not so lucky.
2004 Tahoe Z71 Front Axle Housing by
rzgkane, on Flickr
The image below is what GM thinks is in my truck. Notice the gear #6? That does not exist in my vehicle. Numbers 6 and 8 are a one piece unit in my truck and are depicted as # 8 in the top image. That gear (#6) is what the axle's locking ring sits in and can be released by simply prying the axle out. The locking ring usually stays inside the gear and re-engages the axle when the axle is tapped back in. Nice for folks with that setup.
Why is the GM parts system confused? I don't know. But the parts guy at my local dealer looked at the extension housing that came off my truck (I am the original owner and no work has ever been done to the front diff) and noted that it had "K3" cast into it. He says that K3 is consistent with a 1 ton truck, not the 1/2 ton that a Tahoe is. Hmm. Crazy. But facts are facts. My 2004 Z71 has different insides than what most other 8.25 diffs have and I suspect others out there have the same issue.
Moral to the story? If you have a 2004 Tahoe Z71, I suggest you remove the extension housing before trying to drive the axle out of the tube. You don't know what's inside until you get in there.
Hope this helps someone.
It does not look like I can get to the cir clip from the vent hole either... Any info would be really great.
