So my rear differential had been making a wobbling noise for about 300 miles or so. It's a heavy wobbling/grinding noise. I brought it to a transmission shop that I was referred to and they recommended a rear diff rebuild at $1500. This is out of my price range haha. I found a matching axel to swap with but they didn't give me a quote on labor for that... What is typically recommended in this situation? Is the rebuild worth it or should I swap it and chance it happening again? How hrs would it be to do it myself? I haven't found many other people swapping out their rear diffs but I may just be missing it. Thank you!

97 R50
160k miles
4.636 rear diff ratio, manual, 4x4

Swap it if it's cheaper, I would think it would be. Can you do the swap yourself? That would save $$$.

moymurfs wrote:Swap it if it's cheaper, I would think it would be. Can you do the swap yourself? That would save $$$.

That's what I was thinking. I should be able to do it. It's always nice to have s reference though haha. The only upside to the rebuild is they warranty it for the life of the ownership (apparently).

Swapping takes about 45 minutes on a lift with air tools if you know what you're doing. I use a transmission jack, as it is pretty heavy and I have enough back pains as it is.

smj999smj wrote:Swapping takes about 45 minutes on a lift with air tools if you know what you're doing. I use a transmission jack, as it is pretty heavy and I have enough back pains as it is.

Good to know! Any tips or things I need to know before attempting? Thank you!

Swapping is easy. Not sure about 45 mins...but not more than 2 hours wheels up/wheels down. I've done the swap twice this year mine and a buddy's R50 to go from open/4.363 to LSD/4.636 (with higher-torque LSDs).

If you just buy a used 3rd member, it just bolts right in. I paid about $140 from local JYs. Note this is just the 3rd member, and not the full axle.

You just need to undo the 4 nuts at the ends of the axles behind the brake backing plates, disconnect the brake lines, undo the parking brake attachments on the lower trailing arms, and then pull the axle shafts out a few inches.

Disconnect the driveshaft from the diff, undo 11 nuts, remove the 3rd member. Doable with a floor jack. I removed and installed mine without help, but it's a heavy bastard.

Too bad you didn't need open/4.363 diff...got a pair of those! You can find 4.636 on 96-02 R50s (03-04 only had 4.363), and some 00-02 Frontiers/Xterras...I would avoid the latter if you can because they had two versions of HG46 gears.

Hawairish wrote:Swapping is easy. Not sure about 45 mins...but not more than 2 hours wheels up/wheels down. I've done the swap twice this year mine and a buddy's R50 to go from open/4.363 to LSD/4.636 (with higher-torque LSDs).

If you just buy a used 3rd member, it just bolts right in. I paid about $140 from local JYs. Note this is just the 3rd member, and not the full axle.

You just need to undo the 4 nuts at the ends of the axles behind the brake backing plates, disconnect the brake lines, undo the parking brake attachments on the lower trailing arms, and then pull the axle shafts out a few inches.

Disconnect the driveshaft from the diff, undo 11 nuts, remove the 3rd member. Doable with a floor jack. I removed and installed mine without help, but it's a heavy bastard.

Too bad you didn't need open/4.363 diff...got a pair of those! You can find 4.636 on 96-02 R50s (03-04 only had 4.363), and some 00-02 Frontiers/Xterras...I would avoid the latter if you can because they had two versions of HG46 gears.

Thank you for that awesome write up. Going with just the 3rd member sounds like a good idea. I'll look into that and see if it's possible. The shop seemed to think there was a lot more wrong with it -- but they always do. I try to do as much as I can on my own and will post updates. Thank you!

Hawairish wrote:Swapping is easy. Not sure about 45 mins...but not more than 2 hours wheels up/wheels down. I've done the swap twice this year mine and a buddy's R50 to go from open/4.363 to LSD/4.636 (with higher-torque LSDs).

If you just buy a used 3rd member, it just bolts right in. I paid about $140 from local JYs. Note this is just the 3rd member, and not the full axle.

You just need to undo the 4 nuts at the ends of the axles behind the brake backing plates, disconnect the brake lines, undo the parking brake attachments on the lower trailing arms, and then pull the axle shafts out a few inches.

Disconnect the driveshaft from the diff, undo 11 nuts, remove the 3rd member. Doable with a floor jack. I removed and installed mine without help, but it's a heavy bastard.

Too bad you didn't need open/4.363 diff...got a pair of those! You can find 4.636 on 96-02 R50s (03-04 only had 4.363), and some 00-02 Frontiers/Xterras...I would avoid the latter if you can because they had two versions of HG46 gears.

Thank you for that awesome write up. Going with just the 3rd member sounds like a good idea. I'll look into that and see if it's possible. The shop seemed to think there was a lot more wrong with it -- but they always do. I try to do as much as I can on my own and will post updates. Thank you!

No sweat. Of course, I'm leaving out the small details like draining the diff, bleeding brakes, etc., so don't forget to factor those in. I also needed a mallet/dead-blow hammer for tapping the backing plates to get the axles out, but didn't require a whole lot of effort.

Also, may want to consider replacing some items while you have things apart. You'll for sure want a new gasket...I prefer the paper OE ones, but some RTV should be fine. If you suspect the axle bearings, inner oil seal or out grease seal need replacing, now's the time, though it'll require disconnecting the e-brake cable under the drum (not tough) to pull the axle shafts completely out. Will need some special tools for the latter two items, fyi.

The nice part about the 3rd member diff is that it can be set-up pretty easily on a bench. Chances are that the diff is still in spec, but doesn't hurt to do what you can to measure backlash and such. Obviously you'll want to visually inspect the ring and pinion teeth for chips, and confirm the wear pattern is good. If you need confirmation of the ratio, it'll be stamped on the side of the ring gear as XX:YY (ring teeth to pinion teeth), or specifically 51:11 for 4.636.

I've still got a donor axle and diffs in the garage if you need any more pics or info. Good luck!