06 rear axle assembly

[deadhorse]

I think I just may have made a huge mistake, here to try to find out how big. I bought an 06 KJ from a guy, only 100k runs well but I knew there was something wrong underneath, makes a whinny noise while driving. The guy told me it was something to do with the 4x4 and that if worse came to worse I could just have it removed and could drive it as a 2WD vehicle. I bough what he was saying because I also own an 04 Grand Cherokee that is that way.

Anyway, I took it to a mechanic only to find out, according to him, that the whole rear end is shot as it was bone dry and had on oil in it. Now he told me I'd be looking at around $3000 to have it fix but that's obviously with a whole new axle assembly, which I imagine are quite pricey. Looking briefly this morning I'm seeing used ones on Ebay delivered for around $5-600.

So my questions is, approximately how many hours of labor would I be looking at for a professional mechanic to do the swap? He also told me that I would have to get an 8 1/4 locking assembly, not quite sure what this means?

I think it's just a the sport model with the 3.7L in it and it seems that the gear ratio is 3.73? I'm assuming the 65th anniversary, Limited and Renegade models would have badges on them. Does anyone have the specs for the rear end and does it matter which model the assembly comes from when swapping them?

Sorry if I rambled on a bit and any advice would be appreciated.

 

[tommudd]

I think I just may have made a huge mistake, here to try to find out how big. I bought an 06 KJ from a guy, only 100k runs well but I knew there was something wrong underneath, makes a whinny noise while driving. The guy told me it was something to do with the 4x4 and that if worse came to worse I could just have it removed and could drive it as a 2WD vehicle. I bough what he was saying because I also own an 04 Grand Cherokee that is that way.

Anyway, I took it to a mechanic only to find out, according to him, that the whole rear end is shot as it was bone dry and had on oil in it. Now he told me I'd be looking at around $3000 to have it fix but that's obviously with a whole new axle assembly, which I imagine are quite pricey. Looking briefly this morning I'm seeing used ones on Ebay delivered for around $5-600.

So my questions is, approximately how many hours of labor would I be looking at for a professional mechanic to do the swap? He also told me that I would have to get an 8 1/4 locking assembly, not quite sure what this means?

I think it's just a the sport model with the 3.7L in it and it seems that the gear ratio is 3.73? I'm assuming the 65th anniversary, Limited and Renegade models would have badges on them. Does anyone have the specs for the rear end and does it matter which model the assembly comes from when swapping them?

Sorry if I rambled on a bit and any advice would be appreciated.

Simple fix if its the rear diff, find a 06 or 07 V-6 Automatic ( yes it would be 3.73 gears ) on Craigslist/ Junk Yard and swap in. Takes just a few hours to swap everything over , basically unbolt/ unhook everything and reinstall, don't even have to disconnect brake lines etc

Go check Vinces U-Pull or Bob Barnes and see if they have a low mileage one. Or like I stated Craigslist

 

[deadhorse]

I guess that's what I was confused about...the thing rides and drives nice except for the noise so even if the dif is running dry and is shot why the hell would that effect the whole axle assembly.

Thanks for the reply and I think I'll have someone else look at it.

 

[tommudd]

I guess that's what I was confused about...the thing rides and drives nice except for the noise so even if the dif is running dry and is shot why the hell would that effect the whole axle assembly.

Thanks for the reply and I think I'll have someone else look at it.

If its been ran dry you would need all new bearings, gears possibly even axles etc. Some places would rather just replace the whole unit than rebuild, faster for them.

 

[tjkj2002]

I guess that's what I was confused about...the thing rides and drives nice except for the noise so even if the dif is running dry and is shot why the hell would that effect the whole axle assembly.

Thanks for the reply and I think I'll have someone else look at it.

If running it dry trashed the housing you will need a new one,best to let a reman place mess with that as most shops do not have the tools to correctly check the diff housings.

 

[renegade 04]

Check car-part.com for your rear end housing. That the site I use for all my parts I buy used.