94 Grand Cherokee Rear Axle Help

[zchrisz]

hi, i have a 94 Grand Cherokee Limited V8, it got hit on the side a while ago and it hit the back rim on the driver side, actually put a hole in the rim, well the truck was repaired, and a few months later i started hearing rump rump rump with wheel speed, took it to the dealer and they replaced the driver side axle and wheel bearing and all was good, but now the rear end is making loud rubbing sounds, that sounds like an axle bearing, i took it to the dealer they pulled the cover and they said its not axle bearings and they couldnt find what is wrong, and they wanna charge me 3k to rebuild the whole thing, what should i do?

[MudderChuck]

Sound in the drivetrain can fool you. It travels and is often not where it sounds like it is.
I don´t know which rear end you have, the Dana has a tendancy to start growling a little at 100,000 miles. I´ve seen them start to growl at 60,000.
People rarley make the scheduled oil changes in the diff´s. Worn carrier bearings are the usual outcome, but it´s sometimes worn spider gears or pinion bearings.
The Dodge axle has a tendancy for the pinion bearing to loosen up (colapsible bushing). Normally when the suspension has been over flexed (down or up) but will also, sometimes loosen up with a sharp blow, to the drivetrain.
Any decent Dodge mechanic, can troubleshoot your Dana or the corporate Dodge rear end. It doesn´t have to be a Jeep dealer. The going rate for an exchange, rebuilt rear end, complete less brakes, is around a grand. And takes most of a day to swap out. Three grand seems a little steep.
The last three roars, I had from the rear end, where a dry U joint in the driveshaft, another was a broken brake spring and the last a worn bearing in the transfer. Had nothing to do with the rear end.

[Bounty__Hunter]

I'd take it to a competent body shop to verify that the rear axle housing is not bent.