Differential noise - WH Chassis shop recommendation

[RV 4 2]

I am pretty sure that I have a differential problem as it has been howling quite loudly for a while lately. The coach has over 8500 mi on it now. It has been making noise for a while from about 2-3K miles but I just thought that it was normal drive train noise because of the multiple piece drive shaft and so on but in the past 6-8 months it has gotten louder and quite annoying lately. It starts getting loud about 45-50 mph and gets really loud by 60 and continues to get louder (and higher in pitch) the faster I go. When I let off the gas, it is silent. And depending on the load, it will get louder with a greater load to a certain extent. I figure it is not U-joints as I grease them about every 1000-1500 mi and removed the load on the drivetrain and tried to shake the drive shafts to see if there is any play in them - nope. I checked the level of the oil in the differential and it was right up to the filler hole and the fill plug had metal shavings but not anything that I would consider abnormal. After doing some searching on this forum, there have been reports of differential issues. And since I cannot check the drivetrain alignment or pull the diff pumpkin to check tolerances, I need professional help.
Therefore, I am looking for a recommendation on a Workhorse chassis shop near Orange County, California.
I looked on the WH website and found the following that I am considering:
Guaranty Chevrolet
Penske Chevrolet
McBrides Service
Redlands Truck Service.

NOW, I have had Great service from Redlands and they have had nothing but positive words BUT, I would prefer not to drive out there if I don't have to but if all else fails, I can go out there.
So I am looking for anyone that has had good experiences with chassis work at someplace closer to home.
Thanks to anyone that can help.

[mfire1339]

McBrides has done fine work for me on three occasions.


Mike

[Arch Hoagland]

I shoot the pumpkin with my IR gun every stop. It will usually be around 150 to 165 degrees.

I don't know if the temp would give you any clues or not.

[TrekPR]

Assume you have checked oil level. If you are in the OC area you are close enough to use Redlands Truck & RV, they advertise here and have good reviews. 909-792-0314

[RV 4 2]

Arch, unfortunately, I do not have a IR gun to try that. Maybe I can borrow one from a friend if he still has it.
TrekPR, yes, I have checked the oil level several times and there are no indications of any leaks. Also, when pulling the plug, ther does not seem to be any abnormal amount of metal shavings attached to the magnet. Light fuzzies. When pulling the filler plug, oil just barely covers the threads and if I put my finger in ther, I can touch oil without pointing my finger down.
Thanks for the suggestions.

[TrekPR]

Mike,

My apologizes, I read right over your original post stating what you had already done.

[RV 4 2]

Originally Posted by Arch Hoagland

I shoot the pumpkin with my IR gun every stop. It will usually be around 150 to 165 degrees.

I don't know if the temp would give you any clues or not.

After seeing your temp measurements, that makes me feel a little better but not much. The past 2 trips, the coach seems to smell hot and the smell is coming from under the rear of the coach. I got under our coach an hour after we got home from San Diego (without the toad this time, still howls like crazy) and it seemed like the differential was radiating heat. I put my fingers on it and I could only stand the heat for about 4-5 seconds before it was too hot to keep my fingers on it. If the temps are 150-165 degrees, that would explain it being almost too hot to touch but an hour after the coach was parked, doesn't seem 100% right.
I guess I will make a couple of phone calls this week to see what it will take to have someone look at it after I do the Norcold fridge recall this Friday.
Mike

[sharkie51]

You should check the ride height on your air bag suspension. You could have a leveling valve bad or the rod came loose. If your ride height is off it will cause a severe angle on your driveshaft and will make a noise or vibration. Your owners manual should tell you the proper height and how to check it.

[Davel]

RV 4 2,

A friend of mine had the same noise. It got so bad that he had to use ear plugs on his way home from the North-East. He took it to a service center and they called in the WH Service rep. WH replaced either the ring and pinion or the whole rear end, I don't remember which. He says it's a joy to drive now as he didn't realize how noisy it had become.

Good luck,
Dave

[RV 4 2]

sharkie51, as much as I would love to have airbag suspension, alas, I have leaf springs.

Davel, I am hoping that I will have the same luck as your friend. Unfortunately, I know how noisy it is and it gets really annoying and tiring not too long into any trip. Now to find time to get it done.

[dickfrompasadena]

I have the same problem with the noise (only 10,000 miles). I have a 2007 Bounder which was built and purchased in November of 2006.. I took it to the Workhorse repair shop and was told that my chasis was a 2006 which means that my warranty is 3 years 36,000 miles. The 2007 powertrain warranty is 5 years 60,000 miles. We all know that the part was defective when the chasis was built. Workhorse refuses to offer any help with the repair. That tells me a lot about the company. They do not stand behind their product.

[a k]

You got a bag ring and pinion. Drain the fluid and see if you have shavings in it. If you do your not going to go to far.

[dickfrompasadena]

I talked with Linda DehHaven of Workhorse today. She confirmed that my 2006 chassis was out of warranty and the 5 year 50,000 mile warranty only covered the engine not the differential on 2007 models. I believe I read that the drivetrain was covered. This is another example of Workhorse not standing behing their products. They had to be forced to do the brake recall. The latest is that they can't even supply the part to their service center and of course I will be paying several thousand dollars to get it fixed if the part is ever shipped. I will never recommend a Workhorse product again.

[edgray]

Originally Posted by dickfrompasadena

I talked with Linda DehHaven of Workhorse today. She confirmed that my 2006 chassis was out of warranty.........they can't even supply the part to their service center and of course I will be paying several thousand dollars to get it fixed if the part is ever shipped. I will never recommend a Workhorse product again.

dick from pasadena: Linda DeHaven is a primary "point of contact" for Workhorse as she works in the MARKETING department. Generally speaking, owners can expect to receive information about their chassis by contacting her, however, Linda does NOT make a determination about weather or not a repair will be covered. Those decisions are the exclusive responsibility of the SERVICE department, usually it is made by the Regional Service Manager. Your service center should contact the RSM for their area and get him involved. Even if you are out of warranty by time, there may be some consideration given because of your low mileage.

Neither of your 2 recent posts indicates that you have suffered a failure of the differential, only that you have a noise. Unless you have some other indicator (such as metal filings in the fluid) which would indicate a failure probably IS developing, why would you expect a warranty repair? IMO, most warranties are to repair or replace things that are broken or fail to perform as designed, and warranties usually don't fix things that "might fail".

If your differential has failed and Workhorse won't cover it, then you sure don't "need" to wait on them to provide the replacement parts. Any good heavy duty truck repair shop "should" be able to find the parts and make the repairs for you. It is not a "workhorse axle", it is probably a Dana.

Good luck!
Ed