[420am]

Originally Posted by LONGHAIR

This is kind of a "loaded" question....


Are you sure?...How would anyone know, unless they have been inside, or it is really bad?

First thought is, $150 is a fairly cheap fix, and will only take a few hours.
It is just as old, but that doesn't mean that it has neglected it's whole life. I would look it over, go through the brakes, and put it in.
Even if you do have a problem with the "new" one, you can always rebuild your original (while it is out) and put it back in.

"Pinion replaced" is not going to happen. You have to replace the gears as a "set", plus all new bearings, seals, etc...

"Ballpark"
Gears..................$200-$250
Bearing/seal kit.....$100
Labor..................$200-$250

Assuming that there is no other internal damage/wear that would need to be addressed at the same time, you are looking at $500-$600

Sounds like what I was expecting. It does sound pretty bad. It only makes noise when you let off the gas while driving around. The guy that told me it was the pinion is the PO. He also rebuilds transmissions for a living so I'd assume he was familiar with common drive train issues. My truck is also slammed about 3-4 in the front and stock height in the rear. I've seen it mentioned a few times that not lowering the rear in relation to the front will cause an angle that is pretty hard on the pinion. Thanks for your help. Looks like the $150 is the route to go.. since I'm broke. lol.