GM 1500 Rear end question

Dr. Teeth

Club Member
I have a 2003 GMC Sierra 1/2 ton. The limited slip works like shit and I have been told that I should consider changing the fluid. (89000 miles.) I went to order a new gasket for the cover and there are apparently several different sized rear ends. How do I determine what I have? The differences are listed in the size of the ring gear, but I can't ascertain what mine has. Any thoughts as to how one determines this?

thanks.

b
 
X2 no gasket needed. And isn't that a G 8 carrier (whatever they call it)...not realy a limited slip, more like a locking mechanism once wheel speed differences are reached. Sounds like a hammer hitting, and only works between certain wheel speeds? I hate mine in my 02 HD
 
X2 no gasket needed. And isn't that a G 8 carrier (whatever they call it)...not realy a limited slip, more like a locking mechanism once wheel speed differences are reached. Sounds like a hammer hitting, and only works between certain wheel speeds? I hate mine in my 02 HD


I have no idea. It worked like a "posi" for the first year, now doesn't work at all much. I can roast one tire like a one-legger. Not sure about what kind of a speed diff it needs to kick in, but I think mine just does not work--period. I at least want to take a look at it. Something clunks at part throttle underneath towards the back, need to check that while I'm up in there.
 
OK, so regardless as to how I seal it, I can say for sure that this G80 thing (which is what it has) isn't working at all, really. Sounds like it needs a rebuild maybe??? :dontknow:
 
the g80 is junk IMOP , i have one in my jimmy ( rear end came off a ZR2 blazer with 3.73 ) , works when it wants to but when it does it hits hard and sounds like my rear end is going to explode , ive replaced the fluid and added some sort of additive and nothing changed , i was told a rebuild will take care of it ................. RTV will seal the rear end up with no issues , thats what i did
 
the g80 is junk IMOP , i have one in my jimmy ( rear end came off a ZR2 blazer with 3.73 ) , works when it wants to but when it does it hits hard and sounds like my rear end is going to explode , ive replaced the fluid and added some sort of additive and nothing changed , i was told a rebuild will take care of it ................. RTV will seal the rear end up with no issues , thats what i did


I have the same opinion as you dude. Seems that this is shared by a wide variety of truck owners. Insofar as the rebuild, a quick google search finds that the best fix is to replace it with a different, TRUE limited slip unit. I'm a fan of the Auburn Pro's myself, and it's not much more $$ to do that than to rebuild that piece fo shit that's in there. I probably will just do that.

Thanks all.
 
I have the same opinion as you dude. Seems that this is shared by a wide variety of truck owners. Insofar as the rebuild, a quick google search finds that the best fix is to replace it with a different, TRUE limited slip unit. I'm a fan of the Auburn Pro's myself, and it's not much more $$ to do that than to rebuild that piece fo shit that's in there. I probably will just do that.

Thanks all.

Yep...i have hated ALL of my G 80 units, they suck, are unreliable, and noisey as hell.

Get over the gasketless fears, and just do it. No gasket is the ONLY way to go on a rear end housing. Use the black, or the Right Stuff.
 
Yep...i have hated ALL of my G 80 units, they suck, are unreliable, and noisey as hell.

Get over the gasketless fears, and just do it. No gasket is the ONLY way to go on a rear end housing. Use the black, or the Right Stuff.


Will do. I'm having problems figuring out which diff I have in there. I know I have the 3.73 gear, but not sure on the measurement of the actual gear. All of hte websites list numerous gear sizes and I don't have the foggiest, nor do I have time to put it up on the rack, measure, than order the part as this is my DD. Any clues?
 
My 2004 Tahoe Z71 has a G80 in the rear w/ 3.73s. The OEM (AC Delco) diff gasket is 15807693, which fits the 8.5"/8.625" rear-end. $5.89 through GM Parts Direct. It should take about 3 quarts to refill; either go with the OEM "grape" fluid (which is very expensive, like $20+ per quart) or Amsoil Severe Gear 75W-90. I went with the Amsoil.

26063649 would be the gasket for the 9.5" rear-end. Doubt you have that. I *think* the 9.5" ring gear is not a 10 bolt... should be a 14 bolt. Someone else can probably confirm that.
 
Will do. I'm having problems figuring out which diff I have in there. I know I have the 3.73 gear, but not sure on the measurement of the actual gear. All of hte websites list numerous gear sizes and I don't have the foggiest, nor do I have time to put it up on the rack, measure, than order the part as this is my DD. Any clues?

Call Scott at DLS.
 
X2 no gasket needed. And isn't that a G 8 carrier (whatever they call it)...not really a limited slip, more like a locking mechanism once wheel speed differences are reached. Sounds like a hammer hitting, and only works between certain wheel speeds? I hate mine in my 02 HD

^This.
In a 1500, its going to be a 8.5 axle assy. Gm now calls it a 8.625? i forget. Same ring & pinion. While changing your fluid is a good idea, it will do nothing to correct what your complaining about. Either Amsoil Severe duty gear lube or the GM recommended synthetic fluid (like 22.00 per quart...ouch). Pay attention to filling that rear axle. You do not fill it to the fill plug. You need to make yourself a dipstick. If I remember correctly the correct level is 15-40mm below the plug.
You could always replace the Eaton gov lock (that what I always called them) with a true trac. Much better traction with one.
 
You have a G80 unit, it should say G80 on the SPID sticker in the glovebox, along with GT4 which is the RPO for 3.73 gears. It's an Eaton Gov-lock unit, not really an LSD. It's basically a locker with a speed governer to keep it from kicking in if the tires lose traction at speeds over ~20 mph. This is done so that it won't engage at higher vehicle speeds, and possibly get both rear wheels spinning. When that happens, you don't have any lateral control, where-as if you are one-wheel-peelin', you still have one tire with lateral traction.. The engagement is very abrupt when it kicks in, though there are some clutches in there to soften it a bit. I just put one in my 94 Silvy (you can put an 8.6 unit in an 8.5" housing if you get the right bearing kit), and compared to an open diff, it helps in low traction situations an incredible amount.

You can do some tweaks to it. If you want the governer to kick in at a higher speed, you can remove weight from the governer weight. Cutting most of it off will dramitically limit when the governer prevents engagement, but that also means you can break both tires loose and get squirrely at higher vehicle speeds. Also, it also allows engagement with a bigger split in wheel speeds, and that might lead to a higher chance of axle damage from the torque spike the axle that's getting engaged would see... hillbillied differentials (missing teeth,) might ensue..

You have an 8.6" ring gear BTW.. They are not asking for ratio, but the diff size i.e. 8.6" 10-bolt, 9.5" 14 bolt etc to determine the cover gasket size. But, RTV does work fine as well.

If you have clunking going on when getting on/off the throttle, you might have excessive lash in the ring and pinion, or the u-joints are worn. On a related note, do you have a PCM tune done on the truck? There are controls on the DBW trucks to help with driveline clunk as well.
 
^This.
In a 1500, its going to be a 8.5 axle assy. Gm now calls it a 8.625? i forget. Same ring & pinion. While changing your fluid is a good idea, it will do nothing to correct what your complaining about. Either Amsoil Severe duty gear lube or the GM recommended synthetic fluid (like 22.00 per quart...ouch). Pay attention to filling that rear axle. You do not fill it to the fill plug. You need to make yourself a dipstick. If I remember correctly the correct level is 15-40mm below the plug.
You could always replace the Eaton gov lock (that what I always called them) with a true trac. Much better traction with one.

What exactly is the reasoning for the fill level spec. I've seen it on numerous gm rear ends. I've fill up pleanty with the old fashioned method and had zero problems or leaks
 
What exactly is the reasoning for the fill level spec. I've seen it on numerous gm rear ends. I've fill up pleanty with the old fashioned method and had zero problems or leaks

GM says to the fill hole with non synthetic, but 15-40mm low with synthetic
 
Back
Top