The rear differential has been whining since 63,000 miles and last weekend the whining became howling and then clunking. My mechanic says something inside the differential is broken.
2004 Nissan Titan: whining or grinding noise
17 of the 1,046 complaints about the 2004 Nissan Titan describe whining or grinding noise.
- owner complaints
- 17
- of this car's complaints
- 2%
- typical mileage
- 63,000
- recalls
- 1
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall and 6 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below
Whining or grinding noise by model year
What owners say
Driving about 40 MPH, I heard a loud pop coming from the rear end of the truck. Now whenever I decelerate, a whining noise is heard from the differential. Took the truck to the nissan dealer in irvine, ca and they want to replace the rear differential at a cost of $2500.00.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 nissan titan. The contact stated that when driving at various speeds he would hear a loud whining noise. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. The technician stated that the exhaust was leaking due to the manifold being fractured. The vehicle was repaired for the manifold approximately seven times in five years. The manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 47,314. The current mileage was approximately 166,000
I first heard a "whine" or "howl" coming from the rear end 2 years ago, when I took it to the dealership, they told me I need a complete rear end assembly at the cost of 4000$. I could not afford that, and they said you couldn't rebuild the rear end, because nissan wouldn't release the parts for it. I drove on it for 2 years before it went out on me on the 21st of april, 2012. Ive read up on hundreds of complaints, about the rear ends on nissan titans going out, and nissan not having a recall.
After front differential had failed and would not engage 4wd. Took to dealer and replaced under warranty. After 1 1/2 years started to whine and grind again dealership said sorry was out of warranty. 3 differentials in 3 years woohoo a real winner here.
Within a 5 mile range the vehicle started to whine, then clank, then lock-up. Emergency brakes failed and rear differential failed... Vehicle was undriveable. This vehicle just hit 100,000 miles. Repair is > 1/5th of vehicle value. This is a very common failure in 2004 nissan titans. Very dangerous - especially if towing a trailer (which is what this vehicle is advertised to do)
I was at a stop light and as I took off getting my truck up to 15-20 MPH I noticed a whining sound. It sounded as if the sound was in the rear of the truck. Come to find out that the rear differential was shot. The ring and pinion failed in the truck and shards of metal effected the gears as well.
I have a 2004 nissan titan. I began having humming sound from underneath my vehicle at speeds above 20mph approximately 3 months ago. The humming has recently turned into a much louder whining noise, so I took the truck into nissan for evaluation. They claim my rear differential is bad and the entire rear end needs to be replaced. They are unable to repair rear differentials according to the service manager. I performed a rear end fluid change and found several pieces of metal in the oil. The pieces looked like teeth from gears. Nissan claims they've never heard of any problems before. Due to the $3000+ price tag for replacing the entire rear end, nissan recommended I get a new truck. I feel like they are aware of a problem, but do not want to admit it thus far. I believe a rear end failure could cause a fire and or cause a loss of vehicular control.
2004 nissan titan, 63,000 miles. Loud "whining" noise coming from the rear of the vehicle. Brought vehicle to dealership to have them investigate noise, found faulty rear differential. Dealership replaced rear end. Noise is gone. All covered under extended warranty plan.
Driving on freeway - heard moderate bang from back of truck and then howling began. Dealership diagnosed as rear differential failure and quotes $2000 to replace. Service manager showed me a pile of titan axles in one service bay awaiting pickup by nissan. He was amazed that mine lasted as long as it did (104560 miles). Even though this is a well known problem inside the nissan world, nissan is not willing to make any concessions or fixing this at a discount.
I hear a clunk from the rear end whenever I shift from reverse to drive, kind of like if a u-joint was going out. I also hear a low pitch whine at acceleration 50-60 MPH, but don't hear it upon deceleration. I also have a rear axel leak on passenger side, and noticed that my rear diffs paint is peeling which looks to be from excessive heat.
At 18,047 miles I pulled my travel trailer 850 miles . After the trip the rear drive member started whining. I took it in to the dealer, that evaluated the failure and replaced the complete rear drive member, if this had locked up it could have caused a severe accident on the freeway.
Service bulletins that may apply
- Service information
- Nissan: ECM replacement procedures with consult III plus
- Nissan: oil leaking from transfer case. oil is leaking from one or a combination of three bolts at the...
- Nissan; special automatic transmission fluid requirement. 2004 to current nissan vehicles. nj
- Rear final drive breather
- Atf leaking from air cooler line
Related recalls
Power train: manual transmission: column shift assembly
- What is wrong
- On certain pickup trucks equipped with a column shifter, the shift lever assembly for the column shifter may have been damaged during assembly.
- Risk
- During its use this could eventually result in failure of the portion of the assembly that holds the lever in the park position. This could result in a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect and replace the shifter. The recall began on september 27, 2004. Owners should contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 04V408000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2004 Nissan Titan whining noise
Is whining or grinding noise a common problem on the 2004 Nissan Titan?
17 of 1,046 owner complaints about the 2004 Nissan Titan (2%) mention whining or grinding noise. The model year with the most reports is 2004.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2004 Nissan Titan?
There is 1 recall and 6 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2004 Nissan Titan
Brake failure 74Grinding brakes 57ABS 44Shudder 31Harsh shifting 25Fuel smell 23Airbag light 18Door locks 17Stalling 17Fuel gauge 16Loss of power 16Knocking 14Jerking 11Overheating 11Premature wear 11Headlights 10Check engine light 9Fire or smoke 9Seat belt 8Won't start 8Engine failure 7Warning lights 7Power steering loss 6
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