Well I had a grinding noise, I thought it was a rear bearing. I just got a call from my mechanic and it's bad news. He said the bearings are good, but the axle is worn out where the bearing rides. Both axles are worn the same way. So now I need new axles, They are hard to get and very expensive. There is only 37,000 miles on the car ( 2001 SS). Has anyone had this problem, Bad axles from the factory. Probably not , Just my luck to get a lemon.
Please let me know if any one has had this happen or heard about this.
Thanks Barb.

 

im not 100% sure but any Z28 axles should work i can get a set from my local pick n pull for $50

 

Ask your mechanic if he's ever used axle saver bearings. It's an offset bearing that rides on a different (unworn) spot on the axle.
I couldn't find a write-up for your year, but here's the idea: http://www.worldwidecamaroclub.com/pdf/rear_end.pdf

 

Could be that your car was in an accident which caused these issues?

 

To the OP, I had a customer come in one time with a 1998 Z that had the same issue. We replaced the seals and bearings on both axles because it had gone out and grinded the rear end a bit. Told him that it would continue wearing out the seals because of the grooves that it had on the shaft from the bad bearing and would not be fixed until replaced.

My best advice, get the axle shafts inspected to see if there is any wear, if they show signs of a groove, replace before any further problems occur. If they show no groove, you are ok, get the work done and change the rear end fluid if you haven't done it recently.

 

Thanks for the reply, I'm just surprised that this could happen at 37,000 miles. I'm not sure if any accident could cause this axle wear. Well thanks for the information on the bearing adapter, I'll pass this information on. Thanks again Barb.

 

Mileage doesn't necessarily have a bearing on wear, no pun intended...much. Your car is still 10 years old, and from the low miles it has, it obviously sits a lot. Sometimes, components on a car can wear out faster if the car isn't driven regularly (keeping things moving and lubed up). Also, gaskets and seals can dry up and leak sooner on a car that sits idle. Did your rearend leak some oil perhaps, to where the wheel bearings weren't getting enough oil? Or, just from sitting, the oil on the axle could run down off the top side to where an initial roll would be a partially dry one. There's a few possibilities as to why the axles wore prematurely, but I'm putting my money on the fact that the car sits so much. Drive the darn thing!

 

Thanks! It does make sense, I live in Wisconsin so it is parked Nov to April.
I put on around 2 to 3 thousand miles a year in the summer months.
Thanks again, It's the best explanation I've heard and I'll go with it. Barb.

 

Now that is interesting, but not necessarily the answer, as my RS drives year-round, and how do you figure these grooves could develop if the car is sitting?

I have had a recurring axle bearing leaking problem on my RS, this time they finally replaced the right rear axle shaft, along with the seal again as well this January. Hopefully this fixes the issue, and I wonder if the open diff contributed to this problem? The previous time the seal was replaced and failed again. Prior to that at a different shop, the seal was replaced and they noted there was a groove in the axle that may cause the seal leak in the future. Prior to that, this same shop replaced the same axle seal when putting in new diff. bearings! Sure seems like that previous shop should have known to replace the axle shaft!!!

Sounds like from SprSSBalt that I still may have a bad wheel bearing back there?!

Good thing I have an extended warranty!

 

Go back and try to soak in what I said, it's apparent there's something you didn't comprehend. And I didn't say anything about grooves developing while it sits. I also meant to mention that another possibility is if you have a broken outer seal that can allow moisture into the housing, therefore letting surface rust form on the axle or bearing rollers. Even slight rust pitting will chew up a bearing surface before its time.