1999 Rear Diff Issues

[RangerXC]

1999 XLT 4L V6 4x4. Rear diff is jarring/causing bad vibrations coming up to freeway speeds. I'm planning to pull the cover off and inspect for damage. Weird thing is it only does it 50% of the time, doesn't impact steering, and no funny noises yet. I feel like there might be some debris in there getting caught in the gears every now and then?

I need to fix this but I'm in financial dire straits right now without access to my tools, otherwise I would just replace the whole axle.

Is putting the truck in 4wd and removing the rear driveshaft, essentially making the truck front wheel drive an option? Or is that dangerous?

Thanks in advance y'all.

 

[Curious Hound]

Is putting the truck in 4wd and removing the rear driveshaft, essentially making the truck front wheel drive an option? Or is that dangerous?

That should be a good solution to get you by temporarily.

 

[4x4junkie]

If there is debris floating around in there, driving on FWD I don't think would solve anything. The gears in the rear axle would still be spinning even though there's no load on them.
I'd say pull the diff cover and inspect things before there's a real issue (such as the axle locking up while on the freeway).