2013 Nissan Frontier: Rear differential whine
Common wear/failure (not a recall)
Symptoms
Owners of the 2013 Frontier report: rear differential whine. CarComplaints.com lists 2 owner complaints, average mileage 70,000 miles.
NHTSA has 6 owner complaints for the 2013 Frontier in this area. Examples:
- NHTSA complaint ODI #11504270 (filed 01/29/2023): “My daughter backed out of our driveway, put the truck in reverse. she was then unable to put the truck into drive. it got stuck in the middle of the street. thankfully we live on a quite street with not much traffic during the day. however if this happened in …”
- NHTSA complaint ODI #11217091 (filed 05/31/2019): “I was told that the transmission cooler is defective during a regular maintence of the transmission.…”
Likely causes
Sources do not establish a single root cause; diagnosis is needed. Owner-reported fixes are listed below.
Fix, in plain English
Most common owner-reported solutions on CarComplaints.com: replaced differtial (1 reports). Check for open recalls and extended warranty coverage with a dealer before paying out of pocket.
DIY difficulty: Pro
Differential/driveline noise diagnosis and gear work need a lift and specialty setup tools. (Our assessment.)
Cost
CarComplaints.com owners report a typical repair cost of about $3,200 (owner-reported average, not a quote).
Typical parts (search links, no affiliate codes)
AutoZone · O'Reilly · Advance · RockAuto
Sources
Page last updated .