got my 3.73s put in and they roar like hell!!! everyone else have this same problem... only roars in lower rpms though. higher is fine.

 

I think there is some sort of GM additive that helps stop that. Or maybe the teeth arent hitting right. Did you have them done by a mechanic? Or a do it yourselfer. Gears are tricky and best left to a pro.

 

uh oh, i better get motives instead

 

they were done by a mechanic,.... I was told this is normal for richmond because they are a strong thicker gear.... additive??? explain

 

hey i just had mine installed and yeah they roar but imo i think it sounds pretty bad a$$. and they wine because they are a tougher gear than the others.
thanks Jason

 

Usually if gears are setup properly they shouldn't make any noise at all. I did see somewhere that if you don't put the additive lube for the limited slip it can make a noise but in either case if properly done right they shouldn't whine.
the thickness shouldn't matter, in our race cars the gears don't make any noise at all. If they arn't as thick then whats in our 10bolts then something is wrong ;-).
If you wanna know more about whether they should make noise or not do a search, this was talked about a WHILE back.. a good while don't even member how long ago.

 

I am sorry to tell you this but richmonds are crap ,in street cars anyway.I had some brand new 3.73 put in my 99 by professional mechanic who has done thousands of gm gear changes.I watched over his shoulder.They whined and were simply unbearable on the street.I even dynomaxes like triple layer the back of my car,took off my hotchkis lca and panhard thinking they were tranmistting the noise and sold my random tech torque arm for same reason.I changed fluid but didn't try like 140 weight stuff.Richmond tech was zero help.There gears suck!! And tough well buddy bought my set for his paxton blown lt1.They broke on first pass at the track on et streets.They are garbage.I also had mixed results with gm motives.
Installed them in my old 97 trans am 4.10 and they were quiet.
Installed them in my 99 and they whined but not as bad as richmond.Still unacceptable though.

I have heard strange or superior gm are quiet or actual gm gears.
I am done trying to find a quiet set for my 99.I am putting a 12 bolt in.Our rear ends are a joke anyway.And will be moving my 99 stock 3.42 to the vert since they are pretty quiet.

Sorry about the richmonds.you have my sympathy dude.

 

I was told by a professional that you want find many gears that will not whine in an LS1. but lt1s normally don't whine to bad. It's not a horrible which just at lower rpms, completely bareable. Nothing worse that the cut out open. And they made an awesome diff. so i am happy!!!

 

What?

 

The ls1 and lt1 are the same rear end exactly.And if they whine after just put in wait until you have some more miles on them.They usually get even louder.

I loved my 4.10 motives and 3.73 richmonds for performance but even with the stereo cranked they drove me freakin nuts.They were especially bad on highway at that 60 to 70mph point.Around town not as noticeable .And install makes no diff.They were put in exactly to richmonds specs.

My theory is that these crappy wimpy rear ends dont hold spec well.You install gears to spec and they get out of spec after some hard launches.

But an open cutout will certainly help things out with the rear end whine.

 

yeah, my cutout stays open so the whine doesn't bother me, it almost sounds like a supercharger, LOL!!!

 

I've had Richmonds and GM Motives in my car. Although the GM Motives do make noise, it is nothing compared to the Richmonds I had in it before. Get a torque arm that mounts to the body of the car a it will make three times as much noise inside the car.

 

My Richmond 3.73's whine, not unbearably, but noticeable. I was told by one of the most reputable places for rear ends in NJ that because of the way the gears are cut, Richmonds always hum in our rears.

 

IMO, if the gears are set up properly, they shouldn't make any racket. I have Richmond 3:73's and I've got no noise at all. I've been running my gears for almost 4 years with no problems. Just add your limited slip additive with your gear oil and you're good to go. You can buy it from auto parts store or the dealer. Highly recommended.

 

Richmond gears whining is BS. It's just an excuse used by gear installers to cover themselves. A local guy in my car club has installed tons of Richmond 3.73's and 4.10's. None of them whine.