Pull that bad boy apart and LOOK. We can virtually gaurantee that only the third member will need replaced. $350 for a chunk is crazy. I've bought a front axle ($250)& rear end($150), a v6 diff ($90), and 2 4cylinder chunks ($50 and $120 - too much for the second one but I needed it NOW).

Stay away from junkyards unless a friend works there. Look for parts on ebay and the FOR SALE sections of offroad forums. Offroaders are cheap penny-pinchers. So look for deals there.

As ZUK pointed out: If you haven't spun a bearing on the carrier or pinion, you won't need a new third member. Yours will just need rebuilt. It really sounds to me like the pinion bearings were run dry because the leaking rearend starved them of lubrication when the lube level got too low. Heck, if you got really lucky and just fried pinion bearings, you MIGHT not even need new gears, again assuming the bearings haven't spun.

I also say it's likely that those gears were 4.56s... and the fronts were 4.88. Or vice versa. People just assume their stock ratio is X.XX because it's got this motor and that tire package. But you've gotta COUNT THE TEETH to check.

I've bought 2 diffs with 4.56s in them, both of whom were from people who told me they were 4.10 gears. Always count the teeth on the two gears and divide 'em to get the true ratio. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" />