'70 145 126,000 mi, 4.30:1

Took the differential inspection cover off and found that the drift pin that holds the free pinion shaft broke. It scratched the teeth of the input pinion but the crown wheel still looks ok (was only a mile from home when it broke.) Even the scratches on the input pinion don't look deep and are mostly on the face.

I bought the car with 98,000 on it and don't know how often, if ever, the rear end fluid was changed. I remember noting that the free pinion shaft wobbled within the cage at that time and the fluid looked ok.

It appears that the drift pin broke because the free pinion shaft was a sloppy fit inside the cage. What could have caused the wear between the shaft and the cage? I've had other Volvo rear ends see 250,000 without problems. Just a fluke?

Knowing this is not a do-it-yourself repair, are there any shops in the New England area that still rebuild rear ends?

With the scratched input pinion, would the rear end still be useable if I got lucky and could just change the free pinion shaft and drift pin?

--
'60 544, '68 220S, '70 145S, '72 144E, '86 745T