I took it home from the shop (Driver's Edge near Dallas) and have noticed a ringing-like whine from the rear right side (where original problem was) when I accelerate at speeds above about 50 mph. Maintaining highway speeds require slight accelerations and it's most noticeable then. The sound goes away if I let the car coast. This was much more pronounced the first time I took the car home from the shop (after they replaced the bent axle), whereupon they said the housing was bent, too. So I had it replaced, and now the sound is much less noticeable, but still there nonetheless.

I looked on the list of stuff they did to the car and noticed that the only non-OEM parts they used were for the rear axle bearing, differential sealant and differential lube.

It sounds like bearings, but then, I don't know much about that stuff -- which is TERRIBLY FRUSTRATING.

Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

Sounds likely to be the carrier bearings that are making noise. If the ring and pinion weren't set up correctly in the new housing, that would cause bearing noises. I would bring it back to the shop that did the work and have them make it right.