Rear differential is clunking

[crushedout]

On my way home from work I accelerated hard onto a sweeping right turn of a on-ramp to interstate. My back passenger tire started making a squelling sound almost like a saw cutting through metal pipe. When I let off gas and coasted still in gear the back drivers side tire started making adroning sound almost like a drill going through a wood block. After I got off the interstate I pushed in the clutch and rolled to a stop sign and there was a clunking that was proportioned to how fast I was coasting. When I got home I jacked the car up and the axle to drivers side is just rusty. The axle to pass side is rusty on back side but has caked on oil on the front side. This has spread a little to the bottom of the diffrential. I just had a new driveway poured a few months ago and I am not leaking rear fluid onto the driveway. When I was under car I manually turned the tires and about every full rotation I would hear a clunk more on the passenger side of the rear diffrential.


When I first got the car in 2001 it would burn both tires. Then me not knowing I put a donut on back tire and lost my LSD. This happened in 2001 also. Don't know if I did long term damage or what. Does anyone have any suggestions, is this a do not drive situation or just an annoyance?

Thanks for any help.

[Den69RS96]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

How long has it been since you changed the gear oil in the rearend? If you use reg gear oil, make sure you add the posi additive. I use Amsoil Severe gear synthetic gear oil which already has the the posi additive in it. I use this stuff in my 96RS and in the moser 12 bolt in my 69 camaro. Not sure what your mileage is, by you might want to inspect you ujoints as well. They could be worn and cause a clunking sound.

[crushedout]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

Its been a while on changing the fluid but I just went out there checked the level and that was good. Talked to a few of the guys my gf works with at the state garages and they all seem to be under the impression I need a new rear end. This sucks, I was suppose to go to the Indy 500 on Sunday :cry:

[crushedout]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

Will this bolt up to my car?


http://www.kyfbodies.org/vb/showthread.php?t=20882


Id really appreciate some input as this is not a subject I know about

[crushedout]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

I found out it will bolt up to my car but he doesn't know the brand of differential thats in it and he has no idea of what type of locker bolt it needs. Then after searching I really dont want a locker diff on a DD.

Looks like a guy here locally is gonna sell me a rear with an open diff and 3.23 gears for 50 bucks.Hope that doesn't fall through. I need to get this squared away.



I have a decent amount of views on this thread and one reply. I'm just talking to myself. Give me some insight peoples. I'm stressed out :eek:

[auto666]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

somthing had to of come loose to all of a sudden start doing that id pull the diff cover and make sure your c clips are in place and outter bearing covers(cant think of the right turm) are tight

[Smoke Panther]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

I have a decent amount of views on this thread and one reply. I'm just talking to myself. Give me some insight peoples. I'm stressed out :eek:

Have you popped the cover to inspect the internals? Give us some more insight, and we'd be able to answer your questions

[crushedout]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

Have you popped the cover to inspect the internals? Give us some more insight, and we'd be able to answer your questions

I havn't popped the cover because I have no idea what I'm looking at or for. Yea if something was snapped I would be able to tell but I've never even seem a differential opened up before in person. Sense I need to get it fixed and want to do it myself it seems like changing the whole rear would be easier as I don't know the proper seating and what not for shims and all that. I have to have a driveable car by Tuesday morning. If I oen rear and **** is crazy I don't know if I could put it back together. If I take the cover off is anything gonna shift or move beside the fluid?

[Smoke Panther]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

I havn't popped the cover because I have no idea what I'm looking at or for. Yea if something was snapped I would be able to tell but I've never even seem a differential opened up before in person.

Worse comes to worse, just take a picture of what you see. Basically, there should be no debris sitting in the bottom of the axle housing...any chunks of metal = bad. If you happen to see any, then the next step is to describe what shape the debris is in. If it's cylindrical, it's the remains of your bearings...if it's flat, it's part of your gears/differential

Sense I need to get it fixed and want to do it myself it seems like changing the whole rear would be easier as I don't know the proper seating and what not for shims and all that.

yea, that's the easiest, most sure-fire way to fix the problem

If I oen rear and **** is crazy I don't know if I could put it back together. If I take the cover off is anything gonna shift or move beside the fluid?

No, just popping the cover is just that: taking the cover off the differential. Things are not going to move around. You'll just have to refill the rear end, but from the sounds of things, driving your car in it's current state is not recommended.

[crushedout]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

Yea, I'm not driving it right now. I took the gf's Aztek to work. I'll pop the cover off when I get home from work in the morning.

[JohnnyC]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

Will this bolt up to my car?


http://www.kyfbodies.org/vb/showthread.php?t=20882


Id really appreciate some input as this is not a subject I know about

yes, it will.

[GixxerSteph]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

I had a similar droning on my rear end last year and finally had to replace the bearings, they were pitted to hell. Now she runs like a top.

[crushedout]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

Well I took it apart and found two teeth on the pinion gear gone. One was in there and the other I think was grinded off or something as it was not in there. I took some pics. Looks like I'm gonna be swappin out the rear end in the near future.

heres the differential when I took the cover off, It was kinda foamy.

(There is a jackstand I just left the jack there as a backup)

[crushedout]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

Heres the piece I found and what my hand pulled out of the bottom of the differential.

[crushedout]

Re: Rear differential is clunking

heres the differential cover







here is a pic of when I scraped the shaving away from the magnet