Scheister

my first question is how can i make sure that it is toast before either i replace it or have a shop replace it?

after searching im pretty sure its toast for 2 reasons. 1) the pinion seal has started leaking after a short time after being replaced and 2) there is a *** AWFUL grinding noise noise while coasting down from 40mph. it sounds like when i once reved an engine that has been hydrolocked and i shot a connecting rod threw the block.

so if it is toast can someone give me a general price on what it would cost to have it replaced by a shop? and also how much would it cost if i pulled the rear and took it to a shop to be replaced?

forgot, the rear i have is 2HY 3.23:1 Posi

R1UK

I was looking at doing this job myself, even a full bearing overhaul kit, including crush tube, and everything to do the job was i think, quite reasonably priced.
But then you still have to do the job, of if your not mechanically minded [and its not an everyday job] you have to pay someone, you hope will do a good job.
Have you not considered a secondhand axle from a breakers?
Theres still the small question of course that they will tell you how good it is, breakers are quite good at saying its perfect when in fact its not, tho some are damn good.
But the advantage being a few bolts undone, and you have another axle built up ready to go in, unless your axle is of course one of the rarer ones and hard to find.

Scheister

ive been to the u-pull-it yards here and there arent any. exactly how hard of a job is it?

sixpackmtrspts

id pull the cover and see what the gears look like first, you may need the rear end rebuilt with new gears etc.

the problem your gonna run into is getting the old race out of the housing, might be able to do it with a slide hammer and the right attachment.

Scheister

the gears look ok. i just checked the pinion nut and i could turn it with 1 finger without removing the driveshaft... so if im lucky i can replace it and the pinion seal and all will be well. if im not the i have to replace the pinion bearing...

so what have you guys payed to have the pinion bearing replaced?

Duck

I'll bet you made the same mistake I did in Kingman, AZ -- letting someone change the pinion seal without resetting the pinion gear. About 1,000 miles later the front pinion bearing blew out and took the differential bearings with it -- after wasting almost $1K to fix it I eventually threw away the rear and replaced it with one from a donor car 'cause the complete rear only cost $125.

Don't just pull the yoke and do the pinion seal. Better to live with the leak than 'el-cheapo change the seal. Some guys say it's good enough, but I don't believe it.

Hit a wrecking yard, get a replacement rear and take an afternoon to bolt it in. Cheap. Fast. Back on the road in no time at all. If it comes to rebuilding a rear consider the fact that it might run half the cost of a new out-of-box 12-bolt or 9-inch that should last forever -- IMO a much better deal than trying to fix a 20-year-old rear or a weak 10-bolt.

Scheister

youre close, my dad is the one that let a subpar shop replace the seal. the dead rearend it one of the reasons he gave me the car for free.

ill hit up the salvage yards again, but the last time i was there there werent any. a brand new rear would be great but seeing as ive spent about $2000 in other places over the last 2 weeks i dont see it happening.

R1UK

Well i was lucky, after 1 day of looking a guy in Birmingham [thats a huge 70miles from me] said he had a 3rd gen Z28 diff, low mileage Texas car, broken for spares.
Ok ratios might be out a little, but i cant be too choosy.
I secured it for £125 , not too expensive, thats complete and taken off. A neighbour who works that area is picking it up in his people carrier for me, free.
I appreciate your distances are far, far greater, but i would stick with it and find a good second axle.
Bonuses also include spare drums\shoes\wheel cylinders etc etc, which living here make it really worthwhile.
good luck either way.

Scheister

yeah im leaning toward the dirrection of just finding a new rearend. itd be a pain to have to swap out, but itll probably be cheaper.

if i do that about the only untouched mechanical part of the car this week would be the transmission...

sixpackmtrspts

if the gears are good, just check out the bearing, if it looks damged replace it and use a new crush sleeve and locknut, torque it to specs and your done. sounds like the nut just loosened up and you caught it just in time.

HalfInchWrench

The pinion nut should be staked to prevent it from backing out.

Duck

Actually, swapping the rear, including brakes, etc, as a complete unit is easy and simple -- One day in the driveway with simple hand tools gets it done. Both 3rd and 4th Gen, disk or drum, will bolt right in. 4th Gen has the advantage of 28 spline axles/big rotors/PBR brakes.

Scheister

yeah i know it will swap right in, its just that ive been wrenching on the car for a few days straight getting it ready for a trip and itd be nice to have a day off, i still have to remove the stock cam, put new one in, then put the heads and everything else back on top of that. but i think i may have found a 9bolt in my area, if thats the case then ill be ripping the old rear out soon and just replacing it.

Scheister

well maybe i didnt find a different rearend.

i think im going to buy a new pinion seal and put it in. after searching for the past 2 days i couldnt find an answer to the 1 of my questions.

since the pinion nut was super loose how much do i torque it too? do i just make sure it is as tight as i can get it?

84406

The way I do it when replacing a pinion seal is mark the nut and shaft and put it back to that mark plus about a scribe width. I don't suppose there are marks so the next way to do it is to check the torque with an inch pounds torque wrench. Not so easy to do under the car. So being as your choices are limited I would change the seal and tighten the nut as follows. If you are normal strength, about a 18" bar and tighten as much as you can laying on your back. If you are slight then maybe a 24" bar. If you are a gorilla size, its up to you. It can take up to and over 200 ft pounds to crush the sleeve anymore. If your noise goes away you are probably ok. Noise from the rear when you take your foot off the gas is usually a worn bearing or loose nut. That is usually a whining noise and you mentioned you had a grinding noise so things might be damaged.