horribble grinding and clunking noise coming from my rear end...

well, it started out as a humm...which i thought was my snow tires wearing down but now i'm guessing it wasn't. i put new u joints in it a little over a year ago(20-30,000 miles ago) so im not necessarily ruling them out. my rear end does leak, but i put gear oil in it about a month or two ago(seeps out of my pinion seal very slowly) any ideas on where to check and what to check or what it could be...is it common?

 

How are your axle bearings?

 

lol idk and how do i check?

 

Could be just about anything, but a bad wheel bearing comes to my mind first thing. Jack the back of the car up and put it on stands if you can for safety sake and put a bar under each of the rear wheels and pry up and see if they have any excess movement up and down, put the car in neutral and turn the tires and driveline by hand and see if you can locate source of noise that way.

Could be bad pinion bearing, chipped gears, bad side bearings ?

Good luck

 

does it make the noise when backing up?

 

pull each axle out and spin the bearing slowly feeling and listening for grinding. they are about $30 a side so it may be a cheap fix if it is one of them.

 

Is the pinion loose?From what you described,sounds like the gears are going,and on their way out.

 

im pretty sure its a wheel bearing. i jacked the car up and there is a lot of up and down and side to side play(an eighth of an inch either way) since it wasnt raining this morning i could hear where the sounds was coming from a whole lot better. this is an indicator of a wheel bearing right? if so any other possible damage that could have been done?

 

Better a wheel bearing than a gear set.Yep an 1/8th" of play is a sure sign.When you pull the axles,check to make sure the bearing didn't chew into the axle shaft.Just to be safe,pull both axles,and the center chunk,clean everything out,install a new gasket and put fresh gear oil in.And change the pinion seal.Still check the pinion for any play.

 

never pulled a third member before...can u give me an idea on what to do? just pull the axles and unbolt the third member and pull?

 

DON'T drive the car until you get it fixed. The next thing to happen will be the wheel and entire axle on that side of the car falling off. Been there.....done that.

 

Correct.Be careful when pulling the "hogs head"(third member) out.They are heavier than what they look!Look for any metal shavings in the tubes,and center chunk area of the housing.

 

what should i clean it out with? and is a pinion seal a big thing to change?

 

Very wise statement

 

Here are some step by step instructions. http://www.1bad6t.com/Maverick/repair/drive_train_02.html