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Differntial problem in auto transmission?; I think my geo is dead
Topic Started: Mar 6 2014, 06:51 PM (692 Views)
MarkyMayhem


Hey all... I think it's a sad day....
1995 4/3 LSI hatch, 198,xxx miles
The other day, after driving all over creation, I got home, unloaded the car, then jumped back in to get dinner, pulled out and heard a bad bangy crunchy sound from the passenger side. Pulled over, felt axle grease inside the pass. wheel, figured the CV gave out.
Next day, jacked it up, yes the dumb split boot was loose. But didn't look to be major. This is the passenger side.
Jacked the whole front up, put in in 1, the driver side wheel is spinning merrily along, the passenger side hub is barely turning, and stopping at times.
Great, stuck caliper or at worst a bad wheel bearing.
Spent some hours today tearing it all apart, and when I got the axle loose guess what? the wheel bearing is fine. The caliper was stuck 'open' to an extent - the pads were barely worn. Weird. So, I pop the axle back in the hub, jack the car up on the other side, and I can spin both sides by hand, not to much effort, no sounds coming from inside/transmission area.
So I start er up, put it in 1 again, and this time the drivers side wheel is not turning, but the passenger axle/hub thats just setting together with no bolts is spinning merrily along. I go and try to give the driver side a spin, it spins by hand but no power. I even goosed the engine a little, nothing from the driver side.

Quick recap - Noise from pass. side. Then when jacked up, pass. side wheel not/barely spinning - driver side fine After teardown, pass. side axle spinning, driver side axle not spinning.

WTF? The only thing I can think is the differential.

If that's the deal, I doubt I want to mess with the transmission... And I will now be looking for another 95 geo. And I have one for sale. Cheap.

Thanks,

-Mark
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Murf 59
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Do keep in mind a normal diff, only one wheel is pulling at a time. To have both pull at the same time, you need a posi, or locker, or a welded diff. Not sure about the noise though
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don_dowdy
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I think I would just put it back together and drive it. You really can't tell much about the differential with the wheels in the air.
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Old Man


Pull the inspection cover between the engine and tranny on the bottom. See if the flex plate bolts are sheared. Might be a simple fix.
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Metromightymouse
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Powdercoat Wizard

If you stop the wheel that is spinning does the other one start spinning? This is normal operation.
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MarkyMayhem


thanks guys yes I do understand how the differential works I just thought that one side spinning and then the other side spinning was an issue. it was an issue just not with the differential as it turns out.

turned out I needed an axle, a tie rod end and my brakes on both sides had issues.

the driver side caliper was starting to leak a tiny bit and was actually stuck closed partly and the passenger side caliper was stuck open partially those brake pads look brand new!

took both sides off cleaned up the calipers did the axle etc and now we're back in business!

now I just need new calipers pads and rotors for a 95 automatic transmission LSI in the near future. and 2 control arms my ball joints are starting to move a little tiny bit from side to side left and right actually.

anybody got a line on the best deal for those parts?

anyone near St Louis want to make a few bucks helping me with those control arms next month?

-m
Edited by MarkyMayhem, Mar 8 2014, 04:08 AM.
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