Rear wheels have in and out play! Help? 97 explorer v8

[ajezior]

So I am getting grinding from the back. I can take hold of both rear tires and pull them in and out. Is this the rear axle shafts or bearings?

Vehicle was in a major collision and I just got the whole front fixed up. Now to find this I am a little upset.

Putting her up on jack stands right now so hoping for a quick response. Am I right by putting the jack stands under the u-bolt plate under the leaf springs?

Thanks in advance!

 

[zukman]

1. check to see if there is any oil in the diff
2. if yes repalce the wheel bearings
3. if no get a new rear axle

 

[deweyville65]

So I am getting grinding from the back. I can take hold of both rear tires and pull them in and out. Is this the rear axle shafts or bearings?

Vehicle was in a major collision and I just got the whole front fixed up. Now to find this I am a little upset.

Putting her up on jack stands right now so hoping for a quick response. Am I right by putting the jack stands under the u-bolt plate under the leaf springs?

Thanks in advance!

Jack stands OK where they are. How much end play are you getting? About 1/16 inch I am thinking should be max, more like 1/32 inch normal. I dont recall off hand how much there is, but some is normal. The axles have C-clips holding them in. So to remove them, you have to remove the rear end cover, and pull the spider gear shaft. The bearings do not retain the axle,like on a 9" Ford.

 

[ajezior]

Thanks for the quick responses! This forum is great!

Yeah I read after that post that play is normal in and out. Right now draining differential fluid from the pumpkin. I am guessing I have a bad bearing on my passenger side(Where the noise comes from, maybe seized?)

How do the c-clips come off?

 

[ajezior]

Okay I am referring to this thread: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=214805

But I am not seeing the "9mm bolt" this guy is talking about.

 

[gavin]

Okay I am referring to this thread: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=214805

But I am not seeing the "9mm bolt" this guy is talking about.

img]http://s8.postimage.org/6l748pbj9/2012_07_06_11_53_14.jpg[/img]

its' right here

In your photo, the bolt will be at the "bottom."
One end of your cross-pin is at the top; so the bolt will be at the opposite end.

remove that bolt, VERY carefully. Get a new one; it is not recommended to re-use it.
After removing that bolt, you can remove the cross-pin (which is sticking slightly out in this pic).
Once the cross-pin is removed, you can push the axle shaft inward enough to get access to the c-clip.
You will need to have the calipers and rotors off the axles to get enough inward movement.

 

[ajezior]

The bolt is all the way on the backside. How do i turn it so i can access the bolt?

 

[gavin]

The bolt is all the way on the backside. How do i turn it so i can access the bolt?

either disconnect the driveshaft from the rear axle or put the transmission in neutral, then rotate by hand either the driveshaft/pinion or one of the tires to rotate the carrier.

edit: if this is a 4.0, transmission in neutral should be sufficient. If a 5.0 AWD, then disconnect the driveshaft from the axle would be easiest (otherwise there will be "friction" caused by the viscous coupling in the transfer case)

 

[ajezior]

edit: if this is a 4.0, transmission in neutral should be sufficient. If a 5.0 AWD, then disconnect the driveshaft from the axle would be easiest (otherwise there will be "friction" caused by the viscous coupling in the transfer case)

I jacked up the front with jack stands on the back. and threw her in neutral.

Well she is all put together now and the grinding is now eliminated. Now I get to replace the front wheel bearing and hub assembly!

Thanks a lot guys! Looking forward to working on future project with you guys.

 

[n2epv]

Gents - I have a question about rear axle removal/replacement... Are the C clips difficult to deal with on a limited-slip differential? I have had several open diffs apart to replace bearings and there's lots of room to remove and then install the C clips. Not so with a limited slip, as can be seen from the pics.

I have all sorts of outer bearing play plus a leaky seal on the rear of my '97 and figure that I shouldn't put this repair off any longer.

TIA

 

[Turdle]

There is plenty of room to deal with the c clips. Push the axles inward and they will slide off. There may be an o ring on the shaft, this applies a bit of tension on the clip to keep it from sliding off on it's own.

 

[n2epv]

Thanks for the quick reply!

That C clip 'sliding off on it's own' scenario has me motivated to pull the axles out and replace whatever's worn. Both rear axles have lots of 'in and out' play as my truck has a little over 200,000 miles on it.

 

[deweyville65]

The c-clips wont fall off on their own under driving conditions. They could fall off when the spider gear shaft is removed, and the axles pushed in, allowing the c-clip to come out of its counterbore in the axle gear. The only way they could come off while driving is if the clip is worn so bad the axle pulls through the clip. I have never seen the clips so worn out as for that to happen. I have however had a Ford 9" axle bearing so loose that it allowed the axle shaft to come out of the housing.