Thread: Rear end wobble
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Old 11-07-2018, 02:17 PM
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JMB36TA JMB36TA is offline
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Join Date: May 2018
Location: Tucson, Arizona
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Authentic-242 View Post
Could be a bad axle bearing. Especially if you hear any light crunching now and then. If the rear housing is pre 1970 they used a sealed bearing (round ball bearings) that is not as good as the later roller bearings. To check axle bearing endplay jack the rear tires off the ground and pull-out/push-in the entire tire by hand. Movement of say 1/8" (0.125") would be reasonable (I believe the factory max. spec is around 0.04"), but if you can move it 1/4" (0.25") you may have a bad bearing or the bolt-in axle retaining flange has been worn by rubbing of the bearing sides and there is a bigger than normal air gap allowing in-out movement. Replace original sealed bearings before the wheel/axle comes flying out of the differential housing and takes out the rear quarter panel.
If there's still a wobble in the rear when I have the tires rotated I'll check the movement of the axle. The last thing I want is to see my rear tire pass me on the road! That wouldn't be good. I haven't noticed any crunching but the exhaust is kind of loud.