Need to diagnose possible rear axle/diff/brakes problem on ra60?

[Aust162]

Hi everyone, i brought this 82mdl ra60 celica (t series rear end) on the weekend.The car had been sitting around for a few months. I noticed it felt down on power and it seemed to get worse the longer i drove it. The diff is noisey (sounds like a welded diff?) but i wasn't too worried because i brought the car cheap.

It feels as though i'm driving with the handbrake on. its dragging the rear wheels. I pulled the drums off and checked the shoes and handbrake cables and they seem to be fine. I had a friend follow behind me while i drove the car and he said it was shooting out orange sparks from one side near the wheel. I can barely get the car up my steep driveway now. I didnt try to drive the thing anymore after this.

Today i drained the diff oil, pulled the axles and the diff centre out. diff centre looks ok!? i took it to a diff shop and they reckon it couldnt be my problem. it did however have a thick lsd oil in it (probably to shut it up).

The axle bearings are noisey and have a fair amount of play, left to right. they spin "OK" but are noisey and are orange from rust (moisture). i showed the diff shop these too and he thinks thats the problem. i dont really trust this guy however, thats why i'm on here asking you guys.

Would the dud bearings be the whole problem by the sounds of it? has anyone had a similar thing happen to their car?

i'll just add that; the tailshaft and centre bearing seem to spin freely in the gearbox to.

thanks

[lexsmaz]

Before you pulled the diff apart did the wheels actually turn / spin ok ?
Easiest way before you pulled it all apart would have been to see if the car rolled freely out of gear on flat ground, Pushing it & also rolling down the road,
The axle bearings dont sound to good, & need to be changed but if they spin freely will not be the cause of the issue ...
How are the front wheels, do they spin ok ? just jack up the car & spin them ...
The orange sparks need to be tracked down but could be something scraping under the car ?

[Aust162]

Before you pulled the diff apart did the wheels actually turn / spin ok ?
Easiest way before you pulled it all apart would have been to see if the car rolled freely out of gear on flat ground, Pushing it & also rolling down the road,
The axle bearings dont sound to good, & need to be changed but if they spin freely will not be the cause of the issue ...
How are the front wheels, do they spin ok ? just jack up the car & spin them ...
The orange sparks need to be tracked down but could be something scraping under the car ?

It spun ok. both wheels were good.

Checked the front wheels today, and they are fine. I'm pretty sure the sparks are from the wheel bearing. one is pretty average, the other is not so bad. Nothing is hanging down that could hit the ground.

Also today a mate came around and we checked the rear shoes while we had the drums off. I got him to press the brake pedal while i checked the shoes move. the wheel cylinders seem to get stuck and not return back to normal position. so this might be the whole problem i'm hoping I will get new wheel cylinder and axle bearings i think, then see how we go.

thanks for the ideas Lexsmaz +rep

[mrshin]

PM me if you end up looking for another arse end to put into your car, it's probably time I started wrecking the old RA60 in the yard.

[hemi twofifteen turbo]

what method did you use to check the shoes etc? Did you have the drum on or off when you tested? etc With dragging brakes you will get a heap of smoke coming off the rear brakes as your drive, and also will get better as the brakes heat up and fade. It's nothing to do with the engine? ie, not sparks coming out the exhaust? If your wheel bearings were getting to the point that they were sparking they would be destroyed already, although the rust isn't a good sign. one way is to put the car on stands and drive it in the air to see where it's coming from. The car isn't auto by any chance is it?

[Aust162]

what method did you use to check the shoes etc? Did you have the drum on or off when you tested? etc With dragging brakes you will get a heap of smoke coming off the rear brakes as your drive, and also will get better as the brakes heat up and fade. It's nothing to do with the engine? ie, not sparks coming out the exhaust? If your wheel bearings were getting to the point that they were sparking they would be destroyed already, although the rust isn't a good sign. one way is to put the car on stands and drive it in the air to see where it's coming from. The car isn't auto by any chance is it?

I checked the shoes/wheel cyl's with the drums off.

I dont think there was any smoke coming off the rear brakes. i remember feeling the rim after driving it and it wasn't warm...

I was told the engine was serviced and tuned just before they advertised it. The oil is clean, it doesnt smoke, the dissy cap and plugs look new. when i drove it i was pushing it to keep up to the speed limit (60-80zones)and the temp guage went to 3/4's so i slowed down and turned it off. the radiator had no coolant in it and was low on water.

the exhaust is all rusted and leaking at the centre muffler. i was thinking the muffler may be blocked or have collapsed inside.this might be where the sparks were coming from. i'm getting a new exhaust for it.

the car is manual.

[Aust162]

Any more ideas???

[oldeskewltoy]

you can't rely on a wheel cylinder failure while tested without the drums... it is VERY easy to push them TOO far without a drum there to act as a stop.

No heat in the rear would also tend to tell me you don't have dragging brakes.

driveshaft and diff are VERY similar to AE86 units. common problems with AE86 is a tight universal, and or a bad center carrier bearing.. To properly check the driveshaft it only requires the removal of 6 bolts and then to work the joints to an extreme. the bearing you spin and listen.

It could also be the crush collar on the pinion is loosing its tension and you are getting R&P noise

[blacktop]

Have you checked you gearbox? it used to be an old trick to put Banana peals in the box to quit them down and improve the gear changes if the box was f**ked, over time it will restrict the box greatly causing a loss of power, and before all you guys do the whole "BULL SHIT" i have seen this first hand, dodgy mechanics and car salesman do this to old shitters.

New exhaust and wheel bearing are a good start, mainly happens to old 2stroke bikes but the exhaust/muffler gets fouled up with all the black shit and makes the bike seem like it has no power or response.

just give the car a full service and start eliminating potential problems.

[brett_celicacoupe]

if there is friction somehwere then there is also going to be heat.

go for a drive and get under the car. feel all the driveline components. try not to use the brakes and youll be able to feel if the brakes are responsible.


any oil in the gearbox?