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Chevy truck rear wheels "sticking"

I have a 1984 Chevy K-20. 350 engine, 4-speed gearbox. (Also has a PTO to run a dump bed and a winch.) Just yesterday I noticed that going around corners (left or right) the rear wheels seem to be "sticking," that is they chirp a little like they're not rotating freely. No problems when traveling straight, however.

There's plenty of lube in the rear end.

Does this sound like a differential problem or a binding emergency brake? Or something else? I'm really scratching my head on this one.

Thanks!

Reply to
Jonathan Ward
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Do you have a locker or limited slip rear end? The LS rears usually need a special additive to the gear oil or they can act strange. A locker acts like you describe when working right.

To see if yours is an open diff or not, you can jack up both rear wheels and spin one tire by hand. If the other side spins the same way, you have a traction device in there, if the wheel spins opposite, you have an open diff.

Mike

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Reply to
Mike Romain

Mike is right. Go to GM dealer and get a bottle of limited-slip differential additive to put in the rear. Then go to a parking lot and drive the truck in figure eights a few times and it should clear up.

Reply to
RayV

One other thing to look at while you're at it is contamination of the rear shoes. Not sure what axle you'd have, but on my 3500 with the 14 bolt / 10.5" axle, I had a problem with the axle seals leaking gear lube on the brake shoes and drums. It produced some weird symptoms of stickiness.

Reply to
Pete C.

Some GM trucks of the era had an Eaton "gov-lock" rear end that acted as an open diff until speed differential between the two wheels had a governer in the diff "switch on" the limited slip clutches; these will appear as if to be an open diff under these conditions.

Look at the option codes for your truck to see if it has a limited slip diff or not. G80 is probably the correct code for this, other G** codes will reflect the axle ratio...

--Ken

Reply to
dye

This is a long-overdue reply, but I haven't had the opportunity to put the truck on the road in a month.

You guys ere right. I added a $10 bottle of limited slip juice from the dealer, and after a few miles the problem resolved.

Thought I should add this reply in case someone else is searching for a solution in the future. Thanks for your help. Nothing better than a cheap, easy fix!

Reply to
Jonathan Ward

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