JungleMan

Here's my problem...ok...so from a dead stop (or very slow roll), if i give it a lot of gas, the passenger rear wheel makes this "thump" noise, usually twice, but if I'm easy on it it doesn't do it. It's even happened when going from 1->2, so long as I'm really giving it some gas. However it does NOT happen in Reverse.

I jacked up the rear of the car, and it doesn't do it when i get on the gas, but the passenger rear wheel thumps when i press the BRAKES...

Any clues?

sellmanb

1) Are you sure it's not just wheel hop?

2) make sure your spacers and wheels are on tight still.

84z28350

definately make sure your not falling apart

JungleMan

Well I played with it a bit tonight and it seems that it's my U-joint-- really nothing to do with the passenger wheel, I guess I somehow thought the noise was coming from there...

Anyhow, the U-joint has a bit of play in it. Not very much at all...just a bit.

Can someone point me in the right direction on where to get a new one (what kind to get) and any info on how to replace it? Thanks

Also I will be driving the car about 150 miles tomorrow, will it still be safe and everything? The car feels fine once I'm up and going, and only thumps when I hammer it from a stop.

Thanks

sellmanb

Good excuse to upgrade to an aluminum driveshaft from a 4th gen. You will be amazed how much smoother your ride is with one.

If you go to the parts store and ask for a u-joint from a _____ camaro/firebird w/ the ______ transmission and _____ sized engine.

If you have 1LE, then dont bother w/ the 4th gen driveshaft, yours is already aluminum. If not, definetly look at those driveshafts. Best 150 dollars you'll spend on your car (aside from SFC's IMPO)

84z28350

If your running an all stock setup grab a greasable one, you wont need the added strength of a solid body ujoint. Keep it lubed up and it should last quite a while.

JungleMan

SFCs are also something I want to do eventually...

Does the aluminum driveshaft improve acceleration or handling at all? Don't see how it would improve handling but acceleration, definitely, less unsprung weight...

I might have to keep my eyes peeled for one...

xlwhellraiser

iTrader: (1)

Tranny mount brotha!

Put a jack under your tranny and lightly lift it. If it does not give you any resistance and pushes up freely you will see your mount cracked in half.
If not, than do check the preassure in your tires, but I highly doubt it.

sellmanb

the aluminum driveshaft is lighter, therefore less rotating mass, therefore more power to the wheels. But mostly, they're made better in the 4th gens, and a lot of the "high speed vibrations/rattles" , etc that you might not even notice now, will probably go away. For some reason our stock driveshafts are just horrible.

Your u-joints will have to be pretty bad for them to clunk into gear, and when you snap on it from a stop. Not horrible, but a little play (like less than 1/3 an inch either way) isnt unusual.

Continue to look at other options. Like stated above, check your tranny mount with the described method. If everything else checks out OK, time for a driveshaft

Check out www.camaroz28.com 's classifieds for good deals on that

Red Devil

Have you checked to make sure your spare and jack are secure?

JungleMan

The spare and jack aren't even in my car right now, but I'm sure the noise is coming from the actual car.

Hmm I will try the trans mount... are these "transmission mounts" on either side of the crossmember? Sorry I'm not a real transmission person I just need to know what to look for when I test it...

The U-joints do have a very small amount of play but this may be normal as you said, so I will test out the transmission mounts, and if that's not it then a new u-joint (or maybe driveshaft) for me

JungleMan

Well on the way home from school today I bought a trans mount, just in case. Didn't even bother buying a U-joint.

Jacked up the trans as one member suggested, and sure enough, that transmission went right up...replaced that transmission mount with a brand new one and all is well...in fact it rides even smoother than it did before!

Thanks, now I can be amateurish and floor it from a dead stop without making funny noises!

I still think one of these days I might look into that alu driveshaft though, not now though, more important stuff to buy like Sportlines and SFCs.

Dan8289gta

Yep, just did my tranny mount last night, wasnt too bad. 6 bucks at autozone, so we will see how long it holds up. Eventually ill order the poly.

JungleMan

I also got mine at AutoZone for $6. I wanted the poly too, but I really wanted it fixed tonight as I'm doing a good bit of driving this evening.

Worse comes to worse and the mount breaks, all I have to do is buy the poly, it didn't take me very long to replace the mount, so no biggie. But if the stock mount held up for 15 years then this one shouldn't do too bad!

CrimsonDragon

I went through 3 stock trans mounts before I went with a urethane one. Check out Spohns website for a quality replacement if your stock one breaks again.

xlwhellraiser

iTrader: (1)

JungleMan

Don't see how quickly a stock one is going to break if the original one from late 1990 held up for 70K miles, but I guess we'll see

I drove the car tonight and noticed that it rode a lot better than it did before the trans mount broke! I guess the old one was a bit worn though not broken