[Guest]

Thanks to the FORUM answers, I was able to plan and execute this swap with no problems.


1st thing 1st. CHEMOTHERAPY! Kill all evidence of rust by sandblasting.

NEXT>>> Inspect, clean, new seals - looks really good. Low mile unit in great condition. Did the recommended limited slip test as outlined in the FSM.

To be continued in the next post.......


NEXT>>> paint - no more rust - and it looks good, too.

 

[Guest]

GOOD PREP, PRIMER, AND QUALITY PAINT WILL PREVENT RUST - AND IT LOOKS GOOD, TOO!

THIS TRANSMISSION JACK WORKS GREAT!!!

READY TO DO THE SWAP

AIRLIFT 1000'S AND NEW BRAKES

[ 04-25-2007, 12:41 AM: Message edited by: 1995CapWagon ]

 

[Guest]

Nice work!

That looks awesome!

Stewart

 

[Guest]

FRONT AND REAR BRAKES, HARDWARE, CALIPERS, WHEEL CYLINDERS, ETC...

BRAKE LATHE AND CROSS HATCH!!

 

[Guest]

nice rear axle art,. i think a smiley face would have really finished it off nice,..
nick

 

[Guest]

What a crack-up

I was having fun, so I painted it red - I actually wanted a chrome cover

 

[Guest]

Very nice work, you know I like it!

 

[Guest]

That was one heck of a sand blaster - looked like the business end of a friken fire hose!! - Nice job - see ya at the track at WagonFest?? - Dave

 

[Guest]

Woah...pretty sweet work! Nice tools ya got too

Chris

 

[Guest]

Nice paint job! Did the same swap myself last fall, lying on my gravel driveway with the car on jackstands. Worth the effort, though I still don't have the parking brake hooked up (all new cables there too).

Incidentally, you can get brand new GM diff covers for like $20, unfinished.

 

[Guest]

The Reconditioner: “Very nice work, you know I like it!”

Thanks! That's encouraging coming from the king of detail. I'll spend more time with paint as I go!

Dservati: “That was one heck of a sand blaster - looked like the business end of a friken fire hose!! - Nice job - see ya at the track at WagonFest?? – Dave.”

Dave, that sand-blaster was a blast! I'm on the West Coast - so we'll have to have a WagonFest out here one day!

Brokecello: “Woah...pretty sweet work! Nice tools ya got too – Chris.”

Chris, I have access to my friends shop during the hours that he is closed. It's a maintenance facility for a conference center. A real blessing. I ran the facility 10 years ago - and moved on. So he trusts with it while he is gone.

RoadMattster: “Nice paint job! Did the same swap myself last fall, lying on my gravel driveway with the car on jackstands. Worth the effort, though I still don't have the parking brake hooked up (all new cables there too). Incidentally, you can get brand new GM diff covers for like $20, unfinished.”

What's the p/n for that cover? I did not sand-blast this old cover in anticipation of replacing it with one that I can add a drain plug. With a new GM cover I can weld a drain plug in - or find a good used one.

Did you have to modify the reluctor/ABS sending unit so that it sealed better? I had to file a ridge off and use a larger “O” ring. Works great – no leaks but the speedo is still off. Did you re-flash your PCM? Reads much faster than the actual speed. I have a GPS unit that tells me a more realistic MPH for now.

 

[Guest]

Cover is 26067595. Reluctor thingy seemed to match up no problem, do to an oversite I even ended up reusing the old o-ring, no leaks so far. And I did reflash the PCM, with the PCM4less that everyone seems to use. It not only fixes the speedo, but boost the performance a little too.

Unfortunately for me, the bearings are shot on the new axle I put in, so I am going to be taking it apart again Would have been nice if I figured that out while it was still out of the car, but whattayagonnado...

 

[Guest]

so how's it driving, I'm thinking about the same mod

 

[Guest]

Unfortunately for me, the bearings are shot on the new axle I put in, so I am going to be taking it apart again Would have been nice if I figured that out while it was still out of the car, but whattayagonnado...

K,.. i,m confused here,. you took the axles out , put them back in with new seals and didn't check the bearings?? which bearings?? carriers'? pinions'? axles'??

nick

 

[Guest]

Nice.

That looks awesome!

Bummah about the bearings though...

 

[Guest]

She gets up and goes! I've put about 100 miles on and the axle is TIGHT and SOLID. No bearing noise, no vibration, no clunking. Both wheels GRAB the road and lay rubber. I am very pleased.

Walker Auto Wrecking sold me the axle and said it was computer inventoried and sitting on a rack in the yard since the year 2000, noted with 85k on the clock. You never know - but all evidence verifies the records to be true.

I used mineral based rear axle lube with two tubes of GM Limited Slip modifyer.

I inspected the parts - along with another mechanic - and I followed the FSM and used a torque wrench. This rear end is in exceptionally good shape!

[ 04-24-2007, 10:00 PM: Message edited by: 1995CapWagon ]

 

[Guest]

Hey Jeff, Why did you pick 3.23? Just curious... I was thinking swapping either a 3.23 or 3.42 (and a posi) for my peg-leg 2.56, based upon GM's infinite wisdom... Thanks (in advance) for your input.

 

[Guest]

Nick-

I misspoke somewhat, I never actually had the individual axle shafts out, but I did have the entire 3.23 axle assembly out of the car before I installed it, where it would have been easier to take off the cover and deal with the c-clips and whatever needs dealing with in order to remove the axle shafts. I am assuming (hoping) it is the wheel bearings. Although reading the sheet posted by 95capwagon leads me to realize it could be #8 or #9. The noise is somewhere between a buzz and a hum, can't hear it as well at higher speeds but it is there, in drive and coasting. Unfortunately my axle came out of a car with about 160k or so on it, so who knows what is going on in there.

 

[Guest]

Great SScott:
1) The number one factor was $$Money! This was a budget job. The rear-end was listed for $350.00 at the yard. But once Walker looked at it he lowered the price to $100 – it was sitting outside on a rack for 7 years and it was quite rusty. Most of us in California do not see rust on our car parts. I can loosen exhaust bolts with a little WD-40 and an open-end wrench! Therefore, he dropped the price and I sandblasted it (after, of course, sealing any potential opening with a roll of duct tape and plastic!).

I almost went for the following from No Limits:

http://www.nolimitsmotorsports.net/inc/sdetail/1550

$780.00 shipped to your door within 3 business days
#1) Eaton Posi W/ 400LB Spring kit
#2) Heavy Duty Master Install Kit includes the following:
(Carrier bearings, Pinion bearings, Shims, Pinion seal, Pinion nut, Ring gear bolts, Crush sleeve, Loctite, Install Grease & Complete installation instructions)
#3) 3.42 or 3.73 OEM GM Gear Set. Made by AAM, not off shore gear sets.
#4) GM ABS Reluctor
#5) Pair of Axle Timken Bearings w/ Seals
#6) Correct Diff Cover Gasket
#7) 2 Bottles of Posi Additive. 1 for the install and 1 more for after the gears are broke-in.

TOO MUCH WORK and MONEY!!

2) With gas prices, I wanted to maintain a daily driver. I am doing a road trip this summer and don’t really need a race car to do it in.

3) I just plain like the 3:23 ratio limited slip! Seems to be the perfect match for my wagon daily-driver. It’s my answer to the mini-van. I have two kids and it is great as a family wagon.

 

[Guest]

These Factory Service Manual's (FSM) are great! I cannot live without it! Here's some help in selecting a good used rear axle and trouble-shooting issues...