a clicking in rear end

[1978280z]

i was just cruising about 50 or so and all of a sudden a clickng started in the back end soo i turned around and went home jacked it up and spun the tires and the clicking contiued so i thought maybe it might be a bearing and i checked the oil in it ,..and it was fine....soo i was wondering what you guys may think,..oh and when im in neutral and slow down the clicking slows down soo i thought a pinion bearing, but when im in a gear and i let off the gas it sounds like a grinding sound ..soo i dont know if it was gears grinding ,...soo....what do you guys think????

[beandip]

If you jack up the back end but block one wheel and turn the other , listen for the same noise? Have you tried to let the car idle in first gear with the back wheels off the ground ? Make SURE ,the car is blocked and don't rev the engine. Just listen for the noise and see if you can isolate the sound. This is with both wheels free to spin. Could be a bearing in the diff or even a Axel bearing . I had a u-joint make a clicking sound when it was going bad. ? Gary

[Mr Camouflage]

Worst case scenario: you've dropped a tooth off the pinion or crown wheel.

Happened to me in a Mazda 323 4WD turbo. There was a clicking sound that was Dependant on car speed, not engine rpm, so definately drive line related. Thought it was a CV joint. Replaced a drive shaft - noise still there. Was reasonably annoyed (to put it mildly) so dumped the clutch and ...... crunch, crunch, crunch..... stripped more teeth of both the crown (groups of teeth in about 4 places) and pinion (only had half the teeth left).

Do what Beandip says. Also turn the car off, stick a brick under one wheel to stop it from turning, and get someone to put a bit of resistance on the other wheel or put the e brake on slightly (not too much, you still want it to turn), and (with car out of gear) turn the drive shaft , to rotate the wheel, and feel / listen if the shaft or wheel appear to skip.

It's might not be that serious, but if you have the back end up, may as well check for it.

Another car I had was making all sorts of weird noise from a worn out uni joint in the drive shaft.

Hope its not as serious as a broken diff.

[DeesZ]

My first suspicion would be u-joint. It's the most frequent failure back there from my experience, anyway, and there are several to check. Many failures that I have experienced began with a ticking sound that got worse. I've had several that developed vibrations at certain loads and or rpm. They can be elusive sometimes in their failure. How long has it been since they were replaced? Hopefully you will find it to be u-joints because it's the easiest and least costly of many possibilities. Please keep us updated on what you find.

[1978280z]

i blocked each wheel,..and both did it,...so i took the case off the back and drained the oil and there was no peices or shavings of metal,..soo i turned the wheel with the case off and it sounded like a crunching sound,..soo i dont know what it is,...im thinking about putting the car on a trailer adn sending it to my friends transmission shop?? idk