8.8 housing bent?? Need help, asap.

[Mean88]

Here is the story on my 8.8 rear end expirience:

I have an 88 gt mustang that I bought pretty much stock in condition. One of the first things I changed was the rear gears to 3.73. After installation I the gears whined terribly. I adjusted the gears some, but of course they still rang loud. When I adjusted them I noticed that the carrier would spin freely, and then bind in the same spot with one full turn. I ran the gears that way with my stock axles, carrier, etc, until I burned the track lock at the track. It seemed like the car vibrated more than it should from the rear end. So last fall I threw the stock gears back in, and the carrier still bound up at one turn in the same spot- the car vibrated even worse at higher speeds with the 3.08's. Well, this spring I threw in moser 31 spl axles, eaton posi, and another NEW set of 3.73's. The car vibrated little(less than before), until I started to get a vibration(and noise) when on the highway. I figured my ALUMINUM d/s was loose, so I jacked the car up only to find that the pinion was loose in the housing-So I crushed the crush sleeve a little more and tightened the pinion up. I then noticed that the gears where whining just like the first set of 3.73's, so I pulled the carrier to shim it a little tighter since I pulled the pinion closer foreward. I noticed that with the NEW carrier and gears that the carrier still hung up in one spot when turned over. WTF?? So with the gears whining, I have been driving the car for a few months on the street, and guess what? The pinion is loose again! I cannot get any gears shimmed tightly enough not to whine because the carrier hangs up in the same spot. And my pinion keeps coming loose. It turns freely, and hangs up so tight I can barely turn it. I am beginning to think that the housing is screwed, since the car seems to have been rolled at one time(I painted the car, and it has a new winshield, and alot of body filler) What the hell to do now?? Please help with this strange situation.
Thanks
Ted

 

[autoXr1]

Do you have a rear-end shop like a DriveTrain Specialists nearby? Perhaps they can check the alignment with a laser to answer your question. It is possible to have the axle housings go out of alignment and/or flex under extreme conditions. I wonder if the welds between the axle housing(s) and carrier are intact. Whatever it is, it sounds like you've fussed with it long enough. There are so many parts that can contribute to or cause your rear-end issues, so I'd just bite the bullet and just take it to a professional.

Good luck.

 

[10HoleLX]

It sounds like your causing all the problems to you rear end.
Your not crushing the sleeve properly and Are you reusing the original shims on the carrier?
Many do-it-yourselfers take the big gamble and resuse the carrier shims and hope that the backlash falls within specs.
When I do gears at my work I rarely use the same shims on both sides of the carrier with a gear change.
Are the axles tubes leaking were they join the differential housing?
Thats a good way to tell if the differential assembly is bent.

 

[Mean88]

The rear end has been done right, not only have I fussed with this rear alot, I have done a few other installs for friends and no issues at all for them(no noise, vibration, etc) I have crushed the crush sleeves correctly, and I have used new shims, so it isnt that I am doing it half-assed.
Thanks
Ted

 

[Rick 91GT]

Did you possible have some metal in the housing and got in the bearings which are making noise? That will cause the pinion to come loose....

I went through that on my F-150 a month or so ago. I have big tires that make noise so I thought it was just that, but after I put new tires on I could hear it getting worse, noticed some fluid dripping out from the driveshaft side of the pinion.

Drained the fluid, took the driveshaft off and lots of slop, my fluid was full of metal. Had to put all new bearings, etc in the rear....

 

[89MustangGX]

I would have a hard time believing the rear itself was bent, they're pretty tough. I know it's not what you want to hear, but I'd take it all apart again, inspect, and start replacing parts depending on what you see.