Georgia Fiero Club Forum
All Things Fiero => General Fiero Discussion => Topic started by: Fierofool on April 17, 2019, 02:26:59 pm
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I need someone who has time to replace my right drive axle on the 87. I've had a loud random popping noise for some time and while doing an oil change today, I found that the outboard joint has been throwing grease. I will provide the axle and seal.
I plan to drive the car to Carlisle in the 3rd week of June and want it to be safe. I can help, but I just need someone to do the heavyweight work or to do the complete job. I have a new hub on the shelf, so while the suspension is apart, I might as well change that, too.
If I help, it would need to be inside where I can have a good fan blowing on me.
You can reply here, or most of you have my phone number.
BTW, THIS IS A PAYING JOB. NOT FOR FREE.
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I don't know about the fitment on a manual. I do know that there was a spdcial socket required for the axle nut. The nut probably came with your hub, or did with my wheel bearings. That nut takes some encouragement to get off, and the axle to get out. I think it's an easier job with 2 people. To aboid messing with my alignment, I unbolted the strut, which may not have been the best way. It helps to have someone guide things back in.
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I've done a couple of rear hubs before. I have a writeup on the board on how to do it. My hubs came with the nut, and I bought a socket to do the job. I have a 250 ft-lb torque wrench for torquing the nut. I just am not allowed by my doctors to exert that much force, and when I overdo it, I get sick. I also risk a fatal incident.
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Do you have jack stands, a hydraullic floor jack, and a wrench for that socket?
I'd try, if I weren't so far away. Never done a manual.
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If no one else can before mid May, I should be able to shake loose a day to come do it.
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I have everything needed except an emergency brake spring remover and a pickle fork for removing the rear tie rod.
My daughter has contacted one of the EMT's that restores automobiles on the side. Haven't heard anything from him, yet. I was gonna send the car up to Tha Driver for a paint job, but I've heard that he has one, maybe two cars ahead so I'm going to send it over to Mableton in a week or two.
Zack, if this other guy can't do the job or can't get it in the next week, I'll take you up on the offer. I need it ready to go to Carlisle on the 20th of June.
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Charlie,
I'm sure I can find time to work it in (the axle - not the paintjob ;-) sometime in the near future. It should only take an hour or so, right? (famous last words)
Paul
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Thanks, Paul. It should take maybe 3 or 4 hours to do the axle and hub. The EMT co-worker of my daughter said he can do the job. He will let me know what his ambulance schedule is. I probably have a small window before paint and a little more after paint before taking the trip. I'm hoping to get it replaced before taking it to Mableton. The way it pops, I'm concerned that the axle may come apart on the interstate.
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ALL FIXED.
First, the reason for the replacement work was because I've been having a random loud pop somewhere toward the rear. I couldn't identify it to any particular action of the car or condition of the roadway. It's been doing this for years but has recently become more frequent. While changing oil, I noticed grease slung around the fenderwell, so I assumed that because it was inline with the CV boot, that the boot had ruptured, lost the grease and the joint had deteriorated.
I was talking with my brother who lives up in Homer and he said he was a little short on work so I brought him down to help do the job.
I rented a ball joint splitter and a seal driver set from O'Reilly Auto Parts and because they don't have a true seal remover for rent I had to buy one. I also purchased a GM Door Spring Removal Tool for the emergency brake spring.
Expecting possible problems, I ordered two transmission seals when I ordered my axel. It paid off as the seal driver wasn't designed for the Fiero axle seals. It exerts all it's force on the center metal portion and damages the seal. But a 1 7/8 socket is the perfect driver. It drives against the outer flange where it fits into the transmission case. Available for loan if you ever need one.
While I was into it, I decided to also replace the hub with one of the new MOOG hubs I had on the shelf. Good thing I had them because it turned out that it wasn't the axle that was bad, but it was the hub. Lots of grease had come out of the rear hub seal.
I found several variables while doing the job. The axle nut that was on the car was a 29mm swaged nut. The axle nut that came with the hub was a 29mm swaged nut. When I bought the hubs and found the 29mm nut included, I purchased a 29mm socket for when replacement time came along. I think most of us have been educated that the Fiero uses a 30mm axle nut. Well, the new axle came with a 30mm flange head Nylok axle nut, so I had to run back and rent a 30mm socket.
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Glad it's fixed.
I'm a little mixed up about the nut. I have several spares. When I replaced my rear wheel bearings and seals, they came with nuts, but I had already purchased nuts. I wonder what size they are.
Oh. Before anyone else says it, apparently you're storing nuts for the Winter.
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While we were underneath the car we verified a few things that I had suspected for a while. When the engine was installed, I purchased new transmission and motor mounts and a neutrally balanced flywheel.
The engine has always seemed to be a little loose and will sometimes rock when starting out. Seems the transmission mounts aren't quite so new. The flywheel has a series of numbers written on it with one of those yellow paint markers. Definitely not the new Beretta flywheel that I purchased from Main Auto Parts.
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It is sad that that was done to you. Should never happen to anyone.
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Glad that you got this sorted FF. Very unpleasant about the flywheel and mount.
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Go Ahead and 'OUT' the Flywheel Thief. Or go Ask The owner For it.
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Flywheel, transmission, mounts, and other items. It seems that there was a sway bar and other items, also.
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Glad you got it sorted. Sorry I couldn't help.
I'm curious as to the parts thief, too. Same person who had Fan's car?
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Kinda. In that general area, relatively speaking.
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Gotcha. The senior A.
He also sold John C a 2.8 that was supposed to be an 88 block. Not even close.
I'm (sadly) just a bit vindicated that my original impression seemed to be not too far from dead accurate.
Ah well... ya' learn.
(That's also where my original Getrag came from. The one that I shredded, on the way home from the club meeting. In retrospect, it was probably on its last legs when I installed it.)
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Going to be pulling mt 88 5 speed right axel soon as the seal has gone bad. Charlie has the axel incase I need it too. I've come up with part number National 3543 for the seal (correct?) but cant find a number for the axel nut. Nothing on any of the big sites except front nuts, not rear. I can get the seal today locally but no listing for nuts.....
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TFS has them. Actually, when I replaced my bearings, axle nuts came with the bearings.
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I did see they have them just hoping to get locally faster to make Saturday shop meeting. I tried to find a factory number on them in the green parts manual no luck in both the axel and brake related sections. Is it a m20 x 1.5? I find mixed messages on different sites.
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AutoZone has the nut. Includes 2 nuts.
Dorman Spindle Lock Nut Kit 615-089.1
NAPA has the nut.
Spindle Locknut - Rear
Part # :
NOE 6301571
Product Line :
NAPA Solutions
Advance has the nut
Dorman #615-089
O'Rielly also has the Dorman part.
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Thanks, the fill in forms were holding me back. They will take an 87 for the nut but not an 88. Napa has them in stock near me. I'll grab them tomorrow.
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All years are the same. If you don't have one, you will need a 30mm deepwell socket. My torque wrench is 1/2 inch drive. Sockets can be rented at AutoZone just up the road from Scott's, but he probably has the socket. Oddly, my replacement axel came with a 29mm nut.
Install the washer and axle nut. Always use a new nut. If for any reason you need to remove the nut, purchase a new one. They are one-time-use nuts.
Again, you can use about 2 drops of Blue LocTite thread locker on the axle threads if you desire.
Do an initial torque of the axle nut to 75 ft. lb.
Install the disk and brake caliper and hook up the emergency brake.
Remove the wheel center cap and install the wheel. Tighten the lug nuts to 100 ft. lb.
Lower the car to the ground. Do not roll the car for even a short distance. You stand a good chance of destroying your new hub assembly bearings.
Block the wheel on each side. Retorque the axle nut to 200 ft. lb.
Install the wheel center cap. You may want to recheck the hub nut torque after 200 miles, but it really isn’t necessary.
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I wonder how serious the single use nut thing is. A few years ago I changed a bearing on my 2001 Ford Escape. The book said I had to get a new nut, but the bearing didn't come with one, and i couldn't find one to save my neck. So I re-used the old one. Haven't had any problems.
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Its not that serious..... manufacturer recommended to cover their ass..... 200 ftlbs is not enough to hurt the structural integrity of the nut. I have never seen a spindle nut fail. Of course I am not a materials engineer nor did I stay at a Holiday Inn last night....... don't play one on TV either
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Another nut oddity... You may recall me writing here not long ago about changing a bearing on the rear of my yellow Fiero. The new bearing, which I got from TFS, came with a nut, but I didn't know it would, so I also bought a nut from TFS. While the two nuts were the same thread, they weren't the same outside diameter. The separate nut was the same outside diameter as the old one, but the one packed with the bearing was smaller, and would have required a different socket. So I used the one that was the same size as the old one.
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That's what I encountered when I replaced my hub and axel. Hub was supposed to be a MOOG from Rock Auto. I don't remember where I ordered the axel from, but I think it was PartsGeek. Both had 29mm nuts. The factory nut was a 30mm.
The hub came with a nylock nut and the axel came with a washer and a nylock nut. I might reuse a deformed threat swaged nut, but I would never reuse a nylock nut on something that critical.
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The new bearing, which I got from TFS, came with a nut, but I didn't know it would, so I also bought a nut from TFS. While the two nuts were the same thread, they weren't the same outside diameter.
That was my experience, also.
One other point on this. If you order control arms and paddle nuts/bolts (I think that was the order), TFS removes the duplicate parts from the order. Whatever it was, it came with the parts, so they removed the duplicates. Obviously not with the axle nuts.
Later, I replaced the seals, whuch required the purchase of new axle nuts. Axle nuts came with the seals, which were purchased locally.