Strange noise from rear end

cogitocogito Wagonist
in Engine & Drivetrain
I have a 89 Civic 4WD wagon w/manual trans. Lately I've noticed an odd "thud" sound sometimes when I take off from a stop. The noise seems to be coming from the rear end area. There seems to be some resistance when trying to start out, it's almost like the tires are glued to the road and when the car moves, they break away from the pavement, making that sound. Once I start moving, everything is normal. Does this sound familiar to anyone?

Comments

  • cogitocogito Wagonist
    If my rear differential was low on fluid, might it stick or sieze up when starting out from a parked or stopped state? That's sort of how this issue manifests itself. Once moving, everything seems normal. But I shouldn't be engaging the RWD under these circumstances, right?

    What are the effects of disabling the RWD by loosening that bolt and sliding that piece over, that under the hood, besides not being able to use the RWD feature? Would it hurt anything or cause any problems? Would it improve gas mileage?
  • AWD WagonAWD Wagon Wagonist
    I am having similar problems with my 91 AWD. I have found my problem is in the U joints on the 3rd propeller shaft. I also found out that the part is discontinued from honda both in the USA and Canada. I have not experienced the "hold back" when shifting but I do have the thed when I pull away along with other noises being caused by the poor U joints. I placed mine in 2wd to see if the noise would go away and it did. Didn;t seem to do any harm although I only drove it in 2wd for a cpoule of days. You might want to try it in 2wd mode to see if you can isolate the sound.

    Cheers
  • cogitocogito Wagonist
    AWD Wagon wrote:
    I am having similar problems with my 91 AWD. I have found my problem is in the U joints on the 3rd propeller shaft. I also found out that the part is discontinued from honda both in the USA and Canada. I have not experienced the "hold back" when shifting but I do have the thed when I pull away along with other noises being caused by the poor U joints. I placed mine in 2wd to see if the noise would go away and it did. Didn;t seem to do any harm although I only drove it in 2wd for a cpoule of days. You might want to try it in 2wd mode to see if you can isolate the sound.

    Cheers
    I was wondering. It's still making the same noise/effect. Once the car is put into FWD only mode, the rear differential never gets driven at all, right? So, if my Ujoints were bad, would it hurt to just remove them and leave the car in FWD?
  • cogitocogito Wagonist
    Well, I had my drivetrain put into FWD only. But I still get the sticking effect from the rear end. It's almost like when starting out, the rear tires are glued to the pavement and I have to rev the engine a little to break it loose, then it OK. But I stop for a short while, it reoccurs. Does anyone have any idea what this could be?
  • wagodizzlewagodizzle Council Member and EDM expert
    could it be something came loose/undone in the drum brakes? maybe the coil thingy that retracts the shoes causing the shoes to stick... idk... ??
  • cogitocogito Wagonist
    I was wondering about that too. Sometimes dust builds up in the drum and can cause this sort of thing. The more I think about, the more likely it seems that it is a brake issue.
  • ThatDoodleThatDoodle Council Member
    take a look at your mount on the rear diff. It might be cracked and old.
  • cogitocogito Wagonist
    The problem turned out to be the parking brake!
  • farfetchedfarfetched Wagonist
    cogito wrote:
    The problem turned out to be the parking brake!
    Ata boy!
    Cheers!
  • HaydzHaydz Moderator
    Strange sound from rear end? lulz
  • cogitocogito Wagonist
    I told you it was "strange." :roll:
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