linderpat

My car has been suspended on liftbars for almost 3 months now (MY 86.5, A/T). Tonight, while trying to see where my rear passenger brake caliper is leaking, so that I can repair it, had the car running. Asked my wife to put it in drive (tires have been off all along). The driver's side rear wheel turned but not the passenger side wheel. When I told her to pump the brakes, the pads inside the calipers didn't seem to move at all (I had lost a fair amount of fluid over the past couple of months, but I topped off the reservour with fluid beforehand).
Anyhow, I told her to shift it into park - when she did, a horrible grating sound came from somewhere down in the tranny area - not really sure where. She put the car in nuetral, applied the brakes again in order to stop the driver's rear disk from spinning, then was able to shift into nuetral with no grinding sound.
What could this be? It is a sickening sound, and I don't like the fact that only one wheel is engaging. Could it be a half shaft has popped out from having the car suspended for so long (without the tires on it)?
I am getting very frustrated with this car.

PS - I had lost some tranny fluid due to a leak there too, but the reservour for that showed full.

soupcan

Did she apply the brake before she shifted into park, my wife did the same thing years ago.
Something about the car up on jackstands and in drive short circuits blonds, YWMV.

ZEUS+

Thats the sound you hear when the output shaft is still spinning and the park pawl cannot engage. Do you have LSD ?

GlenL

If she put the car in park while the rear axle was turning then I'm not surprised there was a noise. I shifted into park once when a car was moving (Ford) and it didn't like it.

The disc brake pads won't appear to move. They don't retract when you lift off the brake, they just stop squeezing.

Kevin Michael

Ed maybe because the suspension is sagging being lifted . Just a wild guess there!
Kevin

linderpat

I didn't think so. Why would only one wheel be turning when she applied the gas?

ZEUS+

If you have a limited slip differential(LSD) both will spin. Open differential only one will spin. Hope no damage resulted.

linderpat

If both wheels had been on the ground, would they both spin?

ZEUS+

Do both wheels turn in the same direction when rotating by hand ? Wheels raised, in neutral and engine off.

linderpat

I'll check tomorrow.