1973 Riviera rear wheel squeal...PLEASE HELP!!!

[73rivi]

Alright, here's my problem. Whenever I'm driving my car, as long as I am not applying any brake, my rear brakes squeal. It squeals about once every revolution...it's not a continuous squeal. It was doing this last year, so I replaced the shoes, and had my drums turned. The guy at the NAPA store said they didn't need to be turned, since they weren't warped, but I had him do it anyways. So anyways, back to the subject. After I have applied some brake to it, the squeal goes away....for about 5-10 seconds. After that, it slowly works its way back up to where it was initially. My springs all seem to be alright, I really have to strain to get them put back on. If anyone can help me diagnose this, it'd be a great help. Thanks a lot in advance,

Jared

[Junqueboi]

It sounds like you have a u-joint going bad. They will make the exact noise you are describing: one squeak per revolution. Put the car on a lift with the e-brake set & the trans NOT in park. try to twist the driveshaft with your hand. Look at both u-joint & look for any play. Changes are your u-joint is about to go. Dangerous!

I would not drive the car unless you are going to the shop.

[NTX5467]

Usually, the dry u-joint will "cheep, cheep, cheep" each time it flexes, increasing with road speed, not specifically a squeal. Sounds like the dry bearing that it is. There might also be a high speed vibration, not major, but just enough to make you want to get the tire balance done at the next oil change--at highway speeds.

Now, on your Riv there might be more than just one joint that might need attention. In some cases, the front one is the one to make noise, but you also might have a multi-piece drive shaft with additional u-joints in the middle. If it's a two-piece drive shaft, there is a center carrier bearing that can make a "cheep, cheep, cheep" sound, maybe even a squeal, sound too.

Best thing is to get the car secured on an lift (or drive on rack as at the mufler shop) and look for slack in the drive shaft, between the rear axle and the transmission. Trying to turn the shaft is one way, pushing and pulling up, down, and sideways is another way. Other than at the front slip yoke/transmission output shaft interface, there should be no slack, with only a little allowed at the slip yoke as it slides on the output shaft.

Trouble with noisy u-joints or carrier bearings, they can make noise for a while and you don't know when they're going to let loose or fail. The sooner you can get this investigated the better.

Just some thoughts,

NTX5467

[73rivi]

Thanks for the input guys. I have a 60 mile trip to take with the car next Monday, so I'm definitely going to change out my u-joints, regardless if they are bad or not. I honestly didn't even think about it being the u-joints, and it probably would've resulted in a pretty nasty accident somewhere down the line. I really appreciate everyone who shares their knowledge. Thanks again...

Jared

[jrbartlett]

I've also read about instances of a rear axle bearing going out and causing a noise that would disappear when the brakes were applied. Something about the brake shoes recentering the drum (and thus the axle) upon application of the brake.

Also, I've had the exact same experience with noise that turned out to be a brake lining that was loosely riveted to the brake show. It was slipping over and scraping against the inside of the brake drum. When I hit the brakes, the noise stopped. Fixed it by removing the shoe and tightening the rivets with a hammer and punch.