Plinkity plink, flapping sound... !?

[Big Rectangular Car]

1/4 inch is fine-if that's the amount it has for pinion/ring gear play. If that 1.4 inch is drivehaft yoke to flange, or driveshaft flange or yoke to driveshaft (u joints) then there is an issue. The driveshaft shouldn't move in park-too much..Wheels will turn as long as the driveshaft will.

The flange and pinion are tight, the u-joint is tight, so I guess that is okay with them. Pretty difficult to diagnose stuff sight unseen, it's a pain in the neck.
THe place that put on my tires said I needed -- did I mention this already?-- new seals and a c-clip on the differential, the housing is leaking more than ever. and my rear brakes need to be replaced. Hubs are getting thin, they said, shoes can't grab at them. Even though this car had a full safety inspection a couple months ago.
I thought maybe they wanted me to spend more money, but I'm seeing what they mean. My rear brakes do make a scuffing noise when I turned the rear wheels.

Some fellow I talked to had a look at my car, and said, whatever is wrong with that beast, anything is possible. He made an old worn out crack about FORD meaning Found On Road Dead, gee, as though I'd never heard that before. Well, so what, that can happen to any car. I've seen Ferraris and Rolls Royces broken down on the side of the road, too.

[mrltd]

New C clip? Interesting.

If the shoes weren't grabbing...you would notice. The pedal would go to the floor, and you'd have a bit of trouble stopping.

However, drums are fairly inexpensive and rear brakes are pretty easy to do. The seals aren't too difficult...but I'll bet the right axle is worn a bit and new bearings would be a good idea prolly...

[Big Rectangular Car]

THat's what I thought, with the brakes, too. I had ascended and descended some mountain passes, and the brakes worked all right, though on occasion, it would vibrate somewhat. I figured maybe it was the rear brakes. Front brakes are almost new. But since I took my time and coasted down the hills to save gas, I didn't need to brake much on the turns. Obviously as long as I know the brakes are there for when I really need them, that is.
So, the listing to the right might have to do with a wearing out axle bearing? Since I want to use the car for more road trips, I'd like to try to find the trouble stuff before it fails on some lonely stretch of road where there's no cell phone coverage.

[mrltd]

The listing to one side is prolly just old springs...For the curent noise, remove the hubcaps and take it for a drive. See if that fixes the noise, if not, see if the shocks are loose, the upper mounts can get stripped.

[Big Rectangular Car]

Took off the hubcaps, they need a good cleaning anyway, and it's easier to do than stooping down to do so. More thorough, job, as well.
Turns out, it's the HUBCAPS!
Without them on, the adapters, which were not very well set back in when the lug nuts were reinstalled, were jingling merrily away... sounded like a bleedin' tambourine cruising down the street. Sheeesh...
I"m getting silly over this car. I keep worritin' that its something terrible going wrong, and it turns out to be hardly anything. Really, nothing.
I'm not used to that!

[gadget73]

When I had the locking wire hubcaps they made that noise too. The clips for the center caps were messed up and the cap would shift around. Getting rid of those things was the best thing I ever did.

[85crownHPP]

time for some turbines!!!!!!!!

[Big Rectangular Car]

I'm entertaining the idea of selling them or using them as wall art or something, and leaving the plain black wheels as is.

[85crownHPP]

oooh... see if you have the nubs. You could put dishes on them!

[Big Rectangular Car]

time for some turbines!!!!!!!!

Turbine hubcaps, yeah!

[Big Rectangular Car]

oooh... see if you have the nubs. You could put dishes on them!

You've lost me. Nubs? Dishes?

Nubs are part of the... wheel, and the dish must be... some kind of hub... cap...
?

[boXman]

Dog dish hubcaps, yes.

[91 LTD]

Dog dish hubcaps, yes.

Aka cop car hub caps.

[mercenvy]

I"m getting silly over this car. I keep worritin' that its something terrible going wrong, and it turns out to be hardly anything. Really, nothing.
I'm not used to that!

Let's not forget that your diff is leaking. Also curious as to how someone would know you need a c-clip from changing a tire?

[mrltd]

the diff leak is minor, something to keep an eye on. They could think the c lip is bad because of axle play...