1987 Custom Cruiser, stock everything (307 etc). We have known that the differential was on its way out for a while now because it makes all kinds of nasty noises, also when the car is on jackstands turning one wheel does not rotate the other at all. Today, come home, go to back into a spot and the car stalls out as soon as its put in reverse. Turn the car back on, rev it up, try it again. Same thing. Three more attempts no go, so find a spot to park by pulling in instead of using reverse. Car was fine all day. No hard shifts, no trans slipping, no stalling when coming to a stop or idling. Everything was perfect until coming home (roughly 30 mi later). Any ideas? Lockup issue? Diff? Something else?
Boy that's strange. Essentially first and reverse are the same. Just different directions. Could the linkage be contacting something electrical in reverse thus stalling the car? Even if the diff was totally trashed, jammed and won't rotate it should not cause stalling.
Unless you have a limited slip differential the diff. operation you describe is normal(in neutral). Your stalling could be a million things, all totally unrelated to the rear-end.
To determine a stalled lockup in reverse,, get car to stall again, raise back axle on jackstands,, leave in R, pipe wrench on driveshaft to turn,, if locked ,, remove driveshaft AT rear end. then another test. Or raise axle/ back wheels off ground,,, get to stall in reverse, then test, any movement in raising might unlock, before test can be done. Then if locked with DS disconnected the tranny is going south via of Reverse gear. When DS is remove at axle assy you can turn the yoke to see if the ring/pinion are seized in reverse!
