Transmission Problems?

[Xandarin]

Ok guys, this is going to take a while to explain but here goes...

Ok, I bought this 96 4Runner with 103k miles on it and I now have 105k. Its the 4x4 Limited edition.

Ever since I've owned it I have had a loud squealing sound coming from the rear of the car (sounds like differential), but only under some pretty stiff acceleration.

When I first got it I had a short on the passanger side of the car that started at the power seat and ran into a connector in the dash and appeared to stop there. It melted some wires and I had it fixed.

Ok now to the root of the post... About two weeks ago I was noticing that the car wasnt starting like I felt it should. It took too long and sometimes required two trys. So I replaced the plugs and wires that have never been replaced since new. That seemed to help, but it's still slow. (Pretty sure I need to change all the belts, including the timing belt for this fix).

So about four days ago I started noticing some really rough shifting. Now as of yesterday my transmission wont shift from 2nd to 3rd... I checked the fluids and stuff and its all ok. The only way I can get it to shift is to redline the truck... Which sucks... Although sometimes it will shift into the next gear randomly. The whole time the car is buming all around and moaning and groaning.

Tonight I jacked the car up and put it on jackstands so all four wheels came off the ground. Then I started the car and put it in 2wd drive. The wheels engaged, yet only the passanger side spun. Now Initially I passed it off as having no posi trac or something, but then I engaged 4wd. Both of the front 2 tires began to spin. Now every wheel was spinning but the rear drivers side. I tired to turn it but it only turned slightly with great effort. I also felt a lot of, sort of, grinding or rubbing of some sort., and there was also an audible noise from the rear axle, I guess.

So what do you think, bent axle causing the differential gears to squeak, which over time caused a lot of strain on the tranny which killed it? Think the rear brake is stopping the tire from rotating? Think i'm totally F'ed? Lemmie know!

 

[GSGALLANT]

Start off by pulling that wheel off and removing your brake drum. If the drum won't come off fairly easily, there is a rubber grommet that you can remove from the back and access the brake adjuster so you can loosen the shoes (do a search for "rear brake adjust" for more info).

If the drum is really hard to remove and you have to adjust the brakes to get it off, that might be your only problem (well...other than the hard starting and rough shifting, I guess...) Re-adjust the brakes and try to spin the wheel. If that wasn't the case, then keep digging. Once you have the rear drum off, inspect the brake components to make sure they move freely. Make sure the area is not full of brake fluid or diff oil from a leak that would be causing the drum to stick to the shoes thus preventing the wheel from turning. Check to make sure your parking brake bellcrank moves freely and is adjusted properly.