The motor over revved and then I felt a BIG bump before I heard the screeching of....

[RykoPro]

The tire passed me by and proceeded acoss 4 lanes of traffic before stopping on the opposite side of the road almost 1/2 mile away. The rim had the drum and the rest of the axles still attached. Not a scatch on the rim! The tow truck driver had it back in the pole barn in less than an hour!

 

[MEP001]

Is that grease or rust on the end of the broken axle? Looks like it's been breaking slowly for a while.

 

[RykoPro]

Is that grease or rust on the end of the broken axle? Looks like it's been breaking slowly for a while.

It is either rust or grease. I think it was cracked for a while too. It is the rear end out of my first 69 that I had to have welded (surface built up)so the bearing fit tight. The bearing went out (around 20 years ago) and the axle spun in the race (just like a brush shaft). Oldmobile retained the axle with the bearing like ford does. Chevy used C-clips in the center section, thus the "C- clip eliminator kits". I was lucky nobody got hurt and the car had minimum damage. I will order a Ford 9' bolt in from Moser next week. I already have a third member with 3.73 gears that will really wake this car up!

 

[Kenneth]

I have done that once in an Elcamino. Looks like you got it a little worse then I did.

 

[Waxman]

Had a rear wheel fall off my 64 Ford Galaxie once. Pretty scary!

I had used a metric 4-way lug wrench, I think, and though I thought the nuts were plenty tight, really the wrench was slipping and they were still loose enough to cause the whole wheel to wobble severely. I slowed down and pulled over as the rim and tire came right off and the rear of the car skidded down the shoulder. Only damage was a slight bend in the lower section of the rear quarter panel when the tire came off and got wedged between the wheel housing and body. LUCKY!

 

[RykoPro]

Put a Ford 9" under the convertible this spring and it works great! The only extra third member I had has 3.73 gears. The motor likes reving higher but the olds rocket 350 w/holly 4 barrel sucks the gas!
I did not insure the 69' yet since gas for it is well over 5.00 a gallon. Racing fuel is so expensive they price it by the half gallon. One place I go to uses the kerosene tank for racing fuel in the summer, it is an OLD dispenser (not digital) and the numbers spin so fast it looks like it is about to come apart!