I recently bought a 64 Impala and it has a problem I have not been able to figure out. Something in the rear end is slightly bound up in forward and reverse when the car is sitting on the ground. When I put a jack under the diff (in the middle or either side) the wheels spin freely. As soon as I set it back down it is bound up again. It will drive but with some effort. You can push it and the wheels turn but again with effort. It has new brake shoes and I've verified they are the right size, correctly installed and adjusted loose. I replaced the outer axle bearings and there is no change. The oil in the diff is fine and the diff turns freely when the car is jacked up. The emergency brake is not causing the issue. I do not hear any noise while driving and there are no clunks when starting, stopping or changing directions.
It feels like a brake issue but there are no drag marks on the new shoes.
My next step will be to take the shoes out to verify they are not involved.
I'm just about out of troubleshooting ideas and would appreciate any ideas.

 

Welcome from Florida. There is a possibility that you have a problem with the rear wheel bearings.

 

Thanks OldChevy. I suspected the wheel/Axle bearings might be a problem and installed new ones yesterday. No change in the problem.
Thanks
Jim

 

You may need to open up the differential to confirm this.
The differential is designed to allow different rotation of the axles when turning corners. It sounds like something in there is either broken or binding up.

 

Thanks Hanky. Opening the diff and inspecting is on the list, but it's farther down the list until I check everything else. The wheels spin correctly for an open diff and I don't hear any sounds that lead me to tear into it yet. It is possible that it is binding somehow for sure.
Thanks
Jim