LUVTruck.com

Yeah, truck has been pretty good up to now. It's a 1981 4x4 4-speed manual trans gas-engined Luv. Suddenly the driver's side front wheel will barely turn. My wife watched as I tried to drive it, and said it would turn a bit and then stp, but I cannot confirm that as I was steering.

What's happening, anyone know? I don't know a great deal about how 4x4's work, so any help is greatly appreciated!!!

Your wheel bearing mightive seized? if the wheel engaged to the axle, and your other hub is unlocked then it shouldn't lock up, may be just the bearings

_________________
-Old ride-82 Luv diesel 5spd with some upgrades
-Past rides-82 Sierra, 78 Coupe De'Ville, 91 2dr Blazer, 86 RX7, 86 Porsche 944T (rear-ended and totaled)
-Curr. rides- 1970 Ford LTD 4dr, 390 4Bbl, 2nd owner! With a few Extras 00' Civic beater...

I would put the front end on jack stands and manually turn the wheel.
Take off the wheel and check the brake pads / rotor to see if its rubbing, then check to see if there is any slop.
Could be the wheel bearings, but I would bet on the the brakes. Maybe something got in there like sand or dirt...or your just noticing warped rotors or something along those lines....

In any case, putting the front end on jack stands and inspecting the brakes and that area in general sounds manditory.

_________________

Hey thats funny, My 81 4x4 just did the same thing to a lesser degree.

It was my caliper. It sounds like yours may be a bit more serious.

I would recomend that you tear down the front hubs and put new parts in. I did that for my truck about 2 years ago. The chassie had more than 400k on it so it was more than about time. Oh and post some pics. We 81s need to represent!.

Gareth

_________________
81 LUV 4x4 Red Was a heavy hauler now is back to mostly stock config.

http://www.Rigeltech.com

if your rotors worn too much and the brake pads are worn too, the piston in the brake caliper can be forced out a little too far and end up cocked sideways and seized, leaving the brakes applied. also if you havent replaced your brake fluid for a long time you can get water building up in the system. this can cause rust in the lines and in the body of the caliper. if the rust builds up enough it can cause your caliper to get seized out also.

hope this helps...
Matty

Sounds like you may have a frozen caliper. Could possibly have a bad brake hose??

_________________
Life is a DRAG RACE!!!
I like my Luv WILD!!!

Sometimes too much to drink isn't enough!!
Kinky is using a feather. Perverted is using the whole chicken.
http://www.wildluvracing.com