96 chev s-10 rearend

Did you check to see if inside bearings where good and have you checked oil in rearend. Also could be punkin.

first , is the front prop shaft spinning, in 4wd
if yes, the front axle locks are bad.
if not , the transfer case , is not entering 4wd

hello, fluid leaking out of rear end is probably the pinion shaft seal, its were the drive shaft hooks to the rearend, you have to drop drive shaft, take yoke off rearend, or if it is,more further towards the back,were wheels are, then you need axle shaft seal, you have one on both sides on the rearend, behind the drums, where the back brakes are, also look and see if its coming from back of transmission, where drive shaft goes into the transmission, see if you can tell what color fluid is, if its red, its probably rear transmission seal, where drive shaft goes into the transmission.

is it the "red" brake warning light? if so, its possible the master cylinder may have an internal leak causing the pedal to be soft. if this is correct you'll need to replace the master cylinder.
If this is the "yellow" brake warning light it the ABS system (anti-lock brake system) you'll need to have a professional inspect this.

Are you sure it's the tire? It could be the brakes (not releasing) which could result in 'smoke'. The only way it could be the tire would be if it was rubbing on something, or you were spinning or locking up the tires. Feel the center of the wheel when you see the smoke, if it's very hot, it's probably the brakes not releasing.

Hello, If the tag is not present, you can get a rough estimate by putting a chalk line on the tire and on the drive shaft. With the vehicle jacked up spin the wheel and see how many times the drive shaft spins with a full tire rotation. If the shaft spins about 3 3/4 times you probably got the 3.73. If it spins a little over 4 times you probably got the 4.10. To get it exact you can remove the differential cover and count the teeth on the ring gear and pinion gear then divide the two to get the ratio. On the back of the rear differential there's a metal tag sticking out, with various numbers on it, like 8.8 for the 8.8" rear end, and probably a 3 73 or 4 10 for gear ratio. If there's a L between the numbers 3 L 73 then it is a limited slip. Also, the sticker in your door jamb will have info on it. One section will have the Axle code, 97 or R6 or something. The 8.8 should be plenty of enough axle for your motor but you can not go wrong with a ford 9 inch though becuase this will axle will handle any amount of horsepower you throw at it and the axles are easy to replace as well. I hope this fixes your problem.

shift into 4wd and move truck a couple of feet.
if light is still off, park truck block the wheels set the park brake jack right front wheel and try to hand spin the wheel if wheel doesn't turn 4x4 is functioning properly but there is a wiring problem use an ohmmeter to check the 4x4 switch wiring fuse and bulb
if wheel turns freely the front axle or transfer case is not engaged
attempt to hand spin the front driveshft if the driveshaft will spin the transfer case is not engaged check the transfer case shift linkage, problem is in linkage or transfer case internals
if the driveshaft will not spin the transfer case is engaged properly
with trnsmission in neutral or park start engine measure vacuum on the two vac lines at front axle shift motor . one line should have approx 20" vacuum. other line should have none
if no vacuum measured look for vac leak or bad vac switch
if both lines have vac look for a bad vac swithc or ruptured cad actuator diaphragm
if one line has 20" +- VAC
move transfer case lever to 2wd measure vac again lines should have swapped vac signals
if no vac switch bad or 4wd shift likage needs adjusting
if yes vac motor bad or stuck or shift fork stuck
remove vac shift motor from the axle attach vac lines to shift motor engage disengage 4wd
does shift motor plunger move at least 1/2 inch
no shift motor bad
yes check axle shift fork and vac motor for binging

Unless you have a Posi-Trac Rear end which you don't Only 1 Wheel turns. The Posi-Trac rear end is a Factory Option. You have got the Standard Option Rear end.

IF its whining noise then first check the transmission fluid in the rear axle if its 4X4 truck ,if its not 4X4 then check the brakes or the wheel is making contact to any metal part ....

Good luck....