so if i look at the uni it will be loose?? i got my mate to look under yesterday and i put it in reverse and let the clutch out till it bit then put it in first till it bit.. and he said there was a fair bit of "play" in the tailshaft-diff movement..

Jack the car up,PUT IT ON STANDS,out of gear,get under the thing and grab the diff pinion yoke(where the tailshaft bolts)with one hand and grab the tailshaft with your other hand twisting in opposite directions in a circular direction plus up and down.If there is any more than about 1mm of movement(none is best)it's time for new ones.
Do the same thing at the front,but knock it into gear to stop the gearbox turning,90%of the time the front will be ok.
Enjoy

thanks bert.. ill give it ago this arve.. and i spose its pretty crucial to have it tight.. prolly only take 1 unlucky dump of the clutch and snap..

ok i had it up on the ramps yesterday and had a go at twisting the tailshaft the opposite way i was trying to turn the diff side of the uni.. couldnt move it the slightest.. ok i could but i could hardly see the movement..well less than a mm prolly a quarter.. it was just enough to feel..

my guess is that the shaft that runs throught the spider gears, into the diff centre is damaged, becomes elongated. feels like the diff has HUGE backlash? i had this prob with a mates Ke70 corolla... i just welded the elongated part up.

sorry i dont quite understand.. so your saying my diff internals might be damaged?? can you find a definate answer by checking something else.. so did you just weld something inside the diff to fix it?