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I took my '98 Tacoma TRD (w/ABS) in to have all four wheels balanced, and the tire shop told me that my rear axel seal was going bad, that there was the gear oil around the area. I pulled out my rear axel, and also found some play between the axel and the backing plate. (I'm not a pro gearhead by any means, so I'm really quite proud of myself for pulling the axel off!)
(Update) I cannot see any gear oil on the inside of my brake area, there's no gear oil coming out of the middle, none around the brake shoes, everything looks dry. I also can't see any gear oil coming behind the backing plate & between the flange. Its all dry around there. I can't see any gear oil on the outer edges of the brake drum. Oddly enough, there *does* appear to be some oily residue on the outside of the brake drum by the wheel studs. From that info, I'd guess that NEITHER seal is leaking!
I pulled the axel out, and it is sitting on the ground on all 6 wheel studs. At this point, the bearing plate is parallel to the ground. I can grab each end of the bearing plate and "wiggle" it a little bit. The center stays around the center, the bearing plate won't move up or down. but, when one edge goes down, the other comes up. Does that makes sense?
My question is: How much play is too much? Any play? Is some okay?
Should I just replace the inner seal and keep an eye on it? Is my bearing clearly shot? Did the shop just try to drum up some free business on an unsuspecting customer getting a free tire balance? (Les Schwab, Reno, NV).
Since replacing the bearing looks like it involves a press, a SST, and other shop tools, I'll have to take that down to my local shop.
Thoughts?
I found these two websites that help:
128.83.80.200/taco/rwb.html www.off-road.com/toyota/tech/rearaxleseal/
However, they all seem to magically know that their outer seal is bad or their bearings are bad.
(On a side note, how do you plug the brake line so that it stops dripping? q-tips don't work, and I can't find anything else to squish in there so it seals.)
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12-15-2004, 09:53 PM
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