jtm994

on my rear right tire there is oil all over the inside of the tire. i was told it was a axel seal. could someone tell me what they think it is and if it is serious

gwhayduke

Yep. It's the axle seal.
Yep. It's serious. Your brakes will brake unevenly (unless you have ABS), smoke and your rear end will run low on gear lube.
Get it fixed or fix it yourself. The seals aren't that hard to do if you've done brakes before. The hardest part is getting the seal installed without bending it.
Sometimes the seal leaks because the diff breather is plugged. You might check it out first.

jtm994

how much would it run me to get it fix?

jtm994

its been like this for a while. if i run out of gear lube will it screw up my real end? is there any way i can check it and see where it is at

gwhayduke

About $225 I think. The brakes have to be replaced also, which means they have to do both sides. I've sprayed my shoes down with brake cleaner and have run them without any problems, although it's not a good idea.

gwhayduke

Remove the plug in the rear diff and stick your pinky finger in the hole and pull it out. If the tip of your finger comes out with oil on it, you still have sufficient gear lube. You can always take it to a Jiffy Lube type oil change business and they can check it and add it for you.

jtm994

if i run out of lube can it mess up my whole rear end?

firemedic

Yes.

jtm994

great looks like something else i need to get fixed on my runner...every time i turn around something is goin wrong with it

gwhayduke

I felt the same way after I got my '95. One thing after another. But I love that vehicle...finally I got everything fixed. It's been trouble free for a couple years. The first thing you need is a service manual.

Go to my site and download the service manual.

Next thing, read up, buy a few tools, learn to repair these things yourself. Everybody here has been where you were at. I learned all my mechanicin' on antique cars, easy to work on. I had to learn the zen of working on a japanese vehicle (crowded island, crowded engine bay). You can too.

Chances are pretty good that your rear diff is not toast. If it was you would have started off this post with "What's that howling noise in my rear end?"

Just read up on replacing the rear seal. If you don't want to do it, find a trustworthy mechanic. Replacing the seal is the same on most vehicles.

But clean your diff breather tube first! It's located on the top of your differential. If it's clogged, it will cause oil to leak out your seal as the rear-end heats up.

jtm994

alright im gonna try and it it myself im pretty sure ill be able to get it done thanks for the help

RockComa

I've had axle seals go bad and not have to replace the brakes from it. Seal cost around 7 at the dealer and takes around 20 minutes to replace and that includes removing and replacing the axle shaft assembly. Check your housing though. Usually if a seal goes bad it;s either a plugged breather or a bad wheel bearing. Check the housing for gouging. I had this happen once from a bad wheel bearing. 1 seal made it 2 deals. The next one took 10 minutes witha dremel to smooth out the housing and then locktight to make it seal. I have since replaced that seal when I did bearings and seals a couple months ago after swapping to disk brakes and no issues yet

Ironmike4x4

I wouldnt recommend doing it yourself if you arent comfortable with mechanics. It got pretty hard for me and I work at a dealership. Also a press will be your best friend to get the outter seal off. Just remember to replace your brake shoes and it might would be a great idea doing the diff. breather mod.

jtm994

where is the diff breather tube at?

AW1090

Read and learn....I did my rear right about 2 months back. It was a pain b/c I'm not a big mechanic, but I loved doing it. I read a ton, learned as much as I could and had everything down by the time I got ready to do it. You know at the time I thought it was a pain, but now that I think about it....it wasn't bad at all. The job took me about 3 hrs to do.....I just cleaned the brakes and drum real well, then replaced both seals and the bearings. You can do it just think and don't get frustrated while you're working. Here are the articles I used. http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/mainte...wheel_bearing/
https://www.yotatech.com/~corey/tech...m1_oilseal.htm
If you have any questions just ask...

RockComa

If you are going to decide to replace your brakes do one side at a time so that way you have something to look at if your forget where something goes

keisur

You guys are only talking about the inner, which is easy to replace. if the oil is in the drum then it's leaking past the outer also. if you have to replace the outer, that's a hard job which requires cutting retainers off and press work. You may get by with just replacing the inner but make sure you clean the brake hardware really well and replace the pads if they are saturated. I've done both sides a few times each since the 3rd gens have a chronic problem with them (although Toyota won't admit it). If you get to the point that you are going to do the outers also let me know and I'll send some pics of my method. I've got it down to an art now.

keisur

On top of the housing to the on one side of the hump in the middle or the other.

keisur

you didn't tell me that you sack! Now I know who's gonna get me parts from now on since you're local, hehe.

AW1090

nope, I'm talking both inner and outer.....I did the inner, outer, and the bearings.....used the harbor freight press that I think you mentioned keisur. The inner was a little tricky for me because it kept wanting to bend