thenewman

1986 4runner. Axle broke 3 weeks ago and had a shop put a new axle and bearings on. Been driving it for about a week. This morning took a drive to drop my daughter off at school. Turn to get on the interstate and this happened. Any ideas from the pics as to what exactly broke or came loose? It is at the shop now that repaired it the first time. Want to know if you think its something they did wrong or didn't do that they were supposed to do. Thanks

BigBluePile

iTrader: (3)

Looks like the bearing failed to stay on the axle. I only use OEM bearings, retainers and c-clips. Never had one fail like that. So, either they forgot the retainer and ring or the actual axle shaft is bad, meaning the bearing mating surface is out of tolerance. These bearings are pressed on and off.

thenewman

That's was exactly what I was thinking. Just wanted to get another person's input before I acussed this guy of doing a bad job. Thanks

scope103

The c-clip is missing (pic 3 and 6), but it is probably still inside the axle housing. Seems unlikely you could drive it even for one week without a c-clip at all. You might ask if the bearing retainer was replaced. That's the part the c-clip rides on, and if it had been damaged when you broke the axle the damaged part might have pushed off the c-clip.

No matter what, the shop should provide some explanation for what (they think) happened. I would expect your warranty would be a little longer than one week.

By the way, how did you break the axle originally? (And I assume it was the axle on the same side.)

HighLux

That is 100% on the shop. If they worked on it, it is thier responsibility to check everything before reassembly.

You are very lucky that didnt happen at highway speed. With the Daughter in car? I'd be hot. I'd be real pissed.

That could have killed you.

They had better fix it and not ask for a nickel.

Did it tear up anything on the body?

thenewman

Thanks scope. That's very helpful info and I will be sure to ask what exactly was replaced last time.

My previous axle broke in half going about 70 down the interstate. Thankfully it stayed attached to the truck by the backing plate bolts. Unfortunately it didn't happen while I was wheeling or climbing the face of a mountain. That would have been more interesting.

thenewman

I'm pretty ticked Highlux but lucky for that guy I have a cool head for now. U are right it could have been a lot worse. Lords protection for sure. But the tone of the conversation may be different if he doesnt admit it was faulty work. I told him not to repair or replace anything until he can tell me what happened and why.

I will keep u updated.

HighLux

Thank goodness for sure. I would imagine they will take care of you....thats a huge laibility for them to have out there. Hopefully they realize as well they dodged a huge bullet.

theerroneouspenguin

What state was the work done in? Would like to ester clear of this happening.

osv

typically they'll bend first, rather than break, but it's all par for the course for Toyota rear axle shafts.

glad to hear that no one was hurt.

the shop receipt should list all of the parts that were replaced, and what they cost... please let us know if they installed a brand new axle, and what it cost.

aftermarket axles are much stronger, somewhere around $250 each.

the dilemma here is whether or not the shop is competent enough to do the job right.

if it helps any, here is a pic of the area in question:

redbayredneck

I've never heard of Aftermarket axles being much stronger than OEM unless you're talking chromoly (sp?). I definitely think this is on the shop, they should repair without any further cost to the OP.

osv

I agree that the shop screwed it up... can they be trusted to fix it the right way?

chromoly is what i'm referring to, it was a broken axle that started these issues.

looks like the price is $289 for a pair of 'em, pretty cheap insurance imho:

http://www.lowrangeoffroad.com/index...ner/axles.html

dsal_86Yota

that is 100% the shot and 100% idiot tech. Its guys like that , who make people think techs/mechanics try to screw people. Glad you and your daughter are ok.

thenewman

hey guys thanks for the info and replies!

I spoke with the shop owner today, lets call him John, (names have been changed to protect the innocent until proven guilty).

John said that he "thinks" it could have been that the spider gears went out (not sure what that means) and pushed the axle out.
I told him i didnt think thats what happened and explained that i thought it was a result of the axle being installed incorrectly.

John said that he has not had enough time to look at today (its only been there since this morning) and cant be positive what it is yet. but since he mentioned spider gears i can see that he will not be so willing to admit fault, at least until he has ruled out any other possibility, which is fine by me.

but instead of taking him at his word, i would like ya'lls imout. my question to all of you is, how do spider gears work with the axle? and more importantly can a spider gear failing cause THIS to happen?

thanks in advance!

scope103

It would surprise me. The axle is not mechanically retained in the spider; the spline just slides into the side gear. The retention of the axle is by the snap ring. A catastrophic failure of the spider http://personal.utulsa.edu/~nathan-b...35differen.pdf could push on the end of the axle so hard as to do all kinds of damage, so it's not too bad for an "off the top of my head" answer. But still not likely to be the actual cause.

That's the attitude you should have. Read the manual, collect what information you can. Give him a chance to figure out what he thinks happened. Listen to him.

But rely on a bunch of anonymous dudes (and gals) on the internet?

thenewman

Great diagram u provided scope. And also good info on the spidey gears. I agree catastrophic malfunction for it to force the axle out. Buy IF that happened would I have heard some grinding, intense vibration and other issues?

About relying on random dudes and gals info off the internet.....won't be the last time.

Hey if it's on the internet it has to be true right? Aren't there govt regulations about posting wrong info online?

Sturmcrow

There certainly are.

redbayredneck

I have broken a couple sets of spider gears (never in a Toyota, just a Ford and a Heep) and I've never had that happen.

thenewman

Redbayredneck what did it sound and feel like when broke the spider gears? And what did ur truck do after it happened?

redbayredneck

In the heep, it was a loud pop/bang and my rear axle wouldn't power the truck anywhere. It would just make a grinding noise, I had to lock it in to move.

The ford just made a god-awful racket every time I tried to move in 2 wheel drive, but it would still move for a while. When it failed completely it locked up and wouldn't move at all.