diff swap
 

So i picked up a mid 90s front differential with 4.56 gears from 4runner to swap into my pickup rear differential since its a 2wd. how difficult is this? i have searched every toyota forum but haven't found anybody do a write up... as far as i've researched i can just swap it over but the external parts are different. what do i need to do to swap in the lower gears.
maybe ill just sell the diff since i did pick them up with a set of bucket seats in a package deal

I'm pretty sure you have the 7.5" diff in your truck, and unless that 4runner was 2wd too then you've got an 8" diff that won't fit. If you do have an 8" diff (What's the axle code inside your door?) to begin with then it'll drop right in without any need for changing the housing. The 8" R&P won't fit in the 7.5" housing btw and iirc the spline count is different too. Sell the diff and buy yourself a set of 7.5" gears or sell your rear axle and buy one that's come off either a manual 4spd 2wd or a 4x4, though if you get one off a 4x4 your rear will be 6-lug unless you get 5-lug axle shafts (or 6-lug front spindles, which I believe come off of 2wd T100s) and they have a different parking brake setup too.

sorry i didn't explain that i picked up the front differential which is the 7.5" the same as mine F302 is the axle code so i know that my rear is the 7.5

Disconnect drive shaft
Disconnect (& plug) brake lines
Disconnect parking brake cables
Undo the four bolts behind the drum on either side of the axle
Drain diff
Remove diff retaining nuts
Pull axles out a couple of inches, until you feel them go free of the diff.
The diff should come out freely.

If someone sees something I missed, fix it!

MC

I'd say (carefully) pull the axle shafts all the way out, you don't really want them resting on the seals.

Also, unscrew fill plug before drain plug.

okay so the install is fairly simple as far as i understand but the housings look different am i not understanding how it works. just pulling the one out and swapping the new one in or do i have to remove parts from both the differentials

you should be able to remove your current 3rd member and remove the ring and pinion and swap them with the 4.56 R&P.. but that means getting a new setup/ bearing kit and having the gears set by someone who knows what they are doing... so yes the gears will work but not its not a remove / reinstall process.

while you have it out to regear it, throw the Lockright for the 86-95 IFS front in the rear as well.. i locked the rear of my old 81 and it worked great!

Yeah, you should prolly have someone set up the gears for you. I'd suggest removing the current diff and take out the r&p from the IFS diff and bring them that stuff with a setup kit. Will be cheaper than paying them to remove it on top of setting up gears. You could always try doing it yourself but if you have to ask how to do the swap then you probably won't have the easiest time performing it. Check out Zuk's website: www.gearinstalls.com for some tips on how it's done.

I dunno about the locker though. I wouldn't put it in a 2wd unless you're a prerunner or wish you had 4wd...in that case I'd say sell and buy a 4wd. But then again...why are you going to 4.56 gearing? Upping your tire size?

I was planning on upgrading to a 30/9.5 once my current tires wear out and wanted the lower gearing to match. Maybe for now ill just have to wait to install them maybe i'll just sell the differential to pay for other upgrades or to help save up for the sas that is planned.
What would a good asking price be??? and is there anyone that would be interested.

Ouch. Thats a surefire way to kill the axle seals.
Pull the shafts out all the way. :roll:


:dj:

anybody interested in buying?

good luck with that....2wd

Indeed! I think (don't quote me) that he can pull the assembly out of the IFS front and have it installed in the rear although I'm unsure how to do so. By "assembly" I mean the ring and pinion (spider gears, housing, etc). This is going to entail resetting the gears, new crush sleeve, bearings, and probably some other stuff.

My recommendation is to sell that front 4.56 since lots of folks with the IFS already like to swap them in when they go with larger tires. Then take that money and buy a 7.5 gear set and have them installed.

Put it up in the classifieds section. I'm sure someone will want it.

What lead you to 4.56 instead of 4.10 for the regear for 30s? The automatic? My stock ratio is 3.071 compared to your 3.727. Personally I decided go to go with 4.10s to run 31s so I could keep 100km/h at 2.5k rpm in 4th after I swap in my 5spd trans to replace the 4spd it came with.

well i kindof picked it up from the guy that i got my bucket seats from mainly because he was just trying to get rid of it. i'm thinking im going to sell it and save the money for my future planned sas. what is a good asking price i can post pics if i need to i just have no idea what a good price is for these it is the complete differential and housing as far as i can tell