Hi guys and girls!
I know this is not a new topic, but I am a few days from undertaking my first major drive train project and I would love to have the experts look over my plan before I get to it. Please help me figure out what I'm missing!

1986 4runner DLX 22re IFS
Overall goal: To swap in new (to me) front and rear differentials, and change my CV axles

Details: I bought this truck a few months back with the intention of leaving the drivetrain as-is until weather improved, however my CV axles have torn boots and are starting to click a lot, plus I am very tired of dragging ass up any hill (bigger tires). So I decided to do the job now, everything all at once.

Front diff: I bought a front axle assembly out of a 94 4runner, geared to 4.88. I was informed that it was from a 4runner without ADD so it should be a direct swap.

CV Axles: I bought some re-manufactured CVs from a place in Denver, CVJ axles. Compared to the aftermarket garbage I've seen, I figured this was as close to OEM as possible (actually, getting them from the dealer is as close as possible...anyone wanna lend me a grand?)

Rear diff: This was the big ticket item, I bought a fully assembled rear third with an ARB and 4.88 gears (HELL YA)

I tried to keep everything as simple as possible, all the gears are already shimmed so no R&P set-up for me.

The Plan So this weekend I am going to try the swap and I want to know if yall think im missing anything...
Im going to start with the rear.

• Jack from the pumpkin, jack stands under the axle, front chocked, and pull the rear wheels off and drums off.
• Drain diff
• disconnect brake tube and parking brake
• Unbolt 4 mounting plate bolts from backing plate
• Pull axleshaft/brake assembly out and away from axle housing being careful not to damage oil seal. Set axle/brake aside as one piece
• Disconnect driveshaft from diff.
• Loosen diff carrier mounting bolts in steps, in a criss cross pattern
• Scrape gasket material off of housing, put new gasket on housing
• slide new third member into axle housing and bolt it in, torque to spec
• slide axle/brake plate back into housing and bolt in
• Fill diff with oil
• Reinstall brake lines, drums and wheels

Questions:

• Are the rear axle shafts going to be hard to remove? I plan on buying a slide hammer, do I need a special adapter or do they sell universal ones that work?
• Should I automatically be replacing oil seals? I have mostly adopted a "if it aint broke" outlook because aftermarket stuff is mostly garbage and OEM stuff is 10x too expensive
• Should I be able to remove/install with a girl to help? I figure I can do the heavy lifting while she installs/removes the first/last bolts
• What hiccups and common problems am I overlooking?

Front:

I figure it should be easier to remove the cv axles if the diff assembly is already removed, right? So unless Im wrong, my plan is to remove the front diff assembly first, then swap the cvs, then reinstall the diff. Oh, and I know I keep saying front diff, but I actually bought the entire front axle assembly as a unit (diff, carrier, axle tube, side gear shafts...basically everything b/w the CV axles), but it is easier to say diff than front axle assembly

• Loosen any bolts I can get to before jacking the front and removing the wheel. I figure I can do the diff to frame mounting bolts, the diff to cv bolts... any others before its on jack stands?
• Drain diff
• Jack front, support on jack stands
• Disconnect front drive shaft
• Disconnect cvs from diff
• Remove diff front mounting bolt
• Remove diff rear mounting bolts and set diff aside
• Remove free wheeling hub
• Remove snap ring and washer from end of axle (is this where i run into the 54mm axle nut?)
• Slide axle out of knuckle and remove entirely
• Grease CV outboard shaft and slide back into steering knuckle
• Support inboard side of CV until diff is back in, install spacer and snap ring onto end of axle shaft
• Move new diff under frame and install all mounting bolts
• Connect CVs to diff side gear shafts
• Connect front drive shaft
• Reinstall hubs and wheels
• Fill diff

Questions:

• I dont have to remove the axle hub do I? Can I leave the calipers/discs/knuckles where they are? If so, do I not have to remove the giant 54mm axle nut?
• Where the heck is the spindle bushing? Is it part of the knuckle that the CV shaft slides through? I want to make sure I grease the hell out of it
• Are there any common problems/seized bolts that I am overlooking (see:leaf spring eye bolt...)

Again, I know this is a common procedure, and is no sweat for experienced wrenchers, but I am brand new to this with very limited knowledge, experience and tools. I am going to get snap ring pliers, a slide hammer, some moly grease, and a 54mm socket. Is there any other unusual tools(relative term) I might need that I dont have? I got a gasket for the rear third, I dont think I need any more. Should I have oil seals on hand??? Sorry for rambling but I want to try and think of everything before I get started.

Thanks in advance!! I troll these forums every day and have learned so much from you all!

Ben

 

Sounds like a solid plan. I'd look at sourcing some grade 10 bolts to replace studs that connect dif to CV axles, will make future swaps a breeze. Check the rear axle shaft bearings while you have it out. They are press fit but so may need to plan around that. These are semi-floater rears so if bearing fails it is catastrophic.

Replacing seals is cheap insurance to me.

Check the new front dif assembly on the long side. compare to ADD and your non-ADD. If the ADD is just disabled then it is ease to swap your 86 stuff over to eliminate it and have a stronger set up.

The hub bushing is inside the hub. If you search there is a cool little lube tool you can make to re-lube it with ease.

Have fun.

 

sounds like you've done your homework and have a plan. i've done all this stuff solo, so you should have no issues with help from the girl if you need it - likely for lowering/raising the front diff, but it can be done by yourself which is always fun

like said, new seals is good insurance especially if taking everything apart already.
rear diff use Toyota FIPG or RTV instead of paper gasket if that's what you were referencing.
i don't see the need for slide hammer, but a 54mm socket is needed if you own toyotas and plan to work on front hubs.
for the CV studs, an alternative to finding metric sized grade 10 bolts is to simply grind down the splines - took me less than 20sec each on bench grinder.
if planning to swap tubes on the front diff, IIRC you need star/torx sockets to remove those bolts.


i think there are even youtube videos showing all of these repairs.
good luck.

 

Im certainly going to check the bearings while the shafts are out. If they need replacing I will deal with it. There is a press in the shop Im going to work in, but I'm not going to order them now...That locker broke my bank!!! As far as the studs go, I dont think Ill have time to order those for this weekend, but Ill make sure to have them next time I dig into the diff (front locker????)

Sounds good, I would just be doing the ones on the axle housing tubes right? The other ones (axle shaft) require the bearing to be removed correct?

Will do, probably should have already done that simple check. Yota Jim told me it was from a non ADD truck, but if it wasn't, I just swap the side gear shafts and tube right?

Haha, I actually just built one this week. Thats how I found out about the 54mm nut...which I dont have to remove for this operation right?

Sorry for so many question!!! Just trying to minimize the surprises for something I haven't done before. Ill have my computer, Haynes manual, and brand new (to me) FSM standing by. I also am going to try to do a detailed write up with pictures for all the dumbasses like me who haven't done this before.

 

I don't remember if 54mm is removed. I don't think so but can swear to it at moment.

 

Well, either way... New toys

 

Sweet!!!

 

I've been soaking the bolts in PB but they are caked with grime and corrosion. I'm going to pick up a couple wire brushes and really give them a scrub tomorrow, after all this damn snow melts. I figure that will give much better penetration.
Also just got word that the rear third will be here tomorrow!

 

Christmas came early. Or late. Whatever, got this text while at work...

 

Then came home and found this... I'm the happiest asshole this side of the some big river

 

That looks sexy!!!

 

Very nice.

 

Well, I learned one thing last weekend... It is a PITA to take pictures while you're wrestling with an axle under a car. I didn't have a chance to properly document what I did, but it turned out to be so straight forward that it wasn't necessary. The only thing I can suggest to noobs like myself trying this procedure (or anything for that matter) is research, research, research! After doing several other medium sized jobs on this truck, I learned that the Haynes manual doesn't tell you everything, and even my shiny new FSM leaves a lot of important stuff out. There are so many brilliant mechanical people on this site who have given tons of information that helped me more than either of the manuals I own. For instance, both books just say "remove CV half shaft assembly"... Well an idiot like me would have taken a long, long time to figure out a safe and effective way to do that. Fortunately some Yotatech write-ups mentioned that if you raise the control arms/hub, it will easily slide out. I'm sure that is obvious to 99% of the people here, but not me. Six months ago when I bought this truck I couldn't even drive stick or change my oil, I grew up around cars that need a password and retinal scan to roll the window down.
I'm rambling, the install went off without a hitch, or at least as easily as could be expected working with a bunch of 30yr old rusty bolts. The rear third came out and went in extremely easily, axle shafts came out no problem. I have no idea why anyone would ever only pull the shaft/hub out halfway and let it rest on the oil seal. It takes absolutely no additional time to pull it the whole way, since as far as I could tell you have to disconnect the brakes either way (not enough slack in the hard line to pull it out 2" much less the 6" or so required to let the splines clear the 3rd). The front was obviously more difficult, but it was much much easier to pull the cvs with the front axle assembly removed (not necessary unless replacing the CVs). Also, as many have said, get rid of the spline bolts on the diff/axle>CV. What a monster pain. I really don't have anything useful to add beyond what is already available all over this site.
Anyway, just wanted to say thanks to everyone who responded, and all the people on the site in general who have taken the time to put so much useful information on here. It's easy to forget, people making write ups don't do it for themselves most of the time, they already know how to do the work!
My question now is... Can I request that a thread I started be deleted? For instance, this thread is likely not going to help anyone in the future, and frankly just muddies the waters for someone in the future searching for a good write up. There are tons of great write ups, which I read before I posted this, and just wanted to go over my plan with the experts to see if anything was obviously amiss. I really liked having the peace of mind to have you all look over my plan but I think this thread is no longer useful. And frankly the more I continue to use this site, I realize that probably applies to most of the threads I have started. I know it is extra work for the mods, but I think it could help make searches more effective in the future.
IM DONE TALKING NOW

 

Awesome!!!

X2 on the research, research, research.... Prolly the best tool in the toolbox is your computer and internet.