There's a drain plug in the bottom, a fill plug in the top, and a writeup in the tech section for a 3rd gen that I'd bet will be similar to what you'll find on your rig.

http://www.4runners.org/articles/difftsf/

 

be sure that you can get the fill plug off before you drain it. f you drain it then can't get the fill plug outyou are screwed

 

I meant on the 2nd gen...sorry for the confusion. I believe on the 2nd gen that you have to also extend the front breather too, right?

 

What we would do on our trucks that went water hopping would literally tear it down, steam the entire axle housing and then spray it out with carb cleaner.

It had to do with us lunching bearing and wanting to get rid of the particles in the housing as anything.

After all was said and done, in 1997 we spent close to $1 million getting all the axles / hubs either fixed / replaced.

 

i know on the 3rd gen manual tranny, there are 2 breathers under the boots for the shift levers. if you have ever had to replace your shifter seat, you would see them. right there, plain as day, two breathers.

i am not sure where one would run those though. alright pretty high up considerring, and there would be a dip in the hose if you were to run them anywhere but where they are now.

 

what is the thread on the breathers. does anyone know?

im thinking 1/8npt by looking, but not sure.


edit:
i just went out and took out the rear breather and compared the threads to a 1/8npt nipple i have. the threads are very close, but the breather threads are rounded, which is characteristic of BSPT threads.
also when put together to see if they are the same thread, it seems they are the slightest bit different.
npt and bspt threads differ by 1 thread NPT being 27, and BSPT being 28. TPI.

anyone confirm this?

 

See:
http://www.4x4wire.com/forums/showfl...ev=#Post830485

I use 1/8" NPT on mine:
http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/CheapTri...html#Breathers

 

right i saw what you used, but i was wondering if since then you figured out they were something different...

 

Never bothered to figure out what the threads were, I made 1/8" NPT fit. In all but one of my axles the 1/8" NPT fitting just screwed right in, in one other one I had to run a 1/8" NPT tap in a few turns. I selected 1/8" NPT because my hardware store's selection of BSP or M10x1.0 was a bit light that day (in fact I have never seen either off-the-shelf).

You can always order the Nissan or Toyota EFI hose barb fittings if you want the "correct" threads.

 

I have a 1st gen 4runner do i need to extend my front diff breather? or any thing else besides the rear diff?

 

You would want to extend any breathers that you want to keep above the water level. Rear axle has one, front axle/diff has one, etc.

 

on a 3rd gen the onlt thing that needs to be extended is the rear breather right? didnt think there was a front one. Thanks

 

The 3rd (and 4th) gens have the front breather, but it is already extended from the factory. 1st and 2nd gens have the breather, but it is right atop the differential housing, just like the rear axle.

 

it is extended but not high enough. i just looked at my 96 tacoma, and it only comes up past the frame rail. easy fix though, no fittings involved, just more hose...

roger although it works, you did mess up the thread and they have the possibility of getting really messed up on you one day. it probably wont happen, but if in fact they are BSPT like i think, then you did mess them up. also they couldnt be 10mm threads because those are straight threads, and these are tapered.

british and npt threads are NOT interchangeable to everyone else, and i would suggest that someone figure out exactly what it is, or get that toyota part to get it exactly right.

 

damn, gonna have some work to do this weekend, have had the breather extenders sitting around for a while now, I stilllllllll havent put in my TRAC kill switch yet either.

 

Like I said, 3 of the 4 axle housings I tred, 1/8NPT screwed right in. Either someone who owned them before I fif changed them or they came that way. I also use brass pipe thread fittings so if anything gets messed up it is the fitting and not the steel housing. But yes, if you must have the "proper" size fitting, get the Nissan or Toyota EFI manifold fittings and be done with it. I just can see paying $5 for a fitting that I can get for 79 cents in a slightly different size. Mine have held up perfectly fine for nearly 9 years now. No leaks in or out.

 

VERY noob question, but here goes:

How does one check if the diff fluid looks "milkshaky"? Can you see through the open fill plug? Stick your finger in? Park on a hill?

I REALLY need to check mine...

 

Yep, all the above will work. General idea is to park on the level, remove plug, insert finger and feel for the proper level (just below plug level). Then check the fluid, might be able to see inside with a light or pull out some in a clear tube or syringe or whatever and look at it.