rounded out axle shaft splines - anything else?
 

Took my 96 4runner 4x4 ltd out for a bit of 4wheelin. Going up a steep hill and got to rockin - when my rt rear tire came down there was a loud CRACK! Removed the driveshaft and got to the road in fwd, then had AAA tow me home.

Pulled the rt rear axle and here's pics of what I found. The pics are of the inside of the axle, where it goes into the pumpkin. The rest of the axle looks ok.

Is it likely i've also done some damage to the rear end gears, or can I just replace this axle (is it called a stub axle?) and go from there?

Thanks!

Obviously, the only way to tell is to pull the rear third out. There isn't any way for us to tell you any more information than you already know without seeing the diff.

Is it normal for only the last 1/4 inch or so to be stripped? Is this all that is engaged to the splines in the pumkin (is the pumpkin the "third member"?). It seems the axle shaft might be to short - is this possible?

I'm new to working on gears. If I pull the dozen or so bolts from around the front section of the pumpkin, then what? Will the gears all come out together, or will they fall apart (meaning I'll have to figure out how to re assemble them). Will I need to remove the big nut on the end of the pumpkin, the one that is covered when the driveshaft/ujoints are in place.

I've tried to find how to dissemble the axle, but all my searches turn up are how to replace the axle seals.

I might have a line on a rear axle housing with both shafts (missing the third member) locally off a 2002 v6 4x4 tacoma - should this fit?

Thanks.

btw - Deathcougar - I sent a parts/price request to your company - i'm the guy in Sac. Thx.

Tacomas are leaf sprung, your 4Runner is coil sprung. They will not work together. The bare axle shafts are the same, but you will have to have the bearings replaced which means press work. However, that would still be cheaper than getting one from anywhere else.

I doubt the axle suddenly became too short, you likely have a problem with the diff if anything. There is no reason to replace the housing.

you need to pop the third to inspect the carrier. weird how it is like the axle wandered out and spun on itself. i think you are gonna find the diff splines look fubared too...

oh and thumbnails blow...consider uploading your pictures to a free service like photobucket.com. copy and paste the [img] code by your picture and paste that in your post...allows for a bigger picture and therefore more detail...

I found some pics on how to remove the third member so will try to do that tomorrow. In the meantime, found this site (http://www.ttora.com/wiki/index.php/Gear_Codes) listing diff codes - my door jam has a bunch of numbers, but i found the following that seems to match: A 03 A, which, according to this ttora link, is 7.5" ring gear, 4:10 gears, 2 pinion open. Does this seem right?

Took dropzones advice and loaded pics on photobucket - here's the link: http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/m.../auto%20parts/

Thanks for the help so far. I can't figure out why only the end of the shaft was damaged, is it possible prior owner put in an axle out of a different year that was 1/4" short?

1990 4runner axle fit?
 

Found a complete rear axle assembly from a 1990 toyo 4runner at a great price. It's got the same 4:10 gearing - will this fit my 1996 4runner?

Thanks!

no they changes the size of the axles in 96.

pull the rear 3rd and see what it looks like you shouldnt have to replace the whole thing.

lift truck up to tires are just off the ground. put jackstand under axle.
drain the diff
disconnect break hard lines from drum. (10mm box)
disconnect ebrake.
remove the driveshaft from the 3rd. 4, 14mm nuts and bolts. (easiest done with 2 14 box wrenches)
remove the 4nuts attaching the drums to the (14mm) on each side
grab the tire and pull out, you will pull the tire, drum and axleshaft out. it only needs to come out 3-4 inches.
repeat on the other side.
remove the 12, 12mm nuts holding the 3rd.
pull the 3rd out.


to install put some copper ultra RTV on the 3rd slap it back in, and do the opposite of what you did to take it out.


the 3rd will come out as one part, you dont have to mess with resetting gears if you pull the third (unlike other non-toyota axles)

um i think the axles are different, so im going to say no.

Id find one out of a similar year 96+.

Call,
TAP recycling or Rancho TOyota Truck, they are both in rancho cordova, which is close to you.


Google both companies. They are both good to work with.

when i was living in stockton TAP was WAY over priced... they had everything you could think of but you paid $$$ for it...

True, but, if you cannot find the parts anywhere else.

I would try rancho toyota truck 1-916-631-7777.

Tofer -thanks for the blow by blow on removing the third member gear assembly - makes it a much less daunting task.

Just called Rancho Toy Truck (thanks 904runner) and they've got the shafts for $125, w/ all the goodies - that sounds fair.

I'll get the third member out tonite and see if there's any damage, if not, clean it up real good, get the Rancho Toy Truck shaft and be back in biz!

you might want to check somewhere else first.

I know my axle is different, but i was quoted $20 a shaft at my local pick n' pull.
search around, you can probably find it a bunch cheaper

Another thing to think about is, now that the axles are out, change the axle seals on the housing.

And with a used axle the wheel bearings might need to be replaced.

Thanks to Tofer's great instructions, I pulled out the third. It looks good - the gears all look smooth, no grinding, etc. The spot where the rounded off rt side axle goes in looks fine.

I then measured the axles - are they supposed to be even? The rt rear (the one that rounded off) measures 25 5/16" from the backing plate to the splined end. The lt rear measures 26 1/4". If they are supposed to be the same size, then the left one sat almost an inch deeper into the splines then the rt - explaining why the rt one went bad.

Any ideas? Also, the sticker on the door says A03A, which the graphs say is a 7.5" 4:10 2 pinion open differential. Does the 7.5" diff seem correct? To remove the third, I removed 10 nuts that were 12 mm, not the 12 nuts that were 12 mm as Tofer described (maybe he was off by a couple nuts).

Thanks for the help! I think I'm gonna reinstall the third member and the left axle, so all I have left to install is the rt axle when i get another one. Before i reinstall, I should clean out the little bit of metal shavings from the third member. Anyone have any suggestions? Do a messy clean and pour cheap motor oil through it? Use some sort of degreaser (doesn't sound good to me)? Any ideas?

they should be equal length to the best of my knowledge. somebody more than likely put the wrong length axle in your right side. probably an axle from an 86-95 (just guessing) I think you are fortunate that your differential is not screwed.

get as much of those metal shavings out as possible, they will kill your bearings in your third just as easy as that crap would in your engine and there is no filter. I would suggest changing your diff fluid (something like 80-90 weight gear oil) 500 or so miles after you replace the right axle and maybe do it again at 1500 or so.

Thanks for the input Rob. I called the local Toyo dealer and they said the lt and rt axles were interchangeable on their order form, so I figured they were supposed to be equal. I got a rt axle from a junkyard and it matched the length of the other axle.

I "rinsed" the third in a quart of oil, and wiped out the third member housing with towels and a magnet before reinstalling, so I should have gotten most of the metal out. I'll probably take your advice and drain the diff fluid in a month or so and put in new stuff.

Got it all back together late last nite. Will take on a test drive today. Had the driveshaft out (cause I had to get from OHV park where I was offroading to the hiway for a AAA toy), so had the driveshaft straightened and balanced while it was out. For $50, it was a bargain. Hoping that will get rid of some of the slight vibrations on the hiway.

Same issue. Changed axle and same thing happened
 

Hey i had the same issue and i changed the axle and then maybe like 60 miles down the road same thing happened. Any else that could go wrong? And yea i checked the pumpkin and everything looked good