driving on the freeway the other day I noticed the passenger side rear tire would lock up on occasion at approx. 60mph then release, causing a unpleasant jerking, I assumed a drum brake issue. after removing the tire and drum I saw what appeared to be a lot of axle grease leaking out from what looked like a broken seal behind the drum brake assembly around the axle. is it possible to replace this seal or do i need a new axle? would you then just recommend getting a rear end from a junk yard? or what other options do i have, and how do i know what the gear ratio is right now? its a 1987 4runner with the sr5 trim and a 22re engine. any info is greatly appreciated, thanks for your time.

 

Rear axle seal bearing kit per side
http://www.wabfab.org/Rear-Axles/Rea...ypage.tpl.html

Install instructions on 4x4wire tech articles

:wabbit2:

 

Edit: Wabbit beat me to it with better information....... again.

 

Junkers you have the right of it.

It's four nuts that you take off, then you slip out the axle shaft, and use (I wrapped mine in a few layers of towel first) a screwdriver or prybar to pop the seals out. The tricky part is putting the new seals in without bending them, you can get a tool for seating them or you can improvise. When you slide the axle shaft back in you need to make sure to be extra careful to not let the shaft come into contact with the seal until it's splines line up with the diff and the shaft slides into place.