First: 1988 SR5, 3.0 (now 3.4) 4runner


I'm in the process of replacing CV shafts, rotors, calipers..et al.
I pulled everything apart and actually got pretty close to finishing one side last night. I had a question about a step which I have already resolved through some other threads, but in doing so I noticed that most all the pics of locking hub removal has this pretty brass/gold bolt-washer thing in the end of the shaft (seemingly just tightened up to the shaft end). In the pics I've seen it doesn't seem to be doing much of anything and the concern is.... I didn't have one! I think (from my aged memory) there was a snap ring inside there, there definitely was a threaded end on the axle (as if there needed to be a bolt in there)...but there wasn't a bolt.


Now, this truck used to have those AUTO worthless things which lasted until my wife got it stuck and the front hubs wouldn't auto-itself into locking. I got the set from someone parting his out, put em on and never thought about it again.


Do I need this bolt? Was the design changed at some point? I've tried looking over the parts drawings but without knowing what year truck the parts came from, I'm still not sure.


Any thoughts?


Thanks.

 

The "gold bolt" plus snap ring is kind of a belt-and-suspenders arrangement for holding the CV axle in the spindle. Not sure you need both, but I would imagine you could pick up the bolt and washer pretty cheap at your Toyota dealer.

 

Thanks...the latest problem is getting the cv shafts off. Is there some trick to getting the shafts to not spin? I have pretty badly rusted bolts. My best attempt right now is putting a 17mm open end wrench on the back of one of the pressed in bolts, wedged in on an engine mount and then hitting the crap out of a breaker bar on one of the bottom nuts.

This works for a swing or three but eventually the open end wrench bounces it's way free and I still haven't gotten a single one of these bolts to turn...at all.

They aren't reverse threads are they? This afternoon job is well past that and I haven't made any progress with the shafts. Any advice is obviously welcome.

 

Those bolts can be tight - a longer breaker bar might be in order. If you can reassemble the hub far enough to hold the axle from turning and put the wheel on the ground, it will help while you're trying to break the bolts loose.