I talked to Zuk and regearing should be easy once I can take the third member off and ship to him.

My buddy first said that removing the third member is a piece of cake but has since backtracked and said that it's not as easy. He talked about having to remove both rear drums before getting to the third member.

I'm not sure how this works but want to know from anyone that's done this, what are we talking about in terms of difficulty, hours of labor, etc.

Thanks in advance.

 

You should always specify what you have. I think the parkbrake on the 4Runner rear axle may be different.
It is a piece of cake to do the rear. Front is a bit more involved... There are writeups I'm sure.

For the rear you just disconnect the park brake cables behind each backing plate (the trucks I've worked on you just pull a clip, but some are different - 4Runners I think - and I have no idea how they disconnect,) disconnect the brake line at each backing plate, and undo the 4 bolts holding the backing plate to the axle housing. Unbolt the driveshaft (mark it first) and unbolt the ABS sensor and any brackets or whatever attached to the axle. Slide the backing plates - brakes, axles and all - out a few inches (no need to mess with the drums.) Unbolt the thrid member and pull it out. Don't drop it on your hand... Oh, and drain it first.

The front requires unbolting the axle shafts (6 bolt flanges) and disconnecting the ADD if you have that. Unbolt the driveshaft. Then the axle unit is just unbolted - at the bracket on the d/s axle tube, at the bracket on the p/s closer to the pinion, and the bolt in the lower front crossmember. IT's as simple as it looks, but it's a pain in the a$$.

Hope this helps.

 

Another little tip. Get some little "vaccum caps" or something simmilar to plug your brake lines so you don't loose all your fluid.

And there really is no need to mark your driveshaft if you simply unbolt it from the 3rd member and let it hang. Only time you need to mark it is if you separate the 2 halfs of the shaft at the splines.

 

extra warning about the weight of the 3rd member, laying on your back/side the thing weights like a metric butt load!

 

 

Good point about marking.. I just get in the habit of marking anything. There have been SOOOO many times I didn't - and realise I should have when it's too late...

When I drop a third member - I take a cardboard box that will fit under it and fill the box with anything - packing peanuts, shredded cardboard, a rolled up blanket, the cat, whatever - and put it under the third member. Then when I unbolt it and wiggle if off the studs, it falls on the box, crushes it some and makes a nice cradle for it. Then slide it out. Works every time.

 

......too funny!

 

Flamed,

Thanks for the info. Sorry about the specs. 3rd gen runner V6 and rear diff only. Hopefully, everything you said is still applicable.

 

Oops. Assuming by 3rd gen you mean 96+ (95.5+ Tacos) I have no idea if what I said works.

 

That sounds to be about right. You may not even have to mess with ABS as the sensors are at the ends of the axle. The parking brake and brake lines are just as you described. It looks as if that's all that it will take.

If you have an E-Locker it may be a little different. I havn't taken my 3rd out, but I image there are some cables connected to it and you'll want to be carefull with the external locker box and any of the internals as well.