Rear inner axle seals need replacing. Probably need bearings done too. Sounds like all shops in my area want around $1200 to do both sides and brake shoes (leaking into drum). If I had time I'd do it myself, but the last writeup I saw said the guy spent 16 hours on this job and still spent over $600.

I'm wondering if its worth pursuing a used complete rear axle assembly with around 100k (I'm at 230k). Or does anyone sell individual axles assembled with bearings, rings, etc?

Trying to find a cheaper route to get my rear end leak free. Can't afford more than a day of downtime.

(have also considered going in for a rear E-locker rear end while I'm doing this...but pretty sure I have 4.10s and have not found a 4.10 E-locker yet)

Any ideas appreciated.

Thanks

I just went through a leaking seal. I thought it was the bearing but it was fine. It was just a bad seal so I replaced that. It took roughly an hour or two tops.

Are you sure the bearing is toast? Try checking for play in the axle shaft while it's bolted on.

I did order all the bearing and seal parts from Amayama ($92) just in case the bearing does poop out soon.


Why buy another used set with old bearings and risk those ones going too? Spend $184 and get all the bearings, races, seals, etc and do it right the first time. Rent a car for a day or two.

Its my work truck and can't afford much downtime.

The original question presents itself again...how to replace all bearings and seals cheaper and/or quicker.

Have you seen @mtbtim 's video? Doesn't look too bad. You run the risk of getting a bad used axle if you swap rear ends. Plus swapping axles is a big job too.

Rear Axle Seals: The Ultimate Information and Replacement Thread (3rd gen)

If you can't afford ANY downtime, getting a spare axle built and swapping your third member over is probably the fastest, but certainly not the cheapest route to refreshing your axle bearings and seals.

not that bad...
definitely the easiest..and fastest, i can pull axles and swap a third in about 1.5 hours. seems like the longest thing is gathering the tools...stupid flanged wrench for brake line likes to hide

The biggest thing is getting the old bearings pressed out and new ones pressed in IMO. That blue tool in the video is anywhere from $200-350+

find two good axle shafts, have the new bearings/seals installed, get the junk to do the brakes. Back on the road in a morning.

one of these days I might chase down to axles, order all the bearings, but it would be nice to find someone who will press the bearings the "new" way. Id even send them out if needed.

could be a nice side biz for someone on this forum.

the nearest press shop to me is over 50 miles and have never used them. The one shop I used in the past, about 90 miles from me screwed up a press, on a bmw hub, obviously I don't live near any cities

I am confused on his diagnosis of a bad bearing. He said to grab the plate and rock it up and down. If it moves then the bearings are bad. I was told by a few sources that movement like that when unbolted from the axle is normal and they had that kind of play with a new bearing too. It's the up and down play in the shaft when bolted to the axle that shows the bearing is worn. My backing plate moves when unbolted but the shaft is firm with no movement when bolted on.

Can anyone verify this?

I pressed 3 new axles bearings on 3 shafts (one as a trail spare) for a rear disc conversion project, I don't recall any of the 3 bearings having any play after the install.

I used the "pound the shaft on a chunk of wood" method to get the backing plate/bearing cups off the axle. Hurts, but works and is cheap
Toyota Maintenance: Replacing Rear Wheel Bearings and Seals
not me but a pic from the above thread

Attached Images

 

$1200 for both sides?! Damn. You can buy a press, the special tool and all the parts and do it yourself over the weekend for probably just a bit over half of that. If I could only afford a day of downtime and didn't know how to do the press work myself, I would find a machine shop that could do the press work for you one morning while you wait. I would schedule a morning with them, remove the axles the night before, take them to said machine shop, wait an hour or so while they do the pressing, take them home and reinstall with new brakes. That way you're only down one day. Just make sure the machine shop presses the retainer on the correct distance from the axle flange the first time, because you'll be up a creek if they screw it up.

Moving the backing plate the way you described will result in movement even on a brand new bearing. That is not the correct way to diagnose a bad bearing. The FSM specifies the amount of in and out movement the axle can have while installed. That is the only way to tell if the bearing is bad, aside from normal wheel bearing failure noises and things of that nature.

Sounds about right. Looks like my bearings are fine and the seal has been holding up. I wonder when the truck will give me the finger and start leaking on the other side. Just a matter of time.