the other day me and some buddies were out wheeling, i told my passenger too jump out and lock the hubs, he locked the right side, then got too the left side, and tried it he said it was "locked" i thought he meant he put it in the lock position. he meant it was stuck. he left it halfway in between free and lock... we went wheeling and no problems then on the ride out home on the highway i hear almost a howling like when im going over 30 but no other problems what could it be??? thanks

The howling is probably the drive-shaft and front differential spinning. Those hubs are pretty simple, and it's likely stuck engaged, even though it's only half way. The problem is that it puts a lot of extra pressure on the small part of the sprockets that are engaged. I would remove the hub and inspect it. They're really simple to remove and work on.

thanks man. i mechanic buddy of mine looked at it and said it my be my rear end bearing, i put it on the lift too check it out i noticed i left my rig in neutral but when i turned the wheel the passenger rear tire the axel would move, but when i spun the other side the axel didnt move i dont know what that means?? it looks tough too check the rear axel bearings??

the_dingman!! I haven't seen you post on here in a while!! I guess the same could be said for myself.

It sounds like your hub is still engaged or the howling could've been it partially engaged (like friction point on a clutch) Like the_dingman said, these are acutally really simple to work on (I taught my girlfriend, well ex now, about them and she couldn't even change oil!!) but if the one tire turns the DS and the other doesn't, your hub is definately engaged. there isn't any bearings that i know of inside the hub body, just on the wheel spindle. remeber to pack lots of grease in there once you're done all over the splines. It will be harder to turn, but when going through water, and after a few days at least they will turn!! Good luck!!

thanks thats exactly what it was!
good job it really helped i really appreciate it thanks!

Hey man, I've been covering a different job position for the last few months which had me away from home 6 nights a week... I've put less than 20 miles on the 4runner in the last 4 months...

Anyway, glad we helped!