99 differential cost
- Thread starter JoeYello
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blonde1boarder
New member
You can buy one used online for pretty cheap. Looks like depending on the ratio it could be anywhere from 150 to 300 for a differential plus the shop time.
The symptoms are a very loud vibrating noise that increases at higher speeds. You can feel the vibrations on the floor boards and there are various vibrations throughout the vehicle. When I do a neutral drop the noise is still there. I do not hear any clanking noises or noises when I go in and out of gear. It was looked at by a local car repair place that I have used before who I think are honest.
JWaldz
Moderator
Sounds exactly like symptoms of a bad rear ujoint. You may be able to have it greased and temporary fix the symptoms. If it subsides or goes away completely then you know what the problem is. If that is it you'd still need to have it fixed. It's hard to diagnose a rear ujoint as far as visual appearance goes unless it's flat out broke. You can either unbolt the 4 bolts at the flange to drop the driveshaft allowing you to remove the slip yoke to look at it closely or have the rear tires jacked up off the ground having someone spin the tire slowly while someone else looks at the ujoint. You might have broken a cap and lost all the needle bearings. That will usually cause the symptoms your having.
PitbullRescuer
New member
Neutral drops may be part of your issue. And would certainly kill the rear ujoint. Another somewhat common issue is a bad pinion bearing. That won't vibrate but it will make a lot of noise. Does it make noise when decelerating too?
Kurtis
New member
^^^^^ What he said.
slowpoke99
New member
Like pitbull said, it could be the pinion bearings. I had one go out on my '88 pickup. Threw the driveline out of balance, wasted the pinion seal and caused vibration.
danthemanx07
New member
If you end up needing to replace the whole thing, check your local u-pull it yard if you have the time. I recently picked up an entire rear for less than $150. Of course, it requires a little work...
KidVermicious
New member
Not much, though. It's easily a one person/one afternoon job even for a novice. Nothing at all to be scared of.
Mechanics don't like to drop the third to look at it because it's an afternoon of work that they aren't getting paid for. Check out your ujoints and if they look ok, drop the third yourself and take it to a driveline shop that rebuilds differentials. Tell them it was making noise and you'd like it checked out. They'll tell you for sure if it's bad or not, and they might charge you a 1/2hr of shop time to do it. Then if it is bad, hit the junkyard. I wouldn't pay more than $200 for a 4.10 open diff.
BrianSD_42
New member
Most local car repair places I've used don't know $#|T about Toyotas even though they say they do.
For this type of thing get an opinion from the dealer or a local shop that is certified in Toyotas or specializes in them.
BrianSD_42
New member
Well I doubt the shop gave him a quote for swapping a swapyard rear diff over.
I imagine the cost they quoted was crazy high and I just think he should get a second opinion.
I imagine the cost they quoted was crazy high and I just think he should get a second opinion.
They said a whole new rear at the dealer would be about $2500. They told me to have the dealer do the work since the dealer could do it cheaper. They also told me a re-built would only be a couple of hundred cheaper, so I might as well get a new one.
Does anyone know a good repair place in central New Jersey that might really know about this or should I just go to a Toyota dealer?
Does anyone know a good repair place in central New Jersey that might really know about this or should I just go to a Toyota dealer?
KidVermicious
New member
You can save yourself a lot of money if you roll up your sleeves and get dirty. Even if it's the third itself that's trashed, you can back back on the road for under $300. Less than that if it's just a ujoint, much less.
Or, you can look up "driveline shop" in your yellow pages and take your truck in there, and they'll charge you several hours of labor at $80-$120/hr at least, plus parts, and they're not going to buy a used third from a junkyard for $100, they're going to buy a brand new ring and pinion for several hundred dollars and a master install kit for another $150 or so and that's if you're lucky. If they're a lazy shop then they'll go online and buy an already assembled diff from Toyota and that will be several thousand dollars before you're done.
My suggestion would be to see if a forum member in the area might be willing to help you in exchange for a case of beer, and do it yourself. $300 and greasy hands and a new friend, or $2500. Your call.
white_n_slow
Senior Member
Sounds like a u-joint to me too. Way cheaper than replacing the 3rd member (and still having the vibration afterwards, lol).
white_n_slow
Senior Member
Run away from this mechanic, don't walk! Go to a driveline shop and they will correctly diagnose it for you. Or spend the $50 on a new U-joint and 75% chance that will take care of the problem for you.
I would also steer clear of the stealership on this one.
danthemanx07
New member
Sound advice right there. I have never pulled a differential before or ever even worked on one. Last week I pulled a front and rear differential out from under a 4runner alone. If you can turn wrenches, you can do this yourself. Hell, I didn't think about it then, but you could drop by your local Lowes and pick up a hired helper for a couple of bucks an hour to help with the lifting. A few fellas always hangout in our Lowes parking lot looking for work. Also, if you get the diff out, the yard should help you move it with a forklift once you drag it to an accessible place. Here is the gem I found last week:
No joke. Me + some wrenches + a few hours. You could easily do the same. You could even just pull the third member.
As others have said though - check the u-joints first. I had one go out and it would make a killer noise at highway speeds.
