I drive a 99' manual transmission 4WD with 231K.
3 months ago I had trouble shifting into 4th while cruising around 50mph and ended up accidentally grinding it in 2nd for a brief moment and once I had it secured in 4th the RPM's spiked up for a few seconds with no boost in acceleration and I instantly began worrying about the clutch, but experienced no more issues for months.
Driving up a mountain pass today the RPM's started jolting up while I would lose acceleration briefly and on the steepest section I eventually didn't have enough acceleration to continue at all. I managed to turn around and coast way down the mountain, but while engine braking in 1st gear running the RPM's low I heard a clunk like I hit a bump and acceleration was gone for good after that. In hindsight I wish I hadn't overestimated what was left in the clutch and just left it in neutral, tapping the brakes the whole way down, which I had to do anyway, but the road was icy and I was trying to play it safe.
I coasted for miles and rolled it into the nearest auto shop parking lot and now I'm debating whether I want to take on this replacement myself or just bite the bullet and hire the shop for it. I'm worried what damage the engine braking might have caused outside of the clutch assembly... damage I might overlook while down there.
I read this write-up and skimmed the links to the others on the topic: https://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/215257-clutch-replacement-writeup.html
It seems the additional tools I'll need to get ahold of include a snap-ring wrench, torque wrench, transmission jack, maybe a seal driver, and the parts obviously.
But I have a few questions based on issues mentioned in the write-ups:
1."Once all that is done you can start the joy of unbolting the transmission. All 6 bolts are 17mm. To get the very top one I used a universal, two longer extensions and one short extension. I held the socket on the bolt from the passengers side and ran the extensions up the drivers side. Once I had the socket on and a little pressure I could take my right hand off the socket and put some torque on the ratchet."
Does anyone know what length in extensions is needed to reach this furthest top bolt?
2. "The rear main seal came out using a hooked pick. Started on the inside of the seal (closest to the crank), pushed it through, then rotated it behind the seal and pulled out. I had seen some information on these a few other times which mentioned that Toyota changed their part and the new one is slightly smaller than the old in thickness (space it will occupy from the motor towards the rear of the vehicle). I checked and sure enough it was. This was the joy in why IÂ’ve done the job three times. I had blocked crankcase ventilation which was putting too much pressure on the seal and pushing it out. I guess having to work on the RMS a few times is a better way of discovering the issue than some sort of major failure. Anyways, for reinstallation I pushed the seal all the way until flush with the seating surface of the engine (i.e. the retainer plate), which meant the crank stood slightly proud."
So with the size difference between new and old rear main seals. the solution is to push the seal flush with the retainer plate and it's good to go? Anyone else experience issues with replacing this that they can share about?
3. In the past I've replaced the rear axle seals and rear differential gasket with 4Runner lifted on regular jack stands. Seeing as the transmission has to be lowered. Would ramps or heavy duty truck jack stands be best for this job?
3 months ago I had trouble shifting into 4th while cruising around 50mph and ended up accidentally grinding it in 2nd for a brief moment and once I had it secured in 4th the RPM's spiked up for a few seconds with no boost in acceleration and I instantly began worrying about the clutch, but experienced no more issues for months.
Driving up a mountain pass today the RPM's started jolting up while I would lose acceleration briefly and on the steepest section I eventually didn't have enough acceleration to continue at all. I managed to turn around and coast way down the mountain, but while engine braking in 1st gear running the RPM's low I heard a clunk like I hit a bump and acceleration was gone for good after that. In hindsight I wish I hadn't overestimated what was left in the clutch and just left it in neutral, tapping the brakes the whole way down, which I had to do anyway, but the road was icy and I was trying to play it safe.
I coasted for miles and rolled it into the nearest auto shop parking lot and now I'm debating whether I want to take on this replacement myself or just bite the bullet and hire the shop for it. I'm worried what damage the engine braking might have caused outside of the clutch assembly... damage I might overlook while down there.
I read this write-up and skimmed the links to the others on the topic: https://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/215257-clutch-replacement-writeup.html
It seems the additional tools I'll need to get ahold of include a snap-ring wrench, torque wrench, transmission jack, maybe a seal driver, and the parts obviously.
But I have a few questions based on issues mentioned in the write-ups:
1."Once all that is done you can start the joy of unbolting the transmission. All 6 bolts are 17mm. To get the very top one I used a universal, two longer extensions and one short extension. I held the socket on the bolt from the passengers side and ran the extensions up the drivers side. Once I had the socket on and a little pressure I could take my right hand off the socket and put some torque on the ratchet."
Does anyone know what length in extensions is needed to reach this furthest top bolt?
2. "The rear main seal came out using a hooked pick. Started on the inside of the seal (closest to the crank), pushed it through, then rotated it behind the seal and pulled out. I had seen some information on these a few other times which mentioned that Toyota changed their part and the new one is slightly smaller than the old in thickness (space it will occupy from the motor towards the rear of the vehicle). I checked and sure enough it was. This was the joy in why IÂ’ve done the job three times. I had blocked crankcase ventilation which was putting too much pressure on the seal and pushing it out. I guess having to work on the RMS a few times is a better way of discovering the issue than some sort of major failure. Anyways, for reinstallation I pushed the seal all the way until flush with the seating surface of the engine (i.e. the retainer plate), which meant the crank stood slightly proud."
So with the size difference between new and old rear main seals. the solution is to push the seal flush with the retainer plate and it's good to go? Anyone else experience issues with replacing this that they can share about?
3. In the past I've replaced the rear axle seals and rear differential gasket with 4Runner lifted on regular jack stands. Seeing as the transmission has to be lowered. Would ramps or heavy duty truck jack stands be best for this job?
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