Bad Day on Trail - likely rear differential stripped and broken CV

[CO_Fletch]

Well a great day of wheeling went sideways real quick.* Tried an obstacle that was probably beyond my rigs capabilities.* Used a little too much skinny pedal and then heard the worst possible sound, grinding gears:scared:.* Checked underneath and fortunately no gear oil was flowing, tried shifting and changing 4WD and still bad gear sounds.* Also found a snapped a CV shaft at the same time. No Drive Train!* :help:* Fortunately there were several others around with winches and recovery gear and they managed to pull me up over that obstacle and a couple others and then tow strapped me down the mountain to the main road.*

Pictures below are from the obstacle and recovery and a perspective from below of my buddy going down. I broke going back up.

I'll chronicle the troubleshooting and repair, feel free to offer up any tips

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[Brian3676]

I have done the same thing. Twice. It was the CV both times. I carry a spare and the tools to replace it on the trail.

 

[kirbyyyyy]

When i snapped my CV no power went to the wheels. Fixed the CV and all was back to normal. no power is able to get to the wheels because of it.

 

[dagen]

Well a great day of wheeling went sideways real quick.* Tried an obstacle that was probably beyond my rigs capabilities.* Used a little too much skinny pedal and then heard the worst possible sound, grinding gears:scared:.* Checked underneath and fortunately no gear oil was flowing, tried shifting and changing 4WD and still bad gear sounds.* Also found a snapped a CV shaft at the same time. No Drive Train!* :help:* Fortunately there were several others around with winches and recovery gear and they managed to pull me up over that obstacle and a couple others and then tow strapped me down the mountain to the main road.*

Pictures below are from the obstacle and recovery and a perspective from below of my buddy going down. I broke going back up.

I'll chronicle the troubleshooting and repair, feel free to offer up any tips

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

I snapped my passenger side CV and was able to shift into 2WD and just have a RWD vehicle. The snapped CV didn't bind or cause any issues. I was able to drive to a buddy's house to swap in a new CV. Definitely a pain and a bit scary.

I had never replaced a CV before so it was nice to have somebody who knew what they were doing to help make it happen. Was pretty simple process.

 

[fordracing19]

I carry a spare too. I haven't broke 1 yet but just in case.

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[4OYOTER]

I think I read somewhere that the V6 should be able to drive rwd with a snapped CV, but a V8 can’t because of the full time 4x4 transfer case?

 

[fordracing19]

I think I read somewhere that the V6 should be able to drive rwd with a snapped CV, but a V8 can’t because of the full time 4x4 transfer case?

I have not snapped one but an awd should with the t-case locked.

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[CO_Fletch]

Here's the broken CV, I believe it was aftermarket. My driver side is a Napa CV axle.

I drained the front diff fluid and no metal particles came out.

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[CO_Fletch]

I heard that as well but it didn't work, I just heard grinding gears when I tried to move.

I have not snapped one but an awd should with the t-case locked.

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[CO_Fletch]

Drained the rear diff and found this. Not looking good. Next up, need to pull the third member to see what's going on. Time to read up on pulling the third member.

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[Seymore Butts]

So why did the rear differential fail? What did you do to exceed it's abilities? BTW, what trail was this?

 

[CO_Fletch]

So why did the rear differential fail? What did you do to exceed it's abilities? BTW, what trail was this?

I believe I had two tires off the ground and they were free spinning and then I lost uphill momentum. I was in 4 low. Probably used too much skinny pedal - I think when I came back down is when it regained traction and the CV broke and diff blew at the same time.

The trail was Miller Rock west out of Lyons, CO. Rated 5/7 and I believe I was on the gnarliest part when this happened. Probably should have just got a tow strap to get over this part (hindsight is 20/20).

 

[Inv4drZm]

[MENTION=109264]CO_Fletch[/MENTION]

DIY 3rd Member swap - Toyota FJ Cruiser Forum

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...d-installation-of-e-locker-3rd-member.193828/

 

[CO_Fletch]

[MENTION=109264]CO_Fletch[/MENTION]

DIY 3rd Member swap - Toyota FJ Cruiser Forum

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...d-installation-of-e-locker-3rd-member.193828/

This was perfect, thank you for they link. As mentioned in the thread, I didn't need to remove the brake calipers. It was just a few bolts, slid out axles then unbolted drive shaft and third member and it pulled right out.

Pictures below is the ring gear which explains the small piece of metal I found initially!! The second picture is a sampling of the pieces that were in the housing.

I wonder if I need to fully disassemble the axles to do a thorough cleaning or if all the metal stayed in the housing.

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[duffdog]

Yep.

You are about the 2000th person to do this to a 4th gen. I even did the exact same thing in the exact same situation. The rear end and a front CV both exploded on the same day on the same obstacle when I was wheeling last year. In my opinion the rear end on the 4th gen is too wimpy to use off road.

 

[CO_Fletch]

Yep.

You are about the 2000th person to do this to a 4th gen. I even did the exact same thing in the exact same situation. The rear end and a front CV both exploded on the same day on the same obstacle when I was wheeling last year. In my opinion the rear end on the 4th gen is too wimpy to use off road.

Glad I'm not the only one! When you replaced the rear diff gears, did you pull out the axles completely and do a complete cleaning or just cleaned out the center housing?

 

[duffdog]

Glad I'm not the only one! When you replaced the rear diff gears, did you pull out the axles completely and do a complete cleaning or just cleaned out the center housing?

I had a shop do it, and yes, they pulled everything off and cleaned the inside of the housing with a rag and compressed air. Since I have a warranty on it, they didn't want to have to do it again if some steel ended up in one of the bearings. Also-- important, you really need to change all the bearings if you want this new diff to last. A single piece of metal on one of the pinion bearings will cause it to heat up and fail and the entire exercise will have to be done again. In my opinion, its just easier to get a complete 3rd from a junkyard and slap it in there and be done with it. In my case I have the Elocker, so it was more work to change the gears.

 

[Drunner97]

This was perfect, thank you for they link. As mentioned in the thread, I didn't need to remove the brake calipers. It was just a few bolts, slid out axles then unbolted drive shaft and third member and it pulled right out.

Pictures below is the ring gear which explains the small piece of metal I found initially!! The second picture is a sampling of the pieces that were in the housing.

I wonder if I need to fully disassemble the axles to do a thorough cleaning or if all the metal stayed in the housing.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

I left the axles in and cleaned the housing out with brake cleaner. You got lucky you didn't have to pull your 3rd on the trail to get out. My rear was so bad it locked up and the wheels wouldn't move. I also killed my transfer case at the same time. The center diff wouldn't disengage so I couldn't get out of 4hi once I got my gears fixed.

 

[Bumbo]

That does look like a rough day...

I like ur rig, looks like they are brothers.

 

[bpchura]

Sorry to hear you're dealing with this man! Let us know how it all works out because I'm sure some of us will have to deal with it one day. I wonder if it would be worth it to invest in some stronger gears/locker while you're in there. Might be a good opportunity for an upgrade!