front diff fill plug wont budge . . .

[cordrayj1]

havent really tried all that hard. but the allen head is beginning to round and i dont want to push it anymore. i was thinking of just going to my uncles and gettin him to tack it w the welder so it wont come off at all that way i can actually get some torque on it. tried doing it in morn after vehicle hasnt been running too.

any thoughts, tips, or tricks?

 

[Nelsonmd]

I hit mine with some pb blaster, let it sit for a while, then tapped the allen until it broke loose. If none of that works, then I'd say go for the tack, or just drill it and use and easy-out. Those plugs are about $6.

Actually, it might be hard to drill it, the front is in an awkward spot.

 

[cordrayj1]

yeah....im avoiding the drill method. easy outs generally suck imo if corrosion is an issue. this 4runner is at the boat ramp every day in charleston, sc. so corrosion is pretty much how i roll.not like you though nelson. im sure its much worse in the snow.

i may just tack it and leave so i know it cant move. maybe a small impact will be able to squeeze in there.

thanks for the info nelson.

 

[Mr. Leary]

A few methods, increasing in level of severity:

1) PB Blaster
2) Impact
3) Heat it up with a torch then retry 1
4) Weld a nut onto the outside of the plug so you can get a socket on it.
5) Drill it, hammer it, yell at it, call it names, beg and plead with it, tell it that it is pretty, feel heartbroken, replace truck

So hopefully you will not get to option 5...
:lmao:

 

[cordrayj1]

Hahahaaaa. fixin a busted drive axle seal on the front diff too. guess i damaged when i changed the CV axle last week. she been slingin some fluid.

 

[JWaldz]

If you happened to look this up, this is a pretty common issue. Some people just weld a nut to it to use a socket. If you lack the tools though the best thing to do is to take it to the dealer when you want a front diff oil change.

Mine did the same thing and it ended up stripping out the plug. I took it to the dealer and it was like 50 bucks for the diff oil chang, new plug, and tax. Ended up ahead in the long run cus they changed my rear diff oil too and didn't charge me lol.

 

[cordrayj1]

f the dealer.

. . . best part about doing it yourself: next time it happens, you know what to do.

ill let yall know how it goes later on after work. changing oil, new drive axle seal up front and refilling the diff w fluid.


PS. my neighbor is a pro-welder, 2 second job after work. impact driver sould do work on the situation i feel.

 

[Tuui]

f the dealer.

. . . best part about doing it yourself: next time it happens, you know what to do.

ill let yall know how it goes later on after work. changing oil, new drive axle seal up front and refilling the diff w fluid.


PS. my neighbor is a pro-welder, 2 second job after work. impact driver sould do work on the situation i feel.

This exact same thing happened to me a month and a half ago. I was on the verge of rounding out the plug so I took it in to the dealer. They completely rounded it out, but used an impact hammer to break it loose. I had them leave the plug in and I came home and finished the drain/refill with a new plug. $6 for the new plug and $30 for shop time. Since I didn't have the tools to get it out myself, I considered that a steal.

Good luck and let us know how it goes tonight.

Tim

 

[brian2sun]

At least you had the foresight to try to loosen the fill plug before the drain! I would soak it in PB overnight and then stick the hex head socket in there and weld it to the plug. It will help if you can get it on a lift because you can use a longer breaker bar.

 

[Nelsonmd]

At least you had the foresight to try to loosen the fill plug before the drain! I would soak it in PB overnight and then stick the hex head socket in there and weld it to the plug. It will help if you can get it on a lift because you can use a longer breaker bar.

Gosh, I can't imagine needing a breaker bar on that thing. Tap it with a hammer until it breaks loose. If you need a breaker bar then you are so far beyond rounding the hex feature it's not even funny.

I have never been a fan of the allen head for anything that sees corrosion whatsoever. It isn't the most robust torque feature.

 

[Big John]

I had to weld a nut to one about a month ago.:flamethrwoer2:

 

[bike]

Mine was pretty stuck as well. I had a breaker bar on it (the angle worked out just right) and was tapping it a hammer while I applied some force. Eventually it gave up. I was about 5 hammer blows away from grabbing a torch.

 

[Elton H]

mine is pretty much beyond coming off with out welding a nut who ever thought that was a good idea needs to be punch in the mouth

 

[IanB]

My stock front diff fill plug was a 12mm hex, I had to go buy a special set of hex sockets just to get the right size as the biggest I had otherwise was a 10mm, and they didn't have 12mm seperates anywhere I looked. I also stripped this plug (the only one that gave me problems), and the Toyota replacement was a 10mm after all that.:ybrick:

 

[cordrayj1]

well i lost the socket apparently this weekend when i was out of town . . . goin to weld it on today after work and then puttin the impact on it. looks like i can get a couple extensions on the impact to do work on the fill plug.


and brian, yeah . . . ive done that one before, not taking fill out first. its a one-time learning experience. hahaa.

 

[LittleCaesar]

I'd make sure to have a new nut before removing the old one. I learned that the hard way with the rear axle.

Since you are on James Island, drive to Haddrells, go inside to the right of where one gets the live bait, and spend $5 or $6 on a can of CRC 656 (it is on a floor shelf below the knives and flounder gig barbs). It makes PB Blaster look like child's play by loosening salt water rust quickly.

 

[cordrayj1]

i actually have some in my toolbox for the outboard motor. DUH. still couldnt get off w a 1/2" impact yest. gonna soak it and see what happens later.

 

[Singtoe]

A solution for a drained diff and the fill bolt is frozen or stripped out. Can you imagine what would happen it this case?

How could you fill back up so you could drive it again? Flip the 4runner on its roof and fill the diff from its drain bolt.

Naw, can't do that, but you can jack the passenger side, remove the the passenger side cv joint and fill the diff from axle output. With the passenger side higher then the drivers side, the oil fill should be close to the full line when gear oil is at the oil seal on axle output. Re-install CV halfshaft.

So this should get you going if you drained your diff and can't remove the fill bolt.

 

[cordrayj1]

A solution for a drained diff and the fill bolt is frozen or stripped out. Can you imagine what would happen it this case?

How could you fill back up so you could drive it again? Flip the 4runner on its roof and fill the diff from its drain bolt.

Naw, can't do that, but you can jack the passenger side, remove the the passenger side cv joint and fill the diff from axle output. With the passenger side higher then the drivers side, the oil fill should be close to the full line when gear oil is at the oil seal on axle output. Re-install CV halfshaft.

So this should get you going if you drained your diff and can't remove the fill bolt.

i gotta pull the cv out again today. its. leaking. i looked at the oil seal when i replaced and it looked fine, so i didnt replace. dumb move on my part. ALSO. since we are on the topic of fluid, cv's, stuck fill plugs. . . . the "dust shield" that is on the inboard portion of the CV that goes into the diff came loose and is chillin. whats best way to secure on the CV axle shaft?? i damaged the first one when i put it on the first time so i pulled the old on off the old CV and put on the new one. when i crawled under the 4runner yest aft work, i saw it was not seated anymore.

i would like this to be the LAST TIME i pull this crap apart. i wanna go fishing after work instead of working on my vehicle. :redbrick:

 

[Nelsonmd]

A solution for a drained diff and the fill bolt is frozen or stripped out. Can you imagine what would happen it this case?

How could you fill back up so you could drive it again? Flip the 4runner on its roof and fill the diff from its drain bolt.

Naw, can't do that, but you can jack the passenger side, remove the the passenger side cv joint and fill the diff from axle output. With the passenger side higher then the drivers side, the oil fill should be close to the full line when gear oil is at the oil seal on axle output. Re-install CV halfshaft.

So this should get you going if you drained your diff and can't remove the fill bolt.

Or you could fill from the breather plug...