Lubricate Chassis, huh?

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karyins

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OK so every oil change at this local shop the invoice says: Lubricate Chassis. Didn't pay attention to this untill I found these maintenance items on the manual: Lubricate propeller shaft. Re-torque propeller shaft.

Google says the propeller shaft just means the driveshaft and to lubricate it on 4th gen 4runner there are 6 grease plugs where you pump some grease into.

So here's my question: In your experience do the mechanics really bother to add greases to the driveshaft?

May I add that my mechanic is a grumpy old man who doesn't seem to give a damn? LOL!
 
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karyins said:
OK so every oil change at this local shop the invoice says: Lubricate Chassis. Didn't pay attention to this untill I found these maintenance items on the manual: Lubricate propeller shaft. Re-torque propeller shaft.

Google says the propeller shaft just means the driveshaft and to lubricate it on 4th gen 4runner there are 6 grease plugs where you pump some grease into.

So here's my question: In your experience do the mechanics really bother to add greases to the driveshaft?

May I add that my mechanic is a grumpy old man who doesn't seem to give a damn? LOL!
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Your research is correct. Unless you are specifically requesting it and carefully examining the grease fittings after service, it is almost certain that your drive shaft joints are not being greased. I doubt there are a dozen grease guns between every Toyota service department in the country (half joking).
 
It's easy to do yourself. I just put a tarp on the concrete and slide under the vehicle without even raising it. Plenty of previous posts here to cover locations and grease types.
 
I do it myself once a year. A shop would most likely not perform this maintenance unless specifically requested. After buying used and performing this maintenance the first time I had to pump a significant amount of grease into the fittings... indicating the maintenance had been neglected in the past.
 
Alright I guess it's never lubed then. From what you said I guess most 4runners out there never get driveshaft lubed either?

Now a dumb question...Can I get by without doing it? The truck is 2004 SR5 4wd with only 51k miles and we are not putting much miles on it currently either.

If I do it, can I do it without jacking up the truck?
 
It'll get by with clunking noises after awhile. It literary takes all of seven minutes to be done for the year...no special tools, just a grease gun and grease...if it hasn't been done that you know of, as ben550 stated above, you too will most likely find yourself squeezing a lot into the fittings since it's unlikely it's been done in the past. It's important to do as this is your drive line. I believe there are 7 zerk-fittings you need to put the squeeze on. Good luck and do it once (a year) and do it right!
 
karyins said:
Alright I guess it's never lubed then. From what you said I guess most 4runners out there never get driveshaft lubed either?

Now a dumb question...Can I get by without doing it? The truck is 2004 SR5 4wd with only 51k miles and we are not putting much miles on it currently either.

If I do it, can I do it without jacking up the truck?
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Not sure why you would want to "get away" with not doing it. If you change your oil it is just an extra couple of steps and it WILL definitely make for a more pleasurable driving experience!

That prop shaft will take quite a few pumps, but that annoying driveshaft clunk at stops will disappear into a smooth stop and launch, You might not notice when it is gone but you will notice when it returns in a couple months, and then maybe you will take pleasure in keeping it lubed!
 
new jack got delivered yesterday and i was about to go out and do this for the first time right now. reviewing some pics before as i'm ALWAYS frightened of anything i haven't done before. here goes.......
 
No, you can not get away with skipping it unless you want to pay maintenance costs in the future. 4 of the 6 zerks fittings are for u-joints. The other 2 are for the slip yoke on the fron and rear driveshafts. Running them dry will cause premature wear out of the u-joints and clunking of the driveshafts. Also if you ever make a sudden/extreme stop, i.e. slam the brakes, the yokes will slide to the smallest position and lock up. Its not fun for a short bit until it releases. Don't be skeard, you can crawl under there and lube them up in just a few minutes. Every car owner should and be able to chane their own oil and lube fittings. It gives you a chance to look around under there for small leaks or torn cv boots where you otherwise might not get to.
 
bdubbin said:
These were the 2 most useful links for me:

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/maintenance-detailing/28414-07-v8-4x4-zerk-fitting-pics.html

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/56615-lubrication-underneath.html

Good luck!
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these links are exactly what anyone needs for this :party:

so i finally got enough daylight after work to get this done. so easy its not even funny. i lifted her up to get room to look around to see what i was doing. now thats its done once its no more than 10 minutes and done any other time.

the previous link posted mentioned about not over filling one of the slip yokes. i feel like i read opposing opinions on which one (front or back) and that overfilling would CAUSE the clunking. i do read late at night so maybe i'm confused. however, my clunking is gone (what a smoother ride, i've had the clunk since purchasing her in may) BUT i gave each slip 30 pumps (in my gun thats ~1.5 oz) without feeling a change in resistance. at 25 pumps i started noticing the shaft moving so i pretty much quit then.

how much of this is a concern if i overfilled? how can i tell? whats the potential damage? everything seems great and typically i just move on if thats the case but this is my baby now. need to protect her.
 
snowboardwcu said:
these links are exactly what anyone needs for this :party:

so i finally got enough daylight after work to get this done. so easy its not even funny. i lifted her up to get room to look around to see what i was doing. now thats its done once its no more than 10 minutes and done any other time.

the previous link posted mentioned about not over filling one of the slip yokes. i feel like i read opposing opinions on which one (front or back) and that overfilling would CAUSE the clunking. i do read late at night so maybe i'm confused. however, my clunking is gone (what a smoother ride, i've had the clunk since purchasing her in may) BUT i gave each slip 30 pumps (in my gun thats ~1.5 oz) without feeling a change in resistance. at 25 pumps i started noticing the shaft moving so i pretty much quit then.

how much of this is a concern if i overfilled? how can i tell? whats the potential damage? everything seems great and typically i just move on if thats the case but this is my baby now. need to protect her.
Click to expand...

Thats when I stopped filling mine, so far no issues. If you are really worried I believe you can just take off the fitting and any excess will just come out. It will be messy though.
 
I just put a tarp on the concrete and slide under the vehicle without even raising it.
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snowboardwcu said:
these links are exactly what anyone needs for this :party:
Click to expand...

Thanks for the links and this thread!

I didn't know about the lube zerks so I never did it on my old T4R.

On the new one I just bought, I took it in to have the truck checked over and have the wheels balanced (I guess you could call it a POST purchase inspection :D -- the truck was so clean that I knew it couldn't need much, so I just bought it!). While it was there, I had the shop do the lube for me. I think I'll just make sure that the chasis gets lubed every time I have the oil changed.

Thanks for the info! :bluejump:
 
Make sure you know how to take the grease gun off the zerks if it's your first time using it like me. Found a youtube video explaining it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3o0SQP-xGE

Basically you just tilt it to the side and pull on it while giving it a little twist force.

Anyway today I finally did this. I am pretty slim so I can get under the truck without raising it but the space down there is pretty limited. For the rear shaft I can slide in from the back under the truck. For the front shaft it's easier to go in from the driver side. I had to put on 4wd and move the car a little so the zerks on the front shaft will face driver side for easier access.

There are 6 zerks including 2 for slide yoke and 4 for u joints. After 1 or 2 pumps the old black grease started to squeeze out from the u joints but I kept going untill the fresh pink grease start to come out, which took 5 to 7 pumps for each zerk. It took 40 pumps for the rear shaft slide yoke to start to expand then I stopped. For the front slide yoke, even after 40 pumps it's still not expanding but I stopped anyway.

Result: the truck does not tilt front a little when braking, nor does it move a little anymore after I fully stopped, turned off the engine and released the brake pedal.

So It's worth it.
 
The entire purpose of the slip-yoke on the propeller shaft is to allow movement (expand/contract) when the suspension moves. If you pack it full of grease you're going to cause more harm then good. The proper way to ensure that it moves freely is to separate the two pieces and lube them individually. The zerk is there to add additional grease as needed. Pumping it full until it starts to push on the shaft is not a good thing. If you pack that shaft with too much grease it will not allow the shaft to contract as needed. Where would all that extra grease go? You don't want to hydro-lock / grease-lock that driveshaft.

My .02.
 
To OP..if he is a grumpy old man I am sure he is well aware of greasing driveshaft ujoints. Nothing new to him, and I will bet he did grease them.
 
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