replace rear diff. or entire rear end?

[Washington4R]

question for the group: apparently my rear differential is bad - metal shavings and water inside - so should i replace just the 3rd member (i assume this is just the rear diff.?) for $275 plus $225 labor, or the entire rear-end for $550 plus $250 labor?

any help would be much appreciated since i only know how to drive 4runners, not work on them!

thanks!

 

[lee]

if the axle is fine, id change the 3rd.

 

[Washington4R]

ok. got it. thanks, lee. do those prices sound about right? i called a couple other places and they said $550 for the whole rear differential.

 

[pat161]

Those prices sound very cheap, Toyota charged me $1,000 for the rear diff, plus $800 labor which they covered.

 

[Washington4R]

yeah i called the toyota dealer here in seattle and they wanted $1700 do it, so i called around and found a couple shops that said they put in the third member for $225 labor if i bought and brought in the third member. i found a couple used third members at salvage yards for around $550. found one for $475 with only 18,000 miles on it, but i have to bring in my old one as an exchange.

 

[pat161]

I'm sure you already know this, but if you buy used be very careful to find one with the same gear ratio. 3rd gens came with at least 4 different gear ratios, probably even more than that. The ones I know for sure are, 3.90, 4.10, 4.30 and 4.56, though the last set is not overly common and mostly found in 4 cylinders. There are probably higher ratios on 2wd and 4wd equipped w/ small tires.

 

[fourwd1]

Is the diff giving you any trouble?
Is it making noises?

If not I'd just drain and replace the gear oil and run it.
A few shavings doesn't mean its bad.
Some is just a byproduct of breaking in when new.

I ran for years with teeth broken off the pinion gear w/no problems.

Don't spend the $ unless you really need to.

 

[Washington4R]

it is making noises, it's making this kind of whiring/grinding noise. i haven't noticed any problems with the way it drives per se, other than the steering seems a little loose.

 

[Drgriff]

This is an old thread but I have a question for the group- what part of the rear end causes the whine? Is it the third member bearings, the third member gears or the ends of the axle shafts? If you have a worn out rear end like the original poster, will replacing just the third member fix the issue or if there was water in the fluid, would it be necessary to also change the axle shafts?

 

[T4R2014]

Usually pinion bearing. At the age these trucks are, I'm gonna just say it probably needs to whole package. Rebuilt third member, new wheel bearings on each side, and new axle seals.

 

[JohnMc]

Depends on the whine. Pinion bearings are more likely to make a sound people would describe as a whine. Ring and pinion gear issues are more of a howl. Axle bearings are often a rumble.

But for what it's worth, the axle bearings are not sharing grease/oil with the differential, they have their own grease packed into the beraing unit with their own seals keeping it in. The differential sits in an oil bath that has seals on the axles to stop it from getting out to where the axle bearings are.

That said, you have to pull the axles to replace the differential/3rd member anyhow, depending on how many miles you have it might be nice to jsut go ahead and replace the axle bearings and axle seals while you're doing it. instead of bolting 200, 250K mile parts back on.