Differential questions

I have an 09 Tacoma 4x4 with the 4 cyl and the 5 speed...

... and a couple months ago I drove it up a river with out doing the diff breather mod...

... I know, I know

And now the rear diff is making sexy noise!

So my question is: will installing a Detroit trutrac fix this?

Or does water in the diff trash more than that?

 

How long did you drive it after going through the water before changing the fluids?

 

And I bet it's still not changed.

 

Short answer is no. The Detroit tru-trac (or any add in locker for that matter) does not come with a new ring and pinion. Which is probably making all that noise. Drain it and refill it, see if it goes away. If not, you might want a new set of gears to go with that locker (re-gear for 35's??)

 

So it only trashes the ring and pinion?

 

Everything that requires lubricating,bearings,gears,etc.

 

Was the rear diff underwater for a prolonged period of time? All the way completely covered? By the looks of that pic I'd be surprised if you got any water in it at all. Maybe brakes are making the noise?

 

There is a factory breather tube that comes up pretty high. Unless you were in water up to your headlights there isn't much need to change anything.

 

I thought the factory breather was just on the top of the housing essentially?

 

It wasn’t that deep in the picture- but the rest was pretty deep. It only makes noise when I’m on the gas

 

Should I be worried about the front diff? I think I’ll have the fluids changed in both in the morning

 

This was May 17- I’ve probably drove 5000 miles

 

Noise could be coming from a failing ujoint or carrier bearing. Obviously doing a diff service is still a really good idea to be on the safe side.

 

The front diff and T-case have factory elevated breathers.

 

This. It’s the rear diff that people do the breather mod for.

 

Sounds like you're just looking for a reason to pull the carrier and send to ECGS for a rebuild with a Trutrac. Sounds like a great idea.