Did I destroy my rear axle bearings by carrying heavy load?

The dealer service department wanted $1000 just for the seal job and $1500 for the bearing job. Forget that.

 

While you are in there jackin' around with the seals......just go ahead to replace the bearings.

You're only talking about a little more work and a small expense adder.

Think about this....you go thru all this work to repair the rear brakes and replace the seals.....500 miles later the bearings go out. Now you need to do everything again. Effectively doubling your cost and time investment.

 

lol--I wouldn't set foot in that place again.

 

How many miles are on the truck?
I doubt that carrying 1300# for 50 miles twice would damage the bearings or seals. Sounds like it's just time & mileage for you to do the bearings, seals and brake pads.
I've had Tacoma & Tundra wheel bearings get noisy and want replacing at around 100k miles. Also the timing belt should be changed at 100k if it's never been done.

 

It’s not good on the bearing.
It can potentially wash the grease out of the bearing.
Like I say, I was at 70k when mine went.
I’m at 134k now. I didn’t change the bearings.

Sometimes I think I hear a noise from the same rear wheel.
Which just started recently, who knows?
I don’t always hear it, and it just started to get cold here at night.
I may be tire noise?

 

OP doesn’t have a belt.
I would leave the chain alone until you throw a code for the Crank/Cam Position.
Being an 06’ , I would drive it until it HAS to be fixed.
Depending on the build date, the Head Gaskets would be my concern over a Timing Chain.

 

Doing rear bearings would increase the time spent by 3-4x. A long tubular tool needs to be fabricated (or purchased from Toyota SST) to press the bearing on/off the axle shaft: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/2nd-gen-rear-axle-bearing-diy.246760/

 

80k miles because I don't drive it that much.

 

I have almost the same miles (80k) as yours when yours went. I'm going to change the seal and o-ring for now and see if that works.

If I have to do the bearing I guess I'll have to buy a Harbor Freight 20 ton press and generic SST.

 

Do the seal & o-ring, Hans. Hope it goes easily.

 

I just tore into it and have some good news and bad news.

Good news: It’s not the axle bearing or seal. The parts inside the brake drum were not even covered in any oil at all.

Bad news: I blew my Icon shock so that was the oil leak. The shock shaft is pitted in the lower half. So when I drove around with the heavy load of flooring, it was riding on the lower half. The pits must have destroyed the seal. The lower half of the shock shaft is not normally used because I usually don’t carry a heavy load. I have to send them in to Icon for rebuilding now.

Also the inner face of my tire is still sticky after cleaning off the oil. Simple Green, Meguiars tire cleaner, and Dawn dish soap didn’t remove the stickiness. Not sure what I can here.