front differential side bearing replacement.. done!

ywen, that's the million dollar question. But if the bearing is causing a vibe, replacing it then made the vibe go away, and you looked that the removed problematic bearing and didn't see/feel anything wrong with it, then you're in the same boat. Why replace the bearing if it looks/feel okay? Maybe it was your CV Axle all along, and not the bearing, causing the vibe? The real decision maker would be: Do you want to replace one or the other discovering later than either the opposite part or both were causing the vibe...only to have to tear things apart a second time? This last question would be why I would change both if it were me (and it's a lesson learned for me too).

 

So both ywen's and moose's comment lead me to two things. When one replaces a wheel beaing (that may show no signs of wear with no load) with a new one you get both races and the rollers/balls. I think there is more to this then I had though. Nearly non-detectable wear might ne to much.

From experience with GM vehicles there cv shafts have a crome vanadium hardened type finish on the surface in question. Even the slightest sign of wear is to much. The problem is that they at cheap for those vehicles.

At this point I would say that they should only be replaced as a set. So if anyone has any expreience with replacements I'm interested. The insde part of the halfshaft is over $300 from Toyota I believe.

I see we've moved threads.

 

I wasn't talking wheel bearings, strictly the needle roller bearing issue.

And, yes, it's too bad we've got two threads going where we're crossing back and forth. I would have liked to see all this joined into Krookz's thread.

 

Dang, I just got caught up on the other thread... I somehow must have accidentally un-subscribed, because a lot has gone on since I posted in it back in Dec. At that point we all had serious doubts that it was possible to swap the bearing without cracking open the diff case. Didn't realize that several people now have replaced the bearings (albeit with mixed success).

Huh.

Metallikatz, sorry I doubted your claim in my prior post.

If anyone else is planning on doing this bearing replacement procedure, a video of the key parts of the procedure would be extremely helpful, not only to see how to do it, but also to more fully understand the nature of the problem. I still am trying to wrap my head around exactly what happens inside the diff bearing when the CV angle is increased due to a lift. Does the output shaft just apply a torsional load on the bearing due to the axle angle relative to the output shaft?

 

I've uploaded a WAV file of the rumble noise in my truck

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2n...-found-questions-about-front-diff-now-17.html

 

Sorry if I made that unclear, I was just using a wheel beaing as an example. Bother races are always replaced. I work with railroad bearing defect detection and same goes for them, if cup is defective cone is replaced as well.

 

I work for a large crane company and we have some wheels where the inner race is the shaft. The needle bearing we are talking about is only an outer race and rollers the inner race is the shaft that goes inside. we had an issue with bearing failure and the final analysis was that the inner race (our shaft) was the wrong hardness for the rollers and was failing the bearings. we made our shafts harder (larger brinell number) and the failure rate disappeared. so i guess i am wondering if the shaft might be causing this bearing to fail since we have some proof that it is failing before a lift is even installed. Just my thoughts on this troubling issue.

 

damn I've just been going by the Tundra TSB where they recommended only to replace the shaft when it exhibits unusual wear pattern, so I was under the assumption that only a subset of the cases requires replacing both shaft and bearing.

 

Right on man!

By the looks of my shaft when I removed it I think this is a possiblity. Alot of guys say 1/8" to 1/4" slop is okay. I think its a must to say no beaing should have 1/4" of slop in it between races unless they where designed that way for a special purpose. I'm thinking the shaft that is to soft wears even enough not to detect the wear.

 

anyone have an old shaft that they could could get tested for brinell hardness? I am going to buy the replacement bearing from toyota and have my bearing supplier source it. Once i can get the actual bearing number (not the toyota part number) i can get he spec sheet for the bearing and figure out what the shaft od (outside diameter) needs to be and what surface finish and hardness are required. I would really like to resolve this or at least figure out why its happening so i can decide if i keep my lifted truck or sell it for soemthing else. I had a lifted titan before this and after 100000 kms not even a hint of a problem. my tacoma has 10000 kms and feels like its falling apart.

 

i have this noise and my 2010 only has 12k miles on it, 3 inch lift and a diff drop also. i'll be sad if the stealership doesnt cover it but they should right?

i bought mine in socal and drove it up to washington where i am stationed

 

It is sad to read all about all this "slop/play" on that shaft. I looked at my yesterday and was able to wiggle that sucker quite a bit. I was shocked and could not believe it. I am a shade tree mechanic who those maintenance for fun on the family Yotas but I know all this play is piss poor grade with design.

Thankfully, because of this issue, I've decided not to lift my truck. Not ever by a mere 3 inches. It will stay stock until it dies or the diesel Tundra comes out and then I will trade it.

 

If I were you, I take it to the MWR DIY shop and take that lift off. The thieves will flat out tell you no go if you pull up with it. Do not take a chance.

Stay safe brother.

 

Well the dealer sells the exact same lift kit that i currently have installed. it wouldnt make sense to sell a product, but blame the issue on the exact product the company is selling.

i guess some things just make too much sense to do

 

Are the driver and passenger side bearings the same? I've had enough of this noise/vibe. Going to start getting everything ready to change both bearings, seals, and shafts.

 

No they should not be the same. From what i remember, the passenger side bearing is actually a much bigger roller bearing, not a needle bearing. I cant imagine that being the cause. But definitely look into your driver side one!

 

look at the exploded diagram in the FSM

 

After extensive searching and researching, I have ordered the parts. I replaced wheel bearings at 80,000. They were shot. Now at 83,000, I am going to do the diff/axle needle bearing replacement. Hopefully within the next few weeks. My vibe/grind is now really bad. And the play in the axle at the diff is real bad. I'll try to remember to take pics and document it. I am not planning on replacing the axle, but if it is damaged I will do with a cardone.

FYI, I wrote Toyota corporate about this issue. Here is the "canned" reply

==========
We apologize for the concerns regarding your 2005 Tacoma.

We do not show a Special Service Campaign or recall for the conditions you described, and thus do not have specific insight to provide. If you have not done so already, we recommend you contact the Customer Relations Manager at your local Toyota dealership, www.toyota.com/dealers, to help assure everything is done to properly diagnose and repair your Tacoma. If there is a dealership we can contact for you, please reply to this email with your contact information and dealership of choice.

Please be aware that the information you have provided is used in combination with warranty claims and other customer contacts to track trends with our vehicles. If in the future a Special Service Campaign (SSC) or recall is issued that would cover your specific concerns and you have already made repairs to the vehicle, Toyota would review your repairs for reimbursement at that time.

We again apologize for the concerns with your vehicle and for any further inconvenience or expense you may incur.
================

Not much help!

 

Well? How'd it go?

 

going to keep an eye on this thread, thanks for posting your experience with changing the bearing!