Step by step removal and installation of e-locker 3rd member

I would like to learn more about this... Is the Marlin Crawler 8.4/arb like what you did? (and - is that a simple swap?)

 

Not sure what Marlin offers. I used a stock Tacoma 8.4 housing - every Tacoma of that era had a 8.4 with the exception of the TRD 'Off-Road' models. I bought an ARB from some company - maybe 4WP. That worked fine for a long time. Last year I saw that the stock rear housing was bent so I replaced it with this:

 

Whut is that? And - sorry for the stupid question, but when you did the 8.4 swap, was that a stock 8.4 3rd member and rear housing?

 

Is 42181-60050 still the correct part number for a 2nd gen 8" e-locker gasket? Toyota only lists its compatibility for 1st gens and the only other gasket I can find for 2nd gens (42181-60130) doesn't appear to be for e-lockers.

 

Bump for my watched threads

 

At the top of the threads there is a "watch thread" clicky.

 

Thanks! I already watch the thread it was just way back on my list so I wanted to bump it to the first page for easy reference while I pull out my diff.

 

Nice write up,

does this write up work the same for the 1st gen on the brake lines if you remove the main bolts and ebrake bracket there’s enough slack to pull the axles out the 3” needed? Don’t want to bleed the system if possible.
And what’s the correct torque for the 1st gen bolts?

 

Ended having the dealership installing the 3rd member, didn’t have the time

 

Stupid question. Would these steps coincide with someone wanting to install a oem e-locker to their Tacoma. Mine is a prerunner and didn't come with it but have been wanting to add one.

Would the housing be different with what is on the truck now? I've come across a few Tacoma part outs and see this as a good learning experience to tinkering with my truck and an inexpensive way of adding a e-locker if I can get the wiring harness with it and switch. Not sure if there's anything else I'd need. ECU? Swapping gears?

Any pros or cons to going this route?

much appreciated.

 

The elocker axle is specific to that 3rd member.
You can’t put an elcoker into a non elocker axle.
You need to swap the complete axle,
There are two different versions that are related to the ebake setup.
You can get the stand alone wire harness from low range and by-pass the ECU

 

Is there any particular brand of gears that are better than others when replacing the ring/pinion?

I've got a 2010 PreRunner with 81k miles (TRD OR with e-locker) that's developed a bit of a "howl" in the rear end under power at highway speeds. Because of how few miles I drive, I've gotten a bit lazy about swapping the oil in the rear diff; kind of hoping that just a drain and fill might clear up the noise if it's low on oil, but I'm shopping new gears just in case it new oil doesn't clear it up. This'll be the 3rd time I've changed the diff oil in the truck (switched to synthetic at about 10k, then did a drain and fill for new oil at around 40k, and should have got new oil around maybe 60k as part of inspection after an accident but can't be sure that it actually happened since the insurance shop was a little shady and more than a little incompetent). Not having any performance or feel issues, just the howl under power on the highway.

Also, any idea how many hours of labor is reasonable for a gear replacement if I have to go to a (non dealership) mechanic to get the work done?

 

Uncertain about this, but 2 diff oil changes in the first 80K miles is probably 2 more than a goodly number of Tacos ever get. Is your diff subject to any especially harsh conditions like frequent heavy towing? Has it ever been fully submerged in water, particularly when already hot from wheeling etc?

 

I towed a light trailer from Phoenix to LA once, and wheel it occasionally. I do have the breather relocated as well.

Only possible other thing that's unusual really is the accident where I got t-boned into the rear pass side quarter panel with some of the impact into the wheel. Happened in a parking lot, but the woman who hit me might have been going 15-20 mph; all repairs were rn through a body shop but they claim to have taken it to a nearby Ford dealer to get the rear end checked out mechanically (but they also fucked up getting the replacement rock slider because the guy running the operation doesn't know the difference between wall-to-wall and on-center measurement for the spacing of multiple tubes). I don't trust the shop to have told me the truth, but it's been 5-6 years and 25k miles (at least) since the accident.

I do drive the truck "cold" a lot since I live 2 miles from work, but I'd expect that to be more about issue for the engine than the rear end.

 

The low-speed accident seems like a possible cause. Maybe the hit tweaked either the axle, or the axle housing, very slightly. Not enough to be visually noticeable but maybe a tenth of an inch off-axis, enough to throw one of the diff gears very slightly out of its proper relative position to others, leading to a greatly-increased wear rate & now this howling.

 

Gonna bump this thread and say thanks to MonkeyProof for the information. I'll be using this guide to install a re-geared diffs from ECGS.

Question I couldn't find elsewhere:
Rear looks straightforward and in this thread was a link to the ECGS writeup on the front diff removal/install on TTORA back in the day. In that thread, they loosen the 4 external torx bolts of the ADD tube to help with removal for some reason.

Is doing that necessary? I'd rather not break the factory red FIPG seal if I don't have to.

 

I guess that by not removing the tube, you would have more to wiggle out

 

After re-reading, I think he was breaking the external torx loose because it's easier when mounted to something rather than trying to loosen them on the bench with the diff just squirming around. I'm going to keep the ADD in place for now so will skip this step but haven't done it yet so will see when I get there. Diff should be back from ECGS this time next week.