Diff swap

Howdy,

Anyone on here ever swap out there 3rd member and front clamshell on a 2nd gen Tacoma 4x4?
I just picked up a 2011 Regular cab 4x4 5spd with the 4banger and I’m getting it re-geared by east coast gear supply and they handle the gear swap n all that, then ship you the diffs, then basically all you gotta do is swap out the old, and swap in the new.

I’m kinda limited on tools n space , so if anyone has experience in doing this and is down to lend a hand, and show me the ropes I’d really appreciate it. Can kick you down some cash and provide beer of course! Im in kitsap county btw.

Please lmk. Thanks!

 

I did this same swap a couple of years ago with a buddy. Pretty straight forward. Unfortunately I am unable to help but ECGS has a good write up on removing the front clamshell and a video on removing the rear 3rd member.
https://eastcoastgearsupply.com/p-23663-techarticles.html

There's a lot of good information on the forum here as well; like this one.
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...d-installation-of-e-locker-3rd-member.193828/

Doesn't require much in the way of special tools. You'll need the 35mm socket for the front axle nuts. Getting the front clamshell in and out with the ADD tube attached is a bit of a jigsaw puzzle and you have to be careful to not damage the breather.

Having someone to help is definitely nice but familiarizing yourself with the process is good and might make you feel better about doing it, with or without someone's help.

 

You don’t have to take the 35mm nut off the CV. Take off the brake caliper, remove the speed sensor and wiring. Then un bolt the bottom two bolts on the spindle and it will swing out of the way enough when you pop the Cvs out with a pry bar to pull the diff and stab it back in. You will need a 10mm or 12mm Allen to remove the stud from the back mount on the front diff and remove the fill and drain plugs. You will need a buddy to put it back up and in. It’s a bastard. The rear is pretty easy the only special tool you will need is a good 10mm line wrench to pop the brake line off the wheel cylinder. Watch a couple YouTube videos on the front diff and watch the angle the front diff goes in it’s kinda a hook shot.

 

Autozone and other parts stores loan axle nut sockets for free - no need to buy one if you don’t have one. Then again it makes sense to get one if you plan on wheeling hard enough to break an axle.

 

Agreed, you will want to have the 35mm socket regardless if you're going to have one of these trucks. Becoming adept at removing the CV will pay dividends.

I was able to do the rear without disconnecting the brakes, per the thread I linked. It didn't necessarily feel great lol but you can just get away with it if you're really trying to avoid having to bleed the brakes when you're done.

 

This is exactly what i did too. In the rear i was able to unbolt the hard brake lines from the axle and carefully pull the axle shafts out far enough to get the diff out without having to undo the brake lines and bleed brakes after. If you have ATRAC the brakes practically bleed themselves though which is nice.