Rear axle off center

9

 

do you have a lift?

 

Was it in an accident, or is this how it was from the factory? If no accidents, I would personally leave it alone, unless an alignment shows something else out of whack or you are having issues specifically related to it.

 

Without knowing what you've got going on as far as lift, mods, work that's been done etc. The first thing that comes to mind is loosen the U bolts and move the axle to the left ~.25". Maybe over simplified, maybe not.

 

Doesn’t exactly work like that. The center pins on the leaf springs fit into plates that are welded to the axle housing.

 

Because of how a live axle is set up, there is some tolerance of how much offset it can be from the front wheels.

If I recall my 4Runner was about an inch and a half shifted after I installed a 3 inch lift, I fixed the problem with an adjustable pan hard rod.

If OP is accurately measuring a quarter of an inch that’s well within tolerances.

 

A panhard bar is not applicable to a leaf sprung 3rd gen Tacoma. Your 4runner needed one due to having links and coils. That’s a completely different animal.

There is no built-in tolerance to allow the axle to shift left and right after loosening the U-bolts. It’s true that there is plenty of leeway to move the axle housing several inches in any direction due to the driveshaft having U-joints and a slip yolk, but the center pins on the leaf springs lock the housing into a given place in space. Any side to side movement can only come from leaf spring flex, bushing compression, and/or frame flex and is not permanent or adjustable except in the case of damage.

 

How are the gaps between the bed and the cab on each side of the truck?

From behind, does one side of the bed look noticeably higher than the other (does it have a lean or twist)?

Do your leaf spring hangers and rear shackles look symmetrical with each other when viewed from behind?

Are any of your leaves cracked? Look carefully along the entire length on each side of each spring, including behind the U-bolts.

Do all your leaf spring bushings and bolts front and rear look fine? The bolts all have a head and a nut and look like they go through the centers of the bushings?

If all those check out, inspect the frame rails under the bed for any ripples that might indicate a bend.

If everything checks out and the truck will take an alignmment, just drive it.

 

Can you add more detail about how you preformed your measurement?

 

Your tires will be fine if the truck takes an alignment. Fun fact: tires don’t wear perfectly evenly on independent front suspension anyway.

Check all the things I mentioned in post #8 and if there’s nothing severely amiss, don’t sweat it.

 

This commonly stated tire wear caused by misalignment concern, although partially true, is mostly FUD.

 

We are just trying to help you, but we can’t help you without your cooperation.

 

Have any pics of the leaves sitting on the axle?

 

The reason people are asking if your bed is out of alignment is because it is a possible indicator of whether your frame has been bent.

Your axle housing is not off-center due to any defect in itself, and there is no way to adjust it. Assuming you have measured correctly, you either have suspension or frame damage. Those are your options.

 

If the measurement differs by 1/4” then shifting 1/8” will recenter it. Moving it 1/4” will just switch the discrepancy from one side to the other. Hardly seems worth it.

 

Check each thing listed in post #8 and post pictures. And post pictures of your leaf springs.

 

Don’t smoke too much d00bie before your calculus test, it might make you think your integrals are off by 1/4 Pi

 

I just realized what RAS springs are. In addition to checking everything in post #8, check to see that the RAS are not broken, and that they are set up the same on both sides. If they are not, set them up symmetrically and re-measure your axle position. If they are set up symmetrically on both sides and your axle is still crooked, remove the RAS and remeasure.

If the RAS helped with your braking and steering issues, your shocks might be due for replacement, on top of whatever problem you have that’s making your axle crooked. How many miles are on the truck? How much weight do you carry? What other modifications do you have?

 

100% normal OP. Leave it alone and enjoy the truck. Nature of the beast with a live axle set up.

 

This right here ^^^. There is nothing wrong with it.