Wheelers Diff Drop with TRD Pro skid plate - not fitting?

East Coast Gear Supply sells a needle bearing replacement, removal tool and seals. But wait till yours fails 1st.

 

Google is your friend:
https://eastcoastgearsupply.com/i-8536125-toyota-8-clamshell-bushing-eliminates-needle-bearing.html
https://www.lowrangeoffroad.com/toy...g-by-east-coast-gear-supply-t8cs-bushing.html

There's some hearsay evidence that 2018+ trucks have an improved needle bearing that isn't as prone to rumble. Mine is lifted 2.7" in the front two years ago and hasn't needed the bushing. Only thing I've done is the CV boot slide mod with a couple of hose clamps.

 

Wait till it fails first? You really want one of those rollers breaking apart and going into the diff?

 

I mean, failure usually starts with a mild vibration, not a catastrophic explosion.

 

I mean, i guess. But why rip apart the front end twice if you can take care of it all at once? And stressing something with a design flaw; not something I would roll the dice with.

My bushing was done when I lifted. And I made sure the bearing was intact upon removing to be sure there was no metal slinging around in the front diff.

 

I have about 2" of lift up front and 10k on the ODO (MY '20), OEM bearing is still fine. I could have done it when I installed the lift, but I don't like fixing things are aren't broken yet. To each their own though!

 

Lifted at 100k. Theres our difference. Again, wasnt going to mess around with stressing something designed poorly. Let alone with 100k miles.

 

Thanks for the great info!! I had read the thread on that "boot slide" mod and thought it was a great idea. I've got a couple hundred miles on the lift now and have not noted any vibrations, so I guess I will be removing my diff drop spacers and use them as paper weights unless a vibration is noted after removal.
On a different subject, I seem to notice a slight hesitation starting from a complete stop that I don't recall noting prior to my lift install. Anything to do with the lift??

 

Any link to an instance of this? People change to the bushing due to noise/vibration. Haven't seen a case of the needle bearing mechanically failing.

 

https://***************/2020/04/25/clamshell-bushing-stop-vibrations-after-lifting-3rd-gen-tacoma/



Not mine. Also not the only instance I have heard of.

edit. Looks like Tacomaworld blocks links from this domain.

 

Yes, so I ended up just getting longer bolts myself at a hardware store and used small vinyl spacers and a couple washers - it didn't take much to make it work so that now I can slide some cardstock paper between the diffdrop and the skidplate. . I am really happy with it and, like you, just had too many Toyota mechanics tell me that it was a good thing to have (and they did say repeatedly that having it made any warranty issues easier to resolve). Just some trial and error, but I think total it cost me maybe $10 (and that was getting some different sized spacers and bolts I ended up not needing). Good luck!

 

Not from the article author either. That whole article is full of stock photos of unknown source. No way to verify if that picture even came from a Tacoma. TW blocks the Trail Tacoma domain probably because the articles are advertisements poorly disguised as how-to articles.

 

Another instance..

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/front-diff-vibes-ecgs-bushing-fix.464941/#post-13993919

 

A few posts down, other users confirmed that damage is caused by the ECGS removal tool: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/front-diff-vibes-ecgs-bushing-fix.464941/page-2#post-14013911

Did you fish out the shards when you installed your bushing?

 

Guess i met my match. You win. I thought it was a thing. And nope, it was one piece all together.

 

I might not be Johnny on the spot but I'm persistent. Couple posts down from the one you linked.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/front-diff-vibes-ecgs-bushing-fix.464941/page-2#post-14032222

Also from one of the four runner forums (its relative because of the same design between the runner and tacoma).