Front axle evaulation for FAQ

[Bruneti]

landtank, thanks for the write up, that is exactly what I needed, very useful info.

I'll second that!!! I just diagnosed my vibration and retorqued my front wheel bearings. New bearings definitely need to be re-torqued after a couple thousand miles.

 

[Buckru]

Rick,

I do the 12/6 and 9/3 test but never heard of the trunion bearing test. Question, what exactly am I looking/feeling for when lifting the lever? If it fails the test I am assuming it means excessive play and both bearings and races would need to be replaced.

Buck Buchanan

 

[landtank]

lifting the lever and one hand on the rim, you are feeling for movement or clicking. The trunions aren't a place were you typically see play. If you do see play then you need to check out those bearings as well as the lower control arms and the upper pin assembly.

If you do feel play, the first thing I'd check is the knuckle studs as they have been known to loosen over time.

 

[tdfox]

thanks

Anytime you know-it-all-guys take the time to post such step by step detail pics you deserve some kind of reward from us local idiots!
Thanks a Bunch!!!
Travis

 

[MoGas]

What kind of time and money am I looking at to just open it up, clean stuff, look at it, grease it, and put it back together? And again, what kind of grease do I need to use?

Your favorite brand of wheel bearing grease (I use Mobil 1) for the wheel bearings and your favorite flavor Moly grease for the birfs and spindle (I use Valvoline Synthetic)

Dave

 

[peepers]

hi... just drove from boston to connecticut... upon arrival while slowing down on the hghway ramp, i axperienced some severe scare-the-s***-out-of the fiance and dog death wobble.

i remember my d-side wheel bearings were loose in the past so i jacked it up this morning and followed landtanks instructions for axle eval. well, its loose again... a slight wobble when i do the 12 & 6 o'clock wobble. the local toyo dealerships have nothing for me.

my quesiton is, do i tear it down and try to tighten stuff up or just drive it the 90 miles home and attack it next weekend? i need to do a proper rebuild with all new bearings anyway.

it did NOT wobble while driving, it was a bit wandering, like the bad castor feeling... but it did not wobble while driving.

 

[Beowulf]

my quesiton is, do i tear it down and try to tighten stuff up or just drive it the 90 miles home and attack it next weekend?

It's not a big job but you'll need the hub socket and a torque wrench. You could probably get a shop to do it for you for less than $100 if you don't have the time or tools with you.

-B-

 

[landtank]

I'm surprised it loosened up.

Your on the road so proper tools are going to be tough to locate but this really should be addressed before the return trip.

You'll need:

a hammer
blade screw driver
a 12mm box wrench

loosen the nuts that hold the flange in place

jack up the axle but leave the tire on.

knock off the cap with the hammer and screw driver

remove the c-clip with the screw driver

remove the nuts and cone washers

remove the drive flange

using the hammer and screwdriver bang back the locking tab

remove the outer nut, if it's on tightly use the screwdriver on the edge of the
nut and hammer it loose.

remove the locking washer

using the screwdriver and hammer tap the nut around to snug up the nut and take the play out of the bearing.

flatten out the locking washer and install

install outer nut and use same method above to tighten nut

bend over the locking tabs with the screwdriver

replace flange with cone washers and nuts

replace c-clip

replace cap


While I wouldn't recommend this as a service procedure, it's definitely a road side repair and better than nothing.

 

[peepers]

thanks guys!

 

[teejnut]

I doubt it, you just need a tub of grease and a torque wrench if you follow my preload technique.

What's your preload technique? I just noticed I have a little play on my wheel bearings. I rebuilt the front axle a few months ago with new bearings and tried the spring load technique on the FSM and it seems like it just gets loose after awhile...

 

[landtank]

What's your preload technique? I just noticed I have a little play on my wheel bearings. I rebuilt the front axle a few months ago with new bearings and tried the spring load technique on the FSM and it seems like it just gets loose after awhile...

I basically torque the inner nut to 10 ftlbs, spin the wheel a few turns in both directions and then re torque the nut again to 10 ftlbs. I repeat this until after the spinning the nut stays at 10 ftlbs. Then I install the tabbed washer, make sure it is as flat as possible if not using a new one, and outer nut. Torque the outer nut to 47 ftlbs and bend over the tabs to lock each nut in place. If you have replaced a bearing make sure the race is fully seated. If it isn't then everything will loosen over time.

 

[teejnut]

I basically torque the inner nut to 10 ftlbs, spin the wheel a few turns in both directions and then re torque the nut again to 10 ftlbs. I repeat this until after the spinning the nut stays at 10 ftlbs. Then I install the tabbed washer, make sure it is as flat as possible if not using a new one, and outer nut. Torque the outer nut to 47 ftlbs and bend over the tabs to lock each nut in place. If you have replaced a bearing make sure the race is fully seated. If it isn't then everything will loosen over time.

Thanks! My driver side seems fine still. I'll readjust my passenger side with your method and if it gets loose again i'll recheck the races, but I'm pretty sure I double-checked last time already...

 

[ThePookieBear]

Perfect. This is what I have been fighting gremlins with. Thanks landtank. I tightened my nuts on the driver side a few months ago. (Previous owner/mechanic didn't bend the tabs on the lock washer so....inner nut wandered out to grind away on the drive flange.) Anyway, got two new nuts from the toyota dealership, but was paranoid about getting it too tight. Evidently didn't get it tight enough because it loosened up slightly. Well i think it did. So slightly I can't tell for sure, but I am going to tear into it again and do it like you did. Thanks for writing it up. I was actually drawn to your method because someone was seemingly giving you grief over it being hard for newbs to understand, but you have written it up wonderfully. And you know your stuff. Thanks again.

 

[thirdmatt01]

hi
i dont suppse you have the torque specs and preload instructions

 

[bruff]

hi
i dont suppse you have the torque specs and preload instructions

I believe it is all in the FAQ writeup on the front axle job or in your FSM (if you don't have one yet, order one up). I am no mechanic but between the FAQ write-up and the FSM my last front axle service went off without a hitch.

P.S. Holy thread revival!

 

[Scalci]

Landtank thx, I am going to use this to test mine. I have quite a bit of play on my steering, I re-did my front wheel bearings a while back, they were bad. Next will be the steering play.

 

[sunrk]

When checking for play in the trunion bearings; which way am I moving the rod?

Ok based on the pics, I am going to assume that what are called 'trunion' bearings are the same as what are called 'kingpin' bearings here in Oz land?

If everything else checks out fine but there is evidence of play in those trunion aka kingpin bearings, can they be replaced on their own or does it require the hubs to be pulled apart to get at them for proper attention?

Very good guide to check out the state of the steering linkage though. So well done to the OP!

Craig.

 

[Ozdunc]

Yep, they're the kingpin bearings.

And it does require a full strip down to do them, so if you're doing a full strip down you might as well change them at the same time.

 

[danman78]

I took my truck to redline cruisers and they did a front wheel bearing job and birf rebuild but they did not have any trunions in stock so the skipped them... I was getting ready to put the trunions in when I noticed a lot of play in the front passenger side wheel. is it possible the bearing has gone bad due to the bad trunions or is that play coming from the trunions possibly

 

[livelarg]

I am needing to check front end before a july trip to Moab and through Colorado. I read the entire thread, but I am not seeing any of the pics. Is it my issue, or are they not up? How can I see them?

Thanks for all your work.
Kent