Is this normal? Steering Knuckle (Pics)

[TheLoyale]

The breathers are indeed still there and not clogged, this truck came from Missouri, so who knows what its been through (Could have been in a flood for all I know)

Good to know on the Valvoline products, as that is basically all I can find in the parts stores (Carquest, NAPA) unless I go with house brand (But they only carrie 85w-140

It would been nice if these Axles had a removable Cover Vs. removing the whole Pinion housing. Then I could check the internals and wipe out more dirt if any.

 

[Tools R Us]

... The best I could find only is 3% Moly (Is that enough?) I then pumped each Knuckle with grease until I thought it was enough, Turned the hubs left and right, then checked, I now have about 3" of grease on the stick. Does this right to anyone?

3% moly is fine. When they are way low, it is difficult to judge fill amount, best to put a few miles on it (100 or so) then check/fill, repeat until you are happy with the level. When first filled the look of the outside of the ball wont change. It takes some driving for the grease to work between the knuckle and balls, etc. How many tubes did you put in?

... Also for future reference, I am running 75w-90 Hypoid. The owners manual says 85w-90 Hypoid, but I can not find that. Is this ok? ...

75W-90 is fine. In the "good old days" of straight weight it was easy, 90W. Now the first number isn't as important, the "90" is the most important. Depending on how it is refined/blended will determine the viscosity range. Better oils typically have a wider range, it is a good thing, allows better flow, lubrication when cold.

 

[TheLoyale]

Ok, I was thinking it'll take a few miles to work its way around. I used like 3/4 of one tube between the two knuckles. Ball park, about how many tubes does it take?

Ah, the days of Straight weight oils. Something my Dad had the pleasure of experiencing lol.

Good to know, I just wasn't sure if Toyota was strict as to what viscosity range you can run. Older Subarus, you can run pretty much whatever you want.

Again, thanks to everyone for the clarifications and info. Really does help!

-Tom

3% moly is fine. When they are way low, it is difficult to judge fill amount, best to put a few miles on it (100 or so) then check/fill, repeat until you are happy with the level. When first filled the look of the outside of the ball wont change. It takes some driving for the grease to work between the knuckle and balls, etc. How many tubes did you put in?



75W-90 is fine. In the "good old days" of straight weight it was easy, 90W. Now the first number isn't as important, the "90" is the most important. Depending on how it is refined/blended will determine the viscosity range. Better oils typically have a wider range, it is a good thing, allows better flow, lubrication when cold.

 

[Tools R Us]

Ok, I was thinking it'll take a few miles to work its way around. I used like 3/4 of one tube between the two knuckles. Ball park, about how many tubes does it take? ...

It's impossible to see it over the net, but if I had to guess, would say that you are still at least a half tube low in each side?

A hint to help with guessing how much you are using out of the gun: Most have a loading rod, used to pull back the piston to load a new tube into the gun. If you pull it out until it touches the piston, then pump grease, it will be pulled in with each pump, can be used as a gauge, showing about how much is used/left.

 

[TheLoyale]

It's impossible to see it over the net, but if I had to guess, would say that you are still at least a half tube low in each side?

A hint to help with guessing how much you are using out of the gun: Most have a loading rod, used to pull back the piston to load a new tube into the gun. If you pull it out until it touches the piston, then pump grease, it will be pulled in with each pump, can be used as a gauge, showing about how much is used/left.

Exactly, thats the only way I knew how much I used so far.

So lets say both sides where down to almost no grease, would 3/4 of a tube per side be close to a safe amount (Give or take) I just don't want to end up over filling it, don't want to damage any seals if they are still ok at the moment.

I'll drive it around some and then check it again, add as needed.

Just need it to last till spring so I don't freeze mah nuggets off, I would be more then happy to tear it apart in 50 deg.F weather Either way, I still have the Legacy to drive all winter if needed while my clean Loyale sits in the garage away from the salt.

 

[jeffro109]

its a good start, I think I added about 1.5 tubes per side when I first got mine over the course of several months, but some of it went into the diff fluid I am sure. I put off the axle service for several months, just watch the diff fluid (gets really thick with the grease) and grease levels, as long as you don't have bad noises coming from anything in there. Get some cheap diff fluid and change it out, that should not take so long that you get frostbite.

 

[tirewater]

I ended up using a full tube per side when I recently did my axle service. I'll probably be adding more...

If you've serviced your bearings, it's not that much more work to remove the spindle and take a look at the birfields. If you leave out servicing the knuckle, everything can be done fairly quickly.