The LC250 is a 4 Cylinder 4Runner

[Jetboy]

Is there any significance to the 8.2” vs the 9.5” rear axle? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a rear axle breaking and I can’t imagine Toyota skimped out on the LC250.

I don't really know. The 8.2 has been pretty robust on the last Gen. I've only seen one break and that was the aftermarket gears. It's probably stronger than the 80 series and prior 9.5s. One lc250 on 40s has already done some pretty challenging stuff including the Rubicon without breaking. So I'd say it's pretty strong. Good enough for most.

 

[W4632018]

The old 8" rear axles broke all the time once you started modifying and putting on larger tires. The 8.2 in the 150 was fine... with <300ft lbs, with >400? Maybe, depending on much they have de-tuned torque output at low speeds.

GX550 has 9.5, LC250 has 8.2. I would say they skimped on the LC250 in this, and numerous other areas.

Did the 8” break under extreme off road conditions assuming stock tire size and payload within limits?

 

[Jetboy]

Did the 8” break under extreme off road conditions assuming stock tire size and payload within limits?

I think so. The FJ Cruiser broke pretty regularly IIRC in stock form. The 8.2 is only marginally larger in diameter, but a huge increase in pinion strength and it reduces the deflection of the pinion that tends to be the main failure mode. Here's a pic of an 8.2 pinion I put next to an 8" pinion with the primary bearing on. Not sure why my second one is ending up 90* off. But you get the idea.

The carriers are very similar. You can see the 8.2 on the right has a more robust carrier with larger bearings. But it's not a huge difference.

EDIT: Needs a correction - the image below is NOT an 8.2 That is an 8" reverse clamshell. Only the pinions above are 8" vs 8.2. It's been a few years since I took these. But the carrier below is not an e-locker and I never owned an non-elocker 8.2 so that must be the 8" front diff. I don't remember if I took a pic side by side of the 8.2 carrier since it was an E-locker it would be hard to directly compare. The elocker has a much larger bearing on the slide collar side than a typical non-elocker diff in either the 8.2 or the 8". But also - the old 8.2 is not the same as the new one at least in the e-locker version. New one uses an electromagnet like the Eaton style. Old one was a dog clutch like they were in prior versions.

 

[Specialeyes]

Cue the Radiohead

 

[MaxJr]

Still nothing that tells me they wont be IDENTICAL underneath????

Yes, the higher end 6th gen 4Runner and the LC are the same base vehicles with different looks and some feature differences. Prices are the same at equivalent trim level.

The New Tacoma also shares a lot with the two SUVs.

Doug Demuro drove both on the same day and does a comparison.