Back in late May I switched to Nitro 4.88 gears as well as 35" tires and new 8x16 wheels. Moab 4X4 did the swap. Right away I had problems: gear noise and diff was getting hot, not too hot to touch but you would not want to leave your hand there. Discussion with Moab 4X4 convinced me this was normal. I followed break-in proceedure to the letter driving as instructed and changing diff oil afert 500 miles, but gear noise kept getting more bothersome. In mid-June I had Flagstaff 4X4 check things out and they found a bad pinion bearing so replaced all bearings at that time, They also found the pinion bearing set too loose (more on that later). Things were a little quieter for a while but after Cruise-the-Corners in early October I had a new and bothersome noise. Again had Flag 4X4 check it out and they thought it was a bad pinion bearing again. Would have been a long wait so I limped back to Kentucky. Noise and feel was not good but I made it OK. Had Toyota check out things and they found it was the pinion bearing and it had way too much play. This probably caused the ring gear to partially shed two teeth. Ordered a new carrier assembly from East Coast Gear and just had it installed a few days ago. So far all seems OK. This is what I should have done in the beginning. Moab 4X4 is primarily a Jeep shop and I have since learned a Toyota differentiial is enough different that it MAY be the reason for all my trouble.
But something else came up while disscussing problems with East Coast Gear. There is a crush sleeve that sets pinion bearing clearance and tooth contact. If the yoke hits a riock hard enough it can further crush the sleeve allowing too much play. This may have happened in both cases. However there is a fix: East Coast Gear offfers a solid spacer that replaces the crush sleeve. It's only a $25 addition but definitly recomended.
This has been a very costly lesson!
Alan
But something else came up while disscussing problems with East Coast Gear. There is a crush sleeve that sets pinion bearing clearance and tooth contact. If the yoke hits a riock hard enough it can further crush the sleeve allowing too much play. This may have happened in both cases. However there is a fix: East Coast Gear offfers a solid spacer that replaces the crush sleeve. It's only a $25 addition but definitly recomended.
This has been a very costly lesson!
Alan
