What drivetrain upgrades do I need?

[freeone56]

I just bought my first Toyota 4WD. It's a 99 TRD SR5 EXtended cab V6 5 spd with the Front ADD and rear E-locker(think it's a 410 ratio). The truck runs good but has 270,000 miles on it. I'm not planning on extreme crawling, just some easy 4 wheeling and maybe hauling around work tools and camping gear. Would like to tow a little utility trailer also. There is what seems to be a lot of free play in the trany/transfer case/rear end. I hear some clinks that are typical of worn u-joints, but they all seem to feel tight(will take off the driveline to verify ujoints). Fluid levels are all where they should be (with Redline synthetics in most). My question is What upgrades should I consider as I rebuild the trany rear dif etc?

Thanks for any help guys
Ron

[Vang530]

for your use...K.I.S.S. - keep it simple stupid. no need to waste $$$ for dual ultimate crawler gears with triple sticks and chromoly stuff.
i would check loose bolts, tranny/engine mounts, ujoints, etc. first

[junya92toy]

Id just check the ujoints, put new fluid in, maybe a rear locker for times when you are in wet slick surfaces and call it good.

[Dingman.]

He has an elocker.


I would just change all the fluids and keep up on regular maintenance .
Its pretty capable now.   Maybe put bumpers/sliders on it

[22rMudToy]

My buddy has this same truck with some just regular 31 inch A/T and when you put it in 4LO the e-locker kicks in and its pretty freakin solid. Gets us up some pretty steep muddy hills when we fishin at the river. I wouldnt do alot to it maybe a small suspension lift and 33s but these things are pretty good stock.

[freeone56]

Thanks Guys. Just never had this many miles (270,000)on a truck before and want to make sure its dependable. Never had a Toyota truck before though. Anybody know how much backlash is too much in the rear differential? I tried to google it, but didnt find anything yet.

[22rMudToy]

At 270,000 miles that truck is just gettin broke in lol. Just maintain it good and keep your diff oil changed. I swear by Lucas heavy duty high performance 85w-140 in mine because of my lockers. Its alot more expensive but my lockers never pop real loud when im turning anymore. 

[PhantomD aka Zach]

If you are having significant clanking noise from the rear driveline I would check:
U-Joints (most common cause)
Pinion nut (must remove the shaft to get to it, make sure it's tight, but DO NOT TIGHTEN IT, I can't remember if the e-locker has a solid spacer, but the torque on this nut (pre-load) changes the way the gears are meshing.
Drive shaft support (if you have a two piece drive shaft)

I used to have a cheap automatic locker in the rear and had a bunch of clanking noise from the rear diff, when I replaced it with a TRD e-locker it was VERY smooth.  If it ends up being the pinion nut then the differential probably needs to be re-built, which is not cheap.


as far as mods go, I would ad some more aggressive tires and leave the rest (BFG All terrain T/As, or the BFG Mud terrains)... for what you are planning a stock height truck with an E-locker will be very capable. Check out the "grey wire mod" to allow you to activate the E-locker when in 4-high.  If you find yourself getting more agressive with the truck the next thing I would look at is rock sliders, and a winch, After that... it gets very expensive...