Diff Breathers

[Spurio Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Spurio]

Re: Diff Breathers

$28 for Toyota rear diff kit

Genuine Toyota Diff Union (Part No. 90404-51068) - $18
(unscrew original one replace with new one)

1.5m of 6mm hose - $10

Heat up the open end of the hose in boiling water and shove the original breather valve in the end

Sercure with cable ties

[404pug Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close 404pug]

Bloody hell! The 2 diffs are easy BUT the auto trans and transfer case!!!!!!!! On the V6 how do you get to them? I can see the AT one and get 1 hand on it but that is not enough to get the existing hose off either the metal hose or the breather off the end. Ditto the transfer case hose. By taking the rubber flap off in the LHS wheel well you can just see the breather up high behind the engine and can just touch it from the RHS top of the engine but no hope of getting it off. The exhausts on each side of the motor and the lack of space at the back of the motor make it all but impossible! If you have a V6 5 speed auto, how did you get to the hoses? Or is it easier to give up and pay?Is there a trick? I can't see how the 'cuddling" technique mentioned will work. I think you need to be able to stand under the car to have a hope. Help! Neil

[Matty80 Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Matty80]

I managed to get the transfer case and auto trans on mine done - don't bother too much with trying to see whats going on though - has to be done by feel alone... If you have a small camera you may be able to slide it up and take a picture or two between the gaps to get a view of whats happening up there...

Be prepared to loose some skin!!! :| :| :|

[MidLifeCrisis Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close MidLifeCrisis]

I can offer some meaningful assistance here. First blindfold yourself and use the force OR and get Matt to do it. Seriously, Matt (Matt&Loz) did mine while I just stared as he felt his way throughout the process! In my humble opinion you need to have the car on a hoist to have any chance of doing it if you are an amateur like me.

[404pug Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close 404pug]

It is possible!!!! And I didn't lose any skin! How is it done if you don't have access to a hoist? Drive up onto your ramps and suitably chock wheels. When the exhaust has cooled [best if you start with the motor cold] slide under the car from the right with your feet pointing out to the left.It is fairly easy to slip your left hand up to the top of the gearbox . It is easy to pull the transfer case hose down the RHS of the gearbox so you can get the breather off using 2 hands. Put your joiner on and let it hang. Mine was a tight fit and it shouldn't move anywhere so I didn't put any clips on it but I did put some silicone all around the join. With a bit of fiddlling you can then get the gearbox hose off its metal pipe on top of the gearbox. This is easier than getting the breather off it and trying to join it up there. Slide your new hose onto this pipe helped by a moistening with WD40, putting a hose clip onto your hose first. It only slides on about 2 cm before it hits a stopper.
Pass the 2 hoses up into the engine bay. I threaded them between a few other hoses there to keep them in place. To get a good view get a good torch and look down from the RHS near the bonnet strut AND/OR climb up into the engine bay [step ladder against the bull bar] and lie lenghtwise across the motor so your head is up near the firewall just on the RHS.[ie cuddle that lovely V6!] I zip tied the 2 hoses to the back of the engine cover on the basis that the motor and gearbox move as one so there should be no stress on the hoses as there could be if they were on the firewall. The original 2 breathers were reinstalled to maybe replaced with fuel filters if need be at some later date. Using a small ratchet set and working form both the top and bottom I was able to slowly tighten the worm drive clip on the AT pipe. The 2 breathers are now dead level with the top of the engine cover. As I had about 30 cm of hose left I decided to do the front diff as well and again used the original breather. The extended hose was zip tied to the 2 heater hose at the back of the motor and is also level with the top of the engine cover. To finish off the transfer case hose easily clipped back into its clip holder on top of the gearbox but not so the AT hose- mine was slightly too large to pass back through its clip without too much stuffing around and it was too hard to get a zip tie on one handed so I simply uses some tie wire to hold it in place by tying it to its original clip.
Done! About 1 1/2-2 hours taking it easy. I don't plan to be in any water 1100 mm deep but I am prepared if I am forced to go over the 700 official fording depth as could happen on a trip into Arnhem Land in 5 weeks where there is a big river crossing which can be deeper than I prefer but has to be crossed. Neil

[Bushbasher Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Bushbasher]

Get hold of wife's little vainty/makeup mirror thingy while she's not looking. Also grab a small torch or other light source. You can then have a look at what's on top of the gearbox and then, as others have stated, grab hold of that bastard little hose and pull the sucker downwards. Easy.

[BigDog816 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close BigDog816]

How many breathers do you need on a Manual Diesel, 3?

[Bushbasher Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Bushbasher]

Truthfully, the priority one to extend is the rear diff. It just sits right on top of the axle housing whereas the others are tucked up nice and high on top of the bell housing (box & transfer) and front diff is just below and alongside the main fuse box in the engine bay. If these are sitting in water then so is your bum.

[Noobie Banned Find all posts View Profile Close Noobie]

Piggy made me

[Fozzy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Fozzy]

My head hurts just trying to understand that last post Rob! AFAIK there are some that consider Nitrous Oxide to be the only ideal gas, but I digress....

Cheers,

Dave

[MidLifeCrisis Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close MidLifeCrisis]

Noobie.

You forgot the coefficient and Newtons 2nd law. After considering these influences the answer is:

1. You need 4 breathers, front, rear, tfr case and trans. Either the tfr or the trans has 2 outlets that join to 1.
2. just connect them individually to a breather or by separate hoses to a filter that wont fill with water

All done, I need a coffee.....

[kav Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close kav]

i put a diff breather on the rear diff before going to the cape . a piece of hose with a fuel filter on it . cost $9 dollars . the whole trip i worried about this addition coming off . READ no other breathers other than standard . went through 1.2 metres of water . no water in anything but the car. ive had 2 trucks over the last 18 years which go through a very deep wheel wash numerous times a week , never sucked in any water without breather extensions .

[wooley Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close wooley]

i put a diff breather on the rear diff before going to the cape . a piece of hose with a fuel filter on it . cost $9 dollars . the whole trip i worried about this addition coming off . READ no other breathers other than standard . went through 1.2 metres of water . no water in anything but the car. ive had 2 trucks over the last 18 years which go through a very deep wheel wash numerous times a week , never sucked in any water without breather extensions .

what nasties is the wheel wash for?

[kav Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close kav]

simply washing mud off the wheels at the local tip and avoid leaving it on the bitumen . a blatant waste of taxpayers money one would think.

[wooley Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close wooley]

simply washing mud off the wheels at the local tip and avoid leaving it on the bitumen . a blatant waste of taxpayers money one would think.

ahh... yeah, that is a bit of a waste.