Hilux Front Drive Shaft Not Turning

[Luxxxy]

Is the front drive shaft (from the transfer case to the front diff) meant to turn freely? I had in neutral (both) and could not turn it. I thought that the front shaft was not meant to engage until you have it in low/high four? I checked and the front wasn't locked in. The gearbox is 1 month old. Is the front shaft meant to turn when driving in high 2? Any help would be great.

[Turbotojo]

Are the hubs locked? If they are then you can't turn the shaft even in 2wd.

[Luxxxy]

yeh, it was the first thing i checked and they were on free.

[v6hilux]

Your probably not strong enough the defeat the resistance of the seals and gears still attached to the shaft. Do notice any problems, apart from that, like vibrations or shuddering as you drive? Get a second person to have a look as you roll slowly under the car to see if it's rotating.

[old80]

You may want to check to see if your hubs were installed properly. If they are put back in wrong they can stay locked in.

[Luxxxy]

yes, it does get a nasty vibration from about 40km/h. Also the front drive shaft has a sticker on it from the manufacturer, so i drove the truck forward a foot, checked the shaft and saw that it had rotated. I am getting my front bearings and swivel hubs done monday, should i ask them to see if anything is wrong?

[locktup4x4]

Besides what's already been covered here are a few more ideas.
Do you have dual t-cases? If you do you may have the shift rods misaligned. If you have dual and you don't have twin stick I have seen the shift rods move out of alignment. I've also seen bent axle housings and broken Birfields cause this.
Check the obvious first.

Jason

[v6hilux]

The vibration I refer to, is one I get if I unlock the hubs and forget to take it out of 4wd. So either the transfer is not letting go or both hubs are faulty. If one hub was faulty, the spider gears would absorb the movement from the axel and not turn the shaft. This leads me to believe its the transfer still in 4wd. If you had the electric transfer shift actuator, I would say it's corrosion in it, but if its the manual shift, with reverse J pattern, then I don't know what!

[Luxxxy]

The gearbox and transfer case are standard issue. One thing i have noticed is that with the hubs free i can turn the shaft about an inch more, compared to when there locked in. Its got me p**sed cause its a reconditioned box and is only a month old.

[roscoFJ73]

Try lifting it off the ground and turning things. If your getting the front axle serviced they should be able to sort out any problems with the hubs.

[Luxxxy]

Thanks lads, i removed the drive shaft at the front diff, to see if it was either the transfer case or the hubs and found that the transfer case spins but the front diff does not. I'll get them to have a look at it.

[v6hilux]

OK, has to be hubs. It's easy to remove them. I suspect the dial is not pulling the clutch ring away. They may not have been installed correctly.

Good luck with it.

[Luxxxy]

yeh, i pulled them both off. The right side had the clutch ring engaged with the spring hanging out of it, disconnected from the dial. I tested the dial and it was a bit dodgy. The left side had the spring from the clutch ring missing. The clutch ring was engaged. I took both rings out, marked the shafts inside the hub, then turned the drive shaft and found that only the right shaft from the diff was turning. Is this normal? I had to take out the right clutch ring so that i can drive it without the front drive shaft turning.

[v6hilux]

If you don't know, the spring pushes the clutch ring to engage the axle in the lock position, and the cam ramp on the dial pulls the ring out to disengage the axle.