Rear axle needed (UK)

Hi,
    I've been advised that my rear axle is corroded and leaking oil... Could possibly be welded but the garage reckons it would be better to source a used one to swap in...

Any suggestions on where to find one, please?

The van is a 1994 SLWB 4x4 with a 3L engine, so has six-stud hubs. I bought it with low mileage and haven't mucked about with it, so I'm pretty sure it's all standard/stock.

If anyone has any recommendations on how to make sure I get one that's compatible, where to find it etc, that would be much appreciated!!

Thanks,
           W.

It would be important to differentiate between leaf suspension and coil springs.
The wheel base won't matter, unless you also want to replace drive shaft / prop shaft.

But where is it leaking? You can get all the seals, and also the rear round cover (with the oil plug).

You might also want to check if you have the same gear ratio with the new axle. Because if it's not the same, the 4x4 would become unusable.
You could also put your old diff in the new axle, as your old diff may have less miles on it anyway (compared to some sourced axle), that way you maintain the same final gear ratio.
If you can actually read the VIN plates of your car and a wrecker can, you can confirm you get the same axle with same ratio. Check for a number like G144

Hiace4wd wrote:

It would be important to differentiate between leaf suspension and coil springs.
The wheel base won't matter, unless you also want to replace drive shaft / prop shaft.

OK, yup. I guess I should have remembered that some have coils!

Quote :

But where is it leaking? You can get all the seals, and also the rear round cover (with the oil plug).

There's a hole through the axle casting at the top, it seems. It doesn't drip when stationary but weeps out when  in motion, the oil goes everywhere, so it looks disastrous but there's not that much actually coming out!

Quote :

You might also want to check if you have the same gear ratio with the new axle. Because if it's not the same, the 4x4 would become unusable.

Yes, this and matching the mounts are my concerns, along with finding one...

Quote :

You could also put your old diff in the new axle, as your old diff may have less miles on it anyway (compared to some sourced axle), that way you maintain the same final gear ratio.

That sounds like a good idea in theory but it's beyond my capacity (time, workspace, tools, experience) and I'm not confident that I can find a garage I trust to get it right... OTOH, if I get a used one and it turns out the internals are shot I might ask them to try swapping mine into it...

Quote :

If you can actually read the VIN plates of your car and a wrecker can, you can confirm you get the same axle with same ratio. Check for a number like G144

OK, now I have it back I can confirm it's a G142, which does seem to make it pretty common, at least! I've put out a parts request on parts247... I'll see if anything comes back and maybe try ringing Poplar Motors (importers & camper specialists) to see if they have any ideas...

If anyone has any suggestions on where to look for a 90s Hiace being parted out, please let me know!

Cheers,
           W.

If you do get it welded probably best to get it disassembled and re-assembled by a specialist as bits of metal grinding probably shouldn't end up in there.

A cheaper fix-for-now may be as simple as a rubber pad tyrapped over the hole - eBay sells all rubber of any thickness.

Just hoover any dust from the top, pop it over and tighten the tyraps. That may be good for another 1-2 years while you look for a new case.

What do you mean with axle casting? That is the mean beam? Or the part that is sticking out towards the driveshaft? Because that last part is replaceable (with a diff replacement)

Anyway, work on these kind of diffs could perhaps best be done if you take it to some 4x4 specific shop, they probably open diffs more often. At least that's how it works here.

Also a G144 axle would have the same ratio as the G142. The last number does not show the ratio, it just says 2 = 2-pinion, 3 = 2 pinion LSD, 4 = 4 pinion, 5 = 4 pinion LSD
So A G144 would be stronger than your G142 and would work with the same ratio.

However, if it is just a hole on the top of the axle housing, I'm not sure why you wouldn't just weld a tiny plate of metal over it? Possibly replacing the diff oil afterwards to be safe, just 2 bottles of 75W90 (1 litre) will do and it should be very cheap. You could even do it yourself, it just has a drain plug and a fill plug so you can't do it wrong. Just don't get it on your skin.

OK- an update and thanks for the help!

It's been getting slowly worse but I've tried the pad over the top trick, only using stainless steel jubilee multiband instead of tie-wraps. So far it appears to have helped quite a bit, though it's been so wet on the roads that I'm not 100% sure!
I'm reluctant to weld because I don't think the rot will stop at the hole- I think that I'd be out a few hundred quid to remove, weld and reinstall the axle, then have the same problem again before long, as the Scottish winter road treatment programme wreaks it's ongoing, salty havoc...

I've had no joy from my parts request, nor pointers towards any Hiaces being broken. There's a Hilux-Surf axle on ebay but I don't know if the suspension mounts, brake pipes etc are identical and don't want to set myself up for a failure...

More positively, I spoke to Poplar Motors who originally imported my van (years ago) and are still importing (albeit more modern) Toyotas. They were helpful and are optimistic that they can get one for me from Japan, which could be a result. Especially if GPW's fix holds out for long enough!

I'd still be very keen to hear from anyone who knows of a mid-90s Hiace being parted out, though, or can confirm that a Hilux or Hilux-surf axle would be a bolt-up replacement!

Thanks again for your help and advice... as always, more input welcome!

Cheers,
W.

Glad it's slowed the emergency, save a search or two on eBay for vans being parted out.
They are a bit like gold dust but do come up now and again.

Also remember that you can still buy mid 1990s Hiaces from Japanese importers - e.g:
https://carfromjapan.com/en/used-cars?make=54317ca541472697138cf75c&minYear=1992&maxYear=2004&keywords=Hiace&sort=priceUSD

(add 32% to the van + shipping)

if you get really desperate for spares and want an entire van load of them at once, you may find you can get one with the same drive train as yours and then part the rest out thereby regaining the money you spent.