Rear Diff 4.2

[Grumpy stumpy]

A little concerned so hoping someone else can help please, how much end play should there be in the rear diff as mine has quite a bit of in/out movement, a little up down but not as bad as in/out. Checked front diff and that has a fair bit of end play as well, is this normal or am I looking at a diff in the near future? I know you get a certain amount of play but these do seem quite excessive compared to other 4x4 I had in the past. 2004 now done 76k. Just thought its beginning to get a little jerky at times and not so smooth so decided to check drive shafts etc and came across this issue.

[gjnorthall]

There's play between the driveshaft splines and the female diff splines on the front so the inner CV joint will wobble up and down. The joint is held in by an expanding ring that springs open when the joint is pushed into the diff - it's not a tight fit and the joint can move in and out. It's exactly the same set up on the rear except that it's a flanged splined shaft that pushes into the diff. There's quite a bit of variability between cars as to play in both directions - if it's excessive it tends to cause oil seal failures. Theres also quite a bit of backlash on both diffs.

[Grumpy stumpy]

Thanks for that , it's bone dry no oil leaks so would tend to point to being perfectly normal then. A good friend of mine who runs a toyota garage in norwich has said they have never had any issues with diff,s but if I'm passing they will get it up onto the ramp and take a quick look for me so may take them up on the offer just to put my mind at rest. Thanks again .