bad tranny noises

[ian]

On my 81 pickup with a 5speed, my tranny has always howled a bit (since I bought it 6 months ago). But now it has suddenly developed a loud cliking noise whenever I am in any gear but 4th. It is rpm dependant, and gets noticebly louder under load (like accelerating or going up a hill). I'm assuming this is the bearings going out?? Anyone back me up on this, or have any other possibilities? How difficult is this to rebuild myself, and what kind of specialized tools would I need? Or any suggestions on a good shop in Seattle area? Thanks.

[ian]

anyone? I'm ready to tear into it, but really could use some advice.... Should I try it myself? Have i diagnosed it right?

[crash]

Its definately in your tranny and it will be in the area of your countershaft

[Rescue]

Ive never overhauled a tranny but here are some ideas: buy a manual, read and read again. also buy this months 4 wheeldrive& sports utility magazine, there is an article on a toyota tranny rebuild. It will give you an idea of whats involved. Remember there are a lot of parts in there.


Another thing you can do is open it up and evaluate the broken parts that need to be replaced. If you find you don't have the tools or shy to rebuild it yourself then bring it to a shop. good luck!

[ian]

yeah, i've been looking at the FSM, just alot of parts, and alot of time... Anyone have a guess at how long this takes? Maybe I should just work a little overtime to pay a shop? If I looked for a used one any thoughts on other trannys that would swap in? I'ver heard some of the newer trucks used bigger (and hopefully better) bearings. Any other thougts? Thanks.

[crash]

What year is your rig ian?

[ian]

it's an 81

[ian]

Oh, the other reason i'm hesitating to rebuild myself is that i dont have a press, but probably could just make one.

[crash]

ahhhhhh, old cast iron turd :yes:
I just threw 2 of those away (burnt up)
I ripped all the teeth off the input gear once, been into those before..
Depending on your skills, any other NEWER g52 or w56 tranny is going to need the x-member moved back and both drivelines re-done...

[ian]

oh, just had both drivelines rebuilt, so maybe i'll just stick with the "old cast iron turd" thanks for the reassurance.

[crash]

I am putting $$$ its going to be a bearing issue on the countershaft

[ZUK]

Knowing what the shops charge and how crappy of a job they might do.....I would spend my time at a junkyard.....

[ian]

what about a newer tranny from a 98 taco? I saw one for sale, but are they at all compatible? are they any good? I'd be willing to modify drivelines and xmember (and probably find a bellhousing to fit) if I could put one like this in which has low miles...

[Oatmeal]

If it were me, I think I'd get a rebuilt one from Marlin http://www.marlincrawler.com/trans.html he has stock rebuilds and HD versions on an exchange basis. Sure, you spend a little more but, he really knows his shit and I understand he personally does the trans rebuilds..........Hans

[Leigh Shonosky]

I had the exact same problem with my 83 5 speed. These early 5 speeds were known for the imput bearing failure guaranteed thats what it is . You have clicking in the gears 123and 5 because the bearing probably came apart and mashed in your gears you dont here it in 4th because when your in 4th there is no counter gear its strait through. If you were to catch it early you could have replaced the imput bearing by removing the retainer and pulling the bearing. New bearing will run you about 80 bucks canadian so like 50 bucks american.

[Leigh Shonosky]

Buy the way I forgot to mention. Changing the imput bearing is easy but if your gears are chewed up, I wouldnt recomend trying to rebuild it yourself unless you have access to a good press and pullers and are very patient . Its a pain in the ass and all the c clips are different thicknesses and hve to be put back in the right spots and just not worth the effort I d go to the scrap yard and pick one up preferably from 83 and up because the imput bearing is larger in these years. GOOD LUCK.

[ian]

ok, leigh,
you're saying I might just be able to change the input bearing? The tranny was rebiult 40k mi ago by the guy i bought it from, so maybe this is all i need? The tranny still shifts smoothly, just the loud clicking noise in all but 4th. At least I could get by until I could buy a nice rebuild one from marlin.

[Leigh Shonosky]

Yea as long as you pull the top off and check that your gears arnt chewed up then i guarantee that its your imput bearing and thats an easy fix but id do it b4 you drive it any because it will come apart and get bearing pieces in your gears and then you will b replacing the whole thing good luck

[ian]

Update: I pulled the tranny today, and opened the cover to discover that the front most gear was missing several teeth. So, just replacing the bearings is out of the question... maybe ignored it too long. Anyway, I'm think that i'm going to order a rebuilt one from marlin. He has a regular one for $600 or a "heavy duty" for $830. The heavy duty basically is just machined to take larger bearings. I'm thinking i'll drop the big bucks on the heavy duty, since the regulars only seem to last about 80k miles, unless someone convinces me otherwise.


Also, what clutch should I use? This is basically a hiway rig, we go on long road trips down to the SW and do some jeep trails and such, but no serious rockcrawling (yet!) So, I'm thinking just a good quality replacement clutch? Any Ideas?

[Oatmeal]

It's more than just bigger bearings. Talk to Marlin, I think it's worth the extra bucks. Remember, Toyota had lots of problems with the early "L" series 4X4 5speeds:eek: ...........Hans