Rebuilding a Toyota Tacoma Diff Lock is certainly a DIY job.
I took a stab at rebuilding my 2003 Toyota Tacoma’s diff lock motor (e-locker for short). I’m glad I did, because these units are expensive to replace and the rebuild was fairly straight forward. Believe it or not, the mechanism actually worked afterwards! Be sure to check out the video I made of the procedure:
Below is an image gallery of the rebuild.
The differential lock rebuild kit can be purchased here: http://absolute-wits-end.com/toyota-e-locker-rebuild-kit-8in-diff/
The Toyota grease used during the rebuild (expensive stuff!!) is part number 08887-02007.
Aj
Awesome pictures and great video. Definitely helps! Thank you for taking the time into showing the steps.
Peter Monshizadeh
Thanks for the comment! Glad to hear it was helpful!
Carter
So stoked I found you brotha! Really great video and tutorial. Quality work!
Peter Monshizadeh
Thank you! Great to hear you found it helpful.
Aaron Seriba
My Toyota Hilux 2000 IRZ differ perhaps I did not explain. Gear shift failed to engage gear no 1,2,3,& 5 while it was moving i.e running. After stopping it still remains stiff. I noticed that the diff sump d hole nut for pouring gear oil was loose , no oil on sump. How do I release it to function?
BB
Can Permatex Dielectric grease be used instead of the toyota grease?
Peter Monshizadeh
I don’t think it would work long-term. Dielectric grease is a lighter weight grease that I doubt would handle higher temperatures very well. It might get watery where the Toyota grease will retain its consistency.
Matt
What do you think was the actual problem with your locker?
Peter Monshizadeh
I’m not sure. It had to be one of two things: 1) the internal sliding connections were gummed up by the grease, or 2) the motor’s brushes & commutator needed freed up and cleaned.
First Gen
Do you have any alternative kit recommendations? It’s been sold out for months and now they just took it off the website entirely.
Peter Monshizadeh
I wasn’t aware of that so thanks for letting me know. Unfortunately, I don’t know of anyone else who offers this kit. On the up side, there wasn’t anything in the kit that you couldn’t source from your local hardware store. I don’t know the o-ring or screw dimensions, but you could take the old ones with you to the store and match them up to something close.
Aaron Seriba
My Toyota Hilux 2000 IRZ differ perhaps I did not explain. Gear shift failed to engage gear no 1,2,3,& 5 while it was moving i.e running. After stopping it still remains stiff. I noticed that the diff sump d hole nut for pouring gear oil was loose , no oil on sump. How do I release it to function?
Aaron
Your assistance was excellent,so much efforts and videos . But the info differ substantially on my request. The components you show are not there on the diff. Its just manual no electrics visible. Do I miss something,I don’t know ?