clemensfield

Any update? ha

Great job, thank you for step by step pictures.

I have the same issue in my cab, and after 3 years of ignoring it I'm going to now attempt to get to the bottom of it. I will keep you posted but I also suspect the windshield, or the hood, and not the floor itself.

Linda, and all others thank you so much for your help. I'm just writing to clarify that I've replaced my axle shaft. I was in Thailand all winter and I picked one up there in Chiang Mai. Thailand is littered with mid 80's toyotas so it seemed the logical place to look. The shaft cost approximately $55 and I was not charged by any of the airlines to check it upon returning to Canada. The truck is daily driving again, thanks for your help.

Thanks Zach. Yes we could swap for a Chev rear end, we've looked into this. Would also put us well over $1000 which is not ideal for sure, but a last resort. I'd like to keep the truck long term but I've been down this never-ending repair road with a Vintage RV once already (ford) and guess who won that one? Not me!! I'd like to keep this repair under $500 if at all possible.

Thanks Derek. We've located a couple assembly's, one in Nova Scotia as well (We are in Ontario) but the whole assembly plus shipping will be almost $1000. We really just need the right rear axle shaft so we've been searching like mad before going that route. I found one in Thailand for $45 but some of the measurements are off just slightly and it's too hard to say from here if it would match. thank you very much for your help!

Offering an update to anyone who might help: It's been nearly three months since my Toyhome has been on the disabled list and we still haven't found a replacement axle shaft. Not for a lack of trying however. I'm currently in Thailand and have found lots of axle shafts available but none that are an exact match to the 5 Lug One Ton 2WD rear axle shaft for a 4-speed '84 Toyota. The ones I found were off just slightly on a couple of the measurements and while buying them is inexpensive, shipping them to Toronto, Canada is not so I'm not up for taking chances. I'll attempt to describe the variables in a couple posts. I would love to (need to) get my Toy back on the road this spring and eventually paint and restore it. Cheers!

Thank you all very much for your help and patience. I am determined to get my truck back on the road as it's been my daily driver for the last 12 months (don't ask). I would also guess that it may be one of the very last Gran Sport by Ranger Toyota Pop Tops left in existence. With only 127,000 miles on it and 20,000 of those being in the last 12 months this truck deserves to live, or at the very least die another day.

Hey JD, There actually aren't lots of those axles around in Canada. There is 1 that is showing in Canada and its on the other side of the country. If you are serious about your 5 lug axle collection, Ill PM you and set up a time to call you, thank you!

Thanks Derek. Affirmative, this is the axle shaft I need. I am in Toronto and you are correct there is practically nothing left in any junkyards in this country. They've all long salted away. A few guys around with a backyard full of yodas but they aren't exactly advertising online.

It's possible that the axle was replaced by a previous owner but I am under the impression that it is stock. It looks about 30 years old.

The part that looks melted is where we tried to weld the axle back together so we could move the truck, but it lasted about 5 seconds.

Thank you very much Linda, I think this is information will get me on my way. I'll keep you posted. I've put pics below of my situation if you can confirm possibly from the pics?

I have the VIN number for my Toyota Gran Sport: JT5RN55D5E5007419

Linda pin-pointed the problem. The only available axle shafts I can find anywhere are for 1/2 tons or if Im lucky maybe a 6 lug 1 ton full floating, but neither are the axle that I have. My axle appears to be a 5 Lug 1 ton floating which won't match either of those, in fact now that I type this Im guessing maybe we have something custom made if that's even possible.

Exactly Linda. This is the dilemma.

Thank you Linda, I'll look at it with my mechanic tomorrow and get these answers. I'll take some pics as well, thanks for the great advice, I'll look into V6 trucks

Sorry, I meant 16 inches wide. But perhaps I've overstated. They are considerably bigger than the front tires, ill measure them.

Thanks for the reply Chinook, You're correct on the weight/suspension issue for sure. If you're in a chinook then yes it's about the same size as mine which is around 17'. After a lot of research, I agree it was a fluke. It's a 30 year old camper and I've put over 20,000 miles on it in the 10 months I've owned it. The bearings were fine and lots of oil everywhere. Axle snapped clean. Perhaps you would be a great person to ask where I might even begin to look for a replacement axle? I see nothing on Kijiji, Craigslist or eBay. I'm in Toronto, Canada, my mechanic has called the yards and appears to be non in Canada. Thanks a bunch

Hey thanks for the reply. The bearings seem fine, it's just the axle that snapped clean off. The problem I'm having is that my truck is so unusually set up, compared to the other Toyhomes. I don't have a dually rear but rather two fat tires (believe 16" but will measure tomorrow, they're considerably bigger than the ones in the front) on what we can only conclude is maybe a 5 lug 1 ton floating, not "full floating" axle, or perhaps its a 3/4 ton axle... Finding a matching axle for this truck will be like searching for a leprechaun. I've not seen another Toyhome like it, except two I found in a Google search. It measures around 17 feet in length made by some outfit called "Gran Sport" spelled exactly like that.

I've spent an hour searching this thread but couldn't find if there is information or discussion about swapping one of these infamous rear axles for say, a Ford ranger axle, or some other conversion? My axle just snapped, (16 foot 16' single rears 5 lug 1984 GRAN SPORT pop-up) and the right side tire flew off. It was pretty nasty. At first look you might conclude I overweighed the chassis with the addition built on top but that addition only weighs 150lbs. I removed the fridge and much of the interior and was travelling alone with no cargo, so I doubt 150lbs of oak wood caused my axle to break, considering the helper springs and heavy duty shocks I have on it. --20,000 relatively trouble free miles this year prior to this though, so not bad for an '84. My truck has two approx 16" tires on the rear (non dually) and it's a 5 lug axle. Im in Canada and options are bleak for replacing it with a Toyota axle of any kind. One mechanic told me to swap out the rear with a Ford Ranger and I'm wandering if anyone has attempted anything similar to this with a Toyhome? Thank you.

A bit of delay in getting pictures up but we finished the reno's last week and I've never enjoyed the 84' Gran Sport as much. I'm now fully able to walk around the RV without having to bend my neck or arch my back. I am also still able to pop the top for free sunlight and air conditioning. I really hated the gross canvas that was on it before and I like the openness of using it without. We did indeed slope the front a little bit and so far I have not noticed a major difference in driving. Although, I haven't done a serious highway trip yet. I do expect to lose a couple MPGs with increased wind drag from the 14" extension build. For me, this trade is worth it, as I was previously getting as much as 22MPG at 55miles/hour. I would like to attempt to replace the exterior cargo doors and latches with a similar wood finish to make it more of an actual "woody". I've attached just a couple before & after photos to the post but you can see the entire job in a photo gallery in this link: http://iryancook.imgur.com/all/

Thanks for the reply. We did discuss this option but it has two major drawbacks: When I am pulled over on the side of the road and need to get into the coach to make coffee etc, I have to pop up the roof each time. Again I should stress that I live in Canada half the year so the weather is miserable aside from the 6 weeks we call summer. The second drawback is that I will lose the considerable amount of extra storage space, cabinetry, etc I gain by building a permanent wall. The full plan now is to build the wall and then place the pop top back on top and still have it fully functional as a pop-top. Why would we do this if I can now stand up straight you are probably asking yourself? When the top is popped in the summer without the canvas, it creates a really cool super-sunroof effect that is beautiful on nice days. Or a moonlight gaze at the stars while falling asleep, again in times when it is weather permitting and insect permitting. I spend the winters in Florda so it's a nice energy free way of getting a little A/C.