Needing axle for 83 Sunrader

[AdamDPope]

Hey folks, I've read a lot on here about the "death" axles on the 83 Toyota Sunraders. Last year I bought mine and I LOVE it! I put new tires on it and recently took it in to get a rotation. I had noticed that recently there was some kind of tire/wheel noise coming from the rear so I hoped they could check that out as well. They informed and showed me that one of the inside wheels on the rear axle was bent. I had no idea how this happened...as I had taken it to TX twice this past winter and it was fine. So I researched how to get an old 5-lug wheel and I discovered this axle problem.

 I say ALL that to say I assume my axle is starting to bend which caused the wheel to get out of shape. I'm concerned because I have a pregnant wife and a 2 year old. Obviously I need to get the new axle. 

I read the report someone wrote up about what to do in my situation and there's a contact for a guy named Chuck in Indiana who has a bunch of axles for sale. I emailed him but haven't heard back. I'm wondering if that information is outdated at this point? And reccomendations besides going to a junkyard? Any place that builds them or sells them?

Thanks!

Edited October 6, 2016 by AdamDPope

[jdfrost64]

i have a rear with good tires and rims

 

[Derek up North]

I have no idea who 'Chuck' is.

[Derek up North]

From 2008: " Chuck ran out of axles about 3 years ago. "

He might be dead by now.

[zero]

3 hours ago, AdamDPope said:

Hey folks, I've read a lot on here about the "death" axles on the 83 Toyota Sunraders.

No such thing as a "death axle."   I also challenge anyone to show evidence of any deaths directly connected to a rear axle of inadequate design in any Toyota RV.

[linda s]

Over the years we have seen many reports of axles breaking including another 18 foot Sunrader. He was lucky that he was on a straight flat road in Arizona. If it had happened on a windy mountain road yes he could have died. Another member's son saw it happen and said his wheel was flying down the road. One bounce into a small car and others could have died too. The fake dually wheels, not the axle are the cause of the problem. No one needs to prove anything here. Manufacturers don't spend millions of dollars to replace or repair stuff unless they have to and they did. Unfortunately it was a long time ago and axles are getting harder to find. JD says he has one. Take him up on it. People have paid to have them shipped farther than that

Linda S

Call here first. They might have one. Make sure you ask about the 1990 dual rear axle and ask if they have the wheels for it. Less than hundred miles from you

http://www.nolanengland.com/

[zero]

A person can get a flat tire,crash, and die.  My point was, and still is - I have yet to see a single report ever - of anyone being killed due to an axle failure in a Toyota RV.   Thus it seems a little silly calling it a "death axle" (at least to me).  I will also note that plenty of Toyota axles in the rear have broken off on regular pickups, RWD cars, and 4-Runners.     Toyota went on to use the same "death axle" in the rest of the world up into the mid-2000s with GVWRs over 6000 lbs.  Obviously Toyota did NOT consider it dangerous for anyone else on this planet.  Just for use in parts of North America with silly add-on duallys.  I will also note that Toyota was NEVER forced to replace any axles in any cab & chassis trucks and RVs.

[Derek up North]

So we can all (perhaps) agree to refer to the problem as 'potentially fatal foolies'? Doesn't have quite the same ring to it though.

[zero]

I never heard the "death axle" claim or "foolie" thing until I came here to this forum.  Maybe it is a west-coast thing?  I certainly heard about the axle problems in Toyotas.  A friend of mine got two new free complete axles for his Dolphin.  Neither ever got installed.  Two new assemblies in crates he got from making a lot of phone calls and whining.

The point remains that Toyota has used a 1.57" diameter axle since the early 70s, on up with mid 2000 V8 Tundra trucks.  The same basic rear-axle assemblies that came out in 1975 were still used all over the world in HD Toyota trucks through the 2000s.  Obviously Toyota has not ever considered it a problem when used properly.  Toyota also sent out bulletins NOT to use "add-on" dual wheel kits.

I am sort of in a quandary now with this axle-thing. NOT Toyota though.  I just bought a rust-free 1998 Chevy S10 from Alabama for $500.  I am going to build another Chinook based on it. Kind of an experiment.  It has a 2.2 liter engine just like the original Chinook.  5 speed manual trans. It has a bit more power then the Toyota 2.2 and is higher tech. So maybe better gas mileage?

The Chevy rear-axle is what bothers me.  It is interesting to compare a Toyota to this S10.   Toyota has 1.57" diameter axles with bearings .9" wide.  Chevy S10 or Astrovan axles are only 1.4" diameter with bearings only .7" wide.  So it seems the Chevy rear axle is quite inferior when it comes to load-bearing.  I've searched and so far, cannot find any GM rear axle as an upgrade that allows the rear wheels to match the front.  So maybe I'll have to do what Fred Heath did with his Galavan.  Right now the Toyota "death axle" seems like an upgrade compared to what GM uses in S10s and Astrovans.

[markwilliam1]

Interestingly when I was having my leaf springs replaced/serviced yesterday a long haul trucker came over to look @ Grannie. He stated over the years he has seen 3 or 4 Toyota Motor Homes on the side of the road with rear wheels broken off the rear axle! I can only imagine they had to be "foolies" 

[zero]

Here is a photo of one that broke off a 4-Runner . No duals and not an RV.   I broke one off my 1964 Chevelle once, and also on my 1965 Ford F100 truck.   It happens.  Often from some cause other then an inadequate axle.  Overheated faulty bearing, overloaded vehicle, extreme stress, etc.  I broke a wheel and axle off with my Chevelle just by popping the clutch and trying to burn some rubber.  I still have not heard a single case - ever - of a death attributed to a Toyota rear-axle.

Toyota was never forced by anybody to help out but they did - unlike General Motors when the Chevy S10s were found to have the same problem as some Toyota RVs.

[markwilliam1]

That's totally True...why I'm a fan of Toyota. Now awaiting a recall for my airbags in my Prius. 

[Derek up North]

3 hours ago, markwilliam1 said:

Interestingly when I was having my leaf springs replaced/serviced yesterday a long haul trucker came over to look @ Grannie. He stated over the years he has seen 3 or 4 Toyota Motor Homes on the side of the road with rear wheels broken off the rear axle! I can only imagine they had to be "foolies" 

No mention of corpses lying on the ground next to them?

[WME]

Toyota Death Axle...NHTSA numbers   440 complaints, 63 wheel separations, 16 injuries, 0 deaths .  Aprox 25,000 MH built between 78 and 85

These numbers were what started the recall, how many that had problems after the recall?????????

,Several crafty members have rebuilt Toys that had axle failure. In one case the wheel came off and went through the wheel well and destroyed the bath room. I think if someone had been using the powder room at that time, something more than their pride would have been hurt.

Edited October 7, 2016 by WME

[Derek up North]

58 minutes ago, WME said:

... how many that had problems after the recall?????????

Zero injuries or deaths that anyone seems to have have been able to dig up and post about, either here or the Yahoo Group (don't know about FB) despite the powers of Google.

[linda s]

Just because something isn't in the news doesn't mean it never happened. It was a long time ago. Dead people tell no tales

Linda S

[WME]

What I was asking was how many of the recalled axles that weren't replaced, have broken since the recall started.

[linda s]

11 minutes ago, WME said:

What I was asking was how many of the recalled axles that weren't replaced, have broken since the recall started.

Well I knew nothing about all this stuff before I bought my Sunrader, but I did learn about the axle before thank god. Just since I have been a member of these groups I can think of about a dozen axle incidents since 2003 I think. Of course that is probably no where near real numbers. Only the ones I've heard about from other members and from people reporting their breaks. Some of the rigs still had very low miles on them. I think that the low mileage might be the reason they were still on the road

I must admit. I did meet an old guy who lived in his rig. Very messed up, engine sounded like it was about to blow up, pre 6 digit odometer and he claimed he turned it over several times. The rig looked like it had that many miles on it. He still had the fake dually set up. Didn't know they were a problem and didn't care. Miracles do happen

Linda S

[Derek up North]

And of the dozen, did anyone report an injury? Even a broken fingernail?

[linda s]

No not that I can think of. None of them reported anyone sitting in the back though. Wheel wells were torn out, one  lost most of the bathroom floor. A rear dinette with kids back there you have to admit potential for injury is there. I repeat, we only hear about a small fraction of accidents that happen. The chance that a news reporter knows about a 25 year old recall and includes it in a news report is pretty much zip. This insistence that if you don't have a complete report it didn't happen is ludicrous.

Linda S

[Derek up North]

57 minutes ago, linda s said:

The chance that a news reporter knows about a 25 year old recall and includes it in a news report is pretty much zip.

You'd think a half decent lawyer for an insurance company would dig it up pretty fast though. Or maybe not. They don't seem to realize many are driving around over the GVWR and thus, I assume, not covered by the insurance policy. But I'm not a half decent lawyer, even on the internet.

[zero]

11 hours ago, linda s said:

Just because something isn't in the news doesn't mean it never happened. It was a long time ago. Dead people tell no tales

Linda S

With that reasoning I guess anybody can claim anything and go unchallenged?  In my world, he (or she) that makes a claim  bears the burden of proof.  It is not up to those that doubt to prove a negative.  For those that want to call it a "death axle" - show some proof of death.  For those that claim Toyota "had to fix it", prove that too.   By the way,  in 1977 - any Toyota truck that got driven on the Earth's moon would turn to solid gold.  Prove me wrong.

[zero]

This same sort of nonsense happened with the Ford Pinto in the 70s.  It was investigated by the same NHTSA and deemed to be an explosion waiting to happen due to a faulty gas tank mount.  Ford took a big hit on it, and so did the Pinto.   In THAT case, many deaths were blamed on Ford's engineering goof.  Years later, NHTSA was found to be wrong and those Pintos were no worse then any of the other cars being made at the time.   Lots of info still out there though.  In fact, there were deaths in 1920s Ford Model Ts I can still find info on. Yet - somehow - all the "death crash records" with Toyota RVs from the 80s have been lost.   It must be George Bush's fault.

I DO agree that if someone today has an axle and/or wheel fall off their 1982 Toyota motorhome, and gets killed, it might get a 2 minute mention in the local news and that is the end of it.   Probably the way it should be.  What is the alternative?  Do a post-mortem on the Toyota and try to figure out if "bad engineering" caused the problem 30 years later, or perhaps bad maintenance?  Or perhaps an idiot driver?

The easily proven fact that Toyota kept using the same axle in over 6000 lb. GVWR trucks into the 2000s in the rest of the world tells me the axle is not all that scary.

[zero]

Those silly Australians !.  And silly Africans.  And silly people everywhere but our part of North America !  2012 at least and still using that scary "death axle": in HD trucks with over 6000 lbs. GVWRs.

[WME]

The axle has never been the problem, its the foolies the cause the problems. A nice big 15" single would have solved most of the problems.

[zero]

No disagreement here.  The only "problem" is one of maintenance, as I see it.  Toyota semi-floaters and full-floaters are both "sealed" design.  They get no constant lube refreshment from any centralized reservoir.  In the case of 5 lug semi-floaters - they have a single sealed ball-bearing on each side.  At X amount of miles they should be checked and/or replaced.  Ford 1/2 ton trucks used to be the same.  Chevys and GMCs do get constant lube with their semi-floaters.