The clunk forms because of wear on the drive train, which happened sooner on full time 4WD vehicles with strong engines, especially those that worked hard, perhaps towing a heavy load, hardcore off-roading, or perhaps didn't have their fluids replaced often enough. Have someone shift back and fourth between R and D while you listen and look at the undercarriage (as you did). Use plenty of caution to not get run over. You'll be able to tell if the cluck is coming from the rear diff, drive shaft, or front diff, or a combination of those. If you hear it from the back diff, then it's either a worn back diff, or shaft, or both. Same goes for the front. Taking out the shaft will tell you more. Replacing the shaft is much cheaper than rebuilding or replacing the diffs. In your case, since you see the front CV axle travel when if clunks, then the front diff is likely the issue or a culprit, in which case, replacing the shaft alone may not resolve the cluck. Same goes for if you see the rear CV axles travel. If you're already going to all the trouble of removing the shaft or diffs, replace the boots on all the CV axles to get a good look at their joints. If they look fine,I'd put them back together with fresh factory boots and grease. If the joints are worn, it's time to replace those as well. Since it's a land cruiser, you can keep driving the vehicles until you experience gears slipping or the clunk is very loud. In the meanwhile, a viable workaround is replacing the diff's fluids with good old non-synthetic oil. That will help with holding everything together inside the diffs more tightly, whereas synthetic fluid will not provide that dampening to the work gear wheels. If you don't live in a cold climate, and don't use the vehicle for long regular commutes, you can go a bit thicker than factory recommended and see if that helps. If it doesn't help, just drain and go back to regular viscosity. In a clod climate, I'd stick to the factory recommended regular oil.
This is amazing info. Thank you for taking the time to post. Can I use this to make a summary video for all the potential causes of Land Cruiser clunk? I experience the clunk most when the drive train is under load, say on a hill or something. Then there are other times where I shift from D to R and it's smooth as butter. It's like there are times where there is more pressure on the drive train and thus the clunk is really loud. That's my thinking anyways, based upon what I've experienced.
To reduce the clunk on my '99 Land Cruiser I replaced the 3 front diff bushings . There's one on the front as you replaced , one on the rear of the diff , and the bushing on the arm to the diff tube on the drivers side . I also replaced and greased with moly grease the front wheel flanges . They are splined to fit the CV Joint splines . The front flanges are a disposable part and not expensive . Then I greased the drive shaft u-joints and sliding tube with Moly grease . I will re-grease the drive shaft when I do an oil change .
Thanks for checking out the video and giving some really valuable info. Some point soon, I want address all the things you mentioned and stop the clunk!
@@goatsinapond Greasing the drive shafts is a good , easy , inexpensive place to start . There are youtube videos that cover this that are Land Cruiser series 100 specific . Good Luck .
@@momoo5843 Pretty Much . There is so Little backlash now it is not an Issue and not really a clunk any more . . I just changed the Oil so I will grease the drive shafts again also . I just bought 2 new front hub inner seals , so I will pack the front wheel bearings and re-grease the flanges with grease again .
When I go over speed bumps, I hear a loud clunk in the rear. Also when I speed up to 60 mph and higher, I get shudder and steering wheel shake. I am thinking its the cv axle.
Yea man, the bushing helped a little. Towards the end there you can see the drive shaft snapping into place. I'm thinking I need to add some grease to fix some of it too.
I bet if you had put a socket on top you could have pressed it in with that jack. You just needed something on the other side of it. Thanks for the video.
It was probably a good idea to replace that worn out bushing anyway. I’ve had some clunks when shifting and greasing the ujoints has helped, but perhaps that’s unrelated. I try to grease the ujoints on the driveshafts with each oil change, might be worth a try if you haven’t lately. Good luck!
You're right. I'm glad I replaced it. The rubber was completely blown. I greased the drive shaft about 5k miles ago and then again the past week ensuring I used grease reinforced with MOLY. It seems to help a little but there is definitely a "clunk" still.
@@goatsinapond shoulda bought an 80 series. but the gu nissan is king. has a transmission brake. ifs is rubbish, the first ones were hilux fronts in the first ones, garbage..cv,s & tie rods break, upper wish bone.
@@goatsinapondRenewing my front driveshafts resolved my clunking between fwd & rev issue, but I will deffo look at those cushions too next time i’mm under the ol’ girl. Thanks for the great video.
Hey, no problem. Thanks for telling me about the drive flange. I've greased the shaft 2 times in the past 6000 miles. It helps a little, but still a very noticeable clunk. I'll research the drive flange.
@@goatsinapond yeah I was watching your video and when you shift into drive etc you can't see the play at the outer end of your drive axel. Check out chow cares, one of his video shows the play that comes after miles of use
@@goatsinapond you should check to see if the clunk is reduced/gone when you activate the center locker. There is a thread on ih8mud about this source of the clunk specifically.
I think there are multiple components involved in the LC clunk. I have replaced the drive flange on both sides of mind, only made a small difference. I'll dry the diff bushing next. Also time to regrease the drive shaft as well.
I've put about 10k miles on it since using this video. It still has the diff snug. The OEM bushing was torn after 130k or so. I'm hoping for another 100k out of the febest.
Thanks for watching! 2 years later, it’s great. No clunk from the differential. My cv axle flange teeth are worn and my driveshaft needs to be dropped and repacked. Those are causing some noise. Do you have more info on the orientation for the bushing? I’d like to learn more.
You're right. I plan on doing my flanges when the CV axles go bad. Going to stick with my clunk for now. I've read about this clunk being a combination of both. Sometimes those rubber pucks are completely blown out.
@@goatsinapond make sure that you get OEM CV and flange or you will be doing this over and over again , but flange are cheap if the problem in the flange
@@skhochay I'll definitely go OEM. Thanks for the heads up. For now my CVs are in good condition. Do you think just replacing the flanges will help? I was thinking replacing both CVs and flanges at the same time would be best.
Thanks for the vid bro. Do you think changing the entire diff would stop the clunk? I still have a powertrain warranty on mine so I wouldn’t mind it lol
Thanks for watching! After talking to more people about this clunk and doing more research, I think the problem is deeper than just the diff bushings. The axle flanges that the CV attach to get worn over time and cause the CV to slip before it "clicks" into place. I think this is part of the problem too and needs to be addressed along with the diff bushing. I've filmed my CV axles while shifting into Drive and Reverse and I can see them slipping almost half an inch before they finally engage. Long story short, I don't think replacing the entire diff will solve the problem!
Yup. It didn’t fix it. There are a number of things to investigate. The diff bushing is one. The axle flanges are another. And, the slip yoke can cause the issue.
Not entirely, but I have narrowed down some culprits to look at. Making sure the driveshaft is greased properly with MOLY reinforced grease is important. At every oil change if possible. The next culprit is the wheel hub flange. The teeth get worn out on the flange and or the CV axles and they begin to slip. My CV axles definitely slip and I think this is the cause of the clunk. I have yet to test the theory, because otherwise my CVs are operating correctly and hella expensive to replace. I'll do the full job (new hub flanges and CVs) when the CVs go bad.
@@goatsinapond I’m wondering if the drive flanges arnt sacrificial (softer) as to the cv shaft steel..?? -thoughts..?? -Obviously I got a clunk too.. lol :) Like your vid btw..
@@goatsinapond I have the same problem... There was wear in the flanges and that helped, but the problem remains. I bet you will find that if you drive with the CDL engaged (on straight road of course, for not too long) the transmission clunk will disappear and it will be blissfully smooth. Get under the truck and put the Transfer in N so that the front prop is free at its input end. Then grab the prop and turn it back and forth by hand. If it's like mine, it will rotate significantly. This is the clunk. Greasing joints, whilst necessary for maintenance, won't eliminate this slop (which is not even in the UJs anyway)! Given that my CVs are good and the flanges are good, the problem (in my case at least) must lie somewhere in the diff - either sloppy R&P, play in the sun gears / pinion, or, I guess similar play in the CV splines in the sun gears (essentially like the flange problem, but on the other end). I think the only option is to open the diff and look for play in there.
The clunk forms because of wear on the drive train, which happened sooner on full time 4WD vehicles with strong engines, especially those that worked hard, perhaps towing a heavy load, hardcore off-roading, or perhaps didn't have their fluids replaced often enough. Have someone shift back and fourth between R and D while you listen and look at the undercarriage (as you did). Use plenty of caution to not get run over. You'll be able to tell if the cluck is coming from the rear diff, drive shaft, or front diff, or a combination of those. If you hear it from the back diff, then it's either a worn back diff, or shaft, or both. Same goes for the front. Taking out the shaft will tell you more. Replacing the shaft is much cheaper than rebuilding or replacing the diffs. In your case, since you see the front CV axle travel when if clunks, then the front diff is likely the issue or a culprit, in which case, replacing the shaft alone may not resolve the cluck. Same goes for if you see the rear CV axles travel. If you're already going to all the trouble of removing the shaft or diffs, replace the boots on all the CV axles to get a good look at their joints. If they look fine,I'd put them back together with fresh factory boots and grease. If the joints are worn, it's time to replace those as well. Since it's a land cruiser, you can keep driving the vehicles until you experience gears slipping or the clunk is very loud. In the meanwhile, a viable workaround is replacing the diff's fluids with good old non-synthetic oil. That will help with holding everything together inside the diffs more tightly, whereas synthetic fluid will not provide that dampening to the work gear wheels. If you don't live in a cold climate, and don't use the vehicle for long regular commutes, you can go a bit thicker than factory recommended and see if that helps. If it doesn't help, just drain and go back to regular viscosity. In a clod climate, I'd stick to the factory recommended regular oil.
This is amazing info. Thank you for taking the time to post. Can I use this to make a summary video for all the potential causes of Land Cruiser clunk? I experience the clunk most when the drive train is under load, say on a hill or something. Then there are other times where I shift from D to R and it's smooth as butter. It's like there are times where there is more pressure on the drive train and thus the clunk is really loud. That's my thinking anyways, based upon what I've experienced.
Put the bush in the freezer over night until just before fitting it, it will shrink and go in a lot easier, also use some lube on it.
To reduce the clunk on my '99 Land Cruiser I replaced the 3 front diff bushings . There's one on the front as you replaced , one on the rear of the diff , and the bushing on the arm to the diff tube on the drivers side .
I also replaced and greased with moly grease the front wheel flanges . They are splined to fit the CV Joint splines . The front flanges are a disposable part and not expensive .
Then I greased the drive shaft u-joints and sliding tube with Moly grease . I will re-grease the drive shaft when I do an oil change .
Thanks for checking out the video and giving some really valuable info. Some point soon, I want address all the things you mentioned and stop the clunk!
@@goatsinapond Greasing the drive shafts is a good , easy , inexpensive place to start . There are youtube videos that cover this that are Land Cruiser series 100 specific .
Good Luck .
Hey did you get rid of the clunk by doing all that or did you just reduce it? thanks
@@momoo5843 Pretty Much . There is so Little backlash now it is not an Issue and not really a clunk any more . . I just changed the Oil so I will grease the drive shafts again also .
I just bought 2 new front hub inner seals , so I will pack the front wheel bearings and re-grease the flanges with grease again .
Do you have the part no. of the flanges & bushings?
Lol the Brandon "I did that" was funny, liked and subscribed 😄
Hahah, I appreciate you!
Oooof, always hate those clunks. Great job on the fix!
Grease you driveshaft at the universal’s, that should help a lot.
Thanks for the info. I grease mine up at every oil change and it seems to help.
Please make video on driveshaft too I have same problem even after changing bushings
i think thats what mines has got
When I go over speed bumps, I hear a loud clunk in the rear. Also when I speed up to 60 mph and higher, I get shudder and steering wheel shake. I am thinking its the cv axle.
Oh snap I actually do be needing to do this. My LX470 gots the same clunk.
Yea man, the bushing helped a little. Towards the end there you can see the drive shaft snapping into place. I'm thinking I need to add some grease to fix some of it too.
yeh well,,you bought a toyota..ifs.. dont take it off road eh..
@@harrywalker968 no way dude. Land cruisers are pretty legendary off-road vehicles. What else does it better?
What is the name of those wheels?
I bet if you had put a socket on top you could have pressed it in with that jack. You just needed something on the other side of it. Thanks for the video.
@@sixcentsmedia thanks for watching. You’re probably right. It was my first time doing this repair. Many lessons learned.
Whats ur wheel and tire sizes bro?
It was probably a good idea to replace that worn out bushing anyway. I’ve had some clunks when shifting and greasing the ujoints has helped, but perhaps that’s unrelated. I try to grease the ujoints on the driveshafts with each oil change, might be worth a try if you haven’t lately.
Good luck!
You're right. I'm glad I replaced it. The rubber was completely blown. I greased the drive shaft about 5k miles ago and then again the past week ensuring I used grease reinforced with MOLY. It seems to help a little but there is definitely a "clunk" still.
@@goatsinapond shoulda bought an 80 series. but the gu nissan is king. has a transmission brake. ifs is rubbish, the first ones were hilux fronts in the first ones, garbage..cv,s & tie rods break, upper wish bone.
Do you have the part number for the bushings?
Toyota Cushion - 41651-60010. Probably have to order it from Dubai on eBay atm. I couldn't find it stateside. The puck is Febest TAB-334.
Did you replace the upper cushion? I see it still has some movement. When you shift
Yea, I replaced it. I think it's a series of items to look at for the clunk issue.
@@goatsinapondRenewing my front driveshafts resolved my clunking between fwd & rev issue, but I will deffo look at those cushions too next time i’mm under the ol’ girl. Thanks for the great video.
Thanks for this video. The clunk from the drive axel is the drive flange they get worn hence the clunk
Hey, no problem. Thanks for telling me about the drive flange. I've greased the shaft 2 times in the past 6000 miles. It helps a little, but still a very noticeable clunk. I'll research the drive flange.
@@goatsinapond yeah I was watching your video and when you shift into drive etc you can't see the play at the outer end of your drive axel. Check out chow cares, one of his video shows the play that comes after miles of use
@@goatsinapond you should check to see if the clunk is reduced/gone when you activate the center locker. There is a thread on ih8mud about this source of the clunk specifically.
@@AustinLWright Thanks for letting me know. I'll take a look into that as well.
I think there are multiple components involved in the LC clunk. I have replaced the drive flange on both sides of mind, only made a small difference. I'll dry the diff bushing next. Also time to regrease the drive shaft as well.
How long has that febest bushing lasted?
I've put about 10k miles on it since using this video. It still has the diff snug. The OEM bushing was torn after 130k or so. I'm hoping for another 100k out of the febest.
You failed to orient the front bushing the correct way, front to back. How's it holding up?
Thanks for watching! 2 years later, it’s great. No clunk from the differential. My cv axle flange teeth are worn and my driveshaft needs to be dropped and repacked. Those are causing some noise. Do you have more info on the orientation for the bushing? I’d like to learn more.
@@goatsinapond There's a thread on ih8mud that just got bumped. Should be easy to find.
lol wrong part! the klunk noise is from cv axle and and axle flange
You're right. I plan on doing my flanges when the CV axles go bad. Going to stick with my clunk for now. I've read about this clunk being a combination of both. Sometimes those rubber pucks are completely blown out.
@@goatsinapond make sure that you get OEM CV and flange or you will be doing this over and over again , but flange are cheap if the problem in the flange
@@skhochay I'll definitely go OEM. Thanks for the heads up. For now my CVs are in good condition. Do you think just replacing the flanges will help? I was thinking replacing both CVs and flanges at the same time would be best.
@@goatsinapond You should definitely do both as worn cv's will ruin the new flanges pretty quick
Thanks for the vid bro. Do you think changing the entire diff would stop the clunk? I still have a powertrain warranty on mine so I wouldn’t mind it lol
Thanks for watching! After talking to more people about this clunk and doing more research, I think the problem is deeper than just the diff bushings. The axle flanges that the CV attach to get worn over time and cause the CV to slip before it "clicks" into place. I think this is part of the problem too and needs to be addressed along with the diff bushing. I've filmed my CV axles while shifting into Drive and Reverse and I can see them slipping almost half an inch before they finally engage. Long story short, I don't think replacing the entire diff will solve the problem!
keep greasing the zirks too
👍
Mystery clunks are the worst!
Just like mysterious ticking noises.
prolly just shove something in between the mount and the bushing, and just jack up the diff mount, should just push it out
Look like u have the same issue after replace bushing
Yup. It didn’t fix it. There are a number of things to investigate. The diff bushing is one. The axle flanges are another. And, the slip yoke can cause the issue.
You seem to have patience though. A virtue I do not have.
Some days are better than others. I was losing my mind a couple weekends ago putting new upper and lower ball joints in the LC.
You pressed the bushing the wrong way.
woops
I noticed that too. Not sure why exactly, but the openings in the rubber should orient front and back
Did you find the clunk issue yet?
Not entirely, but I have narrowed down some culprits to look at. Making sure the driveshaft is greased properly with MOLY reinforced grease is important. At every oil change if possible. The next culprit is the wheel hub flange. The teeth get worn out on the flange and or the CV axles and they begin to slip. My CV axles definitely slip and I think this is the cause of the clunk. I have yet to test the theory, because otherwise my CVs are operating correctly and hella expensive to replace. I'll do the full job (new hub flanges and CVs) when the CVs go bad.
@@goatsinapond I’m wondering if the drive flanges arnt sacrificial (softer) as to the cv shaft steel..?? -thoughts..??
-Obviously I got a clunk too.. lol
:)
Like your vid btw..
@@tomhouston9985 This could definitely be the case. It's so common that the drive flanges wear out. The search to resolve the clunk continues.
@@goatsinapond I have the same problem... There was wear in the flanges and that helped, but the problem remains. I bet you will find that if you drive with the CDL engaged (on straight road of course, for not too long) the transmission clunk will disappear and it will be blissfully smooth. Get under the truck and put the Transfer in N so that the front prop is free at its input end. Then grab the prop and turn it back and forth by hand. If it's like mine, it will rotate significantly. This is the clunk. Greasing joints, whilst necessary for maintenance, won't eliminate this slop (which is not even in the UJs anyway)! Given that my CVs are good and the flanges are good, the problem (in my case at least) must lie somewhere in the diff - either sloppy R&P, play in the sun gears / pinion, or, I guess similar play in the CV splines in the sun gears (essentially like the flange problem, but on the other end). I think the only option is to open the diff and look for play in there.
@@SimonKinsella This is awesome info. Thanks for taking the time to share it.