Two different front differentials

So, yesterday did look for front differential fill plug in my Taco 2000 V6 4x4 manual, could not find it where most of pictures show it. Later, I found that "Timmy the tool man", on a youtube video shows a rig with the fill plug, located behind the diff mount and facing forward... later, on a post here, shows the location of it, behind driver side CV axle. In both diffs, drain plug is located in the same place...Are there two different types of differentials, on 1st gen Tacomas?

 

That left pic is from a 2nd Gen Tacoma.

The ball joint is different.

 

The only differences between front differentials on a 1st Gen 4x4 Tacoma are;

the extension from the differential towards the passenger side as you either have a manual hub setup or ADD

the bolts used for the extension, some were metric head and others were e torx

the actuator on ADD setups since 2000 and earlier were vacuum and 2001 and up were electric

 

The critical part is when they left the dealers lot the first time!!!

On these trucks nothing surprises me any more.

I have seen so many strange things swapped in over the years

 

True, but it'd be pointless to pull such things off a truck when they were first sold off.

The issue arises after a vehicle has had several owners as there's more likelihood that one might want to bubba something up and ruin something trying to repair and/or replace something.

On the subject of front differentials I'd expect; original fluid based on owner neglect, wrong fluid used, and/or stripped fill and/or drain bolts.

 

On your 1st Gen? Are you sure?

The OP posted two different vehicles without realizing the two are different generation Tacoma's.

 

Mmm, now that I think about it the drain is on one side and fill is on the other side

 

1st pic is 100% a 2nd or 3rd gen. Can tell by the front center jacking point.

 

You probably have a gen3 4runner diff. I know this as ECGS sent me one when I ordered a gen1 tacoma diff. No issues running other than a pain to fill the thing.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...l-change-3rd-gen-4runner-version-pics.415429/

 

What are you talking about?

1st Gen Tacoma and 3rd Gen 4Runner front diff is the same.

3rd Gen 4Runner I used to own -





We're here dispelling misinformation, not spreading it.

 

They are but I think the fill plug is in different location, like in the link I sent. Not sure why though. The one I got from ecgs has the fill plug in the front of the diff like described by the OP and in the link attached.

 

Yeah, look at the posts above and it clears the difference between the two pictures the OP posted.

And look at my reply to your post...the fill is on the front. It's the same on both a Tacoma and 4Runner.

The drain is on the side, same on both the Tacoma and 4Runner.

 

I stand corrected and apologize for adding to the missinformation. It is easy to be misinformed just like I was by lazy photo and post scrolling.

 

No worries; OP never came back so he'll have a lot to catch up on once he's back.

It doesn't help that many times a 2nd or 3rd Genner will come into a 1st Gen thread and go as far as to posting part numbers even (a recent suspension thread had this).

It confuses new members trying to follow the advice given. Not something you did by any means but it does happen, often and in his case it was with a picture he found elsewhere.