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Off Road Solutions Manual Hub Conversion Kit
Most late model Toyota vehicles are
equipped with an Automatic Differential Disconnect system, also known as ADD.
These vehicles include '95.5 - '04 Tacomas, '96-'02 4Runners, '00-'03 Tundras,
and '01-'03 Sequoias. Instead of conventional manual lockout hubs at the ends
of the front axle, this system uses a shift fork at the front differential to
engage and disengage the front drive train when shifting from 2WD to 4WD. With
this setup the front axles are locked to the front tire/hub assembly. This setup
forces the axles to spin, regardless of transfer case position. While the ADD
system is convenient for most consumers, there are select consumers that would
prefer the options and efficiency that conventional lockout (manual) hubs offer.
Another problem with ADD arises when using a spring lift on the front of these
vehicles. These lifts place a greater angle on the axle (CV) joints and the CV
boots. As lift height increases, excessive wear is placed on these components.
For this reason, most people can only safely lift these vehicles 2".
The Off Road Solutions manual hub
conversion places lockout (manual) hubs at the end of the axles. This allows
the axles to be disengaged from the hub and tire assembly, no longer forcing
the axles to spin with the tires. This eliminates excessive wear on the CV
joints and boots. When the hubs are placed in the lock position, the factory
ADD system will provide 4WD just as before. Our kit allows up to 3.5" of lift
to be achieved without axle problems. Regardless of suspension lift, it is a
nice feature for any late model Toyota, giving the driver more options and
reducing wear on the front differential. This O.E. quality kit is complete
with Warn hubs, genuine Toyota wheel bearings, and all other parts and hardware
necessary to complete the conversion. Our basic kit is the same kit, only sold
without the Warn lockouts, for those who wish to use an alternative lockout. New
CV boots are also sold upon request. Although installation of this kit is fairly
straightforward, Off Road Solutions strongly recommends installation by a qualified
professional due to the heavy amount of hydraulic press work.
There are now variations of this conversion
available through other companies. Their advertisements claim that their cheaper
versions are more basic, and include only what the customer needs. This is not
true. Our kit includes all that is needed to perform this swap properly, nothing
more. We include new wheel bearings and axle shafts, the others do not.
When doing the manual hub conversion,
the wheel bearings MUST be replaced. The wheel hub is pressed into the wheel
bearing inner race VERY tightly. The only way to remove the hub is by supporting
the wheel bearing outer race. This transfers all the force of the press through
the bearing to the inner race. This forces the bearing rollers to expand the
bearing assembly, destroying the races, and normally exploding the bearing.
However, if the bearing remains intact and is reused, it WILL fail promptly.
The bearing is not reusable.
Our kit also includes new axle shafts.
In some applications, the factory axle shaft will not match the splines of the
new outer CV joint, and a custom shaft is sold in order to assemble the axle.
In every kit the axle shaft is also hard to reuse. It is retained in the
original outer CV joint by way of a spring clip. However, this clip does not
release very well. In almost every case a special hydraulic press is required
to remove the axle shaft from the outer joint. When this is done a section of
spline is "ripped" from the end of the shaft, giving the spring clip less or
nothing to retain the axle in the new joint. This is also a procedure that has
to be performed at an axle shop. For these reasons, we include new axle shafts
to make the conversion strong, reliable, and simple.
These parts are sold for late model
vehicles that see a good amount of street use and still retain a high resale
value. This conversion is not the place to "cut corners". We feel that the
parts included in our kit provide the only safe and acceptable way to perform
this conversion.
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