DIY: 2007-2021 Tundra U-Joint and Carrier Bearing Replacement

This serves as a general guide for servicing your U-joints and carrier bearing on a 2nd gen Tundra. With these trucks getting older and high mileage it becomes a more common issue. Despite greasing every 5k miles, one of my u-joints failed at 187k.

My specific truck used in this DIY is a 2014 and there may be slight variances between model years. However, this is overall largely the exact same for all models of this generation.

Symptoms: Symptoms of a failing U joint or carrier bearing are somewhat broad and can overlap with other issues such as bad alignment, worn steering bushings, worn/warped brakes, etc. But generally it involves -

• Clunking noises - Most obvious shifting from park to drive or reverse as the change in direction of the driveshaft with a loose u-joint slams the u-joint. This was my first symptom. It was a very loud "thunk". I initially thought my transmission was causing it.
• Driveline vibration - You'll feel a vibration especially at highway speeds
• Squeaking/Squealing sound - This is typically at low speed, rhythmic, and changes with vehicle speed.

Visible Signs of A Failing U-Joint or Carrier Bearing: You can inspect the driveshaft and diagnose this fairly easily.

1. Park the truck, engage the parking brake, and chock the wheels. Put the truck in neutral.
2. Climb under the truck and inspect the driveshaft. The U joints seals should be intact and appear greased, not dry or rusty. The carrier bearing rubber should not be cracked or have holes/gaps.
3. With your hands or a pry bar check for play in the driveshaft. The driveshaft should not have any play at the u joints. At the carrier bearing there is a small acceptable level of play with it being a rubber bushing. However, excessive slop is not normal.

This was my center U-joint, you can see the blue seals had failed and the joint itself was rusty/corroded.




Now that we've verified that a u-joint or carrier bearing is the issue, it should be replaced. I recommend replacing all 3 u-joints and the carrier bearing while you're in here.

Parts Diagram:

This is a diagram showing the full shaft, 3 u-joints, and carrier bearing. This also includes torque specs.


This shows the two shafts and parts dissected.



Parts Needed:
The OE manufacturer of the driveline parts is Dana/Spicer. The driveshaft yolks are even stamped "Spicer". These are what Toyota uses and will save you $ versus buying the Toyota branded part. Do NOT go through all of this work to put in a cheap Dorman/Ling Long/Wing Wang Chinese replacement part from Autozone. The Dana/Spicer U joints are made in the USA and the carrier bearing is made in Japan.

• Spicer 5-178X U joint - Quantity: 3
• Spicer 211750-1X - Quantity: 1

Do not buy the "Spicer Select" series. It is a lesser quality more budget oriented part meant to compete with cheap replacements from China.





Steps to Replacement:

On a level surface, park the truck, chock the wheels, and engage the parking brake. If you do not do this, the truck can roll away when you remove the driveshaft and injure you, others, or destroy property.

Using a paint marker or Sharpie, index the driveshaft. The driveshaft is balanced from the factory. Each of these parts needs to go back exactly in the same alignment of how they were taken apart. Index at the flange to the transfer case/rear diff, and also at the U-joint to the shaft.



At the center joint, index the yoke to both shafts. I also marked where the bolts were relative to the carrier bearing slots by circling them.



With the shaft indexed, start by taking jackstands and placing them under the center of each shaft of the two piece driveshaft to support them.

Remove the (4) 17mm nuts at the front of the shaft at the transfer case. The bolts are pressed to the flange and do not come out.



Remove the (4) 17mm nuts and (4) 17mm bolts at the rear of the shaft at the rear differential.



Both yoke flanges will likely be seized to the companion flanges. You may need to strike it with a punch or chisel. Strike at the body of the cast yoke NOT at the companion flange.

Remove the (2) 14mm bolts at the carrier bearing. The nut is welded to the mount. You may have shims on one side or both, note which side they belong to and ensure they go back in that exact order.



This is the hardware you should be left with.



The driveshaft is now floating and should be supported firmly by the jackstands. I laid flat and slowly slid the driveshaft towards the rear of the truck and then let it down. Do NOT drop the shaft. I put a moving blanket down under the truck. If you dent or damage the shaft you will likely need a new one.



Now we can proceed to replacing the joints and carrier bearing.

 

With the shaft removed, we can proceed with removing the U-joints.

Each joint has a retaining clip that will need to be removed. I advise spraying these all with penetrating oil to make removal of the clip and U joint cap easier.



Start by removing the clips using a pair of needle nose pliers.



Many of these clips will be corroded or seized. If this happens, use a small punch and tap against the clip so that it will turn and unseize.



Now we can proceed to remove the u joint caps. This can be achieved 3 ways, using the socket and hammer method (which I don't personally recommend as its easy to damage things), using a socket and vise, or using a ball joint press.

If you use the socket method, a 19mm socket fits perfectly. I will not detail this method, look it up on Youtube if interested.



A ball joint press and an impact gun will allow you to press out the joints easily and without risk of damage to components. I used a Harbor Freight ball joint press. You can rent one from an auto parts store as well. This is shown on the yoke on my bench and applies to all the joints in the shaft. After verifying that both clips have been removed, line up the ball joint press to the caps and then use an impact or ratchet to drive the cap out.



The cap will not come out completely, as its limited by the U joint itself in the middle. The cap being pressed into the yoke will bottom out as below. The cap being pushed out on the otherwise will come out about half way.





Take a pair of vise grips and remove the cap. It should slide out fairly easily.



With the cap removed, now place the ball joint press on this side to drive out the cap from the other side.



Just as before, drive out the cap and then use vise grips to remove it. The U joint will now be able to be removed from the yoke.



Clean the joint thoroughly. I use a pick to clean the groove that the clip sits in.



Then use a light wire wheel to clean the surface the caps sit in. Do not use a file or abrasive that will remove material here.



Then remove any burs on the edges using a file to prevent damaging the new caps when being pressed. Lightly file only the edges.



The yoke should be clean and free of metal, dirt, or grease.

 

We can now proceed to installing the new joints. Start by removing the caps carefully and packing them with additional grease. These come greased from the factory but additional grease will make installation much easier to avoid disturbing the needle bearings. Ensure you do not shift any of the needle bearings when doing this.



Place the joint in the yoke and then press the cap in as far as you can by hand, ensuring that it goes in straight.



Pressing the joint is the same as removal, take the ball joint press and press it in slowly until you see the groove for the clip. Press it just past the groove.



Insert your new clip and ensure it seats entirely in the groove.



Press the cap in on the other side by hand, just as before, ensure that the needle bearings stay in place and the cap goes in straight. It is critical to ensure the joint is straight and seated in the cap properly. Then press it in with the u joint press until you see the groove for the clip as done above. Place the new clip in on that side as well.

If you go to spin the joint and its binding, tap the yoke ends with a hammer to loosen the joint. Do not hit the joint. It should spin very easily/freely after this. If there is binding or the joint is hard to rotate, something is wrong.



Now the yoke can be taken and the other two caps pressed into the shaft using the same techniques as above. Everything should move freely and easily with no binding or resistance. Ensure your indexing marks are correctly lined up.



This is what my center U joint looked like. Total cap failure, no grease, no bearings, and rusted components. Very bad.







Now do this for all 3 joints on the driveshaft. However, before doing the middle joint, we will replace the carrier bearing first.

 

After removing the center U joint, the two shafts will separate. The yoke needs to be removed in order to remove the carrier bearing.

Remove the nut using a 30mm socket. This will likely be difficult to get off. I had to apply heat and penetrating oil. There is also a washer underneath of it.



The yoke needs to be removed from the shaft. It is splined and is also typically corroded on and difficult to remove. I applied heat to the yoke and liberally applied penetrating oil with the shaft sitting upright. Then I struck the yoke with a mallet until it started to slide off. This took a while. An air hammer would be extremely useful here.



You can see the shaft is fairly corroded. No pitting or damage but expect to fight to get this off.



To remove the carrier bearing its best to remove the rubber bushing using a screwdriver or pry bar.







To drive off the carrier bearing, use a punch or chisel.



There is a washer in this assembly. Do not lose or damage it. It will be reused when installing the new bearing.



Clean the shaft thoroughly of grease, debris, and corrosion.



Now we can install the new carrier bearing. Remember when I said that Dana makes this part for Toyota? The part is even stamped with "TOYOTA" on it. Note that this is also pre-greased. However, I still packed in extra grease.



Slide on the bearing by hand, it should go on fairly easily until you feel some resistance. Then you can use a 1 3/16 socket to lightly tap it in the rest of the way ensuring that its seated flat.



Reuse the washer obtained from disassembly earlier.



Ensure that your index marks are lined up and put the yolk back on. I tapped it in using a 1" socket.



Next, place your washer and nut back on.




Place the yoke in a vise (not the driveshaft) and torque the 30mm nut to 94 ft/lbs.



Stake the nut using a punch over the divot in the bolt it threaded onto.








The carrier bearing is complete. You can now install the u-joint and finish servicing the driveshaft.

 

The driveshaft is now ready to be reinstalled. This can be a bit of a pain. I did it myself but a second set of hands would be immensely helpful.

I placed the shaft in a moving blanket and then grabbed the corners of the blanket to carry it to the truck and then slide it under the truck.



Take a jack stand and then prop up the front of the shaft at the transfer case. I also took bungie cords to support the shaft at the carrier bearing but also as a failsafe if I were to drop the shaft or it slipped off.



In this position you can slide the shaft forward and align it with the companion flange with your index marks. Be mindful of the slip joint in the middle of the shaft (where the rubber boot is) that you do not over stretch it or tear the boot.

Once aligned with the companion flange I take one nut and thread it on to hold the shaft in place.

I then took a second jack stand and supported the rear shaft and then installed the rear yoke with the nuts and bolts loosely at the rear differential.

Now at the carrier bearing, thread in your bolts. I matched it to the position that the previous carrier bearing was in. In addition, ensure the single hole on the bearing is facing downward. This is the correct orientation.

After ensuring that all indexing marks are aligned correctly, apply blue Loctite and torque all fasteners. The (4) front nuts and (4) rear driveshaft nuts and bolts are torqued to 52 ft/lbs.



The (2) 14mm carrier bearing bolts are torqued to 30 ft/lbs.



Servicing the driveshaft is now complete. Go for a drive to verify function. My truck drove like new afterwards, no vibrations and no clunks with going into reverse or drive.

I hope this helps others as a general guide. This forum has been invaluable for me in servicing my truck and I'm happy to be able to contribute to it. I'm not a mechanic, so if anyone has any suggestions or corrections to what I have done, I am happy to hear it. Thanks for reading.