1993 Toyota Corolla 1.8 DLX pulls to right after drive axle replacement

Tiny
RAPTUROS
  • MEMBER
  • 1993 TOYOTA COROLLA
  • 4 CYL
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 82,549 MILES
The background to this problem is a week or so ago I started hearing a scraping type of sound from under my 1993 Toyota Corolla (1.8 version; four door) so I had a friend who is handy with autos look at it. He said the drive axle (in front and left of the driver’s seat) was probably bad. He was able to get a refurb from the local Oreilly’s auto part store and got it installed apparently successfully. He also noticed that the old part was so old it basically fell apart into two pieces when he took it out. He also noticed that the large nut in the middle of the wheel that is usually screwed down very tightly was so loose that he said if the carter pin was not in place it might have unscrewed itself completely.
However, the day after the repair the scraping sound was gone, but I noticed that the car pulled to the right when driving on a straightaway. Not a severe or violent pull but enough where it was quite noticeable. My friend was somewhat mystified since he said that the alignment should not have changed just due to the drive axle replacement.
I had had the car aligned several months prior to the drive axle replacement and the car would drive very straight if I took my hands off the wheel on a straightaway and would pull slightly left or right if there was a slight slope in the roadway leaning one way or the other (which I understand is normal).
The car does not pull to either side when I brake, even when coming to a fairly fast stop. I did notice that after the drive axle replacement that the tire(s) squeal just a little bit when I make a corner while going a just a little fast (not road racer fast, just not slowing to a crawl to make the turn). The squeal never occurred before the drive axle replacement.
I read where the tire pressure could cause this if one tire’s pressure was significantly higher than the other so I checked all four tires and brought them up to 30 psi as per the specs found in the car’s manual from Toyota, but this did not solve the problem.
Now I did notice that my friend did not use a torque wrench when tightening down the various nuts and bolts after the new drive axle was in place so I asked him about it and he mentioned that the engine parts are more critical in getting just the right pressure on the fasteners, but that the suspension he could pretty much get tight enough by feel having worked on several over the years. He intends to take the drive axle apart again and see if anything might need to be reseated, reinstalled, etc.
Any advice on how to fix this problem while we are under there would be greatly appreciated, including where to find the correct torque pressures needed at each fastener point if this should be considered a critical item.

Monday, April 25th, 2011 AT 8:11 AM

3 Replies

Tiny
MERLIN2021
  • MECHANIC
  • 17,250 POSTS
The critical torque is that large axle nut, if too loose, wheel bearing (hub), damage will occur. This would manifest itself as a growling at 35 mph and above. Squealing around corners is a sign of alignment. Axles can come apart on the inside joint if not removed carefully. Recheck alignment b4 redoing the axle.
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Monday, April 25th, 2011 AT 10:22 AM
Tiny
RAPTUROS
  • MEMBER
  • 13 POSTS
Your answer was totally correct. I went in for an alignment and they did find some adjustment needed and afterwards the car runs straight as an arrow and the squealing disappeared. Thanks much.
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Saturday, April 30th, 2011 AT 8:15 PM
Tiny
RIVERMIKERAT
  • MECHANIC
  • 6,110 POSTS
Thank yo for letting us know your problem was resolved.
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Saturday, June 25th, 2011 AT 9:52 PM

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