I have parts on order, disassembled the drivers side and removed the seal today. Actually went very well compared to some things I have done. I am a little concerned about setting the new seal but I have a plan I think will work. As Clint Eastwood said in Heartbreak Ridge, "You improvise, overcome, you adapt."

LOL

 

That's the Spirit!!!

 

Ronald,

Were the axles OK? Just the seal leaking? Tie rod ends? End links? Ball joints?

Not that I'm curious or anything..........

 

I believe after closer examination of everything under the car that the only problem I have is a leaking seal where the axle enters the tranny on the driver side. I decided since I had to pull the axle assembly out to change the seal I might as well change the axle assy too.

 

Got the parts tonight, looked at them when I got home, they were all wrong. Back to NAPA to get the right ones, took the old parts with me to verify what was ordered is correct this time. The seal wasn't close to the same OD, and the shaft was too long and had a different length journal on the tranny side. Will probably be 3-4 days I imagine.

 

Sounds like they ordered the non hybrid version parts. Figures......

 

I am finally done. First NAPA ordered the wrong axle assy and seal. They reordered. I asked why the new seal didn't have rubber on the OD. They said that was what the computer said was needed. I took it and reinstalled everything. Drove the car a couple of miles, no leaks. Drove 30 miles later and had a leak. After more research we discovered that the steel OD seal is for steel and iron applications. Since the tranny in the Camry is aluminum or alloy the OD of the seal must be rubber covered. Ordered a seal from Toyota, (ouch!), and disassembled and reassembled without any leaks. NAPA was good enough to give me my money back on the wrong seal.

I found a pvc plug, I think it was 2.5" that held the seal by the dust lip nicely. It applied pressure right on the OD of the seal perfectly also. You could tap on the edge of the pvc or the square head used for tightening it. I cut a 1 x 1.5" board 30 inches long to get outside the rotor assy etc. which helped tap the seal in with a reasonable hit. I started the seal by hand as far as possible the tapped it the rest of the way in with the pvc cap and board. I bought a 30mm deep well 12 point socket for the axle nut and some large curved jaw vice grips to help get the axle out of the tranny. I clamped them on the large part of the axle near the tranny in some grooves that were machined into it and hit against them or pryed against them to pop the axle loose from the tranny. I put a small amout of lightweight grease on the axles splines to hold the snap ring in the groove and make it pop back in easier. I also put some tranny fluid on the axle where the seal would seat. I put a little never seize in the splines that installed into the rotor assy. It was nice that I didn't need to remove the caliper assy, I just took the line clamp loose from the strut to allow movement. I popped the tie rod loose and removed the top of the sway bar link from the strut also. This allows you to move the strut and rotor assembly around to allow clearance. When I reassembled the axle nut was actually larger and a six point, I was glad I had a socket for it. If I remember correctly it was 1 1/4" deep well.

It was actually a fairly quick and easy repair when you have the correct parts. I understand the passenger side is a little more complicated due to the way it is installed and it is longer. The second disassembly took about 20 minutes. Reassembly was about an hour with refilling the tranny with fluid and taking my time. I do have a compressor and air tools, so that does help.

I have the Toyota number for the driver side axle seal, 90311-50053. Does anyone have the number for the passenger side seal for the hybrid with CVT?

Thanks for the help everyone.

 

Good info.! Thanks for posting!