Disassembly of the axles is quite simple following the steps outlined in the 1981 factory repair manual. Each part was then individually cleaned and painted. Worn and damaged parts, bearings, and hardware were replaced with new. Then again following the steps outlined in the repair manual the axles were put back together again.

In general the factory parts for this project are still available from Toyota. To save time I will list some of the common part numbers: Here are some of the parts and prices you might need to restore your front axle:

Felt ball seal set: 43204-60020 approx $21.68 each side

New Bolts for seal set: 91651-40612 approx $0.62 (8) per side

Rotor: 43512-60060 approx $47.16 each side

Pads: 04465-YZZC0 approx $46.21 set

Inner axle seals: 90311-33085 approx $4.96 each side

Outer Axle Seals: 90311-62001 approx $11.70 each side

Knuckle Bearing: 90366-17001 approx $24.18 (2) per side

Gasket Spindle: 43435-60011 approx $1.46 each side

Seal Spindle: 90313-93011 approx $28.05 each side

Next on the list: disassemble everything again, sandblast and paint the axle housing; then finally put it back together for good!

Here is a rare 1970 Hilux for sale on Ebay. I doubt you could find a nicer example for the money. The center picture below is a similar truck that was restored- just for comparison. Click the link above for more info or to bid on this truck before it goes to someone else! From the auction listing:

INTERIOR: Original seat cover and dash pad need replacing. It has the original floor mat that is in pretty good shape. It has an aftermarket stereo in the stock location since the early 70’s. It is an AM radio and it still works. Door panels are in good shape. Windows roll up and down and doors lock with the original key from when the truck was new. It is missing the rear view mirror as the owner took it off since he had a shell on the back and lost it. Heater and fan work fine.

EXTERIOR: The owner who is now 80 years old saw that his paint was getting thin in places and so he brushed on white house paint over many areas of the truck (that is the white you see in the pics) to protect the metal. While it did protect the metal, it looked awful. I wet sanded most of it off, but I figure whoever buys this is most likely going to restore it so I didn’t get it all off. If I was selling the truck for $10K I would have had it all off, but for $500….Anyway all the panels are straight with one dent on the top of the right front fender which is easily fixable. For the most part, everything on this truck is usable for restoration. Any rust you see on the truck is surface rust only except the lower rear of the front fenders. You will need small patch panels for the lower front fenders, but other that that the body is extremely straight and would be an easy job to prep for paint. The front windshield has a chip in it but could still be used, but needs new weatherstripping around it. The door weatherstripping has pretty much deteriorated as well and needs to be replaced. The wheels and hubcaps are original. As mentioned earlier, the bed is probably the closest to mint that you will ever find in this vintage.

MECHANICAL: The engine starts right up and drives and shifts fine. The brakes need adjusting and may just need to be bled as the pedal is very soft. Tires are in great shape and nearly new. The original owner told me that the engine was rebuilt in 2003 and hardly has any miles on it as the truck mainly set for the last five years. I wouldn’t recommend driving this truck any great distance due to the brakes. Mechanically the truck seems very sound.

Here is a nice original condition Toyota Mojave for sale on Ebay.The partial auction listing states: The miles are original, the paint and interior is original. The paint has flaws, scratches, dings, but never in any accidents and rust free except for some of the chips. Everything on the truck works even the original Toyota am/fm stereo w/ factory speakers in the door panels, no cuts anywhere. The options are p/s, pdb, a/c ( still blows cold ) , cruise control, tilt wheel, full gauges, bucket seats with center console, tinted windows, left and right rear view mirrors, full carpeting, chrome package w/ rear chrome step bumper and place for trailer hitch ball ( never used ) ,  sport steering wheel, factory alloy wheels. Recent work includes complete timing chain job, clutch job, starter, full 120k major service with all fluids and valve adjustment, 4 wheel alignment. New rear red clearance lights. There are no oil leaks, all the lights work, all original glass including windshield,  and brakes are all 50% or better, Bridgestone tires have 5-6/32 tread remaining with even wear. All parts used were factory Japanese parts, Denso , Toyota etc… NO Kragen or Pep Boys stuff.  The interior is clean clean with no smells or major stains, virgin headliner, vinyl seats which have covers have some flaws. The known flaws are the paint which is thin in places and dings here and there. Poor tint job on solid rear window. The dash pad has 3 small cracks about 1/2 inch long. One of the front t/s lens is cracked. The plastic trim behind the seat is cracking/brittle. The choke mechanism may need replacement or adjustment as it does not seem to go into fast idle after start up, although starts fine w/ no stalling etc. Passed stringent CA smog testing. The motor is a 22r carburetor version w/ 5 speed transmission. Always California rust free vehicle.

Click the link at the top of the page to bid or get more info!

(No this isn’t my truck. I’d like to buy it, but one Mojave in the garage is probably enough)

The truck also does have an automatic tranmission and that in itself has to be rare. It seems pretty unlikely that the truck has 43,000 miles on it- just 1264 miles a year on a 34 year old truck. But in any case it appears to be in near showroom condition and if baby blue is your color- this is your truck!

Titled as a 1983 Toyota pickup that runs and drives great, the seller doesn’t know what he has. This is a Mojave Special Edition Toyota pickup. The truck is a 2WD long box with a 22r 4 cylinder and a 5 speed transmission. Because it is an SR5 model, it does have bucket seats, full gauges, carpeted floor with center console. Gone is the factory electronically tuned radio. Sadly the interior is not in good condition and truck needs to be restored.

What makes the Mojave so special? The list of features is long. First the body has been cleaned and smoothed. Gone are any badges, stripes, or decals. Notice the tailgate without TOYOTA embossed on it; gone are the cargo hooks from the bed rails; and no where to be found are the fender badges. The truck sits on factory alloy wheels only found on the Mojave special edition. The truck has chrome in some unusual places. Along with a chrome grill, front & rear bumper, and vent covers, you will also find chrome side mirrors and tail light housings. Mojave trucks did not have vent windows or rear sliders, but the glass was tinted bronze. Last but not least, the exterior color is a special edition Mojave gold metallic clear coat paint. 

Inside, the interior is like no other. The SR5 bucket seats are specially stitched and monogrammed. The door panels have a special pattern pressed into them. The radio is top of the line 1983 ETR with stereo speakers in the doors. In the center console you will find a rare factory cruise control system. The SR5 steering wheel is a one of a kind bronze wrapped with leather. 

Ask me what I did all weekend. I spent the entire time sandblasting the frame for the project Two-tone SR5 truck. The frame is in amazing condition for a 27 year old truck. After a trip to the car wash to remove the oil, grease, and dirt I found for the most part- original black paint. From the cab forward was almost like new. Under the box is where the most rust was. I tried working it with a hand grinder and a wire wheel. But the very back of the frame was pitted enough that each time I touched the sander to it new rust surfaced. Plus there were several brackets and other tight spots that were impossible to completely clean with a wire wheel. It was obvious that the only way to be sure that all of the rust was taken care of was to sandblast it.

I was lucky enough to be able to borrow a pressure pot sandblaster. Searching all over town, I finally found silica sand at a lumber yard. They sell 80 lb. bags for $5 each. I have a 5hp two stage air compressor with a 60 gallon tank, but even that was only enough for a few minutes of blasting at a time. Starting slow and making sure to cover every square inch, I managed to use up 3 bags of sand. Then I turned over the frame to take care of the bottom. The bottoms of the rails were even more rusty than the top, but luckily it was all surface rust. No holes anywhere on the frame. Another bag of sand cleaned up the bottom side of the frame.

Then on Sunday I used the fifth bag of sand to detail all of the brackets. I blasted inside and around each bracket and across each weld to clean out any voids in them. Finally the rust was gone from the frame. For as great of shape as this frame was in, there was a lot of rust.

To seal the deal, I bought some oil based primer made for tractors and trailers. I decided to brush the primer on to be sure to make contact with every square inch of the bare metal, instead of just spray it on the surface. Plus the brush can push the primer into all of the pits and voids in the welds to be absolutely sure that everything is covered so that the rust will not come back.

Next; lots of sanding, more primer (sprayed this time), and finally new shiny black paint for the project truck’s frame. It was a lot of work, but at least one truck frame was saved!