Can I drive without front axle installed?

[PriusRepellent]

I looking at buying a truck and I found out that the owner removed the front passenger side axle because the bearings were shot. Currently the truck is sitting in his driveway. He said he plugged the hole in the front diff, so that it wouldn't leak oil. My question is can I drive it home so that I can repair it, or will this damage the truck?

[JSchuricht]

I assume your referring to the inner axle shaft. I don't see any issue with driving it home. As long as the hub is unlocked and you don't have the t-case in 4x4, nothing is moving internally. I would check the fluid level before using 4x4 incase any leaks out.

[PriusRepellent]

I believe both the inner shaft (I assume that is the one going into the Tcase) and the outer shaft (I assume the part that goes to the tire) are both removed. This may not be the case with the outer shaft, but I'm going worse case scenerio.

[atvrider93]

well, the outer shaft has to be there or the wheel won't exactly stay one. as long as you check the fluid before using 4x4 I wouldn't really worry about it

[ttyR2]

I'm not sure what you mean by the axle shaft has to be installed for the wheel to stay on. The hub supports all the weight irrespective of whether the axle is there.

[NoRalPh]

Yea, there's some strange terminology going on here

Let's not refer to the driveshaft (the one that goes to the Transfercase) as an inner shaft...

The power gets to the front wheels (which btw, as ttyR2 says, gets No Support from any axleshaft) from the TC, through the driveshaft, to the only two axles you have, connecting the side gears in the diff with the U-Joints to the "stub axle" that goes through the hub.

What's actually missing?

[Codum]

I agree with ttyR2, the unbearing hub assembly carries the weight as well as dealing with the rotating wheel. Make sure the transfer case is set for 2 wheel drive and the locking hubs are unlocked. At that point it does not matter if the truck is sitting in the driveway or flying down the interstate.

[BIGGER]

Originally Posted by Codum

I agree with ttyR2, the unbearing hub assembly carries the weight as well as dealing with the rotating wheel. Make sure the transfer case is set for 2 wheel drive and the locking hubs are unlocked. At that point it does not matter if the truck is sitting in the driveway or flying down the interstate.

That is true in theory, however I have seen the unitized hubs come apart without the stub shaft still in them in as little as 10 miles. You might make it no problem, but I wouldn't take the risk. If you are going to buy the truck go get an axle shaft from the junkyard and install it then drive home. Only takes 30-45 minutes to install with basic tools.

[PriusRepellent]

Yeah I got it towed. I went online to the automotive recyclers and no one has the front axles in stock. Not sure if that is true or they haven't cataloged it yet. I find it hard to believe there are no axle shafts in the Phoenix area.

[novemberdelta]

I ordered mine from a machine shop online a few years ago and saved quite a bit of money. I'll try to find the link if i can.