Vibe problem

I recently got some new Toyo At's and the tire shop I use did a full drive train inspection, alignment inspection and suspension because I just finished my lift. They told me I had a bad front right wheel bearing and that is was roaring pretty good. (I had noticed it before but guess I just looked past it. With 140k miles on my truck I just went ahead and replaced both front wheel bearings. Got rid of some of the pull in my truck but I have a pretty good vibe in the front end that seems to have gotten worse since before I replace the bearings. Do you guys think it is a differential bearing what else could it be? It is coming from something that is spinning as I can feel it on the revolution of the tires.

 

Does the vibration frequency change when you speed up or slow down? I just went through this with mine (under warranty). My vibration started out around 30 mph and went to around 45 mph. At first they tried to tell me it was just the tires but I knew better. With the front end of the truck off the ground spin the front tire and grab the UCA. You should be able to feel the vibration if it is something in the front driveline.

 

Easy way to eliminate the front differential is to switch it to 4wd. If it instantly goes away in 4wd, then it is the front differential bearing. If it doesn't go away in 4wd, then you can relax because your problems just got smaller.

 

Ok I will check these things out. The vibe goes away at about 40 mph or so but I can feel it from 1mph through 40 or so.

 

The vibe goes away when putting it into 4wd. What is the next step? I have read some posts on doing the diff. bearing and some guys said it was as easy as the wheel bearings (which I just did) and others said it was a real pain. Need to get it done soon and I got a diff drop kit so may try putting that in to reduce it until I can get it fixed. Any other input would be great.

 

Damn, I hate hearing about another needle bearing going bad in a front diff. Read through this thread (the WHOLE thing). Eventually, you'll get to the more current stuff which explains which bearing it is and what some went through to replace it without taking apart the whole front differential. This thread is still ongoing with current posts. It can be done since several have now successfully completed it with success. Just one word of caution before you read it (and something to think about). We're still debating whether we should change out the CV Axle each time we replace that bearing just to reduce the risk that the Axle has minor wear from the roller bearing and may cause the vibration to return afterwards. You'll have to decide on that yourself.
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2n...unk-found-questions-about-front-diff-now.html

 

Thanks for the help. I don't and won't have the resources or money to fix the problem until I get home from college this summer so for now I think I will put the diff drop that I have in and see if that takes some pressure off for now. Any other suggestions? I spent about 3 hours reading and digesting that whole 18 pages thread but it seems for some that even the new bearing has not helped for long so I am just debating whether to worry about it until I really have some supplemental funds or until I hear of some complete failures or worse things than vibes. My truck has 140k miles on it now and I didn't really notice it until about 135k which is around the time I put my 5100's on.

 

Adding the diff drop will take the vibe down as if you set the 5100s to the .85 setting. So it will help. If you really want to take more pressure off of it, you can install the diff drop and reset your 5100's to .85. That's almost down to stock (not quite though). If it's not drastically loud (just a vibe you feel rather than hear over the radio), then you can probably go a long time with it. I took my diff drop off many months ago and immediately felt the vibe again (I think the CV Axle should have been replaced last year too). The vibe is slowly getting worse, but nothing drastic after several months. So if it's just the vibe, ignore it until summer and then re-evaluate the vibe at that time.

 

Ok will do. I really can't hear anything, all i feel is the cyclical vide on the floor and my pedals but none in steering and no sounds