Odd vibrations - 2017 Tacoma TRD Sport

Hello everyone, I wanted to make a post to find out if any others are experiencing an issue like mine and find out what their remedy was if so. I have a 2017 Tacoma TRD Sport 4x4 with 2,400 miles that has some odd vibration/shaking issues. All issues have been present since I bought it new and drove home from the dealership, although they were very minimal and non-concerning at the time.

[Issue 1:]When the truck is stopped with the A/C (Air conditioning) on the truck shakes quite excessively when the compressor kicks on. You can feel it in the seat, on the floor, through the steering wheel, etc. I know the compressor puts a lot of load on the engine which then raises the RPM's but it shakes well beyond ANY other car I've owned. The compressor will kick on for a few seconds, the truck shakes, then the comp kicks off, RPM's drop and the truck is fine for a few seconds then the comp. kicks on again, over and over.

Update Issue 1: This has improved over time, I do not even really notice it anymore when sitting at idle with the air on.

[Issue 2:] What I feel to be a "rotational" type vibration/shake when cruising around the 45-55mph mark. It doesn't always happen but most of the time it does and it doesn't matter the road. You can feel this in the seats and floor but not really much in the steering wheel. You can also visually see this if you have a clear cup with fluid in it while driving, it makes perfect ripples in the fluid.

Update Issue 2: This issue has improved, although still there at certain times, it's gotten less noticeable over time. May be the tires wearing in, or bushings wearing in?

[Issue 3:] Steering wheel shake/vibration at 60+mph. It's inconsistent and doesn't matter the road, it's had the issue on brand new paved roads and on shitty old roads. You can feel this in the steering wheel, seats and floor. If you put your head against the headrest it sometimes vibrates so bag it'll jiggle your damn eyeballs. If you let go you can see the steering wheel jiggle side to side, almost like a shimmy, and can also see it wonder like there is play.

These issues are present on both the stock wheels and also the aftermarket wheels currently on the truck. The vibrations have seem to have gotten worse over time, thus leading me to believe it's some sort of bushing(s)?

Update Issue 3: The Dealer stated they couldn't feel anything so I took the service manager for a ride, in which he felt the vibration as soon as we got on the highway. He told me to get my wheels rebalanced at the place that installed them (Belle Tire) and bring it back if the issue persists. The vibration is still there but I haven't take it back yet. I'm going to bring it up again with my 5k service (800 miles).

Update Issue 3: The truck now has 6300 miles on it and the issue persists. Swapped back to stock wheels and took it to the dealer again. They said they couldn't replicate the vibration even after driving 25 miles. Drove my truck home, taking the same route they would've taken, and it was shaking on the highway as normal. Not sure what to do at this point.

Update Issue 3: Vibration in the steering whee/seat/headrest still present, truck now at 8,000 miles. Going to have the wheels rebalanced for the 3rd time, but at the dealership this time for my 10k service.

 

Videos below showing Issue 3, taken this morning on my way into work. The shaking/vibration is milder in the video but has been much worse than this, such as over this past weekend.

 

Have you taken the truck in to have tires balanced? That's certainly the first thing to look at.

 

I just had my new wheels and tires installed two weeks ago, in which the balanced them. The issue was present on my stock wheels too. But I have not taken either set in to get re-balanced.

 

Did the vibrations change at all at that point? Vibrations in the steering wheel are driveline and rotational. Wheels/tires or CV/Axles the most likely. Front driveshaft is not turning in 2wd so you can likely rule it out.

 

From what I remember the issue didn't change much by simply swapping to my new wheels/tires, but the vibrations have gotten worse over time compared to when I first bought the truck. There was in fact vibrations with the stock wheels.

 

Any difference if you kick it into 4wd and then get back to those speeds? (needle bearing related maybe?)

 

Unsure but will give it a shot after work. To be honest I've not once turned the dial to 4WD since owning it LOL.

 

For anyone seeing this, I just dropped the truck off at the Dealer. Will report back later today with results.

As I was telling the Service person about the shake with the A/C on, she was leaning on my truck mirror and said she could feel the vibration through the mirror.

 

The dealer claims they couldn't feel the vibrations while driving, and that the vibration (that she told me she felt) at idle with the A/C on is normal for these trucks.

What a crock of shit. Spend $40k on a truck to have vibration and steering wheel that shakes on the highway.

 

Maybe the A/C vibration is normal, have you checked other trucks to see if they experience this? Go to a dealer and "test drive" a couple to see if yours is abnormal or not.

I recommend testing out your 4x4 and see if the vibrations go away as @Scooby24 suggested. You could have a needle bearing failing.

Link regarding failing needle bearings, take a look and see if that's what you are experiencing
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/front-diff-vibes-ecgs-bushing-fix.464941/#post-13883949

 

Keep raising hell about it - open a case w/ Toyota. It is unlikely to fix it, but the only way these vibes will ever be addressed (or even acknowledged as a problem) is if enough people raise it.

Far too many people have the feeling you've stated above. Far too many

 

I have not check other trucks but will give this a try. As much as it shakes I can't imagine they all do it.

I did drive in 4WD for about 10 miles yesterday and nothing changed.

 

Two other suggestions I have currently is to crawl under the truck and check to make sure all the bolts and stuff are tight with the steering linkage. You could also get an alignment done, it's completely possible your truck didn't have a proper alignment from factory.

I also thought I read a thread on here quite a while ago about someone who was dealing with a vibration and they ended up finding something loose under their truck. Not sure if it was a skid plate or air dam or panel of some sort, but it was loose and would cause vibrations when the wind started catching it at certain speeds. So it could be worth it to crawl under you truck and just make sure everything is snug.

 

its a 4x4 truck suspension and its the road surface your driving on

 

It very well could be just that, this is my first truck after all, but I've talked with friends and family that have trucks and they've replied "that's odd, mine drives as smooth as can be!". If it is simply road feedback, it's quite a lot and definitely way more than the other 10+ cars I've owned.

 

I called the Dealer and asked if they could check the alignment and they told me no, because there is no reason to. They didn't experience pulling or uneven tire wear or signs that the alignment could be off.

 

on concrete highways with expansion joints you will pick up a lot of jostling like that, check the tire pressure might be too high also, you can raise or lower the pressure to get the best ride for you

 

I've been battling The wheel shimmy issue at 55 mph plus with my 17 for a while after levelling and rims/tires....not fun. If I would have known it would be this much trouble I wouldn't have bothered or would have got a different truck. From the research I've done recently the newer Tacomas are very sensitive to any drivetrain changes maybe because of the "buckboard" like ride.

I'm getting another balance done on Tuesday from the shop where I got the wheels, hopefully it will correct it.

 

sometimes the rims are lug centric and need an adapter called Haweeka to balance the rims properly some wheel/tire places have one. some older/newer model tacomas with the alloy TRD rims were required to use this adapter to balance the tires after owners complaining of shimming