Does your Transmission Rattle like an old farm truck?

Hey Tacoma World, first post here, I'm looking for some owner experience. I can't find a lot of info on this, either because it's normal, or, because it's not normal.

https://youtu.be/2aCPBaUo5rQ

The transmission rattles in my 2017 Tacoma manual transmission really badly when rolling in neutral, it seems to be getting worse.

The dealership tried to fix it by replacing transfer case and drive shaft. When that didn't help, they contacted corporate for assistance. They sent a field tech who said "It's a characteristic" and can be replicated in both MT & AT when rolling in neutral/no load; I'm not sure I buy that, mostly, because it seems to be getting louder and more frequent, and, a friend just got a 2018 ACLB 6MT and tells me his truck doesn't rattle.

Mine won't rattle when the transmission is cold. And it if there is any load on the driveline, it won't rattle. It's not a heat shield, or a mount and it's not in the rear end. 100% internal tranny sound.

Edited to add updated video. Toyota Corporate follows up, standing behind field tech who suggested all (3rd gen?) Tacomas, MT & AT will rattle in neutral.

Curious to know why the condition is much worse after it has warmed up

https://youtu.be/pJjb3zLqAl0

 

I know the Getrag units in 80's 90's BMW had a rattle sound, but it was nothing to worry about.

 

I have a 2017 MT and mine doesn’t do that. I’m not sure what would be causing it, but I’m sure someone on here can help you get it figured out. Let us know if you figure it out.

 

Yeah no, my MT truck does not do that. If I have the clutch suppressed and ride over shit bumps I can hear something, but that is normal MT clutch suppressed rattle.

EDIT: Loose u-bolts?

 

I will agree that it is not normal. In the video, the sound seems to be happening whenever the rear axle would hit a bump. I'm guessing you, or the dealership, have checked torque on the everything that the driveshaft touches and the rear suspension?

 

Happy to hear that other 17 MT's don't do that - it means there's a fix. Toyota Corporate Field tech suggested it's normal - that's hard to buy.

They've replaced the drive shaft and transfer case, no change. In an unrelated TSB, both left spring packs have been swapped out, cab mounts and new sound deadening added to the back of the cab

I assume they've done everything they could do. They had rabbit ears on the transmission itself, and agreed, it's internal.

 

Center support bearing (commonly incorrectly referred to as the carrier bearing)? Or the actual carrier bearing?

Oh wait, you said definitely internal. Sounds like they don't want to pony up for a new transmission. If it is "normal" they should have no problem demonstrating the same noise on another Tacoma. If they can't do that, I'd push for a new tranny.

 

Definitely not normal. Dealer just trying to get rid of you and avoid responsibility to fix it. My 17 MT makes no noises. Have you tried coasting in neutral over bumps? Actually sounds like something other than tranny.

 

Thanks for the replies everyone, really appreciate it!

Before calling in corporate field tech from Toyota Canada the dealer replaced the entire drive shaft including the center support bearing transfer case from a new truck on the lot trying to fix get me fixed up. The dealer said they could reproduce it on a new 17 on the lot, but it was not bad as mine is. Now, the corporate field tech said that AT will also rattle in neutral - I don't believe that a bit. I test drove so many AT's trying to like it that I would have noticed. A friend has an 18 ACLB 6MT OR, says his does not make a sound - I haven't been able to connect with him to take it for a drive to compare.

It's definitely internal transmission. The dealer had used the rabbit ears - as they told me.

oh yeah, it *only* happens once the transmission has warmed up. It has to be in neutral or clutch down, and sometimes between shifts. It does not happen any time the transmission is under load.

I (currently) trust that the dealer thinks it is a fault, they spent a lot of time working to resolve it and did what they could, then Toyota Canada sent a field tech, I think it's now corporate that doesn't want to pony up.

 

Mine will get a slight clunk once in a while if I'm not being as smooth as I should be, that thing is making a lot of noise, doesn't seem right to me.

 

Thanks for replying. I found a number of others having the same neutral coasting rattle as I have, mostly in the TTE Facebook group. A few don’t.

Good to know there are some out there that don’t rattle.

 

My 2nd gen 6spd rattled really bad when I got it. I tightened the Ubolts down and that eliminated a lot of it. Try doing this and report back, sometimes they are not torqued straight out of the factory

 

Like I mentioned, I can get a little clunking noise, but it takes say not being smooth with the throttle and clutch over a speed bump or something.

Just coasting in neutral it makes no unusual noises.

 

The dealer swapped the entire drive shaft with no result. I assume they torqued things as required when swapping

 

I personally wouldn't trust them to do anything right.. If they did swap the driveshaft though, they shouldn't have needed to remove the rear axle or mess with anything besides the four bolts that hold the driveshaft flange to the flange of the 3rd member and the carrier bearing. I would still start by torqueing down the u-bolts (the ones holding your leafs to your axle) and see if that helps any. I know with mine, they were loose, and were causing a bad rattling while in neutral, a bad clicking noise while braking in neutral above 40mph, as well as very clunky feeling when going from no throttle and cruising in gear to getting back on the gas too quickly. It was also causing my shifts to seem very clunky when releasing the clutch not just right. Now the truck is much more drivable and much quieter

 

When in neutral and going over a bump or other rough terrain the transmission and gear stick will move independently causing the stick to bounce around in the transmission. This is normal, and therefore try to remain in gear when going over rough terrain, as it could damage the transmission over time. I have only heard the noise from inside the cab, so this actually does sound louder than what I have experienced, but I think it is the same thing.

 

Hehe they just changed the leaf spring packs as part of a TSB for differential howling, along with back cab mounts and added sound deadening material in the cabin, no difference before or after for the rattle. I can’t hear the diff as much anymore, that’s nice

Appreciate the advice, I think Toyota knows they have a Noisy tranny issue and call it normal.

 

If this is the case, id absolutely check into the u bolts. Took me a year to track down the rattle, and it turned out to be something stupid simple

 

I doubt it is the transmission itself making noise, when you are not in gear the slack in the drivetrain is allowing something with excessive play to move about and make these noises. Have them put the thing on a lift and check for loose bolts and torque everything to spec. Ask them to show you that they are doing so and that everything is torqued properly. And I mean everything, including the exhaust hangers, Ubolt and shackle bolts, bed mount bolts........

 

I’m no mechanic but I would check the radiator core/body mount. I’ve read a couple threads were it was worn out even though fairly new resulting in metal on metal. I’ve found that noises resonate through parts and structures making it difficult to track down the source of a rattle or creak. You should be able to find a couple threads on the front body mount issue (I think it’s also where the radiator mounts). Good luck. That is definitely not normal.