Clunk up front: FIXED -Check Skids!!

Well I’ll be damned. Took the RCI trans skid off. Drove for just a few minutes but did EVERYTHING that normally makes the clunk. No sound. At all. Hit all the bumps, turns, braking, and acceleration through all of them in different manners. No sound.

I’m going to re-install the RCI trans skid with more careful note to torque specs and add some washers atop the polypropylene bushings.

 

I honestly think it happens when the truck is flexing like angling. I'm too lazy to take anything off at the moment or mess around with anything. I forgot when I installed the rci trans skid but my noise might have been there before that the install of the rci trans skid.

 

Part Out?

 

Theres always one

 

I mean if I knew it was just a skid I wouldn’t have spent the time either…
I honestly only started on this right now to disprove that it was the skid.
Damn it’s good to be wrong sometimes.

 

I couldn't resist, I had a similar clunk the other day and found it was just a slightly loose sway bar end link.

 

Glad I could help you figure it out by mentioning it lol

 

You guys have motivated me to find the source of my clunk. When parking, steering, over bumps. Need to check all the bolts. No skids for me, but Bilstein 6112, etc..

 

Double check that your Sway Bar Endlinks are tight, there's an Allen head in the bolt to hold it, if it's not tightened enough, from when you did the Bilstein install, they will clunk, but look tight.

 

Great advice. It's been a while since I did the install. Could have loosened up.

 

I had one that just spun, and I didn't think anything of it, until I had a clunk once in a while, and then tightened it down more and it was good.

 

RCI trans skid is back on. Took the Trd skid most of the way off, made sure it was aligned well, and got everything put back into place. Added one additional very slim fender washer per side beneath the bushing for the RCI skid. Then, most importantly, I torqued everything to the proper spec instead of just, “tight enough“ and after driving for a few reps over all the areas that caused noises, everything seems fine. I believe I had a very slight misalignment on the transmission skid and I was definitely above proper torque specs in some areas.

 

I am glad you figured it out!!!
It drove me crazy for about 2 weeks thinking it was my front Fox coil springs or swaybar mounts.
Never thought that our frames could be that weak to flex that much on angled driveway slopes.

We Need some X cross braces like exotic cars have.

 

In all fairness I’ve helped work that trans skid by giving the frame some flex; the frames certainly can get twisty, especially on real moguls. This is just one of the times I’ve happened to step out and snag a pic (yes, it’s a lackluster one), normally I just keep wheeling and regret not taking any pics later.
However this was right about the time I started noticing the clunking sound.

 

Twerking ass shot lol

 

I really had not thought of it like this and now I fear that I’ll always think of this comment when I see the solid rear axle getting nice and twisty

 

OP--thanks for posting this!! I have the same problem with my 2020 Off Road. Need to check my CBI skids. I have had them on for over a year but went on some real moguls for about 10 miles and then began having the thuds at (very) low speeds when going over bumps --including the one inch one into my garage and mostly when I am turning and hitting one side at a time.

 

What you are describing right now is basically the same mechanism that apparently started my issue, and the symptoms youre describing are occurring under exactly the same conditions as they were for me. Maybe not the type of twins you would want to have, but considering you might be one easy fix away from fixing it, that’s not such a bad thing either.

 

PROBLEM SOLVED So--I just re-tightened all the bolts on my CBI skid plates--I have both the front and the transmission skid plates. Some had definitely loosened and were not tight--not enough to be in danger of coming out, but definitely looser than when I installed them a year and a half ago. Drove it around for about 10 minutes and also back and forth over bumps at an angle and NO MORE clunking. Took only about 30 minutes to get them all. That was easy!. Thanks OP for the suggestion. Was driving me crazy.

I have one suggestion--change the name of this thread to something like "Tighten the bolts on your skid plates if you have clunking". Will make it easier for others like me who were stumped and for some reason don't think to look at their skid plates. This is the only Tacoma World post that I have seen about this problem.

 

Or change title to "Front end clunk - SOLVED" for people like you (and most) who are looking for front end clunk solutions, but dismissed their skids before ever checking them. An edited 1st post to summarize the thread always helps too.