rough ride on highway?

I just drove home 4 hours on the highway in my new used 2007 tacoma. It's a prerunner long bed double cab with trd sport.

When the highway was new and super smooth the ride was fine, but on stretches where the highway had older pavement the ride sucked. The truck shook so much I pulled over to check that I wasn't getting a flat. No flat, tires looked fine. Any ideas what to check for?

It has road tires, and the treads are a little low so they need replacing soon. They were just checked out and inflated to correct pressures at the previous owner's toyota dealer the day I bought the car.

It has 40,000 miles and it has platinum warranty, so I'm guessing I should be able to get whatever it is fixed for free at the dealership.

 

Could it be the older pavement?

 

California Roads SUCK!! I would say its the road if it rides fine every where else. My truck is a lot louder and rougher riding in Cali then here in Oregon.

 

our trucks arent known for the excellent ride quality, so it might not be a problem

 

That would bug me too. Hopefully it's something minor. Sometimes a wheel can throw a weight & cause the truck to pick up a vibration. Also, gradually the alignment can get outta-whak over time. I would try taking it into a tire shop and have them inspect first. Are all of the tires wearing evenly? The driveshaft is also a "balanced" component although, less likely to become imbalanced than the tires. Don't want to jump to conclusions here. I've always had success with trying to keep things simple. Hope these ideas steer you in the right direction. It can be irratating when your vehicle isn't riding smooth.

 

i drive country roads daily cause my truck is also a work truck

the tacomas drive like a true truck, they dont ride as well as other vehicles and some other midsize trucks (ahem ahem honda ridgeline) however their functunality and quality far exceeds these other vehicles

you have to make a trade off somewhere and id rather ride a lil rougher and drive a taco than be in a nother vehicle and not even to be able to get outta the driveway because it breaks so much

 

Yeah...I vote for it's the road you were on. It's a truck not a caddy or anything...I'm not sure there is anything that the dealer can "fix" under your warranty....They don't do repaving....

 

I see you are in the Chico, CA. area. I drive through there all of the time. In fact, I'll be driving through Chico to get to Yuba City today. What highway were you on when this happened? I'll take my Prerunner there & have a look-see for ya. To distinguish if it's the road. I usually take highway 99. I drive up & down "Skyway" a lot too.

 

Im sure its the road/highway. It is a rough ride, bouncy and all.

 

When you say they were inflated to proper pressure, did you actually verify this?

Check the sticker in the side of the door frame on the drivers side. Most of the time, dealer monkey's don't bother to check the "actual" pressure recommendation, and just do it to whatever they want. Also, if you have larger tire's or aftermarket wheel's, the pressure may be different. If they are over-inflated, you'll get a rougher ride.

Other than that, It's probably fine. I agree that California roads suck. The Camry that I drove from LA to Bakersfield when i was there felt like a Kia Rio on that highway. It's a truck, so the ride is going to be harsh no matter what you do.

 

Tire air pressure does make a tremendous difference in the ride for sure. I think we're all thinking along the same line--Majority of rough ride issues have something to do with tires. If your on highways near the Bay Area, they are notorious for being messed up due to the extremely heavy traffic & lack of state funding to upgrade and maintain. IMO Sacramento is the worst. If you can, take it for a little test run on a known smooth stretch of road and then post back with what you find. (You've got me curious).

 

Tire pressure is huge in ride quality. You also realize you bought a truck, right?

 

I have a Double Cab PreRunner Long Bed and when I drive on concrete highways the ride is pretty bouncey. Every other surface is just fine. It rides better with a little weight in the back. Went camping this weekend with all the gear in the back and it was much smoother on the concrete roads. My tires have less than 2k on them so I don't think it's an issue with those. I really can't complain though, I just came from an 03' Xterra that could make you jiggle in places you never thought possible.
The few people I've talked to just tell me it's the nature of the beast and the leaf spring suspension. I've wondered if going to Billy 5100's would help any. The truck does have 72K on it and I have no idea if the shocks have ever been replaced.

 

You're confused, you called the Skirtline a "truck".

 

Did you just trade in a Caddy on the Taco?

If your ride continues to be that bad, maybe the shocks are bad?

 

thanks for everyone's input

my update is that I just took my taco in to Les Schwab to see if they could see anything obviously out of whack - and the balance was way off on the wheels. One of the front wheels was off by 1.5 ounces.

I haven't had the chance to try it out yet on a big drive, but on the small drive I did so far it still seems to be vibrating. I read up about the Hunter road force balancing so may check that out and alignment too. Not sure whether to pay for all that now or just live with it for the moment and do it all in 2-3000 miles when I replace all my tires.

 

Cool. Keep at it. Persistence usually pays off--JMO