Vibration between 15-25mph issue solved!!

My truck: 2006 Pre-Runner 113km no issues since I bought the truck brand new.Here's the story..i started to notice the slight vibe between 15-25mph
every time I was stopped at traffic light and took off. Of course I logged into
THIS great website and found others that have had similar problems.

So after researching and finding the TSB that addressed this problem I decided to give my local Toyota dealer another chance to see if they would
do me right on this after so many bad experiences I've had with them.

It was just another totally disappointing experience..they took my truck in and after a couple of hrs they had a diagnostic. They told me the truck driveshaft was bent!!and the cost to replace it?? $1200!!!

I asked the advisor there to tell me how does a driveshaft bend??he said
well..it just happens.without going to much more with this story, they charged me $112 for the diagnostic , I tool my truck outta there right away. I decided to check the U-joints, one looked pretty bad so I bought 3 U-joints replaced them and the truck runs like new again!!!

What do you guys think I should do?? call Toyota, go back to dealer or what?

 

talk to the service manager. explain to him that it was recommended by his writer/tech that you had a bent driveshaft however you replaced your u-joints and it took care of your issue. do to the fact that it was mis-diagnosed, you feel a refund for the initial checkout would be in order.

be calm and nice about it...no need to bring up your previous bad experiances with them unless he plays hardball. see what happens from there.

 

Wouldn't replacing the driveshaft have also involved replacing the U-joints? A lot of the times these guys just recommend the most comprehensive (and expensive) solution possible to try and address as many potential problems as possible all at once. They probably thought something along the lines of..."Well it could be the u-joints, or the carrier bearing, or the driveshaft itself, but we might as well just replace the whole thing to make sure we cover all of our bases in one session". That'll be 1200 bucks please sir.

 

In my opinion after the initial diagnostic in your part, you should of crawl under the truck and fix the problem. In stead you wanted Toyota to do it for you. After all the truck has over 100.000 km.

 

Thanks for your suggestion TNT! I going to go in and talk to the service manager and see what happens..will report back

 

YEp I guess that's what they thought, what bothers me about the whole thing is that the service advisor didn't mentioned anything about U-Joints ,or carrier bearing as a possible problem beside a bent driveshaft, even after I pointed out that I have never offroaded or towed anything with this truck!

 

My thought was to have the ppl that all they do is work on Toyota vehicles all day long
would be able to diagnose this problem quickly and accurately. I'm not a mechanic!
but this site knows more about our trucks and how to fix a bunch of issues without having to drop a bag of money to do it, than they do!! Thanks!!

 

the service writer is only going by what the tech found. some techs keep it simple. other techs do their job and record findings accordingly.
im a writer....if im dealing with a customer in your situation im gonna present it in a way that gives you options. we know its a driveline problem but we cant be sure if its just the u-joints or a driveshaft/carrier issue. i would give you a break down with three options...replacing just the u-joints...or all 3 at the same time so you know the differance and how much money it'll be for the indivisual u-joint job or all 3 components. there is an advantage to doin all 3 at the same time...u save time and money.
personally....i would have recommended on doin the u-joints first and going from there...i would never suggest to a customer to just replace everything even though i give them the option...but thats just me. i know cars and how things work and unfortunetly thats not allways the case with some "writers".

 

There is no advantage to doing all three at the same time if it's not needed.

 

in his case...no...obviously not. but ive dealt with plenty of situations where it does make sense to do all 3...just saying.

 

There are good techs; there are bad techs. Same with service writers.

With that said, I still believe based on all of my previous experience dealing with SWs that the majority wouldn't know a plug wire from a crescent wrench. They are trained to "upsell", thereby creating maximum profit for the dealership.

Bad service writers and techs are a huge part of the reason I learned auto repair years ago.

 

Sadly...this statement is 100% true. and im a service writer..lol.

 

x3

And I'd not leave it for the Service Manager to say no. I'd go to the Dealer Manager and owner/Toyota - if needed. If they balk I'd ask for the procedure they followed to diagnose the bent shaft because you want to follow/forward this up with Toyota Corp. Besides the Diag fee you could be out the whole drive shaft cost from the dealer and have the issue passed on to the next vib customer.

 

Agree with you on that! The service advisor/writer probably didnot receive all the info
from the diagnostic report. I should've asked to speak with the tech before leaving the dealer.
The advisor/writer also didnt suggest it either way i was upset about the whole situation anyway.
i plan on paying a visit back to the Toyota dealer tomorrow...

 

Its a vicious cycle, this dealer is always packed!!
Makes me wonder how many ppl are getting screwed over day in and day out over there smfh!

 

This isnt just about getting something back , it would be nice too! But im going to takes this up the ladder as high as i need to make a point cause im not just going to complain and do nothin.

 

You got this all wrong my friend! I do most of my maint; brakes, all liquids changes on my truck.
I dont mess with engine or tranny stuff , but i do very well know how to research stuff on line so that
i dont get taken for a ride and jacked out of my hard earned money .let me add that when i call someone
to do a service for me, i can assure you that i have done plenty of checks and read up on all that pertains to that job/service .

 

Pardon me if I am wrong, but was you talking about a TSB, and wanting Toyota to fix the problem. Am I wrong?

 

This!! Everyone has a boss so don't stop until you get the answer you should get. If they keep BSing you, then find a media outlet that will take your story. The stealership closest to me is terrible for telling you that your vehicle will explode if you don't give them $2K immediately. I only take mine to the dealer for recalls. Anyway, keep giving 'em hell!!!

 

I know .... " ... Besides the Diag fee you could be out the whole drive shaft cost from the dealer and have the issue passed on to the next vib customer. ..."