10-35 MPH rumble strip vibration revisited

2018 TRD with 5000 miles. Dealer says vibration being caused by rear drums out of round. "All of the 2018's have this problem." REALLY! Toyota quality has really gone downhill. Of course my last Tacoma was U.S. made!

 

What are they doing about it? Bringing in my truck on Saturday for this and another issue .

 

wasn't just the 18s clearly. my rear driver drum was out of round and was replaced at 10k miles

 

The dealer said the rear drums were way out of round. They had to take 3 passes of the brake lathe on the left and 4 on the right. I asked since this is a new truck, why won't you put new drums on. Answer - Toyota won't pay for that, but if you want to buy new drums we'll put them on for you. Now I'm 66, been working on cars my whole life, but his next comment really got me - these drums will outlast you so don't worry about it!
This is the 5th visit for this truck. When I got it the alignment was way off. The steering wheel was clocked way low on the left. Not near straight. When you drove it it would head for the right ditch every time. They said "well some roads are really crowned so that's why it goes right." I made them realign the front end. Way off! Ok for about a month, then same thing. Tech who worked on the front end forgot to tighten a couple of nuts. That's special! Realigned it. The hood looks like they painted it is a sand storm. They wet sanded the hood, and buffed it out. Still not great. So what happened to Toyota quality? ANYWAY, some of the vibration is gone, but they said they would have to turn the rotors too. They didn't have a tech available to do it today. We'll see.

 

Dang. That sounds like a pain! I'll let you know what they say to me tomorrow.

 

Did they do the leaf spring TSB?

If not call corp and tell them you need it done..

They did it to my 2017 AC OR and it helped a lot.. Still there though..

 

I have some insider information from the shop foreman at my dealership on this issue. The Toyota dealers have their hands tied here. The issue was common on 16/17 off-road models because the rear leaf springs were too soft from the factory and upon deceleration, the rear axle pinion angle flexed enough that it would cause the vibration. There is a TSB that has the technicians change the rear leaf springs to an updated stiffer design but this TSB does not apply to the 18’s yet so there is nothing they can do.

The foreman at my dealer was nice enough to put temporary rubber shims on the axle to change the angle slightly to reduce the vibration. It’s still there while coasting/braking to a stop but has been diminished significantly. He has my contact info and will call me once an official fix has been released.

 

At dealer now for this and another issue. When I mentioned this he seemed to perk up a little...I mentioned a TSB .We shall see...oh, and the service asvisad advised me not to come in on Saturdays for things like this. Sorry that I can't take off of work during the week?

 

The TSB involving replacing the leaf pack and adding the steering dampener on my 2016 4dr Sport solved my rumble strip issue.

 

Again, if you have a 2018 they will not apply the bulletin and perform the fix, until it is updated by Toyota engineers.

 

I don't have a 2018.

 

The OP does.

 

Thought you were talking to me .sorry!!

 

UPDATE: Just spent 5 hours at dealer, and they are replacing my entire rear axle as flange diameter is out of spec at like 107.2ish if I remember correctly. Tech said the TSB that is out for driveline rumble strip vibration doesn't fall under my VIN,but they found another one that may be the cause. This was discovered because of some braking issues but he said it's likely what I'm feeling could be related to axle. Parts come in on Tuesday.

 

Why'd ya buy it then? They still make Tacomas in the states too, so just cherry pick the ones that have US plant on the label on the door jamb

 

I wish I could have picked a US made one. The Dealer in Reno only has Mexican made Tacomas. I was told the West coast does not get the Texas made ones.

 

It has been debated over and over, but No quality differences have been identified between the two plants, and if you want to get really really detailed, the Mexican made have fewer problems. Search it if you don’t believe me.

 

The TSB was done few months ago. The helped a bit.
My problem is when i leave home on the first morning start, the truck makes a small Jumping up and down shaking for the first few miles and be bad more i accelarate.

 

Did this start right after TSB? or did it show up later?

 

$50 hellwig helper springs fixed my vibration as a bonus to what I was trying to achieve in the first place. No dealer trip required.