3rd Gen, PDX area, Rear Diff Howl

Hey guys/gals, I finally pulled the trigger on a 2018 DCLB SR5 Tacoma last week!
I am coming from a lifted 1st gen and I am really liking the 20+ years of upgrades (gold one in the pic is my dad's TRD limited).
The only complaint that I have is the rear diff howl. I have it from about 59mph down to 54mph and only when I'm off the throttle. It seems to just be an annoying noise so far (I hope).
My question is has anyone in the PDX area had any luck dealing with this diff howl? I know I can't be the only one in the area that has it ha At the very least I just want it documented in case it gets any louder/worse. I will most likely be making an appointment with Beaverton Toyota next week, but I am willing to go to another dealer if anyone has had any good luck.

Thanks in advance!

 

My 2017 TRD Off-Road does it. Took it to the dealership once and they “couldn’t duplicate the issue.” It’s gotten more noticeable 3000 Miles later. I’ll be curious to hear what you find out.

 

I really hope they don’t tell me “could not duplicate.” It howls every time from 60 to 54 as long as you are off the gas. I even left them a “How To” note in the drink holder ha I’m actually dropping it off right now. They said they are trying to look at it before noon tomorrow. We shall see.

 

That's exactly what mine does and I explained that to them as well. This dealer sucks though so I'll probably take it elsewhere next time I need a service and see how that goes.

 

What happened with this?

 

Sorry! Updated the other big diff thread but not this one. See my update below:

"Update: I just got back from my dealer. Didn't ride along with the foreman in my truck nor another 2018. But I was okay with that. Here is why.

One of the main techs came out and asked if I was ready to take a ride in my truck. I said nope, lets go take a ride in one of your 2018's on the lot first. I want to see if they have this "normal" sound like mine. At first he kind of drug his feet about being able to get one to drive and what not. I was thinking oh great here we freaking go... He then stopped, looked me in the eyes, and said, "Let's go outside." I was like alright this is weird haha

I expected a bunch of excuses, but nope! He told me he knew what to do to get the sound and that this is far from the first case. Corporate made them aware in November (I think of 2016) and they started replacing a few diffs shortly there after. He himself did a few. Not a single one of their replacements completely got rid of the noise. They all still had it after the replacements. I can't remember how exactly he put it, but he made it sound like Toyota decided to stop having them replaced unless they were way louder than normal or actually confirmed damaged (my words not his, but thats how I took it). Pretty much Toyota would not be covering these replacements anymore since the new diffs don't always solve the problem. I took that as the dealer would be stuck with the cost.

He did say I should call the Toyota corporate number and express my concerns (I'll do that tomorrow). He also said a TSB is for sure in the works. No ETA from Toyota though. He thinks it will just be sound deadening material as this is most likely a harmonic resonance of some kind (I still don't think that, but whatever).

I ended up chatting with him for about 15-20 mins. He said he would love to throw another diff on, but he honestly didnt think it would help and he wouldn't be backed by Toyota. He told me to make sure to call if it does get worse though. If it doesn't he said to have it checked at the 5k service again. He said to make sure I make that clear so my truck doesn't get placed in the quick service line and actually gets tested again.

All in all not what I expected, but that tech made me feel better that he understood my concerns."


I ended up calling corporate to open a case. The lady was nice, but said I was the first person she has heard that has this issue. That is obviously not true, but I wasn't going to argue.

Fast forward to this week. I have been in touch with a few people on TacomaWorld that have the same issue. One nice member just got his replaced today. Just like me he had the howl right off the bat and only has a few hundred miles on his 2018. His dealer replaced it no questions asked though. I believe he will be updating the big diff thread later this week with the results as the dealer just replaced it this afternoon. I am hoping his howl is gone. It sounds like the people who have recently had their diff replaced no longer have the issue. Maybe they updated something? Who knows.

My howl is loud enough to hear over HD radio 30+ now. I also can make it howl feathering the throttle which I couldnt 200 miles ago. I ended up calling corporate about an hour ago. They are having a manager (I think) call me tomorrow. So that is where I am at ha

 

Damn man good luck. I had just a little seeping from my diff, but no howl and they fixed that for me no questions asked.

 

Yeah, its more annoying than anything. With the radio off the howl isn't really that loud. Its just the frequency its at is easy to detect (for me). With the volume at 10 you can hear it easily. Then 20. Still can hear it just fine through the music. Then 30+. Still there... haha

It sounds like more DCLB have it than any other combo. At least from what I have gained from TW. Maybe the longer body transfer the sound easier? Who knows. I just want the sound gone.

Case manager called me back like they said. She had already called the dealer and told me to schedule another appointment with the shop manager. Gave the dealer a call and talked directly to the guy for 20 mins. He said he had expected Toyota to have this fixed in December 2017. He didn't say what the fix was supposed to be though. Long story short my truck goes back in Friday to have them check the diff fluid and test some more things out.

 

Update on mine:

I dropped mine off this morning and had them do a 5k and also trying to investigate the howl a second time. The first time they couldn’t duplicate the noise, so this time I gave them specifics as how to make the noise. So about 15 minutes ago, service advisor called me and told me they heard the noise and it’s coming from the rear pinion bearing. Also said the fluid in the diff was pretty discolored. Also said the transfer case was leaking, probably unrelated...sooooo yeah.

 

You may be in luck as a TSB came out a few days ago for 2016-2017 TRDs to address the howl. I am in a 2018 SR5 so I didn't make the cut ha ha

 

So it’s been about a week since I picked up my truck after having the rear diff replaced. No more howling noise.

 

Glad yours is quiet now! There is a TSB out for 2016-2017 TRDs with the howl. Unfortunately I have a 2018 SR5 ha My dealer said I could buy the parts and fix it myself, but that’s about it.

 

Hey guys, I know this thread is ages old but I recently bought a cpo 2020 TRD off road with a bit over 40k miles. I started noticing the rear diff howl after about 2 days with the truck. I’m just curious if you guys still have your trucks and if so do they still make the howl noise and has it caused any mechanical issues for you guys

 

See the attached TSB. It is not really a mechanical issue or bad for the gears unless it is loud like someone never filled it.

I had a bit of whine that was not annoying, but after I swapped in new leafs, it is all but gone. So, I believe the remedy in the TSB holds water.

 

Does the TSB apply to 2020s as well?

 

There might be an updated version out there. You can find them by following the info in my signature.

 

Hey thanks man. I’ll check that out

 

You're welcome.