Buzzy Vibration at certain RPM's..read before buying!

This is great information, @Doobiewah. Once again, I thank you for this post, all your efforts, the comradeship, and our discussions. I am in the Denver/Englewood area and my truck was also evaluated by a field technical specialist from the same office (though not the same gentlemen you saw). Makes sense because I was told by the FTS that the Denver office is the regional HQ for Toyota in the Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, Wyoming, and New Mexico regions.

Given the technical information you provided, I am curious to hear from other members who are more mechanically-savvy. Specifically, do the factors Doobiewah listed indicate a significant or costly TSB or potentially a re-design?

 

I'm glad I waited to buy a new one.

 

Great update. So it sounds like obviously they were there because of the legal liability issues and because this is clearly a known issue that many are complaining about. In your opinion, did you get the vib (pun intended) from them that they really know this is a widely reported problem and that they really are serious about fixing it? Obviously the fact that you had a team come out shows some seriousness. But I'm just wondering whether they're more concerned about covering their asses from legal liability and having the actuaries do a risk/cost analysis vs. "yeah, there's some of that but we've got to do something because we're getting hammered with a lot of complaints by customers about this." I'm just trying to make an informed decision on whether to wait this out or cut my losses and move on, because this issue is bad on my truck and I am not interested in driving it like this for the next 6+ months. If you think they're on this, and more so than we probably know, that's encouraging.

 

Doobiewan, I have been watching this post the day after I bought my new 2016 TRD sport in Dec. On the drive home from the dealer I immediately notice the uncomfortable vibration and wasn't sure what was going on until I searched the forum for anyone having similar issues. I did call Toyota and have been to the dealer but nothing substantial came of it to date. I am really glad to hear that Toyota is seriously looking into the problem. I want to "Go places" but can't at least for any long trips.
Thanks again from someone hoping for a quick solution.

 

This sounds like this is only an issue in the V6 trucks as I haven't seen any complaints in the 4cylinder. Especially the comments on the manifold and Atkinson cycle possibly being the culprits.

 

Just got my return phone call from Toyota. Have actual ride along with corporate guy Feb 2nd. Curious to see what he says then. If he has the info from your results. The more we make these corporate appointments I believe the better chance we have of getting it done. Don't think there going to put a hold on production so hopefully they are working overtime trying to get this resolved. Regardless of it costing Toyota thousands per truck to fix them I believe they will. If they refuse to take care of current owners it will cost them more in litigation... Know any good lawyers?? Thanks for your feedback...

 

Thanks for the updates! I'm sure they will take care of it.

 

Am I the only one who sees this as a negative? It does not appear to be a case of Toyota Inc. directing all resources to mitigating a serious production defect, rather it seems more like highly orchestrated spin doctoring. It smells of litigation defense strategy.

So, the working theory is that since the "exhaust manifolds" are now an integral part of the head casting and not a separate casting bolted to the heads, the result is the exhaust plumbing system is too rigid and is transmitting harmonics into the chassis/body/steering column. Yeah, OK. It's a plausible explanation...until you realize it's not a new complaint, and that vibration damping of thin wall tubing assemblies has been known and solved for decades:

 

Great information. I have a question. By the time you got to the dealership and met with these people, did it warm up enough for the truck to have the vibrations at their worst? Just wondering if they got to feel the full extent of it. If they hooked it up to machines, then I imagine they had it indoors where the temps were much warmer.

 

Thank you @Doobiewah, very informative write up. Please correct me if I'm wrong, is the issue more present in 4wd models? Or, there is no difference in either 2wd vs. 4wd?

If Toyota corporate comes out with a fix, I will be more confident in purchasing a 3rd Gen. Tacoma in the near future (this year).

 

They definitely know that this is an issue and has been reported enough that they are seriously looking for a fix to resolve it. I got a little more attention because of my experience with numbing hands/lower arms; however, they were clear in our conversation that this issue was not an outlier.

 

No evidence at all of anyone with the 4 cylinder having this issue, at least that I can find.

 

It was pretty cold to start; however, got into the high 40's by mid-day. If they drove it on the highway above 40, they should have definitely felt it.

 

It there any difference in the manifold or exhaust design of the 4 wheel drive vs 2 wheel drive? Has anyone seen the vibration on a 2 wheel drive? Why would some trucks have this problem and others not? I want a new Tacome but won't buy one till this is fixed.

 

I have a Trd sport 4x4 dc and although I do not have the pronounced vibration I do notice more of what I would describe as a bumpy ride in around 2k rpm. It almost feels like the road is rough but it is not. I also experience the transmission getting stuck in 4 th and 5th gear when it should be shifting into 5th or 6th. This always happens after going up a hill when the drivetrain is under pressure. The rpm stays up around 2700 until I manually shift it to the next gear where it should be. After easing these posts I can feel a slight vibration but I would not have noticed it if it were not for this forum. I have 1500 miles and will be having the tranny oil checked at the 5000 mile maintenance @Doobiewah thabks for the great info. I will be keeping a good eye and ear on this issue. I hope mine does not get worse.

 

That may or may not be related to the number of 4 cyl trucks manufactured. Does anyone know what the percentage breakdown is 4 cyl vs 6 cyl?

I'm still buying a V6 Tacoma, and if it has the vibration problem, the first thing I will do is replace the 2 piece drive shaft.

 

I had the same vibration as everyone...from 65 to 70'it vibrated pretty bad. Dash and visor made noises. Brought it to dealer on the second day of ownership. They said all wheels were aligned but one was just borderline within spec to they tweaked. It definitely improved, it's rare to feel the vibration but I do still get some on occasion

 

The engineers told me that when they tested my truck they found minor tier 1 vibration, which is tires and wheels and they thought likely to come from the snow tires I have on the truck. No tier 2 vibration, which I believe is drive-shaft or frame related, and moderate to noticeable tier 3 vibration, which comes from the engine. Not sure replacing that drive shaft would do anything; however, it would be interesting to find out if it resolved the issue.

 

No vibe on 4cyl. It's the same engine from 2nd gens

 

Good to know. I'll be patient and give it a few months, see what flushes down the pike. Thank you for all your efforts on this one. I feel better now that it seems they've reached the point of having gone much deeper into potential causes now.