Duratracs on a 2nd Gen Prerunner

I need some input from those of you who run Duratracs on a Prerunner. I am running 265/70/17, load C of course, on a 2006 Prerunner DCSB. I researched the hell out of this tire before purchasing, and I see that many of you run this as well. As for suspension, I have 5100s all around (fronts at 1.75"), 1" block in the back (crap--I know. 1.5" aal is here, just need to install), and 1.25" spidertrax. Other than that, it's all stock. My previous tire was Hankook DynaPro AT/M 265/65/17. I have stock sport wheels.

Now, for the issue: I put the Duratracs on at approx. 121k miles. They rode so perfect and smooth for the first 2-3K miles. A little noisey, but I knew that was to be expected. Just this past Sunday (4/14/13) I started getting HORRIBLE vibes inside the cab at highway speed, and at lower speeds (25-30 mph). If I pressed the brake, the vibrations would worsen. If I let off of the gas, they would worsen here as well. I took the truck back to the shop just yesterday to have them take a look. I requested a road force balance, after reading how much of a pain these tires are to balance. The road force balance indicated that the tires were perfect. The explanation from the tire shop is that this is too aggressive a tire to run on my truck, and that the tire is really designed for a commercial truck. I think this is bs, because SO MANY of you run this exact same tire. What they suggest is replacing this tire with the GY Wrangler Silent Armor, same size, on their dime. They will not order a new set of Duratracs to see if the current set is merely a bad set. The only option I can think of, other than turning here for input and getting a second opinion, is trying hub centric rings. I don't know why these would help, considering I have stock wheels, but I've read a few posts that indicate installing these does help w/ the vibrations.

If anyone has had similar experiences with this tire, please chime in. I know there are dozens of threads about Duratracs, but many of those contain references to popcorn and sammiches. I just want facts, if you please. I really want some advice and guidance, too. I love the tire and do not want to change, but obviously I don't want to compromise the ride either. As of right now, the ride is quite horrible.

 

well with any vibe concern the first step is generally to check the balance on the tires, but you say that they are all perfect. How does the tread look, are they chopped to hell or still look like new? Have you had you alignment done since you did the lift? Since you say it was fine when the tires were brand new it makes me think something else possibly wore the tires bad (alignment) or something else suspension related is getting bad. did they check over the steering and suspension? You could also try the different methods of checking the drive shaft angles and making sure that stuff is all good.

 

The tread looks great--evenly worn and virtually brand new in appearance. It doesn't look like I've thrown any weights. I did have an alignment performed after the new tires went on. When I took the truck in yesterday, they only looked at the tire, not the suspension or steering. I am going to purchase a couple of used tires today, same size, and throw them on the front...something with a little less tread and primarily designed for highway use. If I still experience the vibrations, then I have bigger issues than the tires. Seems like a good place to start, I suppose.

 

I guess it's worth a shot if you are willing to pay for some other tires just to rule that out. make sure they are balanced up properly when you swap them, obviously. FWIW, I have pretty much the same truck and tires as you, except im a 4x4, and other than a slight hum i haven't had any issues with the duratracs at all.

Also your somewhat high mileage is what makes me think you have other parts wearing out and causing the vibes.

 

That's what I'm afraid of

 

Thanks for the input btw

 

Gonna try to get them balanced one more time tomorrow at another shop. If that doesn't work, guess I'll go with the Silent Armors.

 

I feel like you are too focused on it being the tires. It's not a bad idea to have the balance checked again by a different shop. if it's a roadforce machine, tell them to calibrate it right before they do your tires (it only takes a few minutes) and maybe rotate the rears to the front as well.

More importantly though, you need to have the rest of the truck gone through to see if something else is causing the issue. no reason to buy new tires if it's not even the source of the problem. you could be using that money to fix what is actually wrong.

 

I'm actually headed to Toyota this morning. I changed the tires, issue still exists. Leaning towards bad u joints at this point. Checked yesterday and my driveshaft has a little give in it. Maybe the u joints are the culprit. The tire shop was so adamant about the duratrac being too much for a Tacoma, so changed to the sa's upon their recommendation. Now I just hope and pray they will put my duratracs back on since the tires have been eliminated from the equation.

 

U joints. Replaced all 3 and runs like a champ now.

 

Great to hear the vibes are gone and it wasn't the tires. So are you still running the SAs or are you going back to the duratracs?

 

Back to the duratracs. SA's are ok, but not for me.

 

U- joints are cheaper than tires, good deal. Can you tell me the main differences you found in the Silent Armors and the Dura Tracs? SA's quieter, and smother? By a lot? Running SA's now, interested in DT's soon. Have read all the Dura Trac threads, but you just had back to back expirience with the two. Thoughts? Thanks.

 

Personally, I prefer the duratracs. The sa's aren't necessarily quieter, as they have a roar (if you will) to them at highway speed, just as the duratracs. The only miles I have on the sa's are to the Toyota dealership and back, which was just yesterday. It's difficult for me to have a true opinion of the sa's at this point because of the very limited use. I will say of the duratracs that they perform very well in snow, mud and wet road conditions. Plus, they look bad! I took a road trip up to PA on the duratracs (1,000 miles) and they were nothing but awesome the entire trip. Also, the duratracs don't seem to be as hard as the sa's. Hope this helps. If you decide to go with the duratracs, I am sure you won't be disappointed.

 

Thanks PinkTaco24, that's the kind of review I was looking for, right on. Thank you.