Front End vibration after strut and sway bar link replacement

Hey guys first time posting but I’ve been following for a while. I’m an amateur mechanic so there’s still lots to learn.

I’ve got a 2011 2.7L 4x4 base model and did a strut and sway bar link replacement myself this past weekend. After getting the new struts in and everything back together I took it out for a test drive. Everything in the steering and suspension feels great, it corners better and is a lot less bouncy on bumps so that was a success!

However, now there is a new vibration in the front end, it is a low rumble vibration almost like hitting a small washboard or small rumble strip and it will happen for a few seconds then go away and come back again in 10 or so seconds. I can hear/ feel it when I am going straight and it doesn’t change when I turn but it seems to get more noticeable between 35-55mph.

I am wondering if it could be as simple as needing an alignment but other than that I’m not sure where to start trying to diagnose it. I’ve read that it could be the cv joint or that the wheels need to be rebalanced. I’m also wondering if this could be the result of not tightening the control arm enough or tightening something else incorrectly.

There’s a lot that it could be but has anyone else had this issue before or have any ideas on what to check?

Any insight is greatly appreciated!

 

Does it go away when shifting into 4wd? if yes, it's likely the front diff needle bearing. ECGS makes a solid replacement

 

Yeah it does go away when I flip it into 4 wheel! Thanks for that I’ll look into it!

 

Getting ready to pull the trigger on the ECGS bushing to fix this issue but before I spend that money and time replacing it is there anything I should be checking to make sure this is the issue? As I said above, replaced my front struts with KYB quick struts and replaced sway bar links while I was doing this. During the test drive after I noticed a low vibration/ humming noise that was almost like hitting a rumble strip coming from the drivers side. Sound goes away when I put it in 4 wheel drive. Now it comes and goes, somedays are worse than others and sometimes I don't hear it at all. When it does happen it starts at a low speed and gets louder until I hit about 35mph then stays the same until about 50mph and disappears until I slow down to under 50mph again. Most of the time when I hear/ feel it I also notice the truck wanting to pull to the drivers side a bit. I have checked all the connections and everything is tight. There is a little more play in the CV at the diff on the drivers side than the passenger side. Is it possible that over tightening my upper control arms before lowering the truck could cause this issue? Are there any other bushings or connections or anything I should check out to confirm it's not a different issue? I don't have a lift kit on my truck so Im not convinced that its an issue with the needle bearing but I'm not sure where else to look.

 

Did you resolve this?