Front end vibration

Hello,

Looking for some knowledge. I noticed a slight vibration coming out of the front end of my 2006 Tacoma. It sounded and felt like it was coming out of the front driver side somewhere. It is most noticeable at driving speeds, not just creeping along. When I turn the truck around a bend to the right the vibration stops, but going in a straight line or along a left turn it is still there. My first assumption was that a CV joint had gone bad. Upon inspection the driver side axel shaft looked fine but did seem a little looser than the passenger side when grabbing ahold of it and trying to move it. I was not convinced this was the problem but the new axel shaft was only $69 so I went ahead and replaced it but the vibration is still there. Anyone know what this type of vibration might be caused by? Is it a wheel bearing? Is it something going on inside the differential? Or something else, unrelated?
Thanks!

 

welcome to tw.


can you feel the vibes thru the steering wheel? whes the last time your tires were balanced? quite a few things that can cause vibrations.

 

Yeah, the tires are relatively new still so I don't believe that's the problem. Can't feel it coming through the steerine wheel either. Actually it is tough to feel, but you can definately hear it when the radio is off and the truck isn't going around a right turn.

 

its possible that the wheel bearing on the driver side is toast. jack the truck up in the front, and try and move the wheels top to bottom and see how much play you have.

 

Thanks for the quick reply
Yep - I think that will be my next stab at it. When I had the shaft out the wheel bearing really didn't seem bad and when I looked into the diff, what I could see looked ok too. Just seems wierd, Oh well. Too bad the wheel bearing is somehow more money than the axel shaft? haha

 

yeah......they are really proud of the sealed bearings and seals for them!

 

Not to bring an old topic back to life, but I am also having to replace my front right wheel bearing right now, there a little play in it, but what got me was the cracking, grinding sound (like a rock between the brake pad/disk). I thought the humming in my tires was just my alignment, but like was stated above, it went away when making left turns, and the frequency sped up when making right turns....

Anyway, are these wheel bearings press fitted? Or is it a "do it yourself" kind of project that I can do in an afternoon in the driveway?

 

tacupra -
I did the wheel bearing replacement at home. They are press fitted. The fit is very tight and takes a lot of force to get the bearing on. I first tried to press it together with a 3 ton hydraulic jack underneath a motorhome frame and that didn't do it. So I put a puller tool around the assembly and stabilized it with a piece of thick scrap steal and cracked down on that to press the bearing down. The tool I used was similar to these:
http://www.chain-auto-tools.com/automotive-directory/pullers.htm

It took two of us to keep it stable while cranking on the puller with the breaker bar.
If you have a press then it will be easier.