Shudder only with certain conditions

hey guys hopefully you can help me out and give me some new angles to look at.

I have a 2008 Tacoma 4door LB 4x4 non locker. Billy lift and blocks in rear.

I had the shudder before the lift but it has progressively gotten worse.

I have a shudder while driving and not sure where it is coming from. I originally thought it was due to a loose carrier bearing. So i changed carrier bearing, and all the driveshaft Ujoints.

Now i still have the shutter but its "tighter" if that makes sense

The only way i can really produce this shudder is if am going less than 40MPH, Low RPM (less than 1500-2K), and truck under load, and in 5th gear.

If i am in 5th with all other doing 60MPH on highway no issues. Also i can select any gear and put it under any other conditions and it wont do it.

When it shutters if i take my foot off the gas it goes away and then i can start again with no issue.

It also has a slight vibration when taking off, but just sometimes.

Oil change regularly. No whine in the rearend, Wheel bearings feel tight, all ball joints and bushings look good. I do have one motor mount that seems to have a little movement but im not convinced its that making this. Shifts between gears with no issues.

The shutter feels like i and driving on those annoying rumble strips on the side of the road.

One of my mechanic friends thinks it might be misfiring causing the vibration (stock plugs 130K miles) Ive been meaning to change them but was waiting till i could pay some mandatory bills off this summer.

I know some tacomas have a dreaded Shudder but i have never felt it before so i cant compare it to anything else.

if anyone can think of anything to help or any further questions to help diagnose this please help

Thank you for your time

 

Video of shudder.

 

Sounds like the classic "tourqe converter" shutter. Has the transmission fluid ever been changed and have you checked the fluid level?

 

I've heard it called the rumble strip problem. I've got it too but never found an exact cure

 

When metrick said rumble strip thats what tipped me off to the tourqe converter. Heard it mentioned many times in numerous posts.

 

I think Gear Cruncher had mentioned a fluid change and a bottle of Lube Guard Platinum added to the fluid should eliminate the shutter. Try searching some of his posts.

 

Just a guess or a thought, take the air horn where it goes into the fender off, easy check; 2 bolts and 1 hose clamp then see if it still does it.
My truck does/has the shudder/vibration at the same conditions you describe, after searching for what seemed like forever, I stumbled on the air horn accidentally and found it was vibrating against the fender, there's foam tape around the barrel part that goes against the fender that goes to shit/wears out allowing the two to vibrate against each other.

 

Guess its possible but going by the video its shaking the truck. I dont think a plastic intake snorkel will shake the truck that much.

 

Thanks for the input.. I will check the fluid this week and let you know what i find. i highly doubt it its the intake tube, due to the Entire truck shakes.

 

Cross posting from another thread on here:

Did the fluids help at all?

I'm experiencing this right now. A wavy bump around 28-31mph, and another quicker sharper vibration from 35-38mph. Truck is at the dealer right now and they said it appears internal to the transmission and it'll be $5,300 or so for a replacement. That and a leaky power steering boot and shot rear struts leads to a potential bill of over $7,000. At that point, I'd might as well drive the truck into a hedge and start new.

So I'm curious if it is something like the mounts.

For the record, it did this something like 18 months ago for a few weeks. I went in and they flashed the ECU and said if it continues that the tranny will need replacing. It continued for maybe 3-4 weeks afterwards, then was fine for something like 17 months. So could that be a mount where it went bad, then something happened where it held ok for those 17 months and then slipped and is going silly again? I'm an IT guy, so the troubleshooting part of my brain tells me that it really doesn't make sense if something is messed up internal to the tranny....then it fixes itself for 17 months and then goes bad the exact same way again.

Edit: 2009 TRD OR double-cab with 111k miles. Always followed strict factory maintenance scheduled service.

 

hey update on mine.. i did a full change and flush and so far no issues..