Toyota downgraded driveshaft?!

I was part of driveshaft vibration recall years ago and last year went in for a bad u joint. They said no charge and replaced the driveshaft... cool. A couple months ago i notice i only have 1 zerk at the front of the driveshaft not the 5 i had before. What's up! Was i robbed? Is this new? Should i just shut up and replace them with zerks when or if they fail? When i asked Toyota they told me it came with just one. I did buy my truck used but it had 5. Thanks for any advice.

 

What?

 

New Tacomas don't have any zerks on their rear driveshafts, so at least you got one I guess. Nowadays they are considered lifetime parts or whatever they call it, that don't need servicing like the older ones do. Whether or not that's true is another matter of debate.

 

You got a new drive shaft under recall .

That new drive shaft came with one grease fitting . Things change vendors change .

If you want you can change the joints to ones that have grease fittings .

Simple fix or buy a complete new driveshaft with as many fittings as you desire.

 

They did the same with mine last April.
Covered in full, new joints, carrier bearing and rebalance.
No zerks in new joints.
I'm disappointed as well.

 

They didnt steal anything from you,they put on new u joints that no longer come with zerks for the most part.
So let the drama go in your title.

 

Glad to hear it happened to someone else i guess But not really. Might look into a backup driveshaft. Just thought why only 1 zerk when before it was 5. It is under warranty for like 12 years or something, maybe let it ride.

 

Sorry maybe should have been a ? Instead of !. Sorry if i offended.

 

I'd ride it out as long as you can with the replacement and then just replace the u-joints with greasable versions whenever the time comes. They wont last as long without zerks so just keep an eye out for any new vibrations or rotational squeaking noises when taking off from low speeds.

 

its a non serviceable item now, so no zerks.

 

Just check the dealerships work from now on,I do everytime before I leave the lot to make sure its done to my satisfaction.

 

If it makes anyone feel better, non-greaseable joints are usually stronger.

However, I still prefer the greaseable type.

 

Yeah I guess they are "lifetime" parts, we shall see if that is accurate.

 

Toyota Stole His Driveshaft, You Won't Believe What He Looks Like Now

 

The absolutely are Lifetime parts.
They will last the lifetime of the part.
Don’t let it be confused with the lifetime of the truck as a whole.

 

Well said!

 

I drive a 2010 I didn’t know there was a recall. But saying that I don’t feel any vibrations. Is it more like a TSB?

 

Was pretty sure it was a recall.. may have ended in 2019? . I only bring this up because I'm sure i feel a little u joint action happening.

 

lifetime means designed to fail at 100k

you could have kept the old part
they probably threw it in the trash

 

It's a Customer Support Program "ZH2"