troublesome pull when braking

help please.

after lifting my truck 2.5” and an alignment i noticed a slight pull when braking. that same pull intensifies at high speeds and extremely sketchy when high speeds (68 mph) down a grade.

i’ve replaced front brakes to the calipers.

rear shoes changed as soon as we noticed a leaky seal sending grease from axle into the drum.

...long story short, it still has a slight pull and my springs shift to the right which we “believe” is the pull.

-the only change there was the Add-a-Leaf.

what is going on and would a new set of leaf springs remedy?

1k was spent on an electrical head light issue and the new shoes for rear brakes. this was an expensive “i don’t quite know and i’ve never seen this”.

if anyone can direct for a ‘99 Tacoma, 364k mikes. baby driven.

not sure if it matters: Toytec supplied the full lift for the truck and leaf add on.

 

Automatic or manual? We need the info on the truck, the maintenance history, and as many details as you can give. Who did the brake work? If it was work you paid to have done, there a reason you don't have them look at it? Sounding like a decent chunk of change for these repairs at a shop, I couldnt see the shop not wanting to get it right for you

 

Did you fix the rear axle seal problem? If so, how was the repair done? Did you simply replace the seal, or did you also do the presswork and replace the bearing? The reason why i'm asking is because the axle seals were redesigned by Toyota some time in the past. The redesign has the seal lip sitting apprx 2mm more inboard than before. The result of this is a less than optimal mating with the inner retainer if you don't readjust the position of the retainer on the axle or do the flip method like I show in the videos I've made on this subject. Your seal could already be leaking again and gear oil is once again attacking your brake shoes. When one of your rear shoes gets coated in gear oil, it will cause your brakes to pull to the opposite side. So, if you're right rear axle seal was the one that was leaking, your brakes would pull to the left. Is you truck pulling to the opposite side of wear you had the seal leak?

In regards to your rear leaf springs, did you properly torque the u-bolt nuts. I don't know what it is offhand for a Tacoma, but I know for my 85 4runner the spec is 90 foot pounds. Another thing that could cause a shift with the leaf springs could be worn out leaf spring bushings. Take a look at them to see if they are grossly deteriorated.

 

Lifts do exploit suspension bushing wear.. if your LCA's bushings are toast it will do this (Some shops will adjust alignment and not notify you the bushings are worn so the tech can flag hours)

 

thanks guys...

i have a 99 Tacoma, Auto 4x4, Limited, well maintained... i did the Front Calipers and pads... they water by shop fine.

shop replaced seal. bearings he said were fine. cleaned all the grease and said the U-Bolts from Toytec were wider than stock and possibly the reason for the springs to shift. he replaced them with ones similar to stock but the length needed to secure.

it somewhat made a difference.

i’ve been with this shop from day one.
this is the first time since 1999 that i feel ripped off.

2.5 weeks later and the problem still there. except my headlights and highs don’t flicker anymore and he said he had to rewire due to elating wires and rerouted the alarm that was burning my switch out. (i did replace the light lever 4 times over. few years) he said it was likely the alarm after meter tests and such.

 

I do not have anti-lock brakes. I had a slight pull to the left on lockup. I bled the brakes using the recommended procedure and then proportion valve last. Then readjusted the rear brakes. That made it better. Then i fine tuned the right rear adjustment so that all wheels would lock up evenly in an emergency braking situation. That ended any pull during a hard braking situation. I feel safe driving it now in a hard breaking situation.

 

Since all they did is replace the seal, there's a good chance your axle seal will be leaking again. The seal lip is now riding very close to the non-polished bevel on the inner retainer. If there's any bearing play, the seal will ride on the bevel and you'll be leaking again. If you have ABS, you can jack up the rearend, take the wheel off (so it's easier to your head in there to see), pull the ABS sensor and then look into the axle housing at the ABS tone ring while turning the axle. If gear oil is getting past, the tone ring will lap it up like a water wheel.

If you own a torque wrench, check the tightness of the u-bolt nuts. 90 foot pounds is a good spec. You also want to make sure the u-bolts are even, meaning the same amount of threads are sticking up above each of the nuts.

Did you look at the bushings to see if they are worn?

 

They do look like they aren’t new and aging a bit... could this be the pull? I don’t se how but i’M not so mechanically inclined.

I aM disappointed he did no do bushings as well... he was under there for a bit.