Vibration at 60 to 80 kph. Here's what the dealership tried...

So I recently bought a new 2020 Tacoma TRD Sport and it has been having this vibration ever since I drove it off the lot. The vibration happens anywhere from 60 to 80 kph. It is slight, but it is very annoying. I brought it to the dealership and they can't figure it out. So far they have replaced the rear leaf springs and installed a steering wheel damper. It made the vibrations a little better but it is still very noticeable. I have not done any modifications to the truck. This is the summary of what the dealership did:

"THE VIBRATION WAS PRESENT, THE VIBRATION WAS FELT ON STEERING AND FRONT SEATS, SWAPPED OUT ALL 4 TIRES FROM A NEW UNIT AND TEST DROVE, FELT SAME VIBRATION, SWAPPED THE DRIVE SHAFT FROM THE NEW UNIT AND TEST DROVE IT, VIBRATION WAS STILL THERE. A CASE WAS FILED TO SUPPORT TEAM. REAR DIFFERENTIAL OIL WAS REPLACED AND REAR BRAKE DRUMS WERE SWAPPED FROM A NEW UNIT. TEST DROVE , DID NOT SOLVE THE ISSUE. OUR NEXT STEP WAS TO LOOSEN THE ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION MOUNTS AND THE REAR SUSPENSION, THE VEHICLE WAS JOUNCED AND THEN ALL THE BOLTS WERE TIGHTENED AND TORQUED TO SPECS AS DIRECTED. VIBRATION WAS STILL PRESENT.TOOK THE MEASUREMENTS OF THE FLANGE AND PROP SHAFT JOINT ANGLE. FLANGE ANGLE MEASURED AT 1.40 AND DRIVE SHAFT ANGLE MEASURED AT 5.05. NEXT STEP WAS TO PERFORM THE TSB T-TCI-5410, ORDERED THE PARTS AND PERFORMED THE TSB. STEERING DAMPERS AND REAR LEAF."

I've researched quite a bit and have heard of people using the ECGS bushing to eliminate the play of the CV axle in the front differential, but it sounds like it only really applies to trucks that have a lift. The other day I jacked up the truck and took a look around, all bolts and U-joints seem tight. CV axle has a little bit of play but nothing that I would call concerning. I spun the wheels with my hand I did hear an odd noise coming from the front drivers side wheel. It was making a clunking/popping sound. The passenger side was fine however. I spun the rear wheels and they were also making a clicking sound when I rotated them but quickly dissipated once I stopped rotating the wheel with my hand. I don't hear any of these noises when I am on the road. Just the steering wheel vibration.

Will the ECGS bushing fix this issue? Is the differential bad? Not sure why the dealership didn't look at anything on the front differential. I am taking it in again next week so hopefully maybe they will give me some answers. Anyone have any other ideas?

Thanks!

 

Really don't understand this vibration issue on all these trd's, and sports. Whats the major difference these chassis have? They need to take my 2020 sr5 to use as a baseline...its perfectly smooth at any speed. My 2001 tundra had some minor vibration, but every 2001 tundra i drove back then had it.

 

access cab ? I test drove one awhile ago before purchasing the off-road instead . The sport had all kinds of vibrations .hope you figure out the issue .

 

My ‘19 doesn’t vibrate unless I make it vibrate. And sometimes, I make it vibrate. Yeah.

 

I have a similar situation going on with my 19 Sport DCSB. The vibration is felt in the steering wheel most notably from about 80-90 km/h, is a cyclic rumble, and it doesn't matter if accelerating or decelerating. Braking does not affect it either. Does it in 2WD and 4WD.
So far, the dealer road force balanced the tires, checked the rear driveline angles, replaced the complete rear drive shaft, and the latest go around has been swapping out the front differential. Still have the exact same vibration.
No lift.
BTW, is this the noise you spoke of when rotating the front wheels by hand?

https://youtu.be/gAQIwxVasw4

If so, well.. it might be normal?!
Didn't fix my vibration problem anyhow.
Just another data point, but I'd like to hear updates on your truck going forward.

 

That ratcheting noise when turning the tire sound awful. When i took my tires off this past summer for rust proofing i spun them and got none of that.

 

Wow you must have a good dealer that they did all they work for you, trying to
Find the problem. I’ve read countless thread on this topic because I’m having the same issue with my 2021 SR5 ... I took it to the
Dealer and the said that they felt the vibration and that’s it’s normal and no fix .. they told
Be to bring it back if it gets worse .. it’s really
Frustrating this is my new vehicl and I don’t have time to be in and out of the dealer . That’s why I bought new in the
First place .. I’ve spent hours on here searching for the answer and no one has it

 

I had a 2018 DCLB 2wd and it was hands down the best riding truck i’ve ever owned and better than a lot of my cars, and i’ve owned 36 different vehicles.
Opted buy a new 2022 DCSB 2wd… holy crap what a shitty ride. I’ve upped the tire pressure and downed the tire pressure five times and had the dealership balance the wheels, and it didn’t help, so they had it another full day and it rode like crap still the wheels vibrated all over the place, so i went to a tire shop and did a road force balance. Now the front is smooth and corrected, but the rear passenger side still vibrates…
I jacked the rear and spun the wheels to look and measure for out of round wheels or tires and nothing wrong.
Rotated the wheels and still has the same vibration.
I’ve searched and searched the web off and on for weeks, but don’t see anything definitive about a resolution.
Back to dealer one more time and then if it’s not fixed then it’s for sale.

 

drop your pressure to 30 PSI. your tires are probably overinflated

 

Hey, maybe take off those rears again, and then slide off the drums. Then swap side with them side to side. See if the out of balance feeling swaps sides. If so you have found your issue. If not just another possibility ruled out.

 

Most of these trucks ride like a truck, with an empty bed. They have a light ass-end. They are going to ride shitty with no weight in them. Their designed to have weight in back. Put some weight back there and bet it rides completely different.

 

my SR rides like a flintstones buggy when empty and like a cadillac when loaded

 

My 2018 was rarely loaded, and rode great either way. Anyway, on this 2022 it’s not the road bumps, i can’t feel them in the front and then the back, it’s the constant oscillation in the passenger rear that makes no sense. I would think that the road force balance would have found a tire problem. I’m moving on to switching the drums next.

 

Did they check for a bent drive shaft ?

 

Without actually driving the truck its hard to say but Toyota has a hard time making a drive line that doesn't have some sort of NVH issue. My 2019 Limited is well behaved except for a very slight cyclic vibration that can be heard and felt at around 40-50 mph and it also vibrates from the drive line when coming to a stop at around the 30-15 mph range.
My 1997 Tacoma had issues, my 2001 Tacoma had issues. You may have to deal with it.
The dealer doesn't have engineers working on your truck, this is why they are swapping parts to see if there is a change. What needs to be done is to use an NVH measuring tool and decipher the exact frequency, amplitude and if it's a 1st or 2nd order vibration. With this information you could narrow it down to just a couple of components. Ask Toyota if they have a field technical rep that can look at your truck.

 

My Sport has no vibrations at all. I have stock tires that came on the truck Firestone Destination 2. Vibration could be caused by tire out of balance e.g. loose tire weight that shifted, a small stone inside the tire throws balancing off. etc etc. just saying

 

I got a road force balance on all four wheels this morning.
After that my drive was on new and old pavement.
The front felt perfect.
The rear started the vibration about 60mph and from 78 to 83 the vibration peaked.
I was going to swap rear drums, but ran out of time for today.
Thanks for the suggestions.

 

Moved

 

Well i went back to the dealership and they did their own road force balance and said that the fronts were great, but agreed that the rear wheels would still not balance properly. They put on four new tires and so far they have not bounced or vibrated on my short commute up to 60mph.
The supposed bad tires were Toyo, and the new ones are Firestone.
I will run it up to 80mph this weekend and see what happens.

 

Do you have access to a torque wrench?
Touque specs are often overlooked on when install. Uneven torques can create this vibration. Happens every time I take the FJ to the tire shop.

I’ve learned to re-torque. 2023 specs state 83-85 lbs ft. I always apply anti seize to studs, if you do that, lower torque value 24% for the reduced friction.

Not sure if this will help your situation, but it’s worked for me on numerous alloy wheel vehicles