Weird Noises from my Tacoma...

Just got bilstein 5100's installed in the front and rear. Front is set at 2.5', stock UCA's. The noise sounds like metal grinding/rubbing against metal and only happens when I am coasting at a slow speed or braking to a stop. Also makes noise coming out of a stop going at a slow speed. When I am at city or high way speeds, there is no sound. Any idea what this could be?

 

Get a diff drop, check ur bearings.

 

What does a diff drop do for you?

 

Did you double check that the backing plates for the brakes arent rubbing on the rotors? usually noticable at slow speeds, but not when going faster.

 

No I have not. I don't know what sound that makes, but I know that it's not a screeching sound. It sounds like metal going up against metal. I haven't gotten my alignment yet, going to get it today. I don't know if that will make the sound go away or not tho. Probably not. My wheels right now are \---/ instead of being straight up and down like l---l

 

it makes a sound like what you are descirbing, i have seen plenty of techs do suspension work and accidentally bend the backing plates and create that kind of noise, its an easy fix if thats what it is

 

When they were installing my front shocks, the guy used a pole to move something down to get the shock and coil out. Maybe that could've cause something to bend? How do you fix the backing plates problem? Could it be a loose brake pad?

 

first, if it were a loose brake pad you would have some serious problems. but as for the backing plates, take the truck somewhere quiet, fiure out if its the left or right, or both, then reach through the wheels with your hand or some sort of long screwdriver or prybar type thing and slowly push back on the plate all around and drive it again, you may have to do this a couple times, but it usually works just fine.

 

Sounds like a brake part is loose or brakes are gone. Pull your front wheels and inspect the struts and pull the rotors and check your brakes.

 

If a backing plate/brake pad is loose or bent, how does it get fixed? I am pretty sure now that it has something to do with one of the two, but I don't know exactly what happened and how to remedy.

 

i already explained how to work on the backing plate, and unless a bolt was left out or something crazy, i dont see how the pads could be "loose"

 

Maybe the pads or something else are bent? Sorry if I sound like a total noob but I am when it comes to mechanical stuff.

 

extremely hard to bend a brake pad, and yes, the backing plate may be bent, but its an easy fix. i have been trained over the years to be able to listen to a customers desciption of the problem or noise and figure it out as quick as possible. your concern sounds like the backing plate, i could always be wrong, but this is my personal experience. however, if a shop installed them, u should take it back there and make them fix it, it wasnt there before the install and shouldnt be there now.

 

ok let me try lol
sounds under the truck are like drama queens, a lot of noise about nothing so its probably not a bolt or anthing serious. there is a large plate behind the front brake drum thats kinda like a big shield, and its pretty easy to bend and manipulate. it could have been easily bent while getting the 5100s installed and not known that they got bent. like Toyota Tech said, go to a quiet area where you can try to determine left or right front wheel or both. take a long screwdriver or something and push the plate back away from the actual brake drum and drive it again. you may have to do this a few times.
try this and get back to us.

 

Here's what I was thinking. Take it back to the place I got the lift installed and then have them take the tires off and bend the plates back to normal. Would that solve the problem for good?

 

You're getting too far ahead of yourself. Go back to that shop and tell them you think something went wrong with the install and let them check for you. Then when they see that you are running on the brake squealers, you will know what to do.

 

^ Okay, well I was planning on having them check out everything and look for anything that is out of whack or whatever needs fixing. Then after I gotta go in for alignment.... So much stuff that you have to do after messing with suspension stuff... Oh well at least it makes the truck look better

 

Well, either way, try to get back to us and let us know what they find, i am very interested to see if it is just a backing plate or what, thanks!!!

 

So I just talked to my mechanic about my issue, and he states that the sound is coming from a rock or dirt being caught in between the brakes, causing the grinding metal on metal sound. Does this sound valid? How do I get rid of this sound.

 

Also. He states that it's not serious at all. I don't know if thats what the real cause of the sound is tho. Maybe the rotors? Hmmm...