Hey @BCMUSA , I'm in the same boat as you. I have an '18 TRD ORP with 6,700 miles. Vibration didn't begin until 5k service and tire rotation. My steering wheel has a high frequency vibration at 60-65moh and above 72-75+ the steering wheel vibration goes away and you can feel it in the front end and it vibrates through the front seats.

7 road force balances between Discount Tire and Dealership.
10 days at the dealership
1 brand new set of Michelin Defender LTX M/Ss
NO FIX

Toyota (not my dealership) claims they will no longer work on the vehicle because "steering wheel vibration is a normal characteristic of the vehicle"... BS!!!!

I'm gathering driving data and tons of hours of research to make my case against them when I file a claim, but first I will make my case to the owner of the dealership.

This is my 3rd 4Runner. I had 3rd, 4th and now 5th, and I know personally know a few other people who have 5th gens that do not vibrate at all.

My interest is peaked in upgrading the suspension to help fix/bandaid whatever the actual problem is. So far, I've found 4 different people who have completely eliminated their steering wheel vibration by suspension upgrades.

I'm test drove 2 '19 TRD ORP off the lot with 2 completely different wheels and tire packages. Both vibrated so bad that the 2 different salesmen were horrified. My dealership is on my side so far, the problem lies with Toyota knowing they have some sort of issue that they can't fix, and they blow it off as a normal characteristic because it's not a critical safety issue IMHO.

I'm test driving a Pro this weekend since all that is different is the upgraded suspension.

I'm hoping that the Pro will not vibrate and I will be able to ask the dealership to be the TRD Pro suspension in my car to see if it helps... cost free. Point being, it would be AMAZING if the upgrade fixed the issue, but then why should we have to pay an extra $2k on top of a $40k+ brand new vehicle to "fix' it?

I have videos of my car as well as all test drives.

I will report back findings.

I'm also going to try a local Mom & Pop shop for balance that was recommended to me, although I don't see how they could still be out of balance, every tech can't be an idiot can they?

Although I guess they are... I just bought a digital tire gauge yesterday to experiment with PSI to see if that would help the issue and found that my from right was at 39 and all the others were at 34. I lowered the front right 34 and seems very slightly better.

It's so frustrating and confusing. This is my dream car and I'm heartbroken.

Someone want to donate some money to my suspension upgrade to see if it would fix the issue?

If you knew how shitty our dealerships are here in Vegas, you wouldn't do it.

Yup I am having the same problem. Please let me know what you find. I am exhausted dealing with this problem.

I don't know if I agree with that.

I have spent weeks reading about this problem and there are many many people who have tried different tires, rims, lift, etc and still have the problem.

Look into the needle bearing replacement. A lot of my steering wheel shake and grinding issues came from the bad needle bearing. Went bad on my 2017 around 8-10K miles

Yeah man like I stated earlier. I think it's a design fault or manufacturing defect. Some people have it and others don't and there is little consistency other then symptoms. Fixes don't correlate either for the most part. Over all it seems to be a wheel balance issue. Some people seem to have it worse than others too. Lug centric wheels don't help the cause.

I definitely have it. But it's not to the point where I'm scrambling for answers and throwing money at it.


It's shitty but like the other member stated toyota prob gives zero ****s and will not work to fix it. Usually takes someone dying.

"A new car built by my company leaves somewhere traveling at 60 mph. The rear differential locks up. The car crashes and burns with everyone trapped inside. Now, should we initiate a recall? Take the number of vehicles in the field, A, multiply by the probable rate of failure, B, multiply by the average out-of-court settlement, C. A times B times C equals X. If X is less than the cost of a recall, we don't do one."

Have you guys looked into all the steering components? Like steering knuckles, rods, rack n pinion, and whatever else you call them. Maybe something is just a bit loose or have too much play.

My old ass second hand 2010 trail never had any issue with steering wheel vibration at all luckily.

One thing I have not done yet is test the steering wheel/front-end vibration while in 4 wheel high.

Has anyone else with this issue tried it in 4wd?

What were your results?

That might tell you if it's the needle bearing or not good idea. It would have to be done on pavement which won't hurt anything (just remember to engage below 55).

I would take it back to the dealer. If it doesn't get fixed I would pursue Lemon Law

Apparently the Toyota dealers don't deal with tire warranties. They tell to go deal with the tire manufacturer.

I had vibration problems with the stock Dunlop AT20 tires. The dealer balanced them like 4 times over the course of a year. Finally they decided the tires are bad but they don't tire warranties. They gave me the service record that states the tires are bad and need to be replaced. With that service record, I opened a claim with Goodyear and they approved it. They said I could pick any Dunlop or Goodyear tire so I got Goodyear Ultra Terrains installed. But now I have another set of problems that I don't want to derail this thread with.

Unfortunately, that is easier said than actually done.

Plus, even though my TRD ORP did not start this until around 5k miles, I've driven 2 brand new TRD ORPs off the lot and they are both doing it and they are even worse than mine is!

I see you have a Pro? Looking forward to driving one this weekend and feeling the suspension.

Hey BCMUSA...Sorry to hear you are still having issues. I had hoped your last fix took care of it.

My question for the group, and sorry if I missed this somewhere....Does this only affect certain trims?....4x4, 4x2, KDSS, XREAS, none of the above...etc....

I have a new Limited and although I experience the "floatyness" of the front end, I have zero balance and vibration issues.

Its easier said then done correct but if you look at the list of everything he has tried. Its time to start down that road with the dealer.

As for pro suspension its nice, handles like a dream off road. But is just to soft for me I already got rid of it and went with icons.

Thanks everyone for the replies. I appreciate all the feedback.

I also found this:
Toyota 4Runner Questions - What will cause a steering wheel shimmy at 60-65mph other than tires, ... - CarGurus

Check out how many people with the same problem! It's crazy.