Driveline Vibration

[KevinG]

I have a slight vibration in the steering wheel on my 11 Limited when accelerating or there is a load on the vehicle. Is that what you are experiencing?

It is though I have 2 separate symptoms. One is the exact vibration/shimmy that gmoney just spoke of. When you get to 75-80 mph, the vibration is so bad that you can see the passenger seat shaking like crazy to the exact frequency of the steering wheel vibration. The other is best described as a pulsation or hesitation (not from the engine or loss of power) when there is a load. That is more noticeable at lower RPM's (1200-1400 or so). I get this when on a longer on ramp or a low grade incline where you are not on the throttle hard but doing 45-55 mph. It feels almost like a slight bucking from rear to front.

 

[gmoney2626]

I have a slight vibration in the steering wheel on my 11 Limited when accelerating or there is a load on the vehicle. Is that what you are experiencing?

I notice a shimmy in the whole vehicle when I hold 65 on the highway. I only have 700 miles on the car and havent done any towing or had more then two adults in it. Most of the time it is just me in the car.

 

[Isk@k2]

I have spent sometime looking through the various older and current threats on steering vibration. Just picked up my 2011 3 weeks ago and experienced this mystery vibration as well. Reading everyone's experience is discouraging and I am not confident the dealer will be able to fix it. It is in the shop now for the 2nd time. 1st time they could not replicate it until I demanded a tech come drive the thing and finally he totally got what I was describing. Dealers first response was that it is wheel balance or is just how it rides. Wheels balanced - no improvement. I just traded in my 2007 4Runner and hoping I did not make a huge mistake.

Issue - vibration in steering most consistently felt when coasting from higher speeds downward. Don't seem to notice it when it is accelerating or on cruise control. It could be there just not as noticeable. The vibration kicks in around 65 - 57mph.

Anyhow, I will update on my experience once I hear back. Would love to hear more from the individual who may be going dow the path of filing lemon law complaint with Toyota. I feel like that is where I could be headed based on early response from dealer.

 

[KevinG]

Everyone that is experiencing it needs to call corporate to get a case number so they can see that it is not just a one off!!!!! I am very close to filing lemon law but will wait another week or so to allow corporate a little time.

 

[gmoney2626]

I have spent sometime looking through the various older and current threats on steering vibration. Just picked up my 2011 3 weeks ago and experienced this mystery vibration as well. Reading everyone's experience is discouraging and I am not confident the dealer will be able to fix it. It is in the shop now for the 2nd time. 1st time they could not replicate it until I demanded a tech come drive the thing and finally he totally got what I was describing. Dealers first response was that it is wheel balance or is just how it rides. Wheels balanced - no improvement. I just traded in my 2007 4Runner and hoping I did not make a huge mistake.

Issue - vibration in steering most consistently felt when coasting from higher speeds downward. Don't seem to notice it when it is accelerating or on cruise control. It could be there just not as noticeable. The vibration kicks in around 65 - 57mph.

Anyhow, I will update on my experience once I hear back. Would love to hear more from the individual who may be going dow the path of filing lemon law complaint with Toyota. I feel like that is where I could be headed based on early response from dealer.

I felt EXACTLY the same way you do and got the SAME responses at first from the shop I took it to. My car as been in the shop for a week straight over this issue (more because it was waiting for someone to come off vacation to escalate the issue but that is another story). I too had to get the tech in the car to show him the vibration and they said ..."Yeah that shouldn't be like that". They took a set of Bridgestones off another new 4runner on the lot and it did the same thing. They put the tires back on the new 4runner and took it for a test drive and said heck this one vibrates too..... guess it is just how the 4runner is. I asked them to take me for a ride in the 4runner with the Bridgestones and for a ride in a second 4runner. The 4runner with the Bridgestones was worse then mine and the second did it as well but was less intense. I told him that I felt this was unacceptable for a $30k+ car to ride like the tires arent balanced and dont feel like the 4runner was designed to ride like this. I told him that it appears we have 3 cars with the same problem. At this point they said we had to call Toyota and get a case number.

I have been waiting to update this thread because of the lack of information but I got news this morning. They put in a call to Toyota and received a case number. I currently have Dunlop Duellers and apparently the numbers from the road force balancing are 12, 17, 22, 27. The Toyota tech confirmed that he has seen this before with some 4runners and that for some reason this model 4runner experiences anomalies with numbers over 17. The dealership was authorized to replace the two tires in the 20s to see if that corrects the issue. The rep also told them to verify the alignment on the car even though the techs felt there was no way alignment was the issue. The service manager called and said he wasnt able to get me 2 Dunlop tires until the middle of next week and he felt that was unacceptable since they already had my car for a week now. He got authorization to replace all 5 tires with Bridgestones since the 4runner comes with either Dunlop or Bridgestones. I expressed my concern over the Bridgestones since we already saw a 4runner with those tires show the same results. I asked if the value of 17 applied to the Bridgestones and he said ... "to my understanding yes". He stated that they are going to roadforce the new ones when they come in, check the alignment and take things from there. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Isk@k2 - My advise to you is to get the service manager and explain to him that others around the country have experienced this with their 4runners on both Bridgestone and Dunlops. Explain that dealerships are getting case numbers and make sure you do a Road Force Balance and get the numbers. I am not out of the woods yet.... I am more hopeful today then I have been over the last week though. I will update as soon as I know more.

 

[1engineer]

Can you do a poll on this issue?

 

[KevinG]

Can you do a poll on this issue?

I am either going to do a poll or another thread to track exact problems like this, after I read a few others (I do not want to start another if I don't have to). I started this one a while ago, and unfortunately I am not the only person experiencing this problem. We need to figure something out, as what we have so far is completely unacceptable!!!!! If I go with a poll, what would all of you like to see asked? I don't know how much impact a poll will have, as it is very opinionated. What we need is real data to present to Toyota like trim level, wheel options, tire options, conditions (temperature, speed, etc.) is everything stock, when did we first experience the issue (mileage), what has been done so far in attempt to correct, has it gotten better or worse over time? Anyone have further suggestions as to what we should collect?

 

[gmoney2626]

I am either going to do a poll or another thread to track exact problems like this, after I read a few others (I do not want to start another if I don't have to). I started this one a while ago, and unfortunately I am not the only person experiencing this problem. We need to figure something out, as what we have so far is completely unacceptable!!!!! If I go with a poll, what would all of you like to see asked? I don't know how much impact a poll will have, as it is very opinionated. What we need is real data to present to Toyota like trim level, wheel options, tire options, conditions (temperature, speed, etc.) is everything stock, when did we first experience the issue (mileage), what has been done so far in attempt to correct, has it gotten better or worse over time? Anyone have further suggestions as to what we should collect?

I think you have a lot of information points covered. When I was researching what car I wanted I looked at the new Camaro and went into their forum. I saw there were numerous people spread out across the US that were having clutch issues with their 6spd models. It was happening to people as soon as they drove them off the lot and GM dealers were responding with "that is how the car is designed" or "its driver error". It mirrored some responses owners received when they took their 4runner in for this vibration issue. Those guys decided to start a Sticky to have people post their symptoms, mileage it started, when they took it to their dealer and what was the outcome. They would also list the whole VIN or just the portion that showed what number vehicle it was off the line. I am not sure what that did for them since I scratched the Camaro off my list after seeing that. If we do that I think it would be important to keep the posts to the point for the issue at hand and not let it wander into other conversations. That way if we end up showing a large number of owners with issues we can provide that to someone. That brings me to a question.... Who do we give this information to so it is worth the effort?

I know the shop that my car is currently at had two new ones on the lot that were doing the same thing. I believe they have been sold or transferred. I just wonder if Toyota is aware and knows this is an issue but instead of making a recall or TSB they are just trying to ride it out by replacing tires for those that yell the loudest. Maybe they figure its cheaper this way instead of replacing them all regardless. This of course is my speculation. I am keeping my fingers crossed that these new tires do the trick.

 

[gmoney2626]

Well the tires didnt arrive in time today to get the vehicle by the end of the day. Standing by till Monday. Hopefully I will have more information then. The car has been in the shop a week and a half now. I had to go online and look at photos of 4runners because I am starting to forget what it looks like. Guess I get the loaner prius for another weekend.......joy! Thankfully I have other vehicles to drive.

 

[Isk@k2]

Finally got my wheels back after the dealer had it in the shop for 4 days. A toyota rep just happened to be on site the last day and said to do a road wheel balance and alignment. When I picked it up I was sure I would feel the vibration immediately given many of you have already had both things done. Surprisingly I don't seem to notice it anymore. If it is still there it is so minor that I don't notice. I will see how things go after driving it for a few more weeks. Like some posts, I realize there can be a short lived improvement and then it goes back to vibrating again. Here is hoping it is fixed.

 

[gmoney2626]

UPDATE

Got my 4Runner back last night after being in the shop almost two weeks. All 5 tires were changed from Dunlop to Bridgestone Dueler. Road force balance numbers were 5, 6, 13, 5, and spare was 16. After 2 days of driving the car drives smooth. The service manager mentioned he talked with two Toyota reps and one said the road force numbers need to stay under 17 while another mentioned it needed to stay under 18. Dunlop apparently doesnt believe in road force balancing and said nothing was wrong with the tires but yet the Dunlop model that was on my car are now discontinued. It is sooooo much nicer to drive now that the vibration is gone. I am much happier with it. I am keeping my fingers crossed it will stay this way. Thanks everyone for the info in this thread. If anyone needs a South East Virginia dealer with experience in this issue go to First Team Toyota.

 

[Isk@k2]

gmoney2626- do you mean First Team Toyota in Chesapeake VA?

 

[gmoney2626]

gmoney2626- do you mean First Team Toyota in Chesapeake VA?

Yes on Western Branch Blvd

 

[Isk@k2]

Interesting as that is where I took mine in and acted like they had never had a case like this. They never replaced my tires probably because the road balance results were all under 19. Good to know someone else's experience at that dealer for future reference.

 

[gmoney2626]

Interesting as that is where I took mine in and acted like they had never had a case like this. They never replaced my tires probably because the road balance results were all under 19. Good to know someone else's experience at that dealer for future reference.

Well I dropped mine off two weeks ago and when I asked if they had others complaining they told me "no". I was with Anita and her team... forget the team color. The second time I took it back they stated that "it appears to be the characteristics of the vehicle" I had a talk with them, provided them links to this post, noted several Toyota Case numbers and brought up the issue with the FJ. When I mentioned the FJ they acknowledged those issues were related to tires. I then said.... sooooooooo can we move this along? That is when they said they needed to call the rep.

At this point the Service Manager got involved and I dealt straight with him. I picked up the car Monday night and drove with the Service Manager.... I asked him again ... "Nobody else has complained about this issue to you?" and he said that since my truck had been there one more came in and they were able to resolve it without replacing the tires. I wonder if that was yours?!?!?! What were your road balance numbers?

 

[Isk@k2]

Ya it had to be mine. I dropped it off Feb 21st. On 22nd they said they could not replicate. I insisted to drive with Rep and left it there for rest of week. Picked up on 25th. Drove all weekend without feeling the vibration but did not go too far so I need to spend some more time seeing if issue is really gone. I dealt with Shawnee and only briefly spoke to Service Manager on Friday when I picked it up. As for road balance results she told me one was 14, 16, 17, 19. Apparently the Toyota rep was there that day and said anything under 20 is normal. If I do end up having issues again, I may need to get your name so that I can reference your case when I take it back and deal directly with Service Mgr. The sales guys who sold the car and the service girl (shawnee) really dismissed my concerns. I was ready to deal it in only having 800 miles on it myself.

 

[gmoney2626]

Ya it had to be mine. I dropped it off Feb 21st. On 22nd they said they could not replicate. I insisted to drive with Rep and left it there for rest of week. Picked up on 25th. Drove all weekend without feeling the vibration but did not go too far so I need to spend some more time seeing if issue is really gone. I dealt with Shawnee and only briefly spoke to Service Manager on Friday when I picked it up. As for road balance results she told me one was 14, 16, 17, 19. Apparently the Toyota rep was there that day and said anything under 20 is normal. If I do end up having issues again, I may need to get your name so that I can reference your case when I take it back and deal directly with Service Mgr. The sales guys who sold the car and the service girl (shawnee) really dismissed my concerns. I was ready to deal it in only having 800 miles on it myself.

Isk@k2 - I sent you a PM

 

[KevinG]

Apparently, the dealer that I am dealing with now is not that great either. The customer care manager left me a voicemail once (1 week after corporate forwarded my initial complaint). After I left her a return message 5 minutes later, it took several days to hear back from her (took me leaving 3 separate messages to get a return call). She then told me that I needed to leave the vehicle for a few days so she would check on loaner car availability and call me in a few minutes. That was Tuesday morning and I haven't heard back on the "availability" of the loaner. Needless to say, I will not be as polite when I call corporate back again...GOOD TIMES!!!!!

 

[Isk@k2]

Seems my problem is back even though they have balanced tires, RFB and alignment. Dealer is not showing too much concern at this point and now trying to convince me that is just how they ride. Last resort we will replace tires and see if any changes. If Dunlops are truly as bad as people report, it may not be a total loss getting something else sooner rather than later.

Please keep posting your experiences especially if your issues are completely resolved. It will help those of us still battling with the Dealers to find a resolution.

 

[1engineer]

I drove to Charlotte, NC from WV and back this past weekend. Put about 600 miles on the truck. I started the trip with about 300 miles on the odometer and I had read this thread beforehand so I was paying attention to the ride. Going to Charlotte, I never felt any vibration at all. If any of you have driven this stretch of I77 you will know it is a great mixture of old and new pavement as well as old and new concrete with several sections of each going on for 20 miles or so, enough to tell what your vehicle is doing during each section. BTW the weather was clear and temp was about 60-70 degrees.
Again, going down I77 I noticed no vibration at all. We got there, drove around the city all afternoon and evening. We drove around more the next day, all city driving, and started home that afternoon. When we got up to speed on the interstate (between 65-70 mph) I noticed a small vibration exactly as you guys have described. It was in the older pavement section and it never got any worse or better, it just stayed constant with the only variable, speed coming into play. Drop below 60, the vibration is gone. Get above 65, it comes back. I continued on (wife was sleeping) and we got to a concrete section of highway. Same speed, no vibration! I thought "hmmm" and kept going with no vibration. Long story short, This thing has the vibration on older pavement and older concrete. New pavement and concrete it is fine. I can re-create it on local interstates as we have both materials around here. I do not know what that means except these tires are not very good. It is hard for me to understand how vibration can happen depending on road materials. Anyway, that is my experience.