G.I.G.
New member
After hearing that Toyota FINALLY issued a TSB (TSB-0121-12) a couple of months ago for the V8 4Runner drive shaft assembly, I'm bringing my 4Runner to the dealership this week to have the drive shaft assembly replaced. I brought it in last week so they could document my complaint and run it up the flag pole with Toyota's regional service manager. I received a call back on Friday stating that Toyota has decided to cover it.
Luckily for me, I took my 4Runner in with just 1,100 miles to have them document the problem right after I bought it even though I knew there was not a permanent fix at that point. Looking back, I'm glad I did. The TSB is only covered under the 60 month, 60k mile Toyota drive train warranty. Since I complained about the clunk while I was still covered under my factory warranty and the TSB just came out, Toyota is making an exception for me and will cover the expense. I still think it is a little shady of Toyota to issue the TSB for the Lexus GX470 several years ago with the exact same components and documented problems, but are just now issuing that TSB for the 4Runners. A vast majority of the '03-'09 V8 4Runners are now out of warranty and I think that Toyota did that by design. Not cool in my opinion but at least they are covering it for me. I would urge anyone who has had issues with the infamous drive line clunk to contact your dealer and/or Toyota to see if they will cover it for you.
I have been lubing my drive shaft with Mobil 1 synthetic grease at every 5k mile oil change since I bought my 4Runner, so I'm not expecting to see a huge improvement with the new drive shaft assembly. I would start to notice the clunk come back just before each oil change, so I've been able to time the service on the drive shaft fairly well. The true test will be letting it go a little longer without servicing it to see if the TSB truly fixed the problem. I'll post back later this week after I have the service done and again in a few months to see how it is doing in the long run.
Luckily for me, I took my 4Runner in with just 1,100 miles to have them document the problem right after I bought it even though I knew there was not a permanent fix at that point. Looking back, I'm glad I did. The TSB is only covered under the 60 month, 60k mile Toyota drive train warranty. Since I complained about the clunk while I was still covered under my factory warranty and the TSB just came out, Toyota is making an exception for me and will cover the expense. I still think it is a little shady of Toyota to issue the TSB for the Lexus GX470 several years ago with the exact same components and documented problems, but are just now issuing that TSB for the 4Runners. A vast majority of the '03-'09 V8 4Runners are now out of warranty and I think that Toyota did that by design. Not cool in my opinion but at least they are covering it for me. I would urge anyone who has had issues with the infamous drive line clunk to contact your dealer and/or Toyota to see if they will cover it for you.
I have been lubing my drive shaft with Mobil 1 synthetic grease at every 5k mile oil change since I bought my 4Runner, so I'm not expecting to see a huge improvement with the new drive shaft assembly. I would start to notice the clunk come back just before each oil change, so I've been able to time the service on the drive shaft fairly well. The true test will be letting it go a little longer without servicing it to see if the TSB truly fixed the problem. I'll post back later this week after I have the service done and again in a few months to see how it is doing in the long run.
