How to CAUSE the Driveshaft *Clunk*

[TRDCal]

I assume you are exaggerating a bit. An electric gun is not needed, that is over kill. I use a regular grease gun and about 20-30 pumps that should do it. It you do it every 2nd oil change. it is not a big deal.

Yes I was exaggerating. I do use an electric grease gun but its not required. The first time I greased mine (shorty after I bought my 4runner), it made the clunk better but it was still there. So I got under and pumped her full again and then it was perfect. Since then its been every second oil change. I pump grease until the slip yoke expands about an inch give or take abit...then I go jump on the back bumper to compressed the slip yoke and then pump it till it expands again. Seems to work for me.

To be honest, I don't even consider it a problem. Its way easier than changing the oil and I don't consider my engine faulty because I have to change the oil every 10000kms for it to work smoothly so why would I consider my driveshaft faulty if I have to grease it every 20000kms for it to work smoothly.

EDIT: Don't get me wrong, I think its great that some people were able to get Toyota to replace there driveshafts for free...I'd take free OEM parts too. All I'm saying is, this is how I got mine to work great, maybe its worth a try before spending your hard earned money.

 

[Jyn]

Y'all made me feel left out with my little 2WD

 

[AZ07Runner]

Very happy with the replaced DS, too. It was as if someone bumped into me every time the cluck happened. In my case, it was easy to reproduce: just drive, it would happen. Great to have a normal diving vehicle, again.

 

[FJvet]

recently bought a 2005 v8 4 wheel drive I have never had this problem ever on a Toyota. well it exists on this one as all along with most other bad quality issues I have been experiencing .owning for runners since the first solid axle generation and Land Cruisers: this is by far the worst quality Toyota I have ever owned. my next vehicle will not be a newer Toyota.

 

[Dunngeon]

When you say pump, are there specific points to pump into? Or just all over? Pictures would be great

 

[JB.]

Regular and complete greasing doesn't change the clunk in my truck, and since it's not a wear or reliability issue, I don't care.

 

[TRDCal]

for runners

Seriously?

When you say pump, are there specific points to pump into? Or just all over? Pictures would be great

Heres the grease nipple for the slip yoke on the rear drivshaft which is where the clunk happens

There are however 5 more (6 total, 3 on each driveshaft) that should also be greased periodically as routine maintenance. Not sure on the interval tho.

 

[JB.]

Heres the grease nipple for the slip yoke on the rear drivshaft which is where the clunk happens

Interesting, is that your truck?

On my truck as well as all the pics I've seen the slip joint is on the other end at the transfer case.

 

[TRDCal]

Interesting, is that your truck?

On my truck as well as all the pics I've seen the slip joint is on the other end at the transfer case.

No I just googled "4runner slip yoke" and it was the first picture that came up. Good eye tho, I didn't look at it close enough to see the rear end there. My slip yoke is at the transfer case as well.

 

[FJvet]

Seriously?



Seriously..you had to waste bandwidth on that? you know what i was saying- sorry i didn't proof read what the phone interpreted- you know years ago before you could probably walk they had a 4 in the name because they were ALL 4x4's.. 2 live axles didn't hurt either

 

[Dunngeon]

Seriously?




Heres the grease nipple for the slip yoke on the rear drivshaft which is where the clunk happens

There are however 5 more (6 total, 3 on each driveshaft) that should also be greased periodically as routine maintenance. Not sure on the interval tho.

Sweet, thanks!
I looked underneath my truck and thought that was it but I wasn't sure.

Cheers mate

 

[20034RunnerV84x2]

Like the 49 threads on this discuss... your clunk is a result of lack of maintenance. These 4Rs came with greasable U-joints from the factory, which is a desirable feature. However, what that means is that every 5-10K miles you have to actually stick a grease gun on the zerks and fill them up. People who don't do that get the "clunk".

I had the clunk really bad when I bought this thing. After I greased the hell out of the zerks I have now been totally clunk free for 6,000 miles.

Very rarely will you find people who actually want a sealed unit over a serviceable unit...but I guess Toyota guys are a little unique. eep:

I don't have the history on my truck (2003 SR5 V8 w/ build date of Oct. 2002) and I went under there and there wasn't a fitting to grease it. None what so ever. My guess it it was replaced but mine isn't that bad and I don't even notice it anymore. But I did notice if ABS engages while trying to reproduce it, it usually doesn't do it.

 

[Jyn]

Just as a dumb question, so for non-4WD, is there anything to grease down there that will fix/help this problem? Thanks for all the replies, by the way.

 

[TechWrench]

Since I don't have a 2wd, I might be wrong, but it was my understanding that the 'clunk' problem only happened on the 4WD models. I haven't actually looked at the drive shaft on the 2WD model, but the oem repair manual shows a sleeve type yoke on the driveshaft. This type of yoke uses the transmission fluid inside the trans to lubricate the splines. This is why there isn't a zerk fitting to grease the yoke. Now, if Toyota did clearance the machined splines too tightly on the 2WD yoke, like they appear to have done on the 4WD driveshafts, then I suppose it is possible they could also bind under certain conditions. But, I don't recall any 2WD owners reporting actual clunk problems.

As for solving the problem on the 4WD models, I tried a solution I first read about on YotaTech way back in the beginning. I removed the drive shaft, disassembled the slip joint,and throughly cleaned both sets of splines. Then I mixed up a batch of light grease and valve lapping compound and applied it to the splines. Then, with the driveshaft in a vice, I worked the spline joint in and out for about 15 min. I then cleaned all the compound mix from the splines and dry fit the joint. It was much smoother than before. I greased the splines with Mobil Moly, reinstalled the drive shaft, and added more grease using the zerk fitting. That was over 80,000 miles ago, and I have not had a clunk problem since. I do 'service' the zerks about every 12-15,000 miles as part of my normal service routine. Way back, when I did this, the TSB for replacing the driveshafts was years away. Not everyone may want to try this, but it worked for me.

 

[TFJ-4runner]

This isn't really a bad problem and as Toyota owners we msy all be a little spoiled eith thr build quality. Grease your zerks and keep the slip yoke happy. There is also the rear main seal to consider. Pump a lot of grease, drive it really hard and grease it more. Post here on yur fi dings and we will diagnose accordingly. I've been here many times with a lot of models wnd its an easy fix but money may be involved worse case. Its still a simple fix compared to a lot of vehicles and not something that will leave you stranded.

 

[4RunnerFan]

I love my '08 4WD T4R so much that I consider the fact that the driveshaft can be greased at six different points a bona fide "feature" of the vehicle! hoto:

 

[henduford]

What type of grease should be used for this? Mine is doing it pretty bad and I'm planning on greasing soon. Thanks!

 

[Jyn]

Since I don't have a 2wd, I might be wrong, but it was my understanding that the 'clunk' problem only happened on the 4WD models. I haven't actually looked at the drive shaft on the 2WD model, but the oem repair manual shows a sleeve type yoke on the driveshaft. This type of yoke uses the transmission fluid inside the trans to lubricate the splines. This is why there isn't a zerk fitting to grease the yoke. Now, if Toyota did clearance the machined splines too tightly on the 2WD yoke, like they appear to have done on the 4WD driveshafts, then I suppose it is possible they could also bind under certain conditions. But, I don't recall any 2WD owners reporting actual clunk problems.

The TSB from Toyota is only for the 4WD model, but I've definitely had it happen on my V8 2WD Limited. I do know it's not a problem for the V6 since it's never happened on my mother's. Maybe it's just not as prominent on the 2WD V8?

 

[JB.]

The TSB from Toyota is only for the 4WD model, but I've definitely had it happen on my V8 2WD Limited. I do know it's not a problem for the V6 since it's never happened on my mother's. Maybe it's just not as prominent on the 2WD V8?

Is this based on what your mom has told you or is it based on having driven her truck a lot?

Is your mom's truck a 4 or 5 speed?

 

[Jyn]

Is this based on what your mom has told you or is it based on having driven her truck a lot?

Is your mom's truck a 4 or 5 speed?

Both my father and I have driven it and never had a problem with it. She does drive it the most since it's her vehicle and has never reported it. Her's is the 5 speed auto.