Slow down .... stop ... let go of brake ... "thunk"

coconutpete

coconutpete

New member
Anyone else experience this? Very rarely will it happen right as I come to a stop - most of the time it's after I let go of the brake.

It's a small "thud" or "thunk" as the vehicle starts moving again. It almost feels as if you are being pushed ever so slightly (although it's possible that part is in my head - but the noise is real)

Any ideas? Brakes look fine from what I can tell. I have 66K on the ticker.
 
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coconutpete said:
Anyone else experience this? Very rarely will it happen right as I come to a stop - most of the time it's after I let go of the brake.

It's a small "thud" or "thunk" as the vehicle starts moving again. It almost feels as if you are being pushed ever so slightly (although it's possible that part is in my head - but the noise is real)

Any ideas? Brakes look fine from what I can tell. I have 66K on the ticker.
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Do a search on driveshaft clunk, this is a long time known issue with the 4th gens. There are a bunch of threads on this topic, with some explainations and possible fixes.
 
My Sequoia and 4runner both do this. Both have the 4.7L V8 and same transmission. It hasn't become worse with over 100K miles on both vehicles so I've just chalked it up to a Yota thing. Seems to happen more often on sudden stops, like built up kinetic energy in the tranny or transfer case that's being released upon stopping.
 
Gatafly said:
Pump grease into that slip yoke until you see it move. Could take as much as 50-60 pumps if it has never been done. After that do it at each oil change and it wont take nearly as much.
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Agreed. I have the same issue on my '04 V6 4WD. I got it lubed up pretty good on my last oil change and it subsided, but is still there, yet subtle. Will definitely try this!
 
this "clunk" is the reason i found this forum in the first place!

...get a lithium/moly grease and fill your zirks...the thunk comes from the slip-yoke sticking/releasing...when you see the yoke moving and grease passing by the seal, you're all set, problem solved!
 
coconutpete said:
Anyone else experience this? Very rarely will it happen right as I come to a stop - most of the time it's after I let go of the brake.

It's a small "thud" or "thunk" as the vehicle starts moving again. It almost feels as if you are being pushed ever so slightly (although it's possible that part is in my head - but the noise is real)

Any ideas? Brakes look fine from what I can tell. I have 66K on the ticker.
Click to expand...
i Love you for posting this question. it has been bothering me ever since i got it back in march. i didnt know wtf it was. changed out all the rotors and pads on friday. had a oil change and spark plugs to do on it on sat....searched for "oil change" and found this thread. immediately went to auto zone and bought a pump and mobil one grease tube. made a mess while i learned how to grease my 6 zerk fittings LOL. change the oil and filter and made the biggest oil change mess i ever did in my life! yet i still walked in from the garage witha smile on my face.....and i said to my wife...gosh i love that forum!

Derek G said:
My Sequoia and 4runner both do this. Both have the 4.7L V8 and same transmission. It hasn't become worse with over 100K miles on both vehicles so I've just chalked it up to a Yota thing. Seems to happen more often on sudden stops, like built up kinetic energy in the tranny or transfer case that's being released upon stopping.
Click to expand...

now come to think of it, i drove a few land cruisers and it had that thump, and other 4 runners too...LOL, now i know what that noise is. Previous owner of my 4runner was told it needed a rear differential....dealer also told him he needed a whole new A/C system too for $1800. fixed the a/c by putting back the ac relay back into the right spot(was in foglight spot), now greased the zerks and problem solved!
 
I determined the 'knock' I had was do to pads being slightly loose in my caliper. Known as pad knock. Experienced it a long time ago on another vehicle. Replaced the pads and pad knock was gone.
 
Jack the rear of your vehicle up before you do it to fully extend the driveshaft, you'll get a lot more grease in.
 
This is also common on 3rd gens. I had it in my '96, but its a much harder "clunk" in my '06. I don't really remember it ever happening once I got the '96 all greased up at one point.
 
Yep, I greased my zirks until grease came out, but still had a little of the clunk. Few weeks later I greased them heavily again and I've been clunk free. It takes a lot of grease if it hasn't been done before. Use the proper lithium grease that the owners manual recommends because these connections do get hot under operation.
 
greased the zerks on sat afternoon, did 200 miles on sunday...now its monday morning and no more thud thump clunk...

OP....i love you! LoL
 
There's got to be at least 15 threads on this (driveline thump), but the only REAL way to get rid of the thump is to completely replace the driveshaft with a Lexus GX one. This draftshaft doesn't have the zerk fittings and is "sealed". Apparently it bolts on and those who did the swap are very happy. Not expensive either (about $300).

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-g...0-driveshaft-clunk-thump-gone.html#post742798

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-g...-tsb-v6-4runner-get-rid-clunk.html#post776462

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-g...s-lexus-gx470-driveshaft-part.html#post518420


dumb question: Even though it works for some (greasing the crap out of it), doesn't having all that grease in the there have any adverse effects on the driveshaft?? I remember some SUVs have a recall on vibration due to excessive grease. This excess grease would unbalance the driveshaft and cause the vibrations.......................
 
CookieRoe said:
dumb question: Even though it works for some (greasing the crap out of it), doesn't having all that grease in the there have any adverse effects on the driveshaft?? I remember some SUVs have a recall on vibration due to excessive grease. This excess grease would unbalance the driveshaft and cause the vibrations.......................
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I've never heard of this. But why would you buy a driveshaft when all you need is $.50 cents worth of grease? Most people I know consider serviceable joints to be superior to non-serviceable joints. The only reason many automakers started going to "sealed" units years ago was because people were too damn lazy to properly maintain their serviceable joints. But if you have the choice...greaseable is always the way to go.
 
WXman said:
I've never heard of this. But why would you buy a driveshaft when all you need is $.50 cents worth of grease? Most people I know consider serviceable joints to be superior to non-serviceable joints. The only reason many automakers started going to "sealed" units years ago was because people were too damn lazy to properly maintain their serviceable joints. But if you have the choice...greaseable is always the way to go.
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Why? Because constantly greasing it doesn't always make the thump disappear for everybody. Changing it out with a GX driveshaft does. But I totally agree, it's expensive to do. It's a driveshaft, I mean, by the time the grease inside of the GX degrades, your 4Runner is most likely not on the road anymore. Driveshafts just don't die (at least I don't think).
 
I service my slip yoke with a good lithium grease every other oil change (10k) and have had pretty good luck at that interval. I think what I may try though is completely removing and disassembling the drive shaft and lubing it up with some of this stuff:

Toyota PTFE Teflon Driveshaft Slip Yoke Grease Lubricant Lube Ford Motorcraft XG-8 (ML1167/31508-42027)

Ford developed it to cure their own notorious clunk issues and it seems to be a favorite among Toyota guys. If I can double the service interval to 20k it might be worth it but mainly I just want to take my driveshaft apart because Ive never done it before :thumb:
 
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