vibrations at speed.....revisited

denverunner

denverunner

New member
Okay, I've read through GOBS of threads (yotatech & here) regarding this issue and I'm grateful to everyone that has contributed or posted their experiences. I'd be lost without all of this useful information, but I still have a couple questions. I don't have much mechanical experience, but I can follow instructions and use my common sense well enough to get by.

Here is my current situation....

I recently purchased my 4runner and like many others before me, it didn't take long for me to experience a wicked vibration between 70-80mph. My first thoughts were that it needed an alignment because the steering wheel would tug slightly to the right while driving straight. I needed some winter tires anyway, so I purchased 4 Blizzak DM-Z3 265/70/16 from Sears and I had them do an alignment in addition to the mount&balance. They did all of this and informed me that I had a broken endlink (drivers side). I installed wabfab quick discos and after that, the intensity of the vibration has decreased significantly (about 50%) and the truck is able to maintain a straight driving line (with and without my hand on the wheel) but the vibration still persists. I am making progress on this, so that's the good news!

Do I need to get another alignment and possibly have my tires rebalanced again since my endlink was busted when Sears installed them and did the alignment? Or should I focus on having the tires rebalanced? Ideally, I'd like to have this resolved as soon as possible, so any input is appreciated!!

If so, any local places that CO members would recommend? I'd take it back to Sears and have them re-do everythjing, but Sears voids the "warranty" on their alignment services if any aftermarket suspension parts are installed following the alignment

I've called a couple local discount tire locations and they said that my tires didn't need roadforce balancing with the flange plate adapter unless I'm track racing because I wouldn't notice a difference :lmao: I decided not to carry on the conversation with them because they seem to be misguided and I don't need that sort of person working on my truck.

So, I'm seeking TR4.org member suggestions for suggestions, steps to take, or tips to resolve this. Sorry for the long post, this is the short version :D
 
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I have been going through the same process. Tire rotation, swaybar bushings (did you check those?) and replacing a broken passenger-side endlink have cured much of my vibration. I also discovered my steering rack has some play in it and I have the new bushings; I'm just waiting on decent weather. I am holding off on align and balance as new shocks and tires will happen soon, then I'd have to do both over.

In my case, the improvement manifests as a rise in the speed of onset; it used start just above 65, now it's just over 80. I suggest you check your rack bushings, if you haven't already--with front wheels in the air, see if there is any horizontal movement of the rack when the wheels are turned back and forth.
 
Alignment, balance tires, etc.

Also, check your DS....it could have thrown a balancing weight. The weights usually look like washers and they weld them on at the inner opening, so look for little spot welds that are missing the washer.
 
denverunner said:
Do I need to get another alignment and possibly have my tires rebalanced again since my endlink was busted when Sears installed them and did the alignment? Or should I focus on having the tires rebalanced? Ideally, I'd like to have this resolved as soon as possible, so any input is appreciated!!
Click to expand...

The sway bar end links shouldn't have any effect on alignment.

Are you using wheel spacers and if so, are they hub-centric?

I had a bad u-joint that caused the exact symptoms you describe.
 
I checked the front swaybar bushings, the seem okay, for now. I do have the 1" greaseable NES bushings for the front swaybar and I should have installed them when I did my endlinks, but the bolts holding the OEM bushings down weren't budging (even after healthy doses of PB the night before). I decided just to hold off on those and save it for another day as I was running out of daylight.

The speed at which the vibration occurs has not changed for me since installing the new endlinks. The vibration is just not quite as intense as it used to be.

I guess the next step for me is to check the rack for play and get the swaybar bushings and endlinks done. Hopefully we'll get another streak of warm weather soon! I like to snowboard a lot, so I'm always torn between doing that on the weekend or working on the 4runner.
 
I've ran mine w/o a sway bar altogether and never had a vibration from it. Again, u-joints - 90% chance IMO.
 
brian2sun said:
The sway bar end links shouldn't have any effect on alignment.

Are you using wheel spacers and if so, are they hub-centric?

I had a bad u-joint that caused the exact symptoms you describe.
Click to expand...

not using any wheel spacers, everything is bone stock except my endlinks. What should I expect (cost) to have the u-joint replaced? Is this something I could do or should I find a shop to do it?
 
I would think a shop would charge about .5 - 1 hour labor to r&r and the u-joints are like $60 or $70 ea. IIRC. You can shake the drivline and look if there's a lot of movement or play to find a bad u-joint. Not hard to change yourself if you have the tools, but you will have to drop the driveshaft.
 
I will check the driveline later and see what I can find out. I'm fairly certain I don't have the necessary tools to do this. I'll find a shop and let them handle it. Big thanks to everyone for sharing your insight, experiences and thoughts. I'd buy you all a beer if you were local....:beer:
 
JeremyH said:
Sure you do! I press out u-joints using a large c-clamp and a socket....it works perfectly!
Click to expand...

Is there a writeup for this? If it's as easy as you make it sound, I'm willing to take a stab at it. Like I said earlier, I'm not too mechanically inclined, but I can follow instructions and I have plenty of common sense. :cheers:
 
Well, not exactly for the 4Runner, but the process of rebuilding the driveshaft will be the same:
Drive Shaft Rebuild

Notice, it is important to mark the location of the driveshaft on the ears of the yoke. It needs to be reinstalled in the same position.

BTW, where he uses a few sockets and hammer to get the caps out, I pressed them out with sockets and a large c-clamp. You can also buy a u-joint/ball joint tool from HF that should make the job much easier:
- Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices
 
Where exactly is the vibration coming from? Is it only in the front end?

Does it occur only at a certain speed, or is it at a certain rpm?
 
JeremyH- Thank you for the links and advice! Hopefully I can get around to doing this soon, if the weather holds up. I wish I had a proper garage to work in!!


Robiscus- It feels like it's coming from the back, I think. It occurs right around 70mph (2700rpm) and progressively gets worse if I go faster. I've matched the rpms in 4th and I don't experience the vibration.
 
u joints

I have a similar shake toward the rear and have had the u-joints changed already. I dropped the drive shaft (only 4 bolts) and took it to a local shop in the morning and they had it ready to pick up in about 5 hours. He charged me about $75 including tax and rebalanced the drive shaft after changing out the u-joints. This had to be done anyway. This was causing a shake only when accelerating and usually over 45 mph. That shake was gone after the repair. I believe I may have an axle shaft slightly bent or bearing issue (no loud noise yet) at the moment. It doesn't bother me enough to look into it yet.
 
okay....

This reply probably isn't COMPLETELY necessary, but i did manage to finally rid my 4r of the irritating vibrations. I see many of "help me" threads without followups and it's nice see the solutions because it helps all of us... especially a struggling novice (IE: me)

I started with new tires (Blizzaks) -it was November, snow is starting to accumulate... I didnt ever suspect that they were improperly balanced (mistake)

Then, I replaced my busted endlinks. (At the time, I had no idea what an endlink was......Go me :lol:) This cured quite a bit of the problem

I then proceed to purchase a grease gun and I lubed the driveshaft (good for 10-15% reduction), as the u-joints were mentioned (thanks brian2sun!) as a probable culprit. After doing that, I noticed a significant decrease as well. I checked the driveshaft for play, felt really tight, so I didn't replace the u-joint.

Next, I replaced my swaybar bushings with greaseables from Energy suspension. I noticed quite an improvement in the "feel". I wouldn't say the vibrations were reduced, but cornering and steering felt a little more "solid"

Following that, I did my steering rack bushings....much cursing was heard in Denver, on that glorious Sunday afternoon with 50mph winds hurling sand and dust into my face (and my friend, who was gracious enough to assist me). Just from a glance, my bushings didn't seem too beatup, but what do I know? I was able to notice an increased "feel", similar to what I mentioned above, almost like everything was tightened up a bit.

At this point, I'd completed most everything( minus u-joint) that would typically eliminate this stubborn gremlin. Time to re-evaluate. Since it started warming up, I decided it was a good time to swap the winter tires/wheels with the summer tires/wheels. I thought it made sense to have this done at the dealership, since I was still experiencing the vibration. I explained my seemingly endless problem to the SA and after paying $88 for mount & balance (+notreallyFREE carwash), the nagging vibrations vanished!!! :reddance:

So, big thanks to everyone who pushed me in the right direction,. offered advice or shared their experiences:
(in no order) JeremyH, Brian2sun, TheDurk, texas_runner, etc, etc.
 
Mount & balance did it for me too! You have to interview the tire shops before having them do it though. If they don't know what a lug centric balance is, move on to another shop
 
brian2sun said:
I've ran mine w/o a sway bar altogether and never had a vibration from it. Again, u-joints - 90% chance IMO.
Click to expand...

yup brians right my 99' 2WD has bad ujoints, it vibrates and gets real loud when letting of the gas, and sometimes when putting her into gear it clunks.If this happens to u its most likley ur u joints.
 
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