Drive line vibration, diff or drive shaft? (2 Viewers)

[Usterzai]

The LX just developed driveline vibration at 55 mph which was more pronounced when accelerating. I was able find the cause but I wanted to get opinions before I spend $ to fix it.

I removed the rear drive shaft and the vibration has gone which is good news. Now I do not have to chase the problem anymore. My question is would a new drive shaft solve my problem? Or could it be the rear diff ? It will be a huge financial set back if I buy a new driveshaft and then find out that it is the diff not the shaft.

Thank You

 

[BullElk]

I would suggest perhaps worn U joints on rear shaft.

 

[3_puppies]

X2 on ujoint or a balance issue with the drive shaft

 

[Skidoo]

More likely U-joints, but check the driveshaft for dings or if balance weight got knocked off. There is a gotcha with replacing U-joints, the U-joint snap rings come in different thicknesses to remove play and center the joint. The U-joint only comes with one thickness snap rings.
There have been cases here where just replaceing U-joints without getting the correct snap rings, doesn't fix vibration or makes it worse.

 

[CorporalClegg]

They're pretty cheap from dealer nee

 

[nissanh]

If you buy the OEM U-joint, it should fit snug and the provided C-clip should hold all balanced. Never buy GMB U-joints.

 

[abuck99]

I see its lifted- do you wheel it? These drivelines are sensitive to minor imbalance, even minor contact with driveshaft can result in vibes.

How many miles?

Worn ujoints will present noise and vibration consistently getting worse as load and speed is increased. Starting at 55mph may be DS alignment or balance.

Fwiw as the rubber in the rear control arms age and with high miles they allow the pinion angle to change- and lifting makes it worse. This can have an effect on driveshaft angle, wear the old ujoints sooner, and cause vibes.

Heres a list that you can use to rule out and narrow in on your issue:

Pulsing/droning vibration at highway speeds

This diff bushing won't cure driveline vibes. Even brand new the bushing flex's quite a bit. Replacing that may help cure a portion of the D-N-R clunk but thats about it. Driveline vibes are hard to isolate with out removing prop shafts one at a time and test driving with CDL locked. Once you...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[Skidoo]

If you buy the OEM U-joint, it should fit snug and the provided C-clip should hold all balanced. Never buy GMB U-joints.

Not sure why this would be the case. When I replaced the fronts on mine with OEM U-joints the supplied snap rings were too thin.
Toyota must have a reason for having 15 different thickness snap rings.

 

[Usterzai]

More likely U-joints, but check the driveshaft for dings or if balance weight got knocked off. There is a gotcha with replacing U-joints, the U-joint snap rings come in different thicknesses to remove play and center the joint. The U-joint only comes with one thickness snap rings.
There have been cases here where just replaceing U-joints without getting the correct snap rings, doesn't fix vibration or makes it worse.

Thats why I was thinking of just buying the new drive shaft. Lack of space to work on my LX is a concern if I don't do it right the first time. The cheapest I could find OEM u joint is 67$ each form Mcgeorge. It looks like with all the effort and cost I will be ending in the drive shaft price range and still have vibrations.

 

[abuck99]

Or, a new DS may not solve your problem.

Mileage?

 

[Usterzai]

I see its lifted- do you wheel it? These drivelines are sensitive to minor imbalance, even minor contact with driveshaft can result in vibes.

How many miles?

Worn ujoints will present noise and vibration consistently getting worse as load and speed is increased. Starting at 55mph may be DS alignment or balance.

Fwiw as the rubber in the rear control arms age and with high miles they allow the pinion angle to change- and lifting makes it worse. This can have an effect on driveshaft angle, wear the old ujoints sooner, and cause vibes.

Heres a list that you can use to rule out and narrow in on your issue:

Pulsing/droning vibration at highway speeds

This diff bushing won't cure driveline vibes. Even brand new the bushing flex's quite a bit. Replacing that may help cure a portion of the D-N-R clunk but thats about it. Driveline vibes are hard to isolate with out removing prop shafts one at a time and test driving with CDL locked. Once you...

forum.ih8mud.com

I do wheel it once a year but nothing too hard because it is my DD. It has 178K miles, and I recently changed rear control arm and trail arm bushings with super pro (huge mistake) which I think exacerbated the problem by changing the angles and now I have 10x more vibration when stopped and gear in D. The old bushings were shot for all 4 arms.

I just wanted to confirm before throwing $ and then realizing it was something else.

Not sure why this would be the case. When I replaced the fronts on mine with OEM U-joints the supplied snap rings were too thin.
Toyota must have a reason for having 15 different thickness snap rings.

Did it solve your problem? Or you had to get new snap rings ?

Or, a new DS may not solve your problem.

Mileage?

178K miles, it brushed against a rock 10000 miles ago with and sheared the grease zirk but I drove without vibrations the 10K miles. I frequently greased the joints aswell.

 

[Skidoo]

The new U-joints and the right thickness snap rings did solve the problem.
Never installed it with the snap rings that came with the U-joint.
Drive lines are smooth as silk, I read posts here about folk chasing their tail when replacing U-joints.
But I think that is because the U-joints come with snap rings, folks think they are the right ones, not knowing there are 14 other choices.
I think it is overlooked because other vehicle makes only have one thickness snap rings.
It is simple and cheap to get it right as a set of 8 snap rings is only $1.75 at one of the discount Toyota dealers.
Here is a section from the FSM for the first two rings, and same proceedure for the second two, note don't know if it is likely but you could have a different thickness for the second two.

 

[Trunk Monkey]

U-Joint - Fits 1998 - 7/2002 Toyota 100 Series and Lexus LX470 Front

Cruiser Teq is the premier provider of high quality OEM, Japanese, and aftermarket Toyota Land Cruiser parts and accessories.

cruiserteq.com

It's way more likely that a vibration at speed is coming from the driveshaft than a diff, just look at the number of posts on here and tally up how many are DS related vs diffs.

Complete OEM DS lists for just over $400, so at $130 for new joints + balancing at a shop, seems like you're well under cost for new range.

 

[Usterzai]

U-Joint - Fits 1998 - 7/2002 Toyota 100 Series and Lexus LX470 Front

Cruiser Teq is the premier provider of high quality OEM, Japanese, and aftermarket Toyota Land Cruiser parts and accessories.

cruiserteq.com

It's way more likely that a vibration at speed is coming from the driveshaft than a diff, just look at the number of posts on here and tally up how many are DS related vs diffs.

Complete OEM DS lists for just over $400, so at $130 for new joints + balancing at a shop, seems like you're well under cost for new range.

I am a little skeptical of my skills in setting the gap right. This looks like it will end up me buying a new driveshaft because I did not do a good job. The drive shaft form mc george is 340 and 25$ shipping.

 

[100d ua]

Out of curiosity, did you remove the frame weight on the passenger side?

 

[Usterzai]

Out of curiosity, did you remove the frame weight on the passenger side?

Yes I did that 2 years ago when I bought this truck and took of the running boards. It just dropped right down, the bolts were rusted thru.

 

[Usterzai]

Update: Just swapped out the rear propellor shaft with a new one, well the bad news is it did not solve anything. Only the clunk from the rear is gone but I still have rotational groans at all speed but very audible at 50mph. I now also have grrr when I let go of gas at 70mph.

 

[medtro]

 

[Smiles]

Out of curiosity, did you remove the frame weight on the passenger side?

Hi,

Just wondering, what is the "Frame Weight" you are refering to and where is it? Is it some sort of balancing weight?

Thanks.

 

[crimsonaudio]

Had a similar issue late last year - my tech said both u-joints were worn out (185k miles) - replaced them both and back to smooth sailing.