Pulsing/droning vibration at highway speeds (4 Viewers)

[RickFJ80]

I've had the same issue myself. It's cabin vibration that goes through the body about 55-65 mph. I discovered a dent in the drive shaft which will imbalance it. I am also replacing the CV axles. Hopefully that will do it. I'll keep you posted when I get those items replaced.

 

[shanester]

Mine does this at 70mph too. Should I try the u-joints?

 

[GregLCA]

Mine does this at 70mph too. Should I try the u-joints?

How many of you guys with this issue have removed the big harmonic damper from the passenger-side frame rail????

It was initially put there by Toyota to address customer complaints about vibration / droning.

-G

 

[4wheelforay]

Mine was not on the truck at the time of purchase. I don't have a drone, it is a terrible vibration.

I would be interested in putting the damper back on though, need to find one.

 

[4wheelforay]

I think this thread has a few people with different problems. i.e. u joints, harmonic damper, unbalanced tires, bad wheel bearings. But I'm a newb.

 

[mgilvan]

any one has a pic of this harmonic balancer thingy?
thank you

 

[RickFJ80]

any one has a pic of this harmonic balancer thingy?
thank you

Yes where on passenger side frame rail is this damper located?
Also a pic would be nice !

 

[bucfl]

Under the front passenger door frame rail. It looks like a 2 inch thick stretched out hockey puck.

 

[Sandroad]

There is a photo of the frame weight in the forum FAQs. First post in that thread. I've tried both with and without.

 

[4wheelforay]

U joints were my problem. No noise, no vibration after replacement. I think I spent $32 on parts and $40 at a shop to press them out. It took maybe 30 minutes total to drop it and reinstall, you could probably do it faster if you weren't concerned with dropping a driveshaft on your face.

I would recommend slowly accelerating to highway speed and safely trying to drive through the vibration you are experiencing. If the vibration gets louder/more intense my guess it is your u joints; if the vibration goes away you might want to invest in the harmonic balancer.

 

[Bergy1]

My 03 develops a vibration that increases with speed. 75-80 mph is as fast as I've gone and that is where it is most noticeable. It is a very steady vibration, not enough to shake the mirrors, but enough to shake items inside the vehicle i.e. console, bags on the back seat etc... The vibration is definitely in the rear of the vehicle. I can also hear a squeak coming from the driver side rear wheel that changes with tire rotation, unsure if the squeak and vibration are related.

Anybody with similar experience or insight before I begin to tear into it.

Thanks.


2003 100

 

[SWUtah]

I had one ended up being the spare tire. Stuck some rags between the spare and the frame no more vibration.

 

[ewrk1989]

Currently trying to solve this basic issue of a drone/vibration at highway speeds 60-70mph. The issue occurs with my foot on the gas. If I let off, or if I am under 60MPH there is no drone/vibration. The best way I can describe it is like an acoustic issue, but enough to vibrate the rear view mirror.

Well, except at 1400-1600RPM. That's the other scenario, and that is much more a vibration that I notice from the front end. This is most noticeable when taking off from a stop in 1st gear.

I have new, well-balanced tires.
My harmonic weight is still attached to the frame.
New (remanned) CV axles from CVJ.
I did a thorough front end bearing job (meticulous torque, etc).
I replaced all u-joints with OEM/Japanese from Cruiser Outfitters.

Maybe it's my engine mounts? Or possibly a front diff mount?

 

[abuck99]

Its likely driveline derived- not engine mounts or diff mounts. I have had a similar vibe above 60-65 mph
on acceleration.

Based on my recent quest in chasing post new (Toyota) ujoint install vibes on both propshafts and then cv axle replacment,

1. New U-joints installed in old yokes- and old driveshafts not properly trued nor highspeed balanced can cause driveline vibes. Try to find a driveline shop that can high speed balance your propshafts (over 3000rpm) (anyway I'm not yet convinced that you can even achieve perfect vibe free balance with out new matched components replaced all at once : propshft-yokes-ujoints- and maybe flanges.) seems these 100series drivelines are sensitive to minor imbalances that can resonate through the truck.

2. If you have a lifted truck on old worn bushings, pinion angles get out of alignment. This can cause acceleration or decel vibes. Take your operating angle measurements and make sure they are in spec.

3. Your CVJ axles might not be perfectly balanced like new axles should be and this
can cause acceleration vibes.

 

[ewrk1989]

Interesting info--

1. I'll look for a shop. Are the new joints I put in getting damaged by this? I hope not...

2. No concern there, stock height

3. Interesting, I haven't heard about that for CV axles. Can those be balanced at a shop?

 

[abuck99]

3. Not that I'm aware of. I just know from pulling my CVs apart and taking great care to match mark components that inherently its not going back together balanced like new. You might inquire with CVJ.

1. Likely not hurting your new UJs,

Proper high speed balance & true makes a difference

 

[4Beast]

I've been trying to figure out this issue for about a year. New perfectly balanced tires didn't do it, The U joints are less than 20k old, and greasing them more only slightly helped. Might have my guy replace the trans mount next time it's getting serviced? I never had the weight thingy. May get a new front driveshaft and try that. I can live with the 2500RPM drone, but the seat and cargo vibration at 70 or above is super annoying on long trips.

 

[twojayzee]

check the allen bolts that support your cross bars two on each side (underneath) mine were loose, 150k miles on my UJ.. slight hardly noticeable vibration above 70mph but after i tighten those allen bolts it was a big difference.

 

[DMX84]

When I had a vibration issue I found it by accident. I was under the truck and was twisting the drive shaft to check the ujoints for slop - had zero slop when twisting back & forth. It wasn’t until I was pushing myself out against the shaft that it moved! It was a slight movement in one direction only on one Axis. I have never seen a ujoint fail like that before.

I also found out that the 100’s use a special thickness retainer clip to hold the ujoint centered perfectly. If the shop just discarded the old clips to use what comes with the new ujoint this would move the shaft off access ever so slightly, and easily cause problems.

Not to sweat though- you can still get a bag of clips from Toyota. Just measure the ujoint subtract the total from the clip grove divide by 2= Each clip thickness.
Or just pop in the different sets until you can’t get any thicker.

 

[KINGER]

Anybody tried fixing driveline vibes by replacing the front differential control arm that attaches to the cross member?

The bushing inside mine looks worn so that the diff sits at a different angle than it would be with a new bushing. Maybe they all sit like this new? Thinking of replacing to see if it helps cure my driveline vibration that starts at 60-65 under low loads and disappears under hard acceleration.