[Watch] Mechanic solves annoying mystery vibration common in 4WD Toyota models
Royalty Auto Service operates car repair and maintenance facilities in Kingsland and St. Mary’s, Georgia. The shop has quite the social media following – more than 900k on TikTok alone. The business posts tons of helpful car-related insights. This one’s for 4WD Toyota truck and SUV owners experiencing a weird vibration.
4WD Toyota owners might feel or hear something strange at about 40 mph
The facility owner, Sherwood Cooke, Jr., explains that a customer came in hearing a bunch of unpleasantness coming from her Toyota Tacoma. They replaced a front hub bearing and both struts. After she picked the car back up and left, though, she soon returned.
“Those noises were gone,” Cooke explains, but taking care of the loudest sounds exposed a very slight “hummy” vibration that would cycle through the front end. “Right at 40 mph.”
The Royalty Auto Service hooked up a vibration analyzer and took the Toyota for a spin
Sure enough, on the road, the crew observes a slight, cyclical vibration at about 40 mph. It happens when the Toyota is set to H2 (two-wheel-drive, high-range). Flip the switch to H4 (four-wheel-drive, high-range) and the vibration disappears.
After understanding the pattern, the team takes the Tacoma back to the shop. There, they expose the problem.
The team removes the left front axle. The needle bearing’s the culprit, here. Unfortunately, since the part’s straight from the Toyota factory, replacing it with an OEM version is just going to cause the vibration again.
Not to worry, though…
There’s a permanent fix for this quirk
Seems like the aftermarket Toyota experts already figured this one out. You can buy a needle bearing delete kit for about 60 bucks online. According to East Coast Gear Supply, for instance, the kit “Replaces Driver side CV axle needle bearing with bushing to help control Vibration and shaft float common on these differentials.”
If you or your local shop buys one, be sure to get a removal tool, a new axle seal, and a bushing and seal installer, too. All told, the retailer mentioned sells it all for about $188 shipped.
By the way, this fix works on any Toyota Tacoma or FJ Cruiser built after 2005 and 4Runners made after 2003.
