Another Tacoma Vibrating at Speed Post

Have a look at this page, its about a 3rd gen 4Runner, but that is essentially the same setup as your Tacoma:

Will, notice that toward the end of that fine website they mention "road force" testing and balancing. I had the aftermarket wheels and tires on my '85 2WD pickup "road forced" and after putting up with bulsh*t vibration and multiple balancings for years the result was nothing short of jaw-dropping. You can go here-

http://128.242.141.111/pub/search/findgsp9700.cfm to locate a Hunter road force tester near you. But be aware the proces is not cheap- I paid $20 a corner, and had estimates for as high as $35 each. It's not an exact science as it involves many variables, and you may have to replace tires and/or wheels, but when it works, it's magic.

HTH, and good luck.

J

Will,

If I remember correctly, early Tacoma's had a vibration problem with their rims. My 98 had a vibration in that range that I lived with before selling the truck. I knew a few people that changed rims and the vibrations went away.

Tony

97 Tacoma, V6, 4WD, 195K miles.

Noticed slight vibration at 55-65mph about 30K miles ago. Got new tires, albeit the cheapest ones they had. Vibration seemed a bit less after installing the new tires, but I think its getting worse again.

I take it the first thing to check is the tires/balance? It has stock aluminum wheels. I'm easy on the brakes, and have them checked regularly.

Now with mileage this high, and I'd like to keep driving it for as long as possible, what suspension, chassis parts should I have inspected or replaced? About 85% of my driving is highway. Shocks replaced at about

170K. What about springs? Bearings? Struts?

I'm willing to put some $$$ into this vehicle so that it drives well for some time to come. Recommendations?

Will Niccolls

"Joseph"

Thank you all for the information.

I'll look into having it checked with the road force balancer...

Now a more general question: At this mileage (195K), what suspension or chassis parts are going to be simply worn out and unsafe or cause problems? What should I ask a shop to inspect?

Again, thank you all for your responses. I'll post progress when I've had it checked out.

Will Niccolls

Worn out front end components may give you all sorts of symptoms (stering wheel wobble, drift, wandering, strange clicks and thumps, abnormal tire wear) but vibration is not usually one of those symptoms.

In the process of trying to remedy the vibration problem I mentioned before, at about 200K I replaced all ball joints, tie rod ends, control arm bushings, center rod (with bushings) and idler arm. The only thing I found (after removal) that seemed to have excessive wear on it was the idler arm. Everything else I probably didn't even have to replace (Toyota builds decent trucks). And none of that solved my vibration problem.

As for unsafe, worn out components may cause handling problems, but I do not recall the last time I read of a vehicle going out of control because a front component flat-ass BROKE.

Disclaimer- YMMV '85 2wd 1/2 ton 22r 250+K recently-passed-CA-smog... again J