MAXTORQUE

Hello everyone,
I have a 2003 Tundra Access Cab SR5 4X4 w/ V8. I purchased it in early February just in time for most of our snow this season. I have noticed in the last few weeks, a rumble noise that fades in and out in slow synchronization with forward movement. It is most pronounced first thing in the morning for about the first 2-3 miles driven after that if it is heard it's very faint. I notice it most when at neighborhood speeds. A vibration can be felt from the floor when the noise is heard; it does not get loud, but it is consistent. Any thoughts? The last Toyota that sounded like this was my 86 4X4 and that turned out to be the transfer case drive shaft. That reminds me. It is not heard when in 4H or 4L, only 2H. Thanks for the input...

nhparrot

See if the noise, rumble vibration you hear and feel goes away when you switch into 4WD. This topic has been discussed on TundraSolutions.com and is believed to be caused by a viscous coupling of the front drive shaft.

MAXTORQUE

nhparrot,
Yes, It is not heard when in either 4H or 4L, only in 2H. Have you heard whether this is a common problem on the Tundras or perhaps just the 2003s? Just curious. If it is the viscous coupler it should be covered under the powertrain portion of the warranty. In either case I only have about 4200 miles on it. I will check out TundraSolutions.com and see what's there. In any case when I get this fixed I will report back here to report on the fix and whether Toyota gives me a hard time about it. - I hope not. Thanks.

MAXTORQUE

Everyone,
A follow up with ToyotaSolutions.com has uncovered what sounds like the same problem, but it seems only the Sequoia owners have been complaining about this and are apparently not happy with their Toyota dealers' handling of the problem, calling it "normal". This is indicative, in my experience, of when a problem becomes wide spread and the manufacturer does not want to address it for cost reasons, unless it becomes a safety issue and then don't have a choice. I have no other problems thus far and it has not become a major annoyance so I will wait a while longer in case I have any other issues that bear bringing it in for service. When this happens I will update this forum.

whatsthatnoise

I have a 2003 Tundra and have experienced the same problem. I took it to the dealer and got what seems like the standard answer - "It's normal". I was told that it is just an annoyance and that it doesn't cause any damage and that it is present in the Tundra, Sequoia and 4Runner.

Well, damage or not, it pisses me off. You spend $30K on a new truck and you don't expect to have to deal with annoying vibrations. The dealer claims that Toyota may be working on a fix, but I have heard nothing.

shazaam

My dad's 02 has the same problem, he filed w/ Toyota, and had the whole arbitration thing done. He also filed with the local consumer affairs dept.

the official answer is, it's normal.
off the record, Toyota knows there is a problem, but they don't know how to fix it, and since its not causing any damage or any safety issue, their not willing to publicly address it.