Hi all,

91 3vze 4runner, 5 speed. Recently began to vibrate when in 5th gear, starting around 50-55 mph. Vibrating when pushing the gas pedal, when I take my foot off the pedal no vibration. When switching to neutral gear at the same speed there is vibration. Bad tire ballance, U-joints or something else?

 

Start by checking your driveshaft u-joints, slip yokes and the flanges at the rear diff and t-case (if equipped) for play, both up/down/side/side and twisting.
block the wheels and put it in neutral and wiggle everything.

 

Avoid high speeds if you have potential driveline imbalances, a sticky slip yoke caused my transmission to crack clean in half on my Ford. The Toyota won't have as much mass flopping around to break things but it COULD and it's still a good idea to fix it sooner than later.

 

I get something similar in 4WD, I know at least one of my hubs needs a repack I was expecting that to be the culprit. My LBJ are shot too (have some play but the boots are fine) which I think adds to it. For those wondering, I have 4 ThreeFive ball joints sitting here waiting for the CA bushings and new Torsion bars to get here next week to get it all done at once.

On my jeep I had the same thing and it was u-joints, got under there with everything in neutral and you could see them move a bit. Replaced and it was fixed. I'm hoping the runner is just the stuff I know needs replacing.

Goodluck!

 

Thanks for all the answers! You helped a great deal, I checked under the truck today and indeed there was play in the last u joint on rear. Now I guess its the best to replace both u joints on this driveshaft? I am in doubt which brand should I go for, I have a good offer for Matsui made for Terrain Tamer Australia, which the guy told me are good for lifted trucks (mine has a 2" lift) and original Toyota ones, which price is a bit strange, only 40 $ per u joint.Matsui ones are 35 $ each. And another thing - what greace do you guys use best for u joints and slip yokes?

 

Spicer. . Replace them all...
Dana recommends lubrication with Spicer ultra-premium synthetic grease or Chevron Ultra-Duty EP-2 or a compatible lithium-based grease meeting N.L.G.I. Grade 2 specifications as well as ASTM D4950 LB specifications. Spicer ultra-premium synthetic grease is compatible with all NLGI-2 greases, and delivers professional-grade quality, even at high temperatures. Spicer ultra-premium synthetic grease is available in 10-packs of 14-oz. tubes (SPL1051), and 1-gal. pails (SPL1052).

 

I drove the truck today around town and I shakes pretty heavy even around 35-40 mph, I feel it through the steering wheel and the gear stick, is this related to the u joint problem?

Can this highlighted area be a fallen balance weight?

 

Either way, you should get it rebalanced after replacing the U-Joints. I would just have a shop rebuild the whole thing with a warranty. Be sure they use fittings with zircs so you can grease the joints.

 

Why use the Spicer with zerks?

Spicer even says the non-greaseable joints are their premium product and stronger. They cost more too.

I went with the Spicer Life Series non-greaeable. My truck is 2wd, so I don't go off road with it.

Vibration on my 2wd truck at 55 to 59 mph was gone after the new joints were installed, and the drive shaft was balanced. Local axle shop installed the new joints that I supplied, and balanced the shaft for $55 out the door back in 2017.

 

I don't know about Spicers with or without zirc fittings, but generally it seems better to use them especially if you ever go off-road or cross high water areas. The driveshaft is one of the most critical, potentially dangerous high speed components on the truck next to the tires. Call me old school but mechanical components need lubrication and I'd rather just do it as part of routine maintenance and know it has been done.

I've personally seen several tailhousings/transfer cases that EXPLODED into pieces because of bad u-joints/slip yokes. The shafts themselves flipped around blasting holes in the bottom of vehicles, ripping fuel lines in half, etc. The carnage is pretty nasty. I blew out a tail-housing myself on my Ford the day I bought it because of a sticky slip-yoke, it was not a cheap fix. I'll happily crawl under the truck ever 10-15k to grease and check joints for wear.

 

When I had my driveshafts lengths modified to accommodate my dual case install, I asked the guy about replacing the u-joints (the truck has 220,000 miles). His recommendation was that, if the original Toyota u-joints were still good, he'd trust them more than any new aftermarket u-joints he could buy. He inspected them and the joints were still tight, so we didn't touch them.

Bottom line, according to him, the Toyota u-joints are the best. If I had to replace any u-joints, I'd go with the OEM parts. The Toyota parts have zerks, btw. The ones on my 2006 do as well.

 

Thanks to all for your kind support, you have been very helpful. I replaced the u-joint with an oem one and now it works smooth, no vibration whatsoever.