2001Millrunner

wobble back again. even after replacing 2 new tires in the front. They're suggesting Michelin LTX M/S they also think it's the type tire it is too. Its kinda weird how my BFGs were fine for a year and problem is surfacing now. I told them I dont want all-season tires, I want ATs. any other suggestions? i guess my choices are

-Pirelli Scorpion A/T
-Michelin LTX M/S
-Pathfinder All Terrain
-Goodyear Wrangler RT/S BSL/OWL

they all look like crap but Pirelli AT looks the best out all.

any suggestions?

2001Millrunner

after the 5th trip, they changed rest of my tires to brand new ones because i really liked my BFGs and I didnt want to go with anything else. It still shook a little bit, so i took it to firestone to get my alignment done for the 2nd time since last week(thank god for lifetime alignment). They said my alignment was "little outta wack" also asked if my truck was in accident trying to blame my truck for their "outta wack" alignment job. After I'm done, I take it back to the freeway for the 60-70mph test and wobble is GONE! I'm so glad to fix this headache AND i got 4 new tires for almost free($22 warranty fee per tire).

NCSU

I think I am going to have to just take my truck to a mechanic and have the front end looked at, but not actually repaired. Being a poor college kid sucks! I will probably just have a mechanic tell me what the problem is and I'll try to do the repairs on my own.

Would a bad idler arm be characterized by my steering wobble starting basically whenever I come around a corner or curve in the road at the speeds 25-45? I definitely have narrowed it all down to starting with that or when I hit a decent bump.

BASSMAN

i have been having the same issues with my rig. Took mine into the toyota dealer and had an alignment/rotate and balance with the haweka and hunter. The said that they did this at least, and took my money for it. Service rep noted that my tires were feathered due to excessive toe, which is why i brought it in in the first place, and he said that it MAY be okay if i rotate frequently. Truck rode okay for like 2 days and now it is back to the shimmying and vibration!! It is so frustrating! I have michelin m/s ltx's with plenty of tread left, and it seems like a waste of money to replace the tires. I am going to go in there tomorrow and put my two cents in, and maybe take a tech for a spin and see if they have any insight.

This problem seems all to common and I do not understand why toyota doesn't take this issue seriously. All the vibration really takes away from the driving experience which I appreciated much more when I got the truck. How can you check the driveshaft?

Jason B

You know, I bet they didn't use that Haweka adapter. I'd go back and watch the tech to see if he actually USES it!

So many dealers have lost these things or they've been stolen and tech do not use them.

LTX's are one of the best tires out there for consistency.

NCSU

Does my shake/shimmy sounds like something that could be caused by the need for an alignment? Thinking back, I don't know the last time I got it done, but when I tried like a year or so ago, they said it was fine... I always hate spending the money on an alignment, thats why I wanted to check before I considered getting it done.

h7009

Hey to all, I know I'm off the topic here, but having had four ( '85, '89, '91 and '00 ) 4 Runners just thought I'd throw out a thought. I drive mostly city/freeway and very little off road, I have had Uniroyal tires on my trucks, my most recent set is the 255/70/16 Cross Country's on my 2000 SR5, previous to that was the Uniroyal AWP, 255/70/16's on my '00 SR5 Tundra. I had 31/10/15 BFG's on the on three of the 4 Runners and replaced them everytime. Since the Uniroyals, no issues. may want to look at Uniroyals when the time comes.

snwbrdpunk16

Trailmaster makes a single and dual steering stabalizer for 96+ 4Runners. I was about to put one on, but by the time I was ready to spend 100 bux i was use to the vibration. Sounds to me like toyota has a little problem with vibration when 4runners get up in the higher miles.

2001Millrunner

Where can i find these cheap? web address available?


BTW: my vibration problem is back. Not as bad but still there and barable. I should have gotten a Lexus

snwbrdpunk16

Central 4wd in everett, prolly no more than 10-15 mins away from you once u hop onto hwy 99. Its on airport rd. do you know where that is? or trucks plus??

2001Millrunner

funny I was just at Tacoma Screws to get some mounting bolts for my hitch. I live on 166th so it's real close to me. I didnt know if that place offered good price. so this would solve my shimmy problem for sure though? I dont wanna spend 100bucks without any results.

snwbrdpunk16

I'm not goin to garantee for sure, but i makes sense to me that it would. they offered me a good price, but i also get a discount there. sshhh. you could go there and see what price they give u then i could do the same and see whos is lower, and we might be able to work something out to get you the lower price. But I would say not to deal with 4 Wheel parts, for the most past centrals prices are lower, but 4wp has some lower items, but get a quote from them and central will match it. I've found that the service at 4wp sucks.

4RunnerBuddha

Hmmm...Trailmaster shows no "steering stabilizer" on their website. Is it something you added onto the steering assembly?

Quick Update on my situation:

After 5800 miles, the balance/alignment/rotation done with the haweka adapter and the hunter balancer has been a marked improvement over what it was before. Unfortunately, i had to get another flat fixed, so now the shimmy is back! Guess i'll wait till the next oil change, since the balance/alignment/rotation costs $100.....

sn0w_m0nkey

https://www.yotatech.com/forums/show...597#post423597

last ditch effor yesterday, i gave up on discount tires who had this Hunter GSP machine. took my 4runner to a toyo dealership with the same machine, THEY FIXED MY SHAKE!!!

good luck folks! its worth the try.

4RunnerBuddha

Its been a while, but here is the latest update:

I bought a brand new set of BFG AT KO's on 11/1/06. Costco "balanced" and mounted the tires onto my 4Runner. Not surprisingly, they vibrated like crazy once I got them onto the highway.

I took my 4Runner to Longo Toyota in El Monte, CA, to get balanced and another alignment done. Afterwards, the vibration was not as bad, but still noticeable at highway speeds. I took it back yesterday morning, and they had the truck all day. They checked the shocks, bushings, front wheel bearings, rotors, bushings, axles and tie-rod ends. All checked out fine. Hunter Road Force #'s were not printed, nor recorded for me to analyze.

During discussions with the shop foreman/manager, I come to find out that they (Longo) DO NOT HAVE THE MANDATORY HAWEKA BALANCER!!! I inform them of its necessity in balancing the wheels, but they give me no assurances that they are even going to get one for future visits! Even with me telling them there is a TSB (and citing the correct TSB #) related to the adapter, they flatly deny that it is not necessary. They go as far as to blame my choice in tires, stating that the tread pattern is to blame for the imbalanced tires....uh huh...right....I asked to have some tires/rims taken from a trade-in to see if that made a difference. No effort was made to do so.

To make a long story short, I will NO LONGER be doing business with Longo Toyota in El Monte....Anyone know of a place that they KNOW has the Hunter and the Haweka in SoCal? Bob98SR5?

Thoughts?

cackalak han

Looks like quite a few people are having vibration problems. This guy is also having problems similar to yours.

https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f123/vibration-issue-again-ive-had-truck-98357/

I'm starting to think it's definately not the wheels/tires and the slight improvment you notice after a balance job is just masking the real problem.

I also have a problem with vibration, but only when I hit bumps/potholes at speed. My steering wheel wobbles like crazy and my car is even thrown slightly side to side by the vibration. I wonder if these problems are related.

Hope you find a solution soon.

4RunnerBuddha

Took my Runner to another dealer. Paid for a $40 balance on the tires. Based on LSUMatt's recent experience, I instructed the service adviser to have the tech move the wheels with most added weight to the rear of the truck. For the last 150 miles, NO VIBRATION! Finally happy, and I can now concentrate on getting other things (like new shocks).

Aj Bourget

check the bearing ,bushings in the steering column.mine shake I just figured it out the column is the problem.i m pissed about it ,its a design flaw I think.grab it underneath it will wobble, at high and low speeds it its a real bad rocky surface.

Aj Bourget

check your steering column.underneath grab it and see if it wobbles.mine does at slow speed on the beach ,or slighty at high speeds.i noticed the column shaking.i checked under ,it seems to be the column.all other front parts are good or poly replaced.