My son has been driving the 4Runner for the last two months. It developed a vibration that gets noticeable around 35 mph she’s gets really bad around 50 mph. It’s very noticeable under acceleration goes almost completely away if I let off the gas pedal and coast.

I had a lot of work done (steering rack and pinion, tie rod ends, ball joint) and they said it needs struts and bushings. Could this be a bushing?

Edited to add: I would have done the struts and bushings, but I couldn’t afford it, and I’m looking to finally lift it this year.

 

Shakes under load that disappear on coast are often driveshaft/U-joint related.

 

Good to know. I’ll get it checked out.

 

Concur on the u-joint. Even a slight bit of notchiness/stiffness can show up as a shudder.

 

Ok, so I am going to just replace all the u-joints on the front and rear drive shafts. Is this one of those parts that should always be OEM, or are the aftermarket ones ok (and if so, which brands)?

 

Did you mean U JOINTS?

If so, yes, OEM is the best choice. After all, really, how long did the originals last you? A pretty long time!
So maybe new OEM u-joints will last that long again, no?

You probably don't need to replace the ones on the front driveshaft. They don't generally get anywhere near as much usage as the rear driveshaft. You might want to grease them up real good, but probably don't need to replace them.
Key word here is "probably".

Have fun!
Pat☺

 

Yes, I meant u-joints. I corrected my previous post. We bought it with 240,000 miles, so I don’t know if they’re original or not. But 130,000 miles, including a coast to coast trip, some relatively mild off roading, and my son getting stuck in the snow in Utah is a pretty good record.

 

Yes, it IS a good record.

Just a good reason to go with OEM u-joints! Heck, 370,000 miles is a great record. Presuming those are all factory u-joints, if you want another 400,000 miles (almost), go with OEM! Make sure you keep up with the lube for them, though.

I lube mine every spring and fall. Am I over-doing it? May well be, but my 30+ year old 4Runner still has the factory u-joints in it. It's only got 170,000 on it, but they were hard miles, mostly. I lived in Yuma, Az, a nasty, HOT, dry, dusty place, and I did a lot of off-road desert bouncing in it. A lot of fun, for me AND my 5 kids, but the dust there is abrasive as heck, and gets into everything. The heat isn't good for the u-joint bearings, either, even if they are well greased.
The whole point is that if my factory u-joints stood up to all that, and are still in good shape, what will YOURS stand up to? USE OEM u-joints. Period.

I must admit, the u-joints in my pickup have been replaced twice now. They don't have the fittings for grease-zerts, though. Their grease is what comes in them from the manufacturer, and when it's gone, so are the bearings. Of course, the pickup was my work truck in Yuma, and the drive to work was an hour each way. The pickup has over 350,000 miles on it, mostly highway miles, so 3 sets of u-joints, and 1 carrier bearing, aint half bad

Good luck, and let us know how things work out for you
Pat☺