Please help with my Land Cruiser Vibration

[Jon_Prado]

Hi All unsure where to post this as not really sure what is wrong with the car!

Doing my research on these cars, I quickly became aware that seems they are common in Australia! And you have a lot of experts.

Hoping someone could help me with my 1999 3.0 TDI Auto Land cruiser (Prado). When I hit 55/60MPH (95kmh)I get a bad vibration to the point it shakes the car ( cannot feel it much in the steering). Back seat passengers tend to feel the vibration before the driver. Driving below 60MPH (95KMH) the car drivers 100% perfect, you would not guess it had any problem.

I am bit new to 4x4s (it’s my first) but I do little bits on my other cars, so I am looking for some help/guidance please. I have searched about and some suggest it could be the prop shaft UJ? Is there anyway of testing this? To confirm/eliminate it… Also I had someone I know say it could be the gear box? Is this possible?

Jon

 

[Shayne]

UJ is most likely i couldn't make my prop move much at all when parked but i could see it needed replacing by looking at the joint itself .

 

[Jon_Prado]

When say make it move? do you try force move it with a bar? Problem I have not 100% sure what I am looking at.

The front prop shaft, when I move that side to side there is very slight movement. I can feel a little knock when I move it.

 

[Shayne]

I'm not sure how to explain it really but if you look at these parts you should see how they go together http://www.roughtrax4x4.com/toyota-4x4-parts/drivetrain/universal-joints.html

The first part shown is the joint and each of those caps holds a set of bearings and if not greased occasionally those bearings chew themselves up . Denied freedom of movement the prop will spin slightly out of true which is what causes the rattle .

Might be hard to tell without removing the prop , do you have a tool box ?

 

[Shayne]

There is only one grease nipple for the bearings in all 4 caps so pumping some in might reveal somethings amiss .

 

[clivehorridge]

Hi Jon,

As Shayne says, prop uj's can seize or have play, either of which can cause dramatic vibrations through the car.

I also like to ensure proper rear wheel balancing. Some don't and the rear wheels are dancing all over the place. Also, a weak shock absorber on the rear can cause excessive axle movement, especially with wheels out of balance, giving vibes.

Worth a check, maybe.

 

[Sag]

I had the same problem when I had mine ended up been the rear uj,and as Shayne says can't always feel the play when it's on the vehicle,if you some tools only takes 20mins to remove the full prop but make sure you put a couple of marks on either end so you get it back on in the same place.

 

[Jon_Prado]

Thanks for the replies  I am going to have the wheels checked, or consider putting my spare on each corner 1 at a time. To see if the problem goes away.
To check the UJ can I remove the shafts 1 at a time, and put the car in HL to drive it just to test which one is causing the issue? Or would this damage the transmission?
Thanks again,
Jon

 

[Shayne]

I would drive my swb manual with 1 prop but i'm not sure about an auto so can't help with that sorry ?

With new joints only being 15 quid i personally would change them anyway while the props out because now i have done it once and i know to cut the old joint to get it out i reckon the swap would take me 10 minutes if that .

 

[StarCruiser]

I would drive my swb manual with 1 prop but i'm not sure about an auto so can't help with that sorry ?

With new joints only being 15 quid i personally would change them anyway while the props out because now i have done it once and i know to cut the old joint to get it out i reckon the swap would take me 10 minutes if that .

On cutting the joint out with a thin cutting blade in a small angle grinder. I did advocate knocking them out while on the truck. Hmm that was more than tricky and I was worried I was going to damage something with the wallops I was giving it. Ended up cutting it and using a puller to push the caps out. Like Shayne says, 10 minutes is about right.

 

[Jon_Prado]

Well today I have had a chance to have couple hours with the car. I put spare on each rear corner, and the problem is still there! Took it to a garage, guy drove it and said “ Think it is your rear diff” we also noticed around the rear diff is a little wet, is this car displaying the symptoms for a rear diff?

I also noticed the rear UJ joint looks all shiny, like it is not very old ( the one nearest rear diff)

I am leaning towards now replacing all the UJS? as I cannot feel any real play in any of the shafts. Am I right in thinking they will be 4 UJ's, do these require any special tools to fit? or is hammer and socket sufficient?

Thanks again all! I am sure I will get there soon, and have a chance to enjoy my Landcruiser.

 

[Bob]

I would do the UJs and forget about the diff for he moment. On the rear shaft, you will only need to do the joint nearest the rear diff. The one at the gearbox end is a double cardon joint and isn't the same as the others. Probably best left alone for now. The two on the front prop are the same as the rear UJ.
They really are an easy job to change.. did all mine without cutting, but I've been changing these on tractor PTO shafts for years. As said earlier, Mark the shafts so they go back on the same way as they come off.. in phase... Otherwise you can get more vibes. Did all mine and the transmission is as tight as new

 

[BobMurphy]

Mark the shafts so they go back on the same way as they come off.. in phase... Otherwise you can get more vibes.

Now there's a thought . . .

If the rear UJ is shiny, as if its been changed recently, maybe it wasn't put back in phase .

They should look like this:




May still be out of balance though .

Bob.

 

[clivehorridge]

Now there's a thought . . .

If the rear UJ is shiny, as if its been changed recently, maybe it wasn't put back in phase .

They should look like this:

View attachment 48315


May still be out of balance though .

Bob.

Yep, or bent (much less likely but not to be ruled out).

 

[Shayne]

Nothing holds the inner prop inside the outer shaft but nobody seems to mention that which is why my inner fell on the floor when i picked the shaft up

Thankfully having seen all the talk about phase alignment and balance though not making sense of any of it because i couldn't see what could possibly go back in wrong i had used acid etch spray to mark a line from end to end which allowed me to put it back where it should be .

Everything is easier the second time you do it and few remember the first time .

 

[StarCruiser]

Now there's a thought . . .

If the rear UJ is shiny, as if its been changed recently, maybe it wasn't put back in phase .

They should look like this:

View attachment 48315


May still be out of balance though .

Bob.

Good point Bob, someone could have just removed the back end to the bench and not realigned the shaft in the spline correctly. Deffo with checking. Best to check against a known good one for the correct position one UJ to the other.