Driveshaft problems of the 2013 Toyota Tacoma

Brand new vehicle experiencing a hard thumping noise that feels like the vehicle is being hit from behind when coming to a stop. This noise is felt throughout the vehicle and has been duplicated to Toyota. The thump is experienced going forward and reverse. First explanation from Toyota was that the drive shaft is binding under the pressure where it meets the slip yoke and then abruptly releasing that pressure. This thump feeling can be subtle or quite powerful. Any issues with the drive train can be dangerous to both the vehicle occupants, and the vehicles traveling behind said vehicle. Toyota engineers have been to the dealership and have not been able to determine a cause. I have spoken to other dealerships that state the Tacoma and 4runner are affected. After dropping off my vehicle many times, this issue has still not been resolved.

My complaint is on a 2013 Toyota Tacoma trd offroad DC 4. 0 at vehicle experiencing a bad driveline vibration when accelerating and especially breaking. I first experienced the problem around 2200 miles while driving back from another state. While driving over at least 40 mph and while braking normally to a stop between 35 mph and 20 mph a vibration occurs from the driveline. The steering wheel doesn't vibrate but my pedals start shaking as well as the cab of the truck. The vibration will start shallow around 35 and start to get really aggressive around 28 mph then it will tailor off around 20 mph. The vibration also occurs while taking off from a stop between 1st and 2nd gear but will go away. I brought this issue up with my Toyota service department. They had my vehicle for a total of 6 days from start to finish. They performed TSB (t-sb-0249-12). This involves a series of steps. First they took the drive shaft off and put the vehicle is 4wd high and drove it. The vehicle still vibrated. With the vehicle back in 2wd and the driveshaft reinstalled the second step was to replace the rear motor mounts which they had to order next day since it was not in stock. The problem still was there. The third step was to replace the rear leaf spring on each side which they had to order next day since it was not in stock. This did not fix the problem. The next step was to replace the steering dampeners which they had to order next day since it was not in stock. Again this did not fix the problem. Toyota advised them to switch out the draft shaft from a new truck similiar in model to see if it was a drive shaft issue. . . . Still didn't fix it. They replaced the transmission mounts. . . . No success. Toyota district service department told my service department. . . . "Toyota advises characteristic of truck and no repairs are needed at this time. Return truck to owner. ".

Just before vehicle reaches a complete stop, or just as vehicle begins moving after stopping, there is a slight skip as vehicle decelerates or accelerates. It feels as if something is binding and then releases. My Toyota dealership says that it is a drive shaft problem common in Tacomas.

The truck shudders or vibrates when accelerating and decelerating. The source of the shudder appears to be the drive shaft and carrier bearing. Toyota has included this model in the technical service bulletin for the shudder. However, the dealership and Toyota fail to tell you about the known problems with the truck before they sell it to a sucker like me. Additionally, there is a vibration from the front end when I apply the brakes, especially when braking from high speeds. I took it back to the dealership and they had the technicians go through the instructions in the technical service bulletin. The technicians confirmed the shudder, and the service manager said there is no fix for the problem. This is totally unacceptable from a company like Toyota. This issue qualifies under the "lemon law", both state and federal. I am going through the lemon law process now to try to get my hard-earned money back. I am going to tell everyone I know about the problems with the Toyota trucks. Additionally, this same problem has been identified in the Toyota tundra 4x4.