2022 needle bearing issues

The seal gets it's damage from the excessive 'slop' of the axle/bearing fit. The bearing is pathetically loose on the axle allowing the axle to contact different parts of the seal, after how many miles, that's a lot of erratic seal contact, it's bound to be worn. Ours was not worn, and the needle bearing looked new. The bearing does not move in the housing.. the axle 'slops' around in the bearing, causing the noise/vibration we hear/feel. The best part is you got it fixed.

 

Sorry for my ignorance but what are the symptoms of this issue? Just bought a brand new TRD Pro and want to keep an eye out for any early indications of this problem.

 

you’ll hear a grinding/groaning noise starting around the 40mph mark. Also you’ll feel some vibrations. If you do, put it into 4hi. If the noise goes away, it’s your needle bearing.

 

Maybe it was an attempt to have less friction and squeeze out more gas mileage??

 

My 4 runner is at the dealer as of today @ 920 miles for the front differential replacement, we will see how this one goes.

 

yuck!! Keep us updated OP. Hopefully she is good to go soon

 

They claim it should be done today after saying next time I bring it in they need it until further notice. My service advisor sucks. Seems like a miserable prick. I believe in a first early oil change and planned on doing it at 1000 miles I was at 920 at arrival and literally argued with him to change it. He goes with the ‘you don’t need them until 10,000 miles’ talk .

 

Mine goes in for the front differential on the 31st. Took them a month to get the part to come in. Finally came in today

 

I just picked up a 22 trd orp that has about 200 miles on the odometer.
I’m gonna listen for this noise. Haven’t felt anything unusual as of yet .
Would this be something to do regardless if your having the issue or not?

 

Don’t listen too hard. If it shows up, it shows up. Otherwise I wouldnt touch it, unless you like to change light bulbs before they burn out

If it happens, you have the ecgs option should the warranty become a pain in the ass.

 

If I lived within driving distance of ECGS I'd stop by and have them install their bushing. And I don't even need it.

 

Picked up the 4 runner today & noise is gone for now with a whole new front differential. $2800 bill covered under warranty. On the paper work says cause : poor machining / poor forming

 

The invoice

 

Anyone have a link to the bushing needed to fix? Just bought a 22 TRD OFP and 200 miles and its starting. I work at a toyota dealership so just going to have them do it now since diff is on international backorder

 

Glad West Herr came through for you!

 

https://eastcoastgearsupply.com/i-8536125-toyota-8-clamshell-bushing-eliminates-needle-bearing.html

 

Thanks glwood! Ordered

 

We just had our front diff replaced yesterday and (so far) no further issues. Dealership inspected the driver side axle for marks from the needle bearing and found none. Fingers crossed the noise and vibrations are now gone!

 

Thanks. They have been alright so far. Just gotta show your not dumb when it comes to vehicles & that your not always ‘nice’ I guess.

 

Lets both hope for the best lol...I looked at everything carefully to insure no damage and I would never have known I had a front differential replaced.

 

So I'm at ~1,000 miles on my 22 SR5P and I noticed mine at roughly 200 miles. I havent done anything or brought it in as many of you have had issues with the dealerships and them causing more issues. Is me leaving it alone a bad idea that can cause more issues or do I need to bring it in or get the ECGS? I really dont want someone messing with the brand new truck but I also dont want it to cause a bigger issue. TIA

 

I didn’t want that kind of work done to my new suv either but it turned out good for now. 1 initial trip and made a day to drop it off and the diff was there ready to be put in. No complaints

 

Agreed! Yes, I plan to look everything over underneath as well this weekend. I'm glad your install turned out fine.. crazy some of the horror stories that have been shown on here!

 

Yep! Indeed.

 

For those interested ... finally got mine replaced today. Took them a while to get the part in but they were decent enough to come get the vehicle at my house, get it fixed, and returned it to me. Saved me 2 hours of driving and waiting for the fix so I have to give kudos for once (I won't get into how bad the communcations back and forth were).

World of difference on the noise. Now hopefully I am done with it and hopefully if enough of us get them to fix it, it will get truly resolved in the future. Maybe, maybe not ... good luck to others

 

Good to hear! Anther victim taken care of...my steering wheel wobble seems to have completely went away after mine was replaced as well so hoping that was a double win for me.

 

I have the needle bearing noise/feel on mine (2022 SR5). It’s not super noticeable but it’s there. You feel it on really smooth roads but if it’s rougher or bumpier pavement it fades into the general road noise. I’m only at 1800mi and noticed it shortly after buying it.

Had it in for 6 month service and brought it up. Of course it was a “cannot duplicate” and “possibly tire noise” (despite me pointing out that it goes away in 4wd on the exact same tires). I’m hoping a TSB comes out since it’s my experience with dealer service that they are just total morons outside of oil changes or doing exactly what a code or TSB tells them to do. I will keep on it but there is only 1 Toyota dealer around and it’s 30 min away so I don’t want to waste multiple days on this outside of bringing it up at regular service intervals.

I find it pretty crazy that a company like Toyota can have a crap part like this and have had it carry on for multiple years without a fundamental fix.

 

I’m pretty sure I have the issue as well. I’ve noticed the vibration and can hear a whine like a cvt tranny sometimes .

 

is this affecting only 2WD or part-time 4WD models?
Limited, which can't be put into pure 2WD to check for noise, not sure if I should probably just do the ECGS replacement regardless

 

Yes, and the way they fix the problem is by putting in the identical part back in. It's a design flaw, not a faulty part. And, IMO, what's worse is when the people at the "service" department only know to say, "I've never heard of this." Really? There's a TSB for this going back almost 2 decades and the best they can do is lie and say they've never heard of it?? That training must come right after the "wavy guy maintenance" training.

Imagine the savings Toyota would have if, instead of installing a $3000 differential that fixes a $50 part, they'd install a bushing for $100 and it solves the entire problem.