21 SR5 6900kms - Issues with blower motor and front diff hum

Hey all,

Im starting to notice afew things with our new 4runner. Currently the vehicle has 6900kms on the clock and the 2 things im noticing are as follows.

The blower motor inside the cab seems pretty loud at low fan speeds its fairly audible is there any long term fix for this or is it just it is what it is?

I have also noticed while driving between 50 to 80 kph that there is a hum/vibration that i can hear/feel it goes away under 50 kph and over 80 kph. It also goes away when shifting into 4wd that makes me suspect the needle bearing issue that is pronounced throughout afew models. My question here is, is there an actual dealer fix for this or is the only permanent solution the aftermarket bushing?


Thanks every and hope everyone is doing well today.

 

Yeah, sounds like the needle bearing. When you hear it, put it in 4-hi, and it it goes away…it’s the bearing. I heard mine on the way home from the dealer. But it’s intermittent, so im not going to waste my time with the dealer just yet. Probably will just end up putting the plain bearing in to be done with it.

Regarding the hvac blower motor, take the the cabin filter out and look for a singular dried leaf in the squirrel cage fan. Almost willing to bet that’s the problem.

 

Just at the dealer now but they won't be able to diagnose the hum for another week.

What year is your 4R? You said yours had it from the day you took it home?

 

yup, mine is a 2021. Noticed the sound on the maiden drive home, about 80 miles in.

 

It's funny the master techs at the dealer said they have heard of no 2020+ 4runners having the issue yet. On the forums and groups I'm part of there seems to be afew including yourself.

 

yeah, i think the tsb doesnt even cover the 21s if I recall. The tsb calls for a a diff replacement, the whole thing. I got the sense that some who have had toyota fix it, the sound ends up returning anyway…. That’s why Im leaning to biting the bullet and doing the plain bearing

 

Agreed with @McSpazatron .

My diff was noisy from new (19, bought January of '19), but more pronounced in colder weather. I got a new differential assembly at around 28K miles and haven't noticed it since (at 68K now). To be fair, it could have returned and I just don't hear it over the tires.

I was told that the replacement differential had a different part number, so I hoped they had come up with a fix. But, if it gets loud again, I'll probably do the ECGS bushing and be done with it.

 

I received a new front diff at 6k miles for this issue on a 2019.

I also have an audible blower motor at low speeds. Dealer said my cabin air filter had a leaf that they removed and that I was using a non-genuine cabin air filter......noise is still there. In fact it has been a noisy blower since new. Typical dealer BS. I live with it.