2021 4Runner Steering shimming

Thought maybe someone can help I bought a 2021 4Runner and am having some steering issues. I bought it brand new haven’t even taken it off road yet. I have taken it back to the dealer three times. Once the tires were all out of balance which was weird for a new car (Dunlop tires.) They did an alignment and it was fine but I am still not getting a smooth ride. I have driven Tacoma’s for years and they have driven better than this which I think is odd being it’s an SUV. The last chance is the dealership is going to throw some different tires on for me so I can drive and see if that makes a difference. I’ve never had a vehicle that has been a struggle with the wheel especially a brand new one. Any recommendations would be appreciated as if the problem isn’t fixed I will be going back to a Tacoma.

 

Seems to be a common issue with an unknown cause/repair. Good thing is it’s documented at your dealer should you have any kind of early on failure.

 

Welcome from Wisconsin! We were going on a test drive in a brand new 4Runner off the dealership lot, had 2 passengers in the back, drove to the outskirts of town and came into a place were the speed limit was 55mph. Accelerating slowly till we reached about 45-50 mph, and the steering wheel shake was wild. We drove it back to the dealership, explained what happened, and jumped in another 4Runner. This one was as smooth as could be throughout the speed ranges we encountered. Back at the dealership, they suggested it must have thrown a wheel weight or something. We had NO idea that this was a intermittent problem amongst 4Runners when we bought ours, luckily, the 4Runner we got did not have issues like that, and still does not. We have Cooper AT3 LT's for tires and aftermarket rims with a spacer lift, which we've had since we drove it home from the dealership.... with the exception of the factory ORP rims, then switched them out later. Not everyone of the 4Runners seem to do it, but they are very sensitive to tire balance/alignment, which seems ironic for such a popular off road machine. We do however believe in 'road force' tire balancing, as does our local tire shop, we believe it helps. Good luck on your issue, let us know how it turns out.

 

Thank you all for the help! Snicker Fritz can I ask you if both Runners had this new KDSS suspension system? Or did one of them have it and one not? I’m just curious as the tech at Toyota said some have it and some don’t. The tech said the KDSS he had nothing good to say about. I’m wondering if that could be my problem?

 

If you’re feeling a shimmy or vibration in the steering wheel it’s probably a wheel balancing problem. This is a common issue discussed in several forums in many threads. Here’s one:

 

All Toyota dealers are require to have a Hunter roadforce balancer as part of their essential tool package but most probably dont use all the features on it regularly. It can do tire to rim matching to eliminate any vibaration issues, but it takes twice the amount of work than just mounting and balancing with adding weights.
This junior college video explains it fairly well. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3KvRft422G4

 

Thankfully, my 2019 TRDOR has been glass-smooth through 71,000 miles on the original Bridgestones. Hopefully that doesn't change when I get new tires sometime before winter.

 

Tell the dealership to change tires & wheels; absolutely no reason you should pull-up with this, wasting time, money & frustration on a new vehicle.

Otherwise tell the Stealership you will go to a top alignment shop. Go to one that is specialized in aligning vehicles been in bad accidents. Ask for compensation.

 

I recently felt a steering vibration on a recent overlanding trip. What I found was that the steering rack itself (the part that connects the inner tie rod ends) had play on it. So when you have it turned and go over bumpy road you'll get a vibration. Not sure if this is similar to your issue.

 

Being so new, you might have some “flat-spotted” tires. Gooog “flat-spot” tires and see if this applies to you.

 

Thank you everyone for your help. I ended up trying one last thing which was new tires and wheels. It completely fixed the problem so Toyota is putting crappy Dunlop tires on which makes the ride terrible. I ended up putting K2’s on and Fuel rims completely changed the ride. No lift or anything. So if anyone has anymore issues with a brand new 4Runner and there are Dunlop stock tires on take them off and put new shoes on it. I also sent Toyota a message as they should know that they are putting crap stuff on and it drives like shit. And also I should be refunded for those tires just saying.

 

Like I mentioned "change tires & wheels." I'm happy for you that it resolved the problem, you will be very pleased with the KO 2's no matter where you drive. Yes, you should be refunded, insist, and write a letter to https://www.toyota.com/support/#!/app/ask - Good luck.

Btw. Did you buy the Matte Black Vector Wheels? Just asking, Fuel has really nice rims.

 

I have about 650 miles on my 21' SR5P and I noticed a similar issue. The Dunlop stock tires were overinflated when I took it home and it was noticeable. Even after adjusting the PSI it didn't change much. The plan all along was to ditch the stock tires and put a set of Michelins on it right away. Huge difference and no handling issues at all now. It is running on rails. My 4R is a grocery getter & get to work vehicle. I have to do that no matter what the weather is so tires are important to me. Just about all OEM tires are the least expensive tire they can get away with. It's business. They all do it.

I'm good. Very happy with the truck. Considering the amount of money a lot of folks spend on mods a quality set of tires pales in comparison. Been there done that.

 

I've dealt with this problem since November 2020 and finally got it fixed. I am 100% convinced the dealers have no idea how to balance tires (no matter what brand machine they are required to have at the dealer) and they have no idea how to do alignments. I went twice and they kept telling me all is good. Finally got fed up and went to my local ETD tire shop for a 2nd opinion since they were listed as having a road force balancing machine. I asked the guy at the ETD if he can check alignment and balance of each tire. I said I'll pay you weather they are off or not. He said ok but a road force balance is not necessary but said he would do it since that's what I requested. He kept insisting he could take care of it with the regular balancer. He calls me 2 hours later and said you are all set ready to go. He said all 4 tires were out of balance. Now I know Toyota never bothered to even check them. The factory weights were taken off and the new ones ETD stuck on the wheels were brand new. One of the tires showed the sticky residue from the weights installed from the factory (or port) on the opposite end of where the new weights were installed. He also said the alignment was off and was corrected. The truck runs 100% smooth as glass now. He said he doubts the wheels were balanced at the factory. He mentioned that the port has a bunch of yard jockeys installing the rims and accessories all day to cars coming off the ships. He said some of those guys are not the brightest so that's probably why the wheels were way off. I'm just glad its fixed and worth the $150 to correct it. I'm debating if I should go to the dealer with the invoice and ask them to pay for it since they have no idea what they are doing.

 

Yes, you should go to the Stealership, and insist to reimburse you.

 

We bought a new 2020 4 runner and vibration was pretty bad around 55-65 mph……took 3 weeks of force alignments and new tires but nothing worked so finally they sent the vehicle to a dealership with a master mechanic who took apart the front end and tested every part. The problem was faulty wheel bearings which were replaced and it went away. Toyota knows about this but will not do anything unless the dealership finds it and many of them have young inexperienced mechanics the do routine stuff mostly. We kept the Michelins…..lol!

 

The Bridgestone Dueler stock tires suk too!

 

Haven't experienced any of the vibrations in, but did have severely overinflated tires (56 psi) when I took ownership. Not sure why this was the case, but glad there wasn't a blowout on the way home from the dealership.

 

I'm happy that your problem is resolved.

However I do not agree that everyone should change tires and wheels. I had issues with my TRD Pro and it was resolved after alignment and tire balance. I paid out of pocket for the shop as I do not trust Toyota dealership wheel balance and alignment.

There will be so many who talk bad about KO2s but I have good experience with KO2 + stock SR5 wheels and TRD ORP wheels. So far KO2 is my top choice for on & offroad tire.

 

Yes, you are correct, nevertheless, OP, tried alignment etc., before making the decision to do wheels & tires.

 

Depends on the dealership I guess. I had 285's with Pro rims installed on my 4Runner by my dealership and new Michelin A/T's on my Sequoia.

No issues what so ever.