3rd Gen frt diff needle bearings?

So I've got the classic wuh wuh wuhing sound between 20-35mph upon accelerating and slowing down. Funny thing is it doesn't seem to change by putting it into 4wd like I've read about in other threads for 2nd gen Tundra's and Tacoma's. Definitely has some major play in frt driverside cv axle though, looks like I'll be ordering the east coast gear bushing to hopefully fix this. Anyone else run into this problem with their 3rd gen? Btw I'm running bilstein 6112's at the 1.9 setting with a driverside shim and no frt diff drop kit, not sure if this contributed to the problem ? Would appreciate any feedback.

 

Same issue here. I started a post on it a while back, but haven't followed up as I haven't found the solution yet. Start by checking that your LCA cam bolts are torqued to 207 ftlbs (with weight). If they weren't, I bet your alignment shifted. I doubt its the needle bearing though. I thought the same thing, but didn't see any signs of abnormal wear when I pulled it. The 6112's top hat are starting to become a culprit in my mind, but I also have an embarrassing noise that accompanies shock movement.

Edit: doubt it's the needle bearing since it doesn't change when changing to/from 4wd. Mine was same way

 

Could try to rotate the tires. If your alignment was off, maybe your tire has abnormal wear. I haven’t heard of any recent year models having issues with the needle bearing.

 

My '16 has a noisy needle bearing. Quiet as a whisper in 4WD, growls like a drunk Yeti going 30-35 mph in 2WD. It sounds pretty much the same as the Tacoma did. Someday I'll get around to putting in the ECGS bushing but it's not a pressing priority

If it's not going away in 4WD (the needle bearing doesn't spin at all in 4WD when going straight) then it's probably tires. Maybe abnormal wear, or maybe just a set that wasn't harmonically optimized for that speed range when they were designed. Every tire vibrates as tread blocks come down on pavement but we just get spoiled with the modern computer-aided and engineered tires that cancel most of it out via small changes in in the tread as the tire rolls.

There's also a prominent resonance in the exhaust at low rpm that can whirr almost like tires even with the stock muffler. At low load the truck goes into 4th gear at 25 mph so try it out in S3 and see if it goes away

 

Thanks for the feedback guys. Rotated the tires the other day and no change although definitely getting some road noise out of em as they're about shot. Just seems like way to much play in CV axle on the driver side. Will probably hold off on the bushing till after I purchase new tires and get the alignment zeroed in and go from there.

 

I just finished the ecgs clamshell bearing install and replaced a bad driver side cv. If anyone is interested in saving a few bucks on the install and removal tools hit me up. Paid $75 plus shipping used once today. $60 shipped

 

I have a 2nd gen. I had the howling wuh wuh noise so I inspected everything and it didn't go away in 4wd either. I also noticed play in front driver side axle so I went ahead and replace needle bearing with the ecgs. And unfortunately it still made the noise. After some more investigating, I found out that my rear wheel bearings were bad. I replaced both sides and now drives like new. I'm not sure how many miles you have on yours, but just a thought. good luck