New Tundra, Few Questions

Hello everyone,

I recently got my 05 DC 4x4 about a month ago. 260,000 miles. Engine was recently swapped from a Sequoia from the same year with about 200,000 miles on it. I was OK with the purchase due to it being a used swap, as I don't trust rebuilds.

I drove it 5 hours straight home from AR to OK.

As soon as it was parked, I went ahead and did all the major items:

- Timing Belt Kit
- Thermostat
- Radiator
- LBJ
- Greased Driveline
- Replaced Rear Diff Fluid
- Oil Change
- Spark Plugs
- OME 2884 Springs with Bilstein 4600 Shocks
- Bilstein 4600 Rear Shocks
- Extended Sway Bar Links
- Spidertrax Wheel Spacers
- Air Filter

It drives fairly good. Although I have a few things about it I need to figure out...

1. Any suggestions on anything that was not in the things I have done to replace? Only things I have down the pipeline so far is Front Diff/T-Case Fluid and Transmission Fluid.

2. When driving, I get a slight studder going uphill at anywhere from 30 - 45 MPH. I cannot pinpoint it for the life of me. It will sometimes do it and sometimes it won't. If I drive with OD off, I cannot repeat it. If it does do it, I can let go of the throttle and it will stop, or I will give it more gas and it will go away that way. Throttle body possibly?

3. I've done some searching on phone mounts, but most of the threads are older and everyone has a different opinion. Any suggestions on a solid, clean looking phone mount? I'll be driving the truck for at least 1 hour a day.

4. My drivers door I'm guessing is sagging? I really have to slam it to shut it. Saying that, when pressing my key fob to unlock the doors, it will unlock/lock every door BUT my drivers door. If I press the lock button getting out of the truck, I won't even hear a chime. If I manually lock my drivers door only when getting out of the truck and press the door lock button, I hear the chime and all the doors will be locked. Is there a chance since the door is possibly sagging that the door lock mechanism is having a hard time engaging?

5. My headlights do not turn off no matter what I do. I can do turn signals, high beams, everything works on the stalk. The headlights never turn off though. I haven't done much searching on this topic...

If anyone has any insight on anything, I'd appreciate it! I'll upload some pics later.

 

Check/change the transmission fluid first. See if it goes away. Also, GREASE THE DRIVELINE! Both front and rear drive shafts.

Is there any odd wiring? Added lighting? I'm not sure if '05 had DRL and that's why? Do they turn off when the truck is not running?

 

The whole driveline is greased. The only one that isn't is the one that you need to grind down the grease tip for. I just haven't done it yet.

No odd wiring or anything aftermarket. It does have DRL. It does turn off with the truck, but as soon as the truck is turned back on, the lights are too. It's weird because when I brought the truck home, the lights weren't on. Ever since I turned them on one time, they won't turn off.

 

Test this by holding down the door closed plunger while pushing the door lock button with the door open and see if it locks. You probably need a new door lock actuator.

Day time running lights probably. There is a plug near the battery you should be able to unhook to disable.

 

While closing the door slowly, look at the door lock and the door lock striker, are they that far out of alignment ?

I don't believe the door would be sagging enough to pinch wires going from drivers kick panel to door cavity. Personally, I feel your problem is the door actuator. Definitely have to remove door card to investigate.

The below tests should help determine if it's the door actuator.

 

Unless they look really clean, I'd do the brake fluid and power steering fluid. Both really easy.

 

Full maintenance list for you is in the 2nd reply of this thread under the section "After you buy the truck (or sometimes before)":" @ https://www.tundras.com/threads/so-you-wanna-buy-just-bought-a-1st-gen-tundra-eh.115928/

Phone mounts: This is not an old thread, and it's 3 pages of info: https://www.tundras.com/threads/1st-gen-tundra-phone-mount-solutions.147682/

Driving studder: Did you already check u-joints and carrier? Did it exist before the lift or after? If after, you're not doing something stupid like using lift blocks out back, are you?

Rear diff: If you have LSD, heed that thread's warning about synthetic diff juice (Lucas 80w90, don't fuck that one up like I did)

Headlights: Did someone do something stupid like "upgrade" to LED bulbs, but failed to install an inline resistor? You may also have DRLs. I have DRLs, and the only way to turn my lights off is by turning the parking lights on? The plug to disco DRL's is usually grey, between the battery and side fender. Do the headlights at least turn off when the truck is off and you open the driver's side door? Did you triple-check for wire splices or a brain associated with an aftermarket alarm? Even if you don't think there's one, sometimes they get installed, even by dealers.

 

Welcome from LA (Lower Alabama)!

 

might be unrelated @shifty` but what do you make of this. If I’m at a stop light with foot on the brake it’s almost like sometimes my truck revs a touch high and then kind of slams forward and the revs drop. Only a few hundred rpm, any ideas? Similar to this post?

 

Check for vacuum leaks in the hoses to brake booster and PS valve

 

Considering the function of your booster is to leverage vacuum to amplify your braking experience, and increasing/decreasing vacuum will change idle, I think you may have your answer right there ^^

 

Thanks for that! I will run that test tonight.

I was thinking that too.

Thanks. I must have skipped that thread on the phone mounts.

The studder was happening when I drove it home initially as well.

Yesterday when I was driving home from work, I left OD on and it did it about 10 minutes after getting on the highway. It almost happened after it down shifted and hit about 1200 RPM (ish). I gave it some more gas and it went away of course.

After that, I turned back off OD and it didn't do it the rest of the way home or to/from kid's practice. (or this morning on the way to work)

Rear diff got 80w90 Lucas.

Headlights I really don't know. I think it has DRL...I have new lenses for the front and back coming Friday. When I take everything apart, I'm gonna examine wiring and everything.

 

This is not a test, it’s that some do not know.
O/D on….light off
O/D off….light on

back to peanut gallery

 

Yes, I know that much.

 

Do you see any lights blinking in the dash when shudder happens? The wires for the OD button are known to wear thru where they exit the shifter tube.

 

None at all.

 

I'd check the basics.

You know how to generally test U-joint, right?

Have you done a visual inspection of the carrier bearing?

Stupid question, but all lug nuts are intact, and tightened to ~85-90 ftlb?

The giving-it-gas-and-it-disappears is weird, and suggests driveline to me (maybe throttle body/intake for others). But there's so many things that can cause shudder/vibration. Cupped tires, over-torquing lug nuts, brake calipers getting stuck or lazy, tire balance, driveshaft u-joints or carriers, pinion or output shaft bearings ... But 80% of those won't magically disappear with a gas-punch. I'd be looking at the driveline. Make sure, like, nobody drilled the pinion flange to install the wrong sized flange. Make sure the rubber donut inside the carrier isn't totally fucked. Make sure the carrier bearing bolts or other drive-shaft-and-pinion fasteners aren't loose.

FYI, some play in the carrier is normal, so if you find the driveshafts lift/drops about an inch of overall travel on either side of the carrier, no concern. You're more worried about movement feeling rough, and the rubber surround being torn to shreds or showing signs of component rub, and the bearing being rusty inside.

And for u-joints, there should be no real play. Grab shafts on either side of the u-joint, and move your hands in opposing directions. No rattle, no play, no noise. And make sure all the retention caps (the e- or c-shaped things shown here) are holding the u-joints in. This behavior could happen if one cap was loose because its retention clip popped out, I suppose.

​

 

OP - where are you located. Another member may be nearby for an extra set of eyes.

 

Here's a video. Driveshaft seems solid and I don't see anything out of the ordinary I suppose.

Edit: https://youtube.com/shorts/NqNzjt4m-Hc

 

Driveshaft looks pretty normal, uneventful. Couldn't tell on the carrier bearing.

But what I do see is, there's zero evidence of recent greasing of the driveline. It looks dry as shit. And that means your u-joints are probably dry as shit. Nothing kills u-joints faster than dry ass needle bearings. You have a grease gun? If yes, do you know the correct grease to use and how to grease everything, including the slip yoke which threw me for a surprise the first time?

 

Funny thing is that whole driveline was just greased. I used

$11 VV985 Valvoline Moly-Fortified Gray Full Synthetic Grease 14.1 OZ Cartridge

VV985 for it. And yes, the slip yoke I did about 5-6 pumps and stopped. Everything else I did just till I saw a little squeeze out, and then stopped. I guess I could do some more this evening?

I actually did not do one of the zerks. It was the one that is at a weird position so you have to grind down the tip of the grease gun. I am going to do that one when I go back under there.

 

This is exactly it. Mine is equipped with daytime running lamps and all you have to do is unplug the connector right beside the battery. They will no longer stay on when your truck is running and you can still turn them on and off normally.

Video here

 

Yeah, slip yoke is a weird one, but I can't see how the slip yoke would cuase that.

Surprised to hear it was just greased. There's no wet sling anywhere, no wipe-away from the u-joints, and lots of crusty dust buildup on the zerks. But maybe you live on a dirt road and dust builds up fast.

I'd be tempted to chock the front wheels, get the ass-end up in the air (jack @ pumpkin), throw it in neutral and spin the wheels, spin the rear driveshafts by hand manually, and see if you notice anything weird.

 

My whole "street" is Gravel. Stuff gets dirty quick.

 

I was talking with a co-worker today and he was giving his input on the shudder issue. He said it would happen a lot on the older Ford trucks. He says most of the time it was a misfire. It's not bad enough to notice on regular driving, but when that torque converter locks up, it magnifies the misfire through the driveline.

Thoughts?

I am going to swap out the transmission fluid tonight (drain and fill). I'm thinking it's either a misfire or a torque converter shudder. I'm also curious to do the "brake test" on the way home, by having the shudder happen and lightly tapping the brake and see if it goes away. They say most of the time if it goes away with the tap on the brake, its the torque converter shudder.

 

This wouldn't be the first time we've had someone describe something that sounds like driveshaft issues and it ends up being a misfire. No misfire codes yet though?

 

None at all.

 

This was my exact thought. I remember that one case with the guy who noticed it on the highway, and we all thought driveline, it ended up being coil pack. But I thought his was [power loss + shudder] when stepping on the gas.

Sucks these trucks are so picky about coil brands.

 

So 2 days ago I swapped out Trans Fluid (about 3.5 quarts out and in), front diff and t-case fluid.

I have driven it the past 2 days and have not noticed the shudder. Well at least I don't think so...

I'll occasionally hit a bump or a rough area or something going uphill and I'm like "was that a shudder or a bump?". Little paranoia I guess. I have not turned OD off yet in these past 2 days. I even tried to incite it by going uphill and barely hitting the throttle (so keeping it around 1500 or so RPM) where I feel like before it would do it, and it hasn't done it.

I have some more transmission fluid coming tomorrow and I'm gonna do another drain and fill. We'll see. Keeping my fingers crossed that old transmission fluid was the issue. It was pretty brown coming out.

I'll continue to monitor over the next week. I am overly observant on vehicle noises, to the point where I will feel something and my wife will say "I felt absolutely nothing". I usually am right unfortunately.

So if I can make it another week of not noticing ANYTHING, I am going to convince myself it was transmission fluid.

 

I had a bit of a shudder too, when I first picked up my tundra. Swapping out the rear differential fluid solved my problem. That shit was nasty and I'm not sure if the previous owner used the correct fluid or not.

I did my trans drain and fill about a month after my rear diff.