16 - Tacoma lifted/35in tires

[Wolfram_Rowland]

Hello Everyone,
New member and owner of a 2016 Tacoma TRD Pro 4 door crew cab. All mods were done 2 previous owners from me. Truck was brought a few days ago.
Not sure of the full height of the lift but would assume 3 inch. After market control arms as well. There is a noise coming from the front driver side wheel. First thought it was uneven tread wear, alignment, or unbalanced tire. Noise starts at around 10ish mph and never stops. Seems worse when turning left at speed, seems diminished when turning right. The front also does the clicking noises when going slow and turning tightly, as if it is in 4 wheel drive, but it isn't.
Sound isn't as bad in 4h or 4l but still present. I don't see obvious signs of rubbing, leaking, or anything broken. Any thoughts, suggestions, or next steps would be greatly appreciated.
Pics and videos below.

 

[Wolfram_Rowland]

Here are some videos as well of the noise

Source: https://youtube.com/shorts/OR28wiRoN8s?feature=share

Source: https://youtube.com/shorts/F6nW9gw-NFE?feature=share

Source: https://youtube.com/shorts/3HvM1DuXIyo?feature=share

Thank you!

 

[dannyvermin]

any shake in the steering wheel?

my first guess would be either CV joint or wheel bearing. or maybe a dragging caliper. i would jack that corner up and spin the wheel. you should be able to hear or feel if it's the brake or wheel bearing. CV boots look intact but that doesn't mean they can't be worn. i'm betting on the caliper though.

 

[Wolfram_Rowland]

Thank you! No real shakes in the steering wheel nor does it pull to any side. I will check out those areas. I was thinking the same with the cv joint but you are correct. Just because it looks fine doesn’t mean there isn’t something wrong.

 

[Wolfram_Rowland]

I was able to take the front wheel off today. Nothing looked obviously wrong or broken. The brakes do not appear to be releasing correctly but that wouldn’t cause the issue. All 4 wheels has spacers. It didn’t seem the lug nuts were on very tight. The wheel is also very difficult to rotate.
Now while driving the steering wheel vibrates a little and it pulls to the right. There is a squeaking as well that can be heard when the window is down.
The tires do hit parts of the frame when turning tightly.
A few more pictures for reference and the picture of the passenger side. This is with the wheel turned for a better view.
Thanks again!

 

[bonifacio]

Lift the truck and move the wheel/tire. Try both sides and see if one side has resistance.
Does it make more noise or a different noise when turning left at higher speeds?
This will only be on the driver side.
In the video it's loud and sounds like a roaring. I'm gonna say it's a bad wheel bearing. If it is the wheel bearing, you want to fix that ASAP.
Needles can end up in your differential, it can cause some damage and can get bad. The rim that holds the pin captive can also break.

Toyota has been using this needle bearing for a while now in a lot of their models. No idea why. It fails even when not lifted. Once you introduce additional strain onto it from lifting and heavier tire... it will fail.

Most swap this out early before failure any time they are lifting a little.

https://eastcoastgearsupply.com/files/PDF%20Files/toyota-clamshell-bushing-faq3.pdf

Grab a ECGS Clamshell Bushing. You'll need a tool to remove it.
A good shop will already be able to do it or make a tool.
I know some people have gotten it done at the dealership.
Toyota is stupid. Hopefully this is. Save you a lot of headache down the road.

 

[Wolfram_Rowland]

Thank you everyone. Quick update on it. It was the bearings. The wheel after being balanced didn't solve the issue. The hub itself would wiggle up/down but not left/right. After having the bearing replacement, it works great. Going to replace the passenger side now as well. Will also look into replace the bushing mentioned above.

 

[mgmyota]

Glad you figured out the issue. Sounds like this truck need some good TLC all around. I would grease everything that requires it to start, and double check fluids. Pre modified vehicles can be tricky since you don't know the true history of maintenance. Hope you can enjoy the truck now!