Driver side stub shaft loose in Diff.

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LilRed

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Guys need some help here on next steps. 2017 1500 4x4 crew cab. Been chasing a front end vibration at 65. Been through 2sets of tires countless balances and have now moved on to the CV axles. The driver side has slop so I figured it was the stub shaft and CV. I swapped those today and to my surprise the slop is actually the stub shaft in the diff. Is there a bearing on the inside that could be an issue?
I only have 34k on the truck so possibly covered under warranty but I’m concerned my bilstein 6112’s set at + .75” may be an excuse for them to not honor warranty.
What are my options here? Passenger side is way tighter but I also have new cv axle and stub kit ready to go as it still could be the passenger side causing the vibration.
 

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crazy jerry

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dont quote me but i think the slop may be normal. my tacoma is the same way and has been for as long as i can remember. never has leaked or vibrated so thats how i know its normal. i havent investigated why its like that but i think its just the cv design and not slop of the splines.
i noticed your after market shafts. typically those arent very good qaulity. good luck
 

Tach_tech

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If by slop you mean you can move the inner joint up and down a bit when the CV axle is installed, that’s normal. Both sides will have a little bit of movement.
 
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LilRed

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Thanks for the input. By loose I mean the shaft it’s self will go up/down side to side. The driver side is 2-3 times looser than the passenger side. It probably wouldn’t have even been noticed if I haven’t been chasing a front end vibration for the past 8 months.
 

Hemi395

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I just recently replaced both CV axles and rhe drivers stub shaft at 75k, I noticed the same thing you did with the stub shaft play in the diff. I had originally thought it was because I went aftermarket but maybe it's normal?
 
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LilRed

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I just recently replaced both CV axles and rhe drivers stub shaft at 75k, I noticed the same thing you did with the stub shaft play in the diff. I had originally thought it was because I went aftermarket but maybe it's normal?
It may be "normal" but not correct. I just can't get rid of my front end shake and can't find anything else loose or out of sorts to investigate further and I don't want to just throw money at it.
 

Tach_tech

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Do you wheels have weights on both the inside and outside? I’ve seen a lot of shops will try to get away with just doing a static balance instead of a dynamic balance.
 

crazy jerry

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i see no possible way any part of those factory cv axles are worn. unless youve beat the tar out of it every day. the truck is barely 5yo with just 34k. sorry but something isnt adding up. like some of us already told you, some movement will be there. my tacoma has same movement at the inner cv joint going into the diff. perfect normal by design. im not exactly sure why but thats just how it is.

if you have modified the suspension. perhaps its damaged your cv or is causing them to be at a strange angle.
in all honesty i wouldnt be suprised if its your tires.
 
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LilRed

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i see no possible way any part of those factory cv axles are worn. unless youve beat the tar out of it every day. the truck is barely 5yo with just 34k. sorry but something isnt adding up. like some of us already told you, some movement will be there. my tacoma has same movement at the inner cv joint going into the diff. perfect normal by design. im not exactly sure why but thats just how it is.

if you have modified the suspension. perhaps its damaged your cv or is causing them to be at a strange angle.
in all honesty i wouldnt be suprised if its your tires.
Jerry,

Truck is not beaten on at all. It isn't the tires. As I noted in my original post that I'm now on the 3rd set of tires and countless balances. When I go under the truck the passenger side CV is nice and tight. The driver side has several mm's of up down/ side to side movement and it is the stub moving in the differential NOT the CV on the stub shaft. CV and stub have been replaced with no change.
 

crackerjack1957

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Jerry,

Truck is not beaten on at all. It isn't the tires. As I noted in my original post that I'm now on the 3rd set of tires and countless balances. When I go under the truck the passenger side CV is nice and tight. The driver side has several mm's of up down/ side to side movement and it is the stub moving in the differential NOT the CV on the stub shaft. CV and stub have been replaced with no change.
Remove front drive shaft & CV axles to confirm.
 

crackerjack1957

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Remove front drive shaft & CV axles to confirm if vibration is still there.
Echo...........echo.........echo.......LoL
I click on edit & it double post.
Maybe not........maybe my eyes......LoL
 
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Jeepwalker

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Different make, but my H3 had the same issue. I replaced the bearings on the driver's side and the slop went away. It was a fairly straight forward job. The biggest challenge was getting the spindle out of the way so the half-shaft would clear.

Axles don't rotate very fast. Not likely your vibration. Still not a bad idea to replace the bearing if you want to tighten it up. Did you have anyone (or do yourself) check the wheel for run-out ..as in bent wheel/axle? Tire shops are always going to check the tires for balance, but there could be a broken chord or the wheel could be wobbling in and out due to some issue.

Quick story: I went to replace a front wheel hub 6 months ago in another 4x4. Got a replacement from OReilly. My normal inclination is to go OEM, but I wanted it done right away (mistake). I checked it for run-out with a dial indicator prior to installing. Glad I did. There was about .005 run-out at the hub face. Had I installed it, the rotor would have been impossible to get 'true' and the wheel would have wobbled. New OEM hub ran absolutely true. So it's worth checking side to side motion on the wheels. It would be good to eliminate that as a possibility.

And of course the front driveshaft is a common source for vibrations at a certain speed like you indicated.
 

MoneyPit14

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Did anyone ever get to the bottom of this issue? I’ve been chasing the mystery vibration in my front end as well. Replaced stub and intermediate shafts a couple months ago. Still felt the vibrations. Pulled it apart again and noticed stub shaft on driver side had ALOT of play, and rough rotation. Tempted to put it back together without the CV shaft and drive it, to see if it the bad vibes go away. Also tempted to ghost it off a cliff. Love the thing, but I’ve spend countless hours working on it. 193k and counting.
 

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Jeepwalker

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If a guy is running 33" tires, for example, the revolutions per mile is only ~610. That's pretty slow rotation if you're doing 60 mph..that's 610 RPM. Tires are a lot heavier than inboard CV's. Have tires Road Force balanced/checked. Be sure to check for wheel warpage (on the vehicle) in case wheels are wobbling (warped axle flange??). Shops almost never check that on the vehicle. But should be done if the aim is to eliminate vibration sources.

If the inner CV is super-sloppy, it's worth a look. It's possible inner shaft Replacement is necessary. ...and CVs too, if worn. Only way to know is to look and measure. But before doing surgery, I would have a shop put a dial indicator on the wheels on-vehicle to find vibration. I once bought a brand new aftermarket hub/bearing assembly. The wheel flange was warped. If your truck had something like that, there would be a big vibration.
 
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