Drive line vibration on launch while towing

[zzollwalk]

2016 Ram 3500 Asian trans 4:10 airbags..69000 miles ...while towing there is a drive line rumble..already put shims at the carrier bearing to help the angle..still rumbles when I take off..like a bad ujoint..I'm being told that a one piece drive shaft will solve this issue.. anybody else have this issue and fixed it??*:{

 

[Jared Herzog]

Yes, i also have the launch vibration. I have not bought a one piece yet but the one piece has fixed my past trucks. There is just play at the carrier bearing and more throttle on take off especially with a trailer amplifies is.

 

[zzollwalk]

Thanks for that..I'm sure ram knows about this issue but it's confusing to think they they would say this is normal knowing a one piece would fix the issue..my 2007 had a one piece and it never had that problem..thanks for the reply..

 

[sag2]

It is normal. If you do a search I have posted many times on the concern. Bottom line is there is a fine line between "fixing" it loaded and unloaded. If you run loaded most of the time and it annoys you add length to the center support bracket. You may end up with it shuddering unloaded though. It isn't detrimental and I wouldn't be concerned.

 

[jelag]

I have two thoughts I'd like to share.... a good friend, (30 years) has run a drive line shop all his life... its his opinion that these trucks will never support a one piece drive shaft over the life of the truck... that's why the factory has not done this... after all, a one piece drive shaft would be more cost effective for manufacturing.... Every time I've modified a frame on a class 8 truck... my local drive shaft shop... not my buddy above... has a limit to how long they will make a shaft... there comment is that once its over a specific length the shaft will not be stable and might flex and vibrate....

In each case when one of my trucks has started to vibrate on start.. we either found a u-joint that was bad or the carrier bearing has damage to the rubber support and its damaged and some of the rubber is broken away... on my 3500's and the 5500 that I've owned... I could not physically move the shaft and feel the bad joint.. there's just too much mass and metal there.. but if you pull the joint down.. you'll see damage to the bearings and the cross...

 

[zzollwalk]

Maybe so Jim..this truck has done this since new..my dealer install an aftermarket shim kit to lower the carrier bearing but never verified the angles..at about 35k miles the dealer put a new rear end assy in the truck..still never checked angled..Sony think they know how..going to take it to my local drive shaft shop and see what they think..imo..this truck cost too much money for it to feel like it's got a bad u joint every time I take off with it..I also wonder why when you watch YouTube test drives of these trucks pulling 31k..they never mention a vibration on launch...

 

[frost]

My new 2016 2500 does this when I first mashed the throttle down from a dead stop & this raised concerns till I investigated it - so I don't mash it unless I got to & it takes off no problems

 

[zzollwalk]

The truck has a two piece drive shaft..if all the angles aren't right it's going to vibrate..it vibrates or rumbles on take off when pulling a trailer..this should not be happening on a 60 or 70k truck..my 2007 had a one piece drive shaft and it never vibrated..Ram needs to fix this issue and stop calling it normal..

 

[sag2]

The truck has a two piece drive shaft..if all the angles aren't right it's going to vibrate..it vibrates or rumbles on take off when pulling a trailer..this should not be happening on a 60 or 70k truck..my 2007 had a one piece drive shaft and it never vibrated..Ram needs to fix this issue and stop calling it normal..

Your 2007 didn't have the travel in the suspension the new trucks have. Most owners will never encounter the sensation, and it is possible to fine tune the center support height to eliminate or minimize it on both ends of the loading spectrum. If a one piece shaft could be installed in every truck configuration it would be. But physics dictate that two piece shafts are required in some applications.
Also most owners do not regularly use their trucks at minimum and maximum rear axle ratings where you get the most travel from the suspension that changes the drive line angles to their maximum. So I'm afraid it really is normal. The "fix" is to go back to stiff hard riding suspension that minimizes travel (and drive line angle changes) and provides a ride that most never enjoyed.

 

[NIsaacs]

I wonder if the high power and lower gearing of the new transmissions in the new trucks plays a part. This has been a complaint of all the generation trucks with TSB's about it back to the 1st gen, with Dodge offering shims for the carrier bearing mount.

I also think that some drivers are more tuned to their trucks, especially if they have never had a heavy duty. I have been around large and small trucks my whole life, so a little noise, vibration or rattle is part of it, for me

Nick

 

[Kirwin]

I wonder if the high power and lower gearing of the new transmissions in the new trucks plays a part. This has been a complaint of all the generation trucks with TSB's about it back to the 1st gen, with Dodge offering shims for the carrier bearing mount.

I also think that some drivers are more tuned to their trucks, especially if they have never had a heavy duty. I have been around large and small trucks my whole life, so a little noise, vibration or rattle is part of it, for me

Nick

Yeah! What Nick said! Part of driving a real truck! LOL

 

[Newsa]

My truck is SMOOTH! After being in my truck as a daily driver for 3 1/2 years, I'm spoiled. My wife's car has a very unforgiving suspension over the slightest of bumps. And the road noise in her car is deafening in comparison to my truck (requires a higher volume on the radio)

 

[endoscott]

be careful what you wish for with one piece driveline

2016 Ram 3500 Asian trans 4:10 airbags..69000 miles ...while towing there is a drive line rumble..already put shims at the carrier bearing to help the angle..still rumbles when I take off..like a bad ujoint..I'm being told that a one piece drive shaft will solve this issue.. anybody else have this issue and fixed it??*:{

I went to a custom driveline shop, guy with gray hair who built a lot of drivelines for race cars and trucks, and had him build me an aluminum one piece driveline. I didn't have a couple thousand miles on it before I was backing up my boat and the damn thing fell off in my driveway. Good thing it didn't happen going down the road with my 5th wheel behind me! It sounds like a good deal-less rotational mass and eliminate the carrier bearing. I took it back to him and flat asked him if the durability was as good as with stock steel and why did the welds fail? He was uncomfortable having the conversation but told me the stock steel ones were definitely "stronger". I mean he is not an engineer, but JHC, you would think after building drivelines for 35 years a guy would have seat of the pants understanding and know that you want something really strong and durable. Anyway, I went back to the stock steel driveline with a new carrier bearing and all new U-joints and if there is a little vibration, live with it. This was on my 2003 truck, HO engine and manual trans. Now I have a 2014 with the Aisin trans. I never noticed any vibrations of any kind and love this set up. Barely know I am towing with 10,000 pounds behind it, 5th wheel.

 

[Dogpatch]

My new 2016 2500 does this when I first mashed the throttle down from a dead stop & this raised concerns till I investigated it - so I don't mash it unless I got to & it takes off no problems

It was the same for me when I put my foot to the floor on take off loaded. I don't do that anymore and just ease into it from the stop. Never had it happen again. Once rolling, you can put it to the metal! LOL

 

[Cummins12V98]

"*Once rolling, you can put it to the metal! "

Exactly how I drove my 11 HO Dually with 3.42's towing 28-29K. *But is sure is nice with my 15 and AISIN on a grade just pushing down on the pedal and just taking off with 33K combined load.