TRD Pro Impossible to Align Properly...

[Gfenza89]

I feel much better now, I’d be sick to my stomach knowing I paid $68k to get one of these trucks that tracked straight.

Thanks for the advice I am going to open a case with Toyota next week.

Toyota isn’t gonna fix your truck until a tsb comes out, all an FTS does is tell customers there problem is a normal characteristic of the vehicle, and most of the FTS are such cowards they won’t even talk to customers directly they hide in the dark. Virtually everything that could go wrong with your vehicle without a check engine light would probably be deemed “normal characteristic of vehicle”

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[BAQ717]

My truck tracks perfectly straight. Definitely not normal.

 

[TacoFreak]

My truck tracks perfectly straight. Definitely not normal.

I'm guessing that is true for most 4th gens, but it doesn't stop some dealers and even Toyota from having the balls to lie about it. That's the part that amazes me - that answer is used over and over by dealers.

 

[alairmore]

Hi everyone. I just wanted to share my experience.

I bought a 2025 Trailhunter two weeks ago. I noticed the truck would pull to the right quite a bit, so I scheduled an appointment with my dealer's service department. The service adviser texted me that the technician confirmed the truck pulled to the right and that they were performing an alignment. They later called and confirmed the truck was out of alignment but was able to correct it, and now everything is within specifications. After picking up the truck, I noticed it was still pulling to the right, but a little less than before.

When I got home, I looked at the alignment specs and saw that the rear thrust angle was 0.44, and that was after the correction; it was originally 0.49. Other points of concern were the unbalanced left and right rear toe (Left 0.67, Right 0.20). The next day, I called to let them know the truck still pulled to the right, and they had me bring it in again. I shared my concerns about the rear thrust alignment and the large discrepancy in the rear toe. The service adviser seemed to have a glazed look—I could tell he either didn’t know what I was talking about or just didn’t care. They took the truck again and said they would have the tech look at it. About two hours later, they called to confirm the truck was still pulling right, but that they were able to correct it again and asked me to come down and take a test drive with the alignment tech and the shop lead tech.

During the test drive, I was able to show the truck still drifting to the right—much more than what you’d expect from a crowned road. I also took it to a road where I knew it leaned to the left, not the right, and the truck still pulled to the right. During the drive, I brought up that the truck’s rear thrust angle was significantly off and that it was one of my main concerns. The techs said they can't adjust that on the Tacoma and that there’s nothing they can do. I responded that the truck must be defective from the factory and suggested we need to warranty the truck. The lead tech said that if I let them keep the truck another day, he would reach out to Toyota corporate for advice and let me know.

Truck is at the shop now, and I'm waiting for their response. I will be sure to update once I hear back.

Below are the results from the first alignment.

I forgot to mention earlier that I asked about the 2.5-inch difference in ride height from left to right. They say this is intentional to balance out the weight of the driver... Can anyone share their thoughts on that?

 

[TacoFreak]

That rear toe clearly looks wrong, and that would affect how your truck drives. It might be OK if they could get the two sides a lot closer. The rear thrust angle might not be adjustable, but that just means the truck was not built right. I have not had an alignment but my truck tracks fine, and yours should too.

The ride height is a creative lie. If your truck is built as intended with the 2.5" higher driver's side then I got screwed, because mine is only .25" higher on the drivers side. The garbage that comes out of these so called service advisors is amazing and pathetic, particularly at these price points.

Good luck, let us know if they ever manage to fix your truck.

 

[alairmore]

Just received an update text from my service adviser.

"Hello again, so vehicle is ready. I had a talk with my manager, the technician that worked on the vehicle, as well as the shop foreman. The shop foreman test drove your truck this morning and did confirm it is still pulling. What he explained to me was the technician that did the alignment yesterday did not do the proper measurements/procedures before actually aligning the truck. They have to measure the chassis height in different areas and take those readings into account for the alignment. If they do not, even if the computer says its all green, it will still pull. So, the shop foreman did that today with the technician, readjusted the caster and camber, as well as re-initializing the steering angle. The shop foreman then test drove the vehicle himself and is confirming that it is now driving straight. - Brandon"

I need to wait for the wife to get home to take me down there, so I have not confirmed it is tracking straight yet. I did text back asking for a photo of the alignment spec sheet. No response yet..

 

[james cole]

What they could possibly have done is advance caster on the passenger side to neutralize the push to the right.

 

[alairmore]

For what it's worth, here is the screenshot from the service advisor. I haven't driven the truck yet, so I can't confirm the drift was resolved.

Over all the numbers do look better, but rear thrust angle is still higher than I would like...

I will let you all know how it drives. Honestly skeptical, but maybe that tidbit from the Forman regarding needing to take multiple measurements of the chassis height is the missing key

 

[james cole]

How did they manage to move the thrust angle? that is important!!!

 

[alairmore]

How did they manage to move the thrust angle? that is important!!!

From what I know, the thrust angle is not directly adjustable on our trucks; this is where the service techs get hung up. But the rear toe is adjustable on the TRD Off-Road and PRO/Hunter. Adjusting the rear toe will affect the thrust angle. What they should do is start by adjusting the rear toe to get the thrust angle as close to 0 as possible, then adjust the front to align with the thrust line.

When I pick up the truck in about an hour, I will ask that same question, but I doubt the service advisor will know. Still, I will try.

 

[james cole]

Can you please ask them how to adjust rear toe?

 

[alairmore]

Ok, back from the dealer.

Forman was gone by the time I got there, so I had to settle with the service advisor. I asked how they were able to get the thrust angle down from .44 to .17 if there is no way to adjust it. He is claiming the first readings I got were wrong because the technician failed to calibrate the alignment table correctly. This was also why my truck was still drifting to the right even though everything showed it was in spec. He also confirmed that even though the new Tacomas use multi-link spring suspension in the rear, there is no way to adjust the toe because they have a solid axle.

Anyway, test drove the truck, and the drift is much better, but not perfect. It still drifts a little to the right, but I'm over it at this point. It's good enough that I don't feel like I'm armwrestling the whole time I'm driving now.

As a bonus, for all my trouble, they threw in a free dent and a dirty front armrest

!

 

[james cole]

Great to hear your push is better, too bad the truck is now in worst condition.

For me what made the truck less prone to pulling or pushing is setting the camber to .30 instead of 1.20

My thrust angle is still at .36

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