Toyota Tundra Bed Bounce Owner’s Survey: Initial Results
Jason Lancaster | Oct 11, 2007 | Comments 39
Our Toyota Tundra “Bed Bounce” owner’s survey opened on Sept. 22nd. Since that time we’ve received about 100 validated responses. Here’s the statistics we’ve compiled:
1. Nearly 79% of survey respondents have NOT filed a complaint with Toyota.
Amazingly, this problem seems to be under-reported by a factor of five. We’re not sure why people haven’t chosen to send an email or make a phone call, but we’re concerned that this lack of effort might ultimately lead to Toyota officially ignoring the issue.
2. The TRD package doesn’t seem to effect bed bounce frequency or severity.
About 51% of survey respondents reported owning a truck with the TRD package, and that percentage held for people reporting “severe” bed bounce and for those reporting “weekly” or “daily” occurrence. There’s no link we can find between the TRD package and the bed bounce problem.
3. Less than 10% of respondents described their bed bounce as “mild”.
91% of respondents stated that their bed bounce problem was “moderate” or “severe”, however, we think this is to be expected. Anyone with “mild” bed bounce might not know they even have the problem, so we’re not sure how valuable these statistics are.
4. 90% of respondents state they will modify or replace their Tundra if this problem isn’t solved.
If we assume that only people with severe problems decided to participate, this statistic makes sense. However, what doesn’t make sense (at least to us) is that while 90% of the owners will spend money to modify their suspension, replace their trucks early, or even sue Toyota, 80% of the respondents have yet to file a formal complaint…
5. 85% report experiencing bed bounce at highway speeds only.
Evidently, the anecdotes about highway bed bounce ring true — 85% of owners reported experiencing bed bounce on the highway only. Also, 69% of owners who participated reported that concrete highways were the only problem surface.
6. Basic data from the survey.
93% of respondents own the 5.7L V8.
61% of respondents drive double cabs, 36% drive the crew, and 3% drive the regular cab.
49% of respondents have owned their trucks 1 to 3 months, with the rest being evenly split between less than one month and more than 3 months.
53% of respondents rate their bed bounce as “severe”, 39% as “moderate”, and the rest as “mild”. There are no appreciable relationships between severity and truck type, nor between severity and frequency.
About 15% of survey responses were invalidated because of bogus VIN numbers or email addresses — it seems a few of our friends in the Ford, Chevy, and Dodge communities tried to participate in our survey.
Bottom Line: In our minds, our survey has been a bit of a failure. First of all, the number of responses has been very low (102 as of this posting). Also, it seems kind of foolish for TundraHeadquarters.com to lobby Toyota for action on this issue when only 20% of our survey respondents have bothered to officially report the problem. Furthermore, the data hardly seems to indicate that this issue is common. Our website receives more than 10k visitors per month, yet we have only accumulated 102 responses in 3 weeks. Granted, we don’t know for sure if all of our visitors are 2007 Tundra owners, but it seems that at least 5-10% of them would be (at a minimum). While we’ll keep our survey open through the end of October (if not longer based on response volume), at this point in time it seems the overwhelming majority of the community doesn’t find bed bounce to be too much of a problem.
To anyone who would say that they haven’t completed the survey because of privacy concerns, you’re welcome to complete the survey with a fake name. We’ve also upgraded the survey to a secure, encrypted connection. Finally, we only require a valid VIN# and a valid email address to validate a response. We’re not sure what other concerns people have, but we feel like we’ve done as much as we can to address them without ruining the validity of the survey. If you have any suggestions, or if you’d like to know more about our survey results, please contact us.
Again, if you or anyone you know hasn
Filed Under: Tundra Recalls • TundraHeadquarters.com
To make a conclusion that bed bounce isn’t “too much of a problem” because you’ve only got 101 responses is inappropriate in my view.
Site traffic can be misleading, chances are the majority of visitors here are potential buyers, not owners, so they’re not going to report a problem with a truck they don’t own. No offense, but this isn’t a high traffic site — at least not yet. 🙂 Also, many will avoid any survey at a site they’re unfamiliar with or don’t trust.
I’d request you remove your conclusions on the survey for now, until you have a statistically relevant sample. This might mean adding people who don’t have the problem. I initially resisted this, but I’ll wager you’ll get maybe 200 non-problem responses, not that many more – just a hunch.
101 responses in this context is quite a bit, in my view. 🙂
i have to agree with marc on top of that my guess is people are to busy to research the internet for problems they’re having with there truck i myself have the bed bounce but didn’t think of it as bed bounce but the suspension
i came about this site because i was searching for an answer to another problem with the tundra a clunking which i believe is the driveshaft have taken her in to get check once so far ,i was told to let the truck break in at least 3000 mi the problem started bout 500 miles in anyway i will be reporting all the problems i,m having with the truck only reason i haven’t done so because i known nothing will get done about it but now that i found the site i will support u all i can don’t give up on the survey!
I just called Toyota and filed an official complaint regarding this matter and it only took about five minutes. I asked the representative if any other complaints were made adout bed bounce, she stated that “Toyota is aware of the problem, they are working on it and will fix the problem”.
Two weeks ago I met with the local Toyota service manager and he said the same thing.
Hopefully I will hear something soon … very soon because the 10 Freeway is Killing me …
i am not sure about this so called bed bounce while driving but to the comment above from fly october 14, 2007. the drive shaft problem could be the rear end gears as i just had mine replaced by toyota 3 weeks ago. there was this so called bed bounce before i realized that the gears were being chewed up. i did notice also a few days before this that the bed was sorta having this bounce before this all happened. i’ve had my dbl cab tundra for about 5 months now and have 12,000 miles on it so far. no i did not fill out the survey on this site as i just found this site today 10/22/07 but will concider this if other problems start to show up.
I would like to thank tundra hq for making this issue legitimate with an official survey. I found you while on tundra solutions. Please give people time to find this site and time to agree to file this survey. The bed bounce is a legitimate issue that toyota is abligated to fix, so we hope.
1st of all let me give you all a brief history on my truck.
2007 Tundra 4-door 6 cylinder purchased Feb.07
Complained to Toyota Corp 7-07 regarding bed bounce.Drives like all 4 tires are out of balance. Very uncomfortable ride.
Toyota response was the same as you all have had
“Toyota is aware and trying to find a fix.
I then waited a few months and contacted legal counsel.
After 2 visits to 2 separate dealers for a test drive and repair, both dealers stated vehicle is bouncy at stated speeds 55mph + and they are awaiting a service correction bullitin from Toyota Engineers.
I then recontacted the dealer and asked for help in getting Toyota to buy back the truck since there is no fix.
The dealer has now set up a meeting with Toyota Engineers to drive and video this problem. They claim they ( Engineering Division ) want to address and correct the problem.
I feel there has been enough complaints filed and video documentation does exist already, enough for Toyota to have taken action long ago regarding this issue.
I will meet with Toyota Corporation on Nov 1st 2007 in Torrance, Ca, and attempt to video their comments and actions taken to investigate this complaint.
I have also filed a complaint with the National Highway Safety Administration
(NHTSA) and have filed a complaint with New Motor Vehicle review Board.
Now keep in mind Toyota Corporation has had my complaint filed with them since July of 2007.
You Tundra owners need to fill out this web sites questionnaire.
Then file a complaint with Toyota Motor Corporation.1-800-331-4331
Then file a complaint with The New Motor Vehicle review Board.1-916-445-1888
Take your vehicle to any Toyota dealership for at least 3 repair attemps and test drives. They will probably document this as ” normal bouncing for this vehicle”, maybe you can get them to word it better but least it is documented.
I am a firefighter and this truck bounces more than most fire trucks. My family will not ride in this vehicle, my wife complains about the bouncing and it bothers my neck and back.
Its up to all of us to document this issue, please take a few minutes write down the contact phone numbers I listed here.
Then have a glass of cold beer, or nice glass of wine, or some other type of beverage that you enjoy and file complaints with those agencies.
Do one a day its not that difficult.
Thanks for your time.
Well boys it seems the vibration or bed bounce, what ever you want to call it is getting worse for me as the temperature decreases. I sense it is going to be an extra bumpy winter here in Canada.
I hope Toyota is going to fix this soon. I really like the truck but the vibration is really bothering me. I’m already starting to think about selling my Crew Max.
Let me tell you, once I take a big hit money wise unloading this truck, Toyota is going to be my last choice when it comes to purchasing another vehicle (or a personal robot LOL) for at least the next 15 years (I hold grudges).
I will also make sure that everyone I come in contact with thinking about buying a Toyota product hears how I got burned.
Furthermore, since I bought the truck I have had at least 15 people approach me right of the street and ask me what I thought.
Needless to say you Tundra owners out there, we have more power then the manufacturer thinks. After all Toyota got so big and popular not because of their media advertising but because of word of mouth endorsements. So at this point if we the customers are not happy others are surly going to hear about it.
TOYOTA FIX MY VIBRATION!
Keep working on this. This is a new truck, and I didn’t notice the problem for some 5000 miles (just cause I never drove on concrete with cracks at 70mph.) Point is, its pretty bad when it happens and I suspect there will be a lot of complaints in time. I think 100 in such a short period is a whole lot. I used to think I was alone, but now I know I am not. Thanks for the effort and keep it up!!
I just recently came across this website and I too have had the problem with the bed bounce on my 2007 tundra crewmax 5.7V8.I had mentioned this early on to a salesperson as well as to someone taking a survey from toyota back in June about 3 weeks after I purchased the truck.I called the dealer ship and asked if they had any complaints,the service man said they had some complaints but didn’t know what could be done unless they heard something form toyota.I called toyota corp. at 1-800=331-4331 and told them about the problem,they gave me a case number and told me to take the truck back to the dealer to have them check it and to get back with them afterwards.It sounds like to me they want to attribute the problem to something other than a design flaw.I thought in the begining I was maybe a small minority with this situation until I saw your website and hopefully others will find the site and submit their cmments and contact toyota corp.
[…] CURE FOUND I’m disappointed that some people can’t acknowledge and respect this problem — the results of the bed bounce survey we did show that it’s a significant and real problem independent of geography, wheel base, cab […]
I purchased Tundra 4×2 dcab SR5 5.7 V8.TRD. I have severe bed bounce. Dealer advised they could do nothing about it. I’m at the point where I’m ready to press it. For personal reasons have not complained, but ready to now. In a big way. I feel this should have been disclosed to me before purchased. Love truck but ride sucks. Others who comment are very helpful and supportive. Thanks for your colume. Johnny Come lately,
I did call and e-mail Toyota – discussed it with their cust service line. Told them I will take the local dealer for a ride but the problem only occurs on certain stretches of road so I doubt their is anything mech wrong. They know about the problem and the basic answer is Toyota is not looking into it at this time – more of us need to bitch or they won’t fix – there’s and interesting r&d report prepared for sulastic out there that sheds a bit of light
i love my tundra but it bounces so bad im loseing lots of sleep .ive got a 1 ton dullie thats rides smoother.champion toyota in corpus christi,tx tells me get over it or get rid of it . i have a 40.000 dollar buck board.toyota dealers tell me thats normal. right’ my therie is the c frame from the rear spring hanger is way too thin .dont know what to do.i call california toyota hq thay dont care .someone is getting rich.while im getting mad.one very unhappy tundra
owner.please help.anyone who wants share bouncing stories e mail 3david@huntencino.com my name is david
nissan is aware of toyoya frame problembs
with thier new box frame adds.trust me bed bounce does exist.bad real bad i know it and toyota knows it but thier tecs are brainwashed and think that tundra is flawless bed bounce is pittiful
and unexceptable i feer so burned.
bed bounce put some weight in the bed that will cure it if you have any,as far as bed bounce buy a ford if you want to know what bed bounce is.as far as the ride alot better than my old 99 super duty.Run you rtrucks and don`t worry about bed bounce and rough rides use it as a truck and not as a luxury car!!!!!!
I see that people are still calling in to complain to Toyota hdqts….. and they say they are working on a fix…. I called and complained about it 10 months ago and they said they are aware of the problem and expect a “fix” soon….. that is almost a year ago.
They are doing nothing about it!
I would not buy this truck again if I knew the problem was this bad.
2007 CrewMax limited 4×4
I just gotta say it… it’s a truck,and they need a stiffer suspension to handle loads placed in them. In one form or another all pickups are gonna do this. Plus, if you feel like you have to add weight to your truck get ready to replace parts more often like shocks,bushings,etc.. If you feel that you havwe to do this please bolt plates to the frame with quality hardware. The last thing you want is a “willy bar” breaking loose on impact and slicing you in half or who ever is in the back.
Man that’s a thought.
Not to be disrespectful Ray, but you are clearly ignorant of the facts. I live in So. Cal. (not by choice), and I can’t count how many trucks I’ve ridden in over the last 15 years on these same freeways. Many of my friends and acquaintances have trucks. No one I know, or any truck I’ve ever ridden in has anywhere near this much bounce (vibration is way too mild of term) on these freeways. Oh, this is the fourth truck I’ve owned (all were different makes and models). That Toyota put this truck out with this truck out with this problem is absurd. My family has purchased five toyotas over the last 12 years. Never again, unless Toyota at least tells us what to do to fix the problem.
Well, now it is December 2008 and still no fix. I purchased my 2008 DC 4WD SR5 5.7l Dec. 5. I drove 1100 miles via I-70 from Hutchinson, KS to southern Utah to get it home. I would never call it “bed bounce” The harmonic shaking I experienced on certain sections of interstate were so violent that I filed a safety report with NHTSA. Infants are at risk in this truck at highway speeds on certain sections of road. I’m certain Toyota would rather just have this problem go away. Please continue to file complaints with both Toyota and NHTSA.
I don’t really know whatelse to do, I lifted 3 inches my front suspention to see if I can balance the weight a little better, it got worst, now even regular road is bad, I can’t drive in concrete freeways anymore, I’m thinking to lowering to the rugular level and sue toyota to make such a ridiculous shame truck and have no answer about it, I already called them too many times with no response, next will be my layer calling, my wife is pregnant and she cannot drive this truck, what a ridiculous shame for toyota!!!!!!!!!
I just bought a 2010 tundra crew cab 4×4. And yes it bounces also. I would like to soften the ride by replacing the shocks and springs. Has anyone done this? and what parts did you use?
This from a Toyota tech:
Originally Posted by HEMI LOL
Ok all, this is the first i’ve seen this thread (im blind apparently) so now for my comments i’m sure everyone expected already…………. lol
First thing first. Ever notice if you drive an old truck how they are just plain rattle traps????? Thats what happens if you build one TOO stiff, they will just rattle apart. case in point (anyone ever drove a tundra that rattled that way?) nope and its because the truck is built with “COMPLIANCE” on purpose. Remember this quote “Rigidity does not equal durability” Lets examine why this is true
1. If you use a box frame what will happen if you overload it? Just like any box structure it will “KINK” this is why you see pickups going down the road where the bed and cab dont line up anymore…..(you’ve all seen that huh) its the american way, we expect more than its designed for so a c-channel will give a little so it can be “overloaded” and then when the weight is removed it will return to its original position, remember those frames are tempered.
2. i read a comment about cost, FYI the Tundra frame cost 42% MORE than the hydroformed frame on the ford! the frame rail is not as thick as a 3/4 or 1 ton simply because its not designed for that weight. also, the F-250, F-350-550, F650-850, GM 2500, 3500, 4500, 5500,ect. and dodge 3500 cab and chassis and bigger ALL HAVE THE SAME STYLE FRAME AS THE TUNDRA and its not because of upfitters, its for “compliance”.
3. WE DONT have an ear hanging off the side of the rear frame rail to hold the spring shackle, everyone else does so they are forced to counter the “torsional load” exerted the spring trying to twist the frame rail inward. Ever look at your tundra springs????? the rear spring shackle sits DIRECTLY under the frame rail, therefore NO TORSIONAL TWISTING FORCE on the frame. Also, this makes the rear leaf springs on the tundra to be “toed out” or “Trapazoidal” as Toyota calls it. This also keeps the rear end from having “AXLE WALK” which we know as that scary feeling called sway. Everyone else has Parallel springs so they need to BEEF up there setup to do the same thing we do. Put Point blank, the tundra was designed to last 20 years being beat to death.
4. If you build a super stiff frame, every single bump moves straight through the frame rail and into your SEAT. This is why the Ford rides like an UNSPRUNG HAYWAGON! This causes you fatigue and when you get out of the truck after a long ride you cant walk without moaning of how bad you hurt. Ever notice after a long ride you hop out of tundra with no problem?
5. Another way to describe this is the Tundra’s frame will allow the Rear axle to BETTER stay in contact with the pavement because it helps Dampen the blows. WE ALSO HAVE STAGGERED SHOCKS TO HELP WITH AXLE TRAMP, and the F150 only has shocks mounted in front of the axle instead of staggered as they should be.
6. One more…… Everyone else uses a “Butt mount hitch” on their truck, meaning the hitch assembly only mounts to the rear frame horns. The Tundra has a class V hitch that is attached to the frame 2.5 FEET Forward on the frame rail by 6 bolts on each side! the Class V hitch is designed for 15,000lbs!!!!!!!! Far more than the Tundra is designed for, why? because its built heavier than it needs to be so it stands up to ANY abuse you give it.
And for a closing point. the “bed bounce” referred to is due to the 146 inch wheelbase. thats the california highway issue, they deemed this to be simply a “harmonics issue” as i have understood it. Also, as said before in a different comment. If you changed the speed you WOULD get a TOTALLY different result because of Harmonics. FORD IS KING OF FALSE ADVERTISEMENT! always has been and i’ll bet on always will be. I’m done ranting now………..
Great rant but I hate to take the wind from your sails but its so easy, I can’t help it! “The Tundra was designed to last 20 years of being beat to death”. They can’t last acouple of yeas of normal driving in the salt belt without needing a new frame. Recent engines have not lasted acouple weeks or acouple thousand miles with out needing a VVT spring replaced. Lets talk another the $4k repair for the air injectors, that’s quailty! The list goes on and on! So you want to say Ford has false advertisement! What false advertisement? They do everythin they say it will. Especially STOP and GO! Now how about the most recent recall of Toyota SUV’s, instead of unexpected acceleration they have unexpected decelleration. Seems like they are really confused like some owners! Yeah I guess there are a lot o manufacture that are spending billions on commercials tells the public that they take safety seriously and that they are spending billions on safety daily. News flash, if they did it from day one I wouldn’t be so expensive NOW! I’m sure Ford appreciates the shout out, expressively when it was so funny considering who it came from. If Toyota needs help building a car not alone a truck all they have to do is ask!
Greg one question…. Is it the customers, or is it Ford that can’t get their crap together with the same recall issued twice on the cruise control? Confucious says: take care of your backyard first before leaping into somone else’s.
Customers. Who went on a rant? Someone needs to heed their own warning! Don’t be upset that someone seen through the BS. Besides listing the same recall twice is ahell of alot better than trying not to list them at all, right Toyota. Hints the fine.
I put in a Toyota tech’s statement on bed bounce. What you’re saying Greg is Ford’s customers aren’t too bright.
Can’t let it go? Bothers you doesn’t it. Need to talk about?
–
Give it up you already proved your point, you can’t fix stupid aka this is how you turn of your vehicle if the throttle sticks. Pricless! Do you need that block of instruction again?
Yes can you give me the block instruction for sparkplugs being blown out, and especially the one for the rude airbag that deploys at it’s own pleasure. Nothing like just putting your key into the ignition holding your coffee and bam the airbag deploys. Talk about expresso…….Now that’s priceless. What you forget Greg Ford has the same issue with sticking pedals. We know these issues are caused by driver mistakes.
What do you think a Toyota tech is gonna say? I would be impressed if they stopped worring about others and find the problem! Notice his name is hemi. Seems really confused to me!
Also Greg you came to a Tundra website trashing a Tundra. I didn’t go to a Ford website. Who can’t let it go?
Really heeding your own warning. Jealousy is really ugly. Need to see a shrink? Got any recent recalls you want to talk about or just grabbing for anything. Seems really desperate. Remember turn off the vehicle.
Well Scott if you knew Hemi you would know he has 2 Crewmax’s and he’s a pretty good tech. He hit it right in exactly what he’s stating. If people would take the time to read they may understand. Easily put for me since the trucks I use at work have a terrible bed bounce till they are loaded down. So I need no extra explanation because it goes with exactly what Hemi has stated. I don’t have a problem with this, so no issue. I put this out long ago with the gas guage on the trucks. This truck was built for towing and payload. That’s it plain and simple.
Is that spose to mean something. A tech is just a part changer. The Computer does all the diagnosis. He’s way in left feild in comparing the frames with HD.
Greg Said in May 1st, 2010 @9:09 am Really heeding your own warning. Jealousy is really ugly. Need to see a shrink? Got any recent recalls you want to talk about or just grabbing for anything. Seems really desperate. Remember turn off the vehicle.
If anyone is jealous my friend you need not look no further than a mirror. Quit acting like a kid with your antics.
Your still dwelling on that? Ran out of recalls or issue with other brands? So trying to save face? I was being serious about do you need someone to talk to? 18003429647 call them they can help.
Greg you definitely have a chip on your shoulder for some reason. You don’t like the Tundra fine by why keep coming back here just to talk trash? Personally Greg you have the need for a physc. Maybe you need that # to call. You’re trying very hard to make it personal but you will fail. Just your antics prove you are desperate. When you grow up kid then we will talk.
Thanks Mickey for letting it go. Its evidence that you are more mature.
Really need a sarcasm button.