The contact's wife owns a 1999 Toyota 4Runner. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at a slow speed, the back end of the vehicle began to wobble. The contact stated that his daughter pulled the vehicle into a parking lot and had the vehicle towed to the contact's home. The vehicle was inspected and severe corrosion was discovered on the driver's side rear lower control arm mount. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed him that there are no recalls on the vehicle. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and the contact was given the same information as the dealer. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 240,000.
1999 Toyota 4RUNNER: ball joint or control arm failure
17 of the 330 complaints about the 1999 Toyota 4RUNNER describe ball joint or control arm failure.
- owner complaints
- 17
- of this car's complaints
- 5%
- typical mileage
- 200,100
- recalls
- 0
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.
Ball joint or control arm failure by model year
What owners say
The mount for the rear lower control arm has rusted off. This is causing the car to violently rock back and fourth after hitting a pot hole and continue for a few seconds after. It is very unnerving and obviously a mater safety issue. I have also seen similar complaints on websites such as t4r.org. Please give me a call [xxx]. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
Frame rot has LED to abnormal tire wear, vehicle changing lanes unexpectedly, and death wobble. Tires and shocks replaced september, needed new tires after 90 days also tie rods and bushings. Vehicle is unsafe to drive.
The ball joint on my 1999 toyota 4runner broke while I was driving the vehicle. By the grace of god, I stopped at mcdonald's before my long journey onto the freeway, with my 9 month old baby in the car, and that saved us from a very bad crash that may have taken our lives had we been going 60-70 MPH. How does a ball joint break in half???
I have a 1999 toyota 4runner. I am the original owner, and this vehicle has been garage keep and well maintained since I have owned it. While driving on the highway at about 55mph on 10/18/16, without warning - the 4runner began to shake violently from side to side... I almost lost control of the 4runner and could have been involved in a serious accident. The reason I lost control of the 4runner is because of a serious rusting issue in the frame (this issue has been well documented on the federal safety agency, and also many other websites). The reason this rusting issue is so dangerous is where the rusting has occurred. The frame is rusting right at the section that the lower control arm bracket is welded to the frame. The lower control arm bracket is attached to the link/bar that holds the rear axle in place. The rust on my 4runner frame caused the lower control arm bracket on the drivers side to completely separate from the frame, causing a loss of control of the vehicle (see attached photos). I check the control arm bracket on the passenger side, and it also shows the same severe rusting at the frame where the control arm bracket is attached. There are still many 3rd generation 4runners on the road, and I feel this rusting situation is putting many lives in danger. There is no warning, you just lose control. I understand that my 4runner is 17 years old... But as I mentioned earlier, the rest of the vehicle is in excellent shape. A frame should not rust this badly, especially in a critical section. Please hold toyota accountable for a vehicle defect that is putting live in danger. Thank you.
I was traveling approximately 70 MPH on a straight highway. I felt a bump and then heard a grinding noise and saw sparks from my front left wheel well. I pulled to the shoulder and saw my front tire, wheel, and brake assembly were detached and lodged under my vehicle. On further inspection, the lower ball joint gave out and my wheel assembly detached. Very hazardous and would have LED to a collision if I had not been so late at night. This is a known problem with this ball joint and toyota issued recall on 2001-2004 4runners for the issue. Needs to be expanded to older years. Joint assembly was redesigned for 2005-current models to correct the problem. See attached photos.
The front suspension lower ball joint seperated from the knuckle and broke off while I was driving and left me in on coming traffic that I had to get out of the way of. Toyota has a recall for the exact same issue for toyota 4runners from 2001-2004 (special service campaign 50j ' front suspension lower ball joint 2001 through 2002 4runner). It should be expanded to include additional years. It is extremely dangerous and can potentially put lives in jeopardy. Http://www-odi.the federal safety agency.dot.gov/owners/searchresults?searchtype=id&targetcategory=r&searchcriteria.agency_ids=05v225000 safety recall notice
Frame rusting though on passenger side on section next to muffler and control arm. Mechanic inspected and instructed frame needs to be repaired or replaced. Mileage of vehicle was 133,000.
Simply driving down the road and the vehicle started to sway all of a sudden. Had shop look at it next day and the rear left control arm detached from frame due to rust. I have been told it is impossible to repair. The rest of vehicle in great condition except the rust on the control arm/frame/underside.
Tl* the contact owns a 1999 toyota 4runner. The contact stated that the rear passenger side frame exhibited excessive rust corroision near the control arm. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact mentioned that the frame was severely damaged beyond repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 235,000.
Frame is rotted through on the passenger side of the interior of the frame near the rear lower control arm attachment. There has not been an incident, just a very bad condition exists that I will have to repair before driving again. It is an unsafe condition. Why did this part of the frame rot through but not the rest of it, not even close to the amount that this part of the frame is rotted, seems like a design flow to me. I did some research and found that there are a lot of people with the same issue in the exact same place on the frame.
Frame rusted on inside surface and at both rear lower control arm mounts. Drivers side rear lower control arm mount separated from the frame and allowed axle to move and tire to contact inner fender. The passenger side rear lower control arm mount was also severely rusted. The entire center section of both inner frame rails had new plate steel welded in place to repair the original rusted steel. Reinforcements were welded on the inner and outer frame for both rear lower control arm mounts. The vehicle is now safe to drive, but these repairs should not have been necessary on a 14 year old (at the time of incident) vehicle.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 1999 Toyota 4RUNNER ball joint
Is ball joint or control arm failure a common problem on the 1999 Toyota 4RUNNER?
17 of 330 owner complaints about the 1999 Toyota 4RUNNER (5%) mention ball joint or control arm failure. The model year with the most reports is 2000.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 1999 Toyota 4RUNNER?
There is no recall or service bulletin for this area of the car on record.
Other symptoms on the 1999 Toyota 4RUNNER
Fuel gauge 33Stalling 16Tire blowout 12No deployment 10Brake failure 7ABS 6Grinding brakes 6Jerking 6Loss of power 6Engine failure 5Power steering loss 5
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