Has anyone had steering rack bushings go bad?
 

If so, what was the main symptom? I'm trying to isolate the source of a clanging sound when going over bumps, and the steering rack is a tiny bit wiggly.

Have you looked at the sway bar bushings? I think that's what is rattling on mine. Plan on replacing them soon before going on to more expensive solutions.

Yes, they look great, no sign of wear.

FWIW; after having looked at the movement my OEM rack was making, and the amount that my reman'd moved. I'm convinced the movement I had seen was within spec and ultimately a waste.

I bought some blue poly bushings from eBay because I feel like they should be replaced, haven't installed them yet though. I removed the rag joint at the firewall and that made it a little better but I'm still getting a shimmy in the steering wheel when I hit a bump. I'll replace all the easier stuff before replacing the expensive rack. I'm convinced the rack bushings will help though, will report back once I get them installed.

You can always have someone move the steering wheel while you look at the mounts. If the play is significant, you need to replace the rack. Toyota doesn't sell just the bushings and the way they are mounted it makes it hard to press them out on the truck. Other options would be the Whiteline poly bushing that is for the 4th gen. The website states 03-present but I've read on here that the bushings are too small for the 5th gen. I do know that the racks are different in many ways.

Other than that i have a spare oem rack sitting around I'd sell if you needed it.

Pathfinder, by "play", do you mean a little wiggle when the car is stationary and the steering wheel is moved back and forth?

If so, how much play is acceptable? I realize it's not easy to describe this in writing.

I ran into this issue a few months back after two separate alignment shops said that the rack bushings were bad and my wheel won't stay straight for long after an alignment. Confirmed it myself after noticing that the truck stayed in alignment after a few months but the wheel wouldn't keep straight.

I took it to a trusted shop and they confirmed it, and I just got a new reman'd rack since the bushings they were referring to are internal. Kind of a disappointment since I was able to do the bushings myself in my 3rd gen, but it did fix the issue.

Pretty sure the rack on my girlfriend's 4th gen is going out. From what I've read no one makes a bushing kit for 4th gens so you have to piece together some janky stuff to replace them or just get a new rack which sucks ass. Same symptoms, clank going over bumps. Seems to be driver side specific, and literally every single component minus the rack is new on that side. On the plus side, it's an annoyance at most and not a critical issue so just waiting until I feel like ripping the front apart to do it.

Since the bushings are rubber there will be some play in them. Maybe 3/16 or slightly more when sitting still going lock to lock. If there's excessive play in the mounts a technician will be able to notice when he adjusts the toe. He'll set the toe and just by moving the tire it will go back out of spec.

If you have play in the steering wheel sitting still you might want to look into the u-joint at the floor board and on the shaft to the rack. The one under the wheel should never need adjusting unless you have a body lift spacer and it's not 100% tight. The u-joint in the main shaft to the rack sometimes binds up due to rust and age. Other than that there's another joint at the rack itself.

I would spray them down with a lubricant and see if it makes the play worse by loosening it up.

Just had mine replaced. It wasn't a big issue until I beat it up off road and the steering wheel would move as much as 90 degrees one time. After replacement, the truck (with 35s) responded much better. It wandered at speed just a bit before because of these big tires, and that has been cured as well.
FWIW I went with a CVJ reman. $250 Core deposit was returned the next day after delivery back to them. Working well so far. Have not heard good things about cheap remans. Pay once cry once. The CVJ option is cheaper than OEM from what I have seen researching.
Good Luck!

CVJ doesn't give rack prices on their website, they want you to call or email them, do you mind saying what you paid for your's?

This is the email sent in response to my inquiry back in January. My core return cost $57 with UPS. I used an old King Shocks container so it could have been cheaper if I had used a smaller box. My total was $528 after it was all said and done after shipping costs. You may be able to find a comparable OEM price, but I dont think it will be any cheaper. Some listings I saw were well over a $1000. I like to do my own work but because of my age and 2 torn meniscus, I passed this one off to a local shop for just under $400 labor. Not a cheap repair plain and simple. This job is no cake walk so I don't recommend a cheap reman that might give you problems in the short term. Good Luck!

From CVJ axles:

03-09 Toyota 4Runner

We have our CVJ Remanufactured Rack in stock. CVJ part number R9311.
Your cost is $434.00 plus a core deposit of $250.00. Plus freight (UPS ground) which is about $52.00 or less in the US - it varies by zip code.

The core deposit is refunded once we receive your old rack. It must be the same original 4Runner and be rebuildable and have all the parts.
You pay the shipping back on the core.

These racks are OEM Toyota racks that are completely remanufactured using only top quality aftermarket parts and neoprene boots.
The rack includes the inner tie rods but not outer tie rods ends.

The rack has a limited three year warranty. When used for offroad, in lifted trucks or performance use we cannot warrant the racks.