I think all you can do factor in what tires you choose and inflation to lighten the steering.
If it really drives you nutty next time it's aligned have it set the minimum caster spec. The lower the caster (within the range provided in the spec) the easier it will steer. The downside is it'll track grooves in the road a bit more.
IMHO- When Toyota came out with the 4th gen they were trying to appeal to a sportier crowd. They wanted the guy who loved his 3-series BMW to buy a 4Runner as his SUV. They went for a tighter steering that provided some feedback trying to appeal to that crowd. They didn't and won't ever have the die-hard Chevy Caprice, Suburban owner considering a 4Runner so they said screw it and went for the Audi/BMW crowd who wanted a real SUV. Just my 2cents.
As far as 'adjusting' like you do on the old mustang be careful:awais:
You are adjusting the play or dead spot when the wheels are straight. If you set too loose you can move the steering wheel a 1/4 turn and nothing happens. Here's the 'dangererous part'. If you tighten it too tight your putting tremendous stress on the inner workings of the steering box. You could cause it to wear out or worse yet just break unexpediately.
Get a Chiltons or something and read about it... The range of play that's safe and correct is fairly narrow. There's some room for personal taste but not much. If you feel it really tighten up it's too tight.
BTW, I checked out your CarDomain page, nice 'stang! Great story too. It sounds like you have a great family and super parents:bigok:
:cheers:
