2011 4runner TE steering too sensitive

I can "ALMOST" assure you, that no matter the tire, if the Castor is to far back, (from the factory setting that may still be "within spec's") you will still experience the "squirrelly" steering feel. AFTER the new tires, IF you still have that problem, get the caster changed to as close as you can to 4.0, you will be amazed at the difference. Many kudos to Harper 7 for bringing this issue up many months ago.

My original Castor setting was 2.3 and 2.5 before it was changed. Now it is 3.8 and 4.0. You would not think that little of a change would make such a difference, but it does. Seriously, just get it done. Good luck and be safe.
 
BigredTEX said:
I just purchased a 2012 TE on which the dealer had already installed an Old Man Emu lift and 285 BFG Mud Terrains. I have to say this thing is down right squirrely. At freeway speeds it is difficult to keep in one lane. If I take my eye off the road for a second I can find myself in the next lane. It will be going back to the dealer very soon and the "safety" approach sounds like the best way to handle it.
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What Jtraskell says,especially if you got a 3.75" OME lift with stock UCA's. Your caster is probably way,way too low and causing the squirrely feeling.

Cheapest are LR UCA's and set the castor close to 4.0 and you will feel like it's a whole new truck.
 
The dealer flat out refused to make the castor change. They checked it and said it was within spec, so no issue. Didn't seem to care about the safety issue.


Jtraskell said:
I can "ALMOST" assure you, that no matter the tire, if the Castor is to far back, (from the factory setting that may still be "within spec's") you will still experience the "squirrelly" steering feel. AFTER the new tires, IF you still have that problem, get the caster changed to as close as you can to 4.0, you will be amazed at the difference. Many kudos to Harper 7 for bringing this issue up many months ago.

My original Castor setting was 2.3 and 2.5 before it was changed. Now it is 3.8 and 4.0. You would not think that little of a change would make such a difference, but it does. Seriously, just get it done. Good luck and be safe.
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JustLeft said:
The dealer flat out refused to make the castor change. They checked it and said it was within spec, so no issue. Didn't seem to care about the safety issue.
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Sorry that happened to you, but not unexpected with a dealer. If you are still unhappy, (or if you have not done this yet) go pay the dollars and have a "reputable" shop do the change. You will not be sorry. Be safe.
 
tjnaples said:
Drove cross country and did not think this.
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Factory spec are 2.5 to 4.0. It seems the only folks who are experiencing this "over touchy" steering (from the factory, mods are a different story), are those who's vehicles came from the factory with a 2.XX Castor setting. You may have been one of the lucky ones where your factory caster was set at the factory more towards 3.xx. Hence, you have good resistance in your steering.

Heaven forbid I garner the wrath of 1engineer here, but it strikes me as strange that Toyota would have such a poor range of Castor, knowing, or should have known, that anything less then say, 3.xx would cause (what I consider) a drivability problem. This to me really is a safety issue. My god, just resting my little finger on the steering wheel with no conscious pressure, (yes I am sure there was some pressure) being applied would cause the vehicle to turn. I was constantly micro managing the steering just to stay straight. It was very annoying. Now, all is good. Just sayin.

Be Safe.
 
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Jtraskell said:
.... I was constantly micro managing the steering just to stay straight. It was very annoying...
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Well stated - this is exactly what it feels like. I don't consider it dangerous, just annoying. I'm an hour away from my appt now, and I will make sure to find out how it's presently set, and what it drives like afterwards.
 
philsey said:
Well stated - this is exactly what it feels like. I don't consider it dangerous, just annoying. I'm an hour away from my appt now, and I will make sure to find out how it's presently set, and what it drives like afterwards.
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Good luck. My safety concern is if the driver is distracted for a second or two, (children in the back seat or whatever), does not take much to travel out of your lane......etc. Let us know your experience. Be safe.
 
Ta - Da

Well, it now drives like it should have from the get-go.

So, first I had Continental CrossContacts put on. Then I took it on the interstate, and "tracking" as I'll call it, was improved.

Then I had it aligned. I told the tech "as close to 4* as possible". So, after premium tires, and caster set to Harper-spec, it drives great.

Caster settings:

Left before / after
2.80* / 4.00*

Right before / after
2.40* / 3.98*

Incidently, my Toyota service manager said "sure, we'll do an alignment and set your caster anywhere you want it."

My thanks to the early adopters for the good advice.

Knowing what I know now, my new car delivery would have had premium tires and a caster setting on the sales order.
 
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BigredTEX said:
I just purchased a 2012 TE on which the dealer had already installed an Old Man Emu lift and 285 BFG Mud Terrains. I have to say this thing is down right squirrely. At freeway speeds it is difficult to keep in one lane. If I take my eye off the road for a second I can find myself in the next lane. It will be going back to the dealer very soon and the "safety" approach sounds like the best way to handle it.
Click to expand...

Following up on my earlier post:

Took my T4R to the dealer this morning to have the alignment specs checked out. Camber is essentially zero on both sides, caster is 1.0/1.6 (l/r) and toe is essentially zero. After a test drive they agreed that the handling was less than optimal. Their reasoning for the alignment settings was that to maintain zero degrees camber, and limit tire wear, they had to set the caster at , or near 1 degree. If they increased the caster to 3.5 - 4 degrees it would cause the camber to go to -2 degrees and would lead to unacceptable tire wear. In their opinion the only way to keep camber at acceptable settings and get the caster needed they would have to install adjustable upper control arms. When I asked what the cost would be they said they would take care of it; "it should have been done when we installed the lift".

Bottom line - they are ordering the parts today and should have them early next week. I can't wait to see what difference it will make. Based on the feedback in this thread, adding caster should make a significant improvement.

I've also got to put in a good word for Toyota of Dallas. This is my first service experience with them since the vehicle is only two months old, but they really stepped up. I'll post the results once everything is installed.
 
On LE, get wider wheels, better tires

All these described steering difficulties; too loose, no trackability, no confidence in lane changes, etc, went COMPLETELY AWAY when I put 20x9 wheels with 275/60-20 tires on my '11 4R. It drives great, feels sure footed, and looks better too (imho).
 
BigredTEX said:
Following up on my earlier post:

Took my T4R to the dealer this morning to have the alignment specs checked out. Camber is essentially zero on both sides, caster is 1.0/1.6 (l/r) and toe is essentially zero. After a test drive they agreed that the handling was less than optimal. Their reasoning for the alignment settings was that to maintain zero degrees camber, and limit tire wear, they had to set the caster at , or near 1 degree. If they increased the caster to 3.5 - 4 degrees it would cause the camber to go to -2 degrees and would lead to unacceptable tire wear. In their opinion the only way to keep camber at acceptable settings and get the caster needed they would have to install adjustable upper control arms. When I asked what the cost would be they said they would take care of it; "it should have been done when we installed the lift".

Bottom line - they are ordering the parts today and should have them early next week. I can't wait to see what difference it will make. Based on the feedback in this thread, adding caster should make a significant improvement.

I've also got to put in a good word for Toyota of Dallas. This is my first service experience with them since the vehicle is only two months old, but they really stepped up. I'll post the results once everything is installed.
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Wow, make sure you give that dealer all your future business....sounds great and please let us know if it all works out...as I am sure it will. Be safe.
 
[email protected] said:
All these described steering difficulties; too loose, no trackability, no confidence in lane changes, etc, went COMPLETELY AWAY when I put 20x9 wheels with 275/60-20 tires on my '11 4R. It drives great, feels sure footed, and looks better too (imho).
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Thats great to hear. I assume then, prior to the tire/wheel change, you also experienced the issues you spoke of. It seems the larger wheels/tires effected the Castor (placement) of the wheel dynamics as such, to help with steering resistance. That is good! Be safe.
 
useful, mark,
dealer inlate my tire at 40psi, that is the main reason I found it is hard to control in wind. deflate to 34psi,riding feel totally defferent
I think , for the rear drive vehicle, front tire pressure and caster is much important
 
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I have noticed it a little in my 4runner as well. There seems to be a lot of play in the steering but keeping the tires properly inflated seems to make a significant difference. It does take a little getting used to, my wife can't stand it because she's used to her BMW which is fine by me because I don't want her driving my 4runner anyway lol.
 
JustLeft said:
Been on a number of long road trips recently and am finding that my TE's steering is very sensitive at high speeds (70 or higher). Most of the vehicles i have owned have speed sensitive steering. My TE doesn't seem to have this. Steering wheel resistance doesn't increase with speed. Sneezing while driving can get interesting. Is this common with all 4runners? Is it possible to adjust this somehow, or is it just live with it?

Love the TE in every other way, but this is very annoying.
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My 2004 is the same, way too easy to steer. I'd unhook the power steering if it wasn't using just one big belt.
 
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