Ideas identifying this steering rattle?

[Lolrax]

Ideas identifying this steering rattle? [updated with fix!]

Hey all, this is a great forum you got here I love reading up on the stuff you all are doing. I lurked for a while and finally decided to buy a 2012 Limited Black/Black. I love it quite a bit although it is an adjustment from an agility perspective since I am coming from a 2007 Subaru Legacy GT (manual). I needed an SUV and imo this is one of the last pillars of masculinity left in the SUV market haha.

Anyways, I have about 2000 Miles and since I bought the car I feel a "rattle" in my steering column when hitting sharper bumps at low speeds. It is really pronounced in a washboard type of scenario. The suspension seems to react fine and do its job. The rattle doesn't seem to produce any sound at all, and I can only feel it through the steering wheel.

Once I speed up past 20MPH it disappears completely over any type of bump.

My dealer has been very helpful and took me for a test drive in another Limited and agreed with what I noticed, they haven't looked at the internals yet but think it is the "Intermediate Steering Column" and have ordered a new one. I am scared that I am going to get the car back and still have the rattle, as this is kind of putting a damper on my new car excitement. Is there any advice any of you have for me as to what this could be so I can point the dealer in the right direction if it remains?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Jtraskell]

So as I am understanding your concern (s), you are feeling or hearing what you think is "excessive steering wheel vibration or rattle" when going over "bumps" at low speeds. Correct?

 

[Lolrax]

So as I am understanding your concern (s), you are feeling or hearing what you think is "excessive steering wheel vibration or rattle" when going over "bumps" at low speeds. Correct?

Yes, I can feel what I would describe as a "rattle" although I can't hear it, and it is over sharp bumps like cracks in the road and washboard dirt roads as where on a larger type of bump (speedbump) I don't feel the rattle. Its completely gone above 20mph.

 

[R.A.]

If the steering in the 5th Gen is built like the 4th Gen, then that's what the problem is. A lot of threads in the 4th Gen concerning that rattle.

 

[Qjake]

Not sure if Toyota uses the same intermediate column in the 4Runner as they do in the Tacoma but there is a TSB for it on the 2nd gen Tacoma's. You can find the TSB here

 

[Lolrax]

Not sure if Toyota uses the same intermediate column in the 4Runner as they do in the Tacoma but there is a TSB for it on the 2nd gen Tacoma's. You can find the TSB here

Awesome thanks for this! Sounds like the dealer is on the right track then. I will update this thread with the result of changing the column.

 

[Qjake]

Yeah I did a quick search at Tacoma World and it turned up a lot of threads with complaints very similar to yours so might be worth a look over there.

Good luck!!

 

[Lolrax]

Update:

I got my car back from the dealership today and I am so pleased to say that the steering column fix worked! I have posted a picture of the service record and part # from the service record.

I also gotta hand it to the shop foreman at my dealership (Charlesglen Toyota in Calgary), he took the time to do a test drive with me in the car and even took out the test-drive car from the lot to compare. He easily could have sent me on my way and said its fine or treated me the way Jtraskell did at the beginning of this thread, but he didn't so they have a customer for life in me!

The difference in steering tightness and confidence is night and day.

 

[FERAL 4R]

Put that shop foreman on your x-mas list for sure.

 

[diverscale]

for future reference: if anyone get this problem and is out of warranty, you can stuff a small rubber o-ring in your intermediate shaft bushing and hold it there with a tie-wrap or anything else really, and it will do it.

tried the tie-wrap fix (you stuff a tie-wrap instead of a rubber bushing) and it didn't work for me.

Did this in my tacoma and worked flawlessly for 2 years. I was on warranty but didn't want to deal with going to the dealership.

 

[JB.]

Here's good info from the 4th gen forum. Seems likely to apply to the 5th.

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/124180-steering-column-clack-resolved.html

 

[Jtraskell]

Update:

I got my car back from the dealership today and I am so pleased to say that the steering column fix worked! I have posted a picture of the service record and part # from the service record.

I also gotta hand it to the shop foreman at my dealership (Charlesglen Toyota in Calgary), he took the time to do a test drive with me in the car and even took out the test-drive car from the lot to compare. He easily could have sent me on my way and said its fine or treated me the way Jtraskell did at the beginning of this thread, but he didn't so they have a customer for life in me!

The difference in steering tightness and confidence is night and day.

I am happy you got your concerns fixed. I really am. But outside of trying to rephrase your concerns to a more short and concise statement so others might be able to help you more easily, how did I "treat you" in any way, shape or form?

 

[Michigander]

Update:

I got my car back from the dealership today and I am so pleased to say that the steering column fix worked! I have posted a picture of the service record and part # from the service record.

I also gotta hand it to the shop foreman at my dealership (Charlesglen Toyota in Calgary), he took the time to do a test drive with me in the car and even took out the test-drive car from the lot to compare. He easily could have sent me on my way and said its fine or treated me the way Jtraskell did at the beginning of this thread, but he didn't so they have a customer for life in me!

The difference in steering tightness and confidence is night and day.

The tacoma's that had the steering shaft replaced with a new unit, most of them had the clunk and rattle come back after some use. Some of the remedies were to place a tack weld at the slip joint to tighten that joint up and reduce / eliminate the rattle.

Please give us an update when you have some miles on the truck.

FYI, I had the same issue on my 2008 Tacoma, it was very annoying on dirt roads.

 

[Lolrax]

Please give us an update when you have some miles on the truck.

FYI, I had the same issue on my 2008 Tacoma, it was very annoying on dirt roads.

Will do!

Yeah the thing is that the truck drove fine, but it just kinda takes away the solid feeling the comes with driving a Toyota truck. It was an irritant for sure.

 

[4boer2]

Will do!

Yeah the thing is that the truck drove fine, but it just kinda takes away the solid feeling the comes with driving a Toyota truck. It was an irritant for sure.

I know this is a while back but do you have an update? I am looking to do the same repair.