lose/sloppy steering on the road 1985 pickup

[the great him]

ok so i know its not a runner, but its both of my 85 pickups(same chassis as the runners, they have lose steering and they wander all over the road. i have about a 1/8 - 1/4 turn in the wheel of free play. tonight on my way home i was stopped by a state trooper for it. now i have 33s and a 4" ranch lift thats been on the thing for as long as i know of(i think it came on it from the dealer). anyhow i have a brand new steering stabilizer on it and so i know its not that. i was wondering if any of you first gen owners have had this(im sure you have as the age and mileage of our trucks are up there -mine are both in the 250k+ range) and if so what have you guys found as the fix. i am running a 1.5" wheel spacer up front and rear but the problem was there before the wheel spacers. i will be gone for a couple weeks, leaving first thing in the AM so i wont be around to work on it or look at things but if you guys could be so kind as to throw some ideas my way... i had one shop tell me a while back that it was my steering box that was old and sloppy and lose and that i just needed to tighten it up, i dont know if there is an adjustment on it but the bolts holding it to the frame are all tight(no high steer or cross-over steering yet). i also had someone else tell my it was my tie rod ends... all that stuff seams good and i dont notice any slop in them when i crawl under it to look at things and pull tug on it with my arms. any ideas or experience in this matter? thanks a ton guys!

 

[SV_Dude]

I would imagine it's your steering box is just old and worn out. There really isn't anything I can think f that would give you that kind of slop in your steering wheel. Usually when you have that slop, you can turn the wheel and your wheels will not turn and nothing past your steering box will move. IF there is something past your steering box that is making that kind of slop then it would have failed by now and you would definitely know it.

Here's a way to test it: Pop your hood and look at your steering box. Have someone turn your wheel left to right (only within the slop in the wheel) while you look at the steering box. If you see the input shaft turn, and nothing outside of the steering box turn, then it's your box.

 

[the great him]

So is there a way to tighten up the box/free play or can I get a new or rebuilt box or have it rebuilt... what are my options?

 

[Levinz11]

I'm still pretty new to Toyotas but I had Jeeps for a long time. On the front a Jeep steering box is allen head screw that you can adjust to take up slop in the box. Maybe your truck has a similar adjustment screw?

Check your tie-rods for play as well.

 

[fourwd1]

If the 4" lift kit did not come with with some shims to correct the caster angle, the bad caster can cause it to wander, as can worn steering components (not just the box), or a bad front end alignment.

 

[the great him]

If the 4" lift kit did not come with with some shims to correct the caster angle, the bad caster can cause it to wander, as can worn steering components (not just the box), or a bad front end alignment.

i have the correct shims, the lift was ordered with the truck from the dealer back in 1985, its a rancho 4" lift. (i know this cause my father in-law bought the truck brand new when he first started working as a tech for toyota back in 85). its not just "wondering", rather i have a significant amount of free play in the wheel in turn causeing the wandering drifting back and forth across the lane. i have double checked the tie rods and they are tight. i guess i could be the pitmant arm but am not sure. my tire wear isnt bad or abnormal so i doubt its an alingment issue and for the most part(baring the groves in the road) the truck tracks perfectly straight down the hwy at any speed. but its in the corners and or when the road is really groved that the slop is becoming an issue.

 

[dem]

I had some steering wheel play on my 84 4wd a few years ago.
Try adjusting the box... Located on the box is a flat head screw surrounded by a nut , ( if I remember correctly) loosen the nut and turn the flat head screw clockwise to remove the play (slop) then tighten the nut.
Hope that helps.

 

[the great him]

I had some steering wheel play on my 84 4wd a few years ago.
Try adjusting the box... Located on the box is a flat head screw surrounded by a nut , ( if I remember correctly) loosen the nut and turn the flat head screw clockwise to remove the play (slop) then tighten the nut.
Hope that helps.

thanks ill have to try this when i get home.

 

[the great him]

can you get that screw too tight? i loosened the nut and tightened the screw as directed, got about 6-7 turns outta the screw before it was tight and i could not turn it anymore, then i tightened the nut back up... havent driven the truck yet so not sure if its all good, but i figured id just check here and ask first.

 

[Levinz11]

can you get that screw too tight? i loosened the nut and tightened the screw as directed, got about 6-7 turns outta the screw before it was tight and i could not turn it anymore, then i tightened the nut back up... havent driven the truck yet so not sure if its all good, but i figured id just check here and ask first.

Again I haven't needed to adjust my 4R's box yet, but on my Jeep YES you can tighten it to much! On my first attempt (tightened too much) I couldn't even turn the steering wheel. Just adjust 1/4 turn at a time and test it out.