05+ V6 Tacoma Steering Rack Bushing replacement

Ok so after a rediculously long wait here is a simple write-up on the removal and replacement of the 2005+ V6 Tacoma steering rack bushings. This is how I went about doing it, not claiming this is the correct or easiest way of doing this.

Disclaimer: I hold no responsibility for any damage one may cause while attemping this procedure.

NOTE: I have my sway bar removed already, so I don't know if it will interfere with the rack while trying to remove it.

Tools needed and/or used:

10mm socket
12mm socket
17mm socket or wrench
3/4" socket
Breaker Bar
Pickle Fork
Flat head screwdriver (Chisel will work too)
Hammer
Oil drain pan
Torque Wrench
05+ Tacoma Steering Rack bushing kit. (Wheelers offroad, P/N:810106G)
Optional: Bag of Candy



Step 1)Jack up the front of your truck and place on jackstands. Remove the wheels and remove the tie rod ends from the spindles (3/4" socket & breaker bar).



Step 2)Remove the steering shaft from the steering rack (12mm socket).



Step 3)Remove the pressure and return lines from the steering rack (17mm wrench) During this part there will be a good portion of the steering rack fluid draining out, have your oil collection pan ready.





Step 4a)Remove passenger side steering rack bolt (17mm socket), if you cant get one up on the top of the bolt the 17mm wrench will work. Note these bolts are tight and will be very hard to get off with a wrench without good leverage. Be sure to turn the bolts and NOT the nuts. You will also notice that right above the bolt head are the 2 transmission cooling lines. You can remove the 10mm bolt to pull these lines out of the way.



Step 4b)Remove driver side steering rack bolt. (There are 2 ways to get this out) One way is to remove the a/c compressor, or you can do this;
Cut 1/4" off the bottom of the bolt. The reason for this is that when you try to remove this bolt it hits the bottom of the a/c compressor and you can't slide the rack over. After you have done the cut the bolt will be just short enough that you can roll the rack a bit and the rack will slide over. You will want to slide it to the driver side a bit and get the shaft input over enough to roll the rack and slide the rack bolt out.







Stop to enjoy lollipop from bag of Candy (Optional

Step 5)Slide the steering rack over towards the passenger side enough for the drivers side tie rod end to sneak out of the frame and out the front.
(These photos were taken during the re-install)





Step 6)Remove steering rack down through the front of the driver side.



Step 7)Remove your stock rubber steering rack bushings starting with a flat head screwdriver (or chisel). Hit the screwdriver under the sleeve on the bushings to raise up the collar half way around one side. Once you have done this to all 4 sleeves take the pickle fork and start hitting. The pickle fork will slide under the collar pulling the sleeves with bushings out with it.













Step 8)Apply grease to new bushings and sleeves and install in steering rack. (these will slide in snug by hand, no press is needed)







Now that the new bushings are in, reverse the removal process, torque your bolts and bobs your uncle.

You will need to refill your power steering fluid with a Dexron Atf. Fill to mark and run vehicle and fully turn left to right and back then top up and repeat until the fluid does not drop.

Total time was about 3 hours.

Hope this helps you guys out. The difference is night and day. You can see on the stock bushings why there is so much play in the rack.

 

Bump a write up?

Nice work though, I've been sub'd since you posted this. Will def help whenever my bushings get here, pics a lot of help.



+1

 

I just ordered a set of bushings. Have had some loose steering over bumps and sometimes a pop. Thought it might be my suspension but I just changed the shocks and tightened everything... still there but not as much as before. Figured I'd give these a shot.

 

Great work. I'm looking forward to replacing mine this weekend

 

Since ive replaced mine i notice the rack is solid, but now there is something else causing my truck to wander a bit. Ive replaced lower bjs, upper bjs, tie rod ends, (inside and out), Rack bushings, lower control arm bushings. All thats left is the upper control arm bushings. Could those cause my truck to want to wander and pull when riding in ruts on the road? I have a 6" lift with 35's

 

That is your problem

 

I understand the pull factor, however, I can feel "play" somewhere in the steering.

ie:

before it "feels" like its pulling, it will just shift over before it grabs my wheel and pulls, if that makes sense, almost like there is slack. Like my steering doesn't have a tight tight feeling like it should. I don't have a intermediate shaft in there anymore either, so i know its not that.

 

Any special instructions for fluid like with brakes? (bleeding?) or once lines are reconnected you simply refill the resevoir? No flush and all new oil?

 

No need for a flush as most of the fluid has drained out of the lines due to gravity, and the rack from all the turning and angles you move it to get it out has emptied itself out. All new fluid on the refill. (the pump will whine a bit from the air so only go from left to right once then shut off right away and refill resevoir and repeat)

 

Well my bushing replacement was a pretty difficult one. Let me try to sum it up and also share some tips that are important in this procedure.

Tie down your steering wheel during this procedure!

I had my truck at a shop I have access to. Went in at 3pm and the shop closes at 7pm. Well I didn't finish in time since the drivers side screw was a pain to remove and put back on! I did the cut bolt method too. Once the rack was off it took quite some pounding to get off with a pickle fork (4 times for each side). But rack bolt was the most time consuming. Clock hit 7pm and I had to leave it up on lift with rack in and the drivers side screw almost on! opened next day at 12pm. Waited for a ride from my friend in a Mosquito Hell!

Well after 25 mosquito bites and a ride back the next day , I spent another 2 hours of trying to get the drivers side screw in. The A/C compressor was a pain, I even pulled out a dremmel and trimed the mount of it to try to allow the bolthead to drop through the rack mount....but in the end all the trimming was unnecessary and it was a matter of procedure.

Here's my tip to removing/installing drivers side screw. Once you've loosened and removed nut and passenger side bolt & nut, roll the steering rack forward (top rotate towards front of truck), the bolt will clear enough to push the rack forward. Then you need to rotate toward the rear to pull the rack backwards passed the a/c compressor and allow bolt to pass through. Might sound hard to get, but it's the quickest way and will save frustration and unnecesary trimming.

Key is to remember to tilt the rack forward (bolt head towards the front) in removing and installing the bolt. Rolling the rack backwards is for removing the rack towards the rear when removing the rack or setting the bolt into the bushing on the rack.


And Finally to the main important tip. Tie down your steering wheel! I busted my clockspring after the install! You seperate the intermediate shaft towards your steering wheel from the rack in this install/removal. Once you do is is free to rotate. Though I did not purposefully rotate the steering wheel, I think while I spent time under there putting the rack in and removing it it rotated one turn. Because I put the shaft back on to what seemed where it was. So once I buttoned it all up and was leaving, i heard a plastic rub sound when I fully rotated the wheel backing up. Then my truck freaked and abs went off and all weird. Reset the battery and Airbag light on, horn doesnt work. Clock spring busted!

Point is, Don't bust a Clock Spring! Keep your Steering Wheel/Intermediate shaft mounted when working on the steering rack so that your wheel is set right when you put it back on and you overextend the clock spring in the steering wheel.

Right now my wheel is off what seems to be one tooth too, which i can rotate over one, but it must have spun to cause my clock spring to break....but Cruise and Audio control still works. Bought one off ebay today for $45, hard to believe but says OEM new. Wish me luck.

 

Got the new clock spring ordered. But my steering wheel is off towards the left. Do I remove the intermediate shaft/steering rack mount and correct it there? Or leave it for an alignment? I may have put the shaft onto the rack wrong when reinstalling.

I'm worried about centering the wheel prior to intsalling the new clock spring. Any suggestions? I would think if I rotate the wheel straight from down at the steering rack/shaft connection that it will be straight and the new CS will be back to center...???

 

Luckily when I had to do these it was a gen 1, straightforward without all the electronic BS. Mechanically speaking, you wanted to reattach the steering rack at dead center with wheel at dead center to ensure the rack has enough left/right movement to operate properly. The alignment can compensate for a little deviation, but its best to be centered.

I'd do the spring and center them at the same time, then send out to alignment.

 

How much ATF do you need to refill the steering? Is the Toyota ATF the best thing to use?

Planning to do this in a few weeks, I have the bushings, and new tie rod ends.

 

Well I went ahead and shifted the intermediate shaft one tooth on the steering rack and my wheel is back to center. Well almost, now I have a slight lean to right (since alignment is bit off) but the wheel sits straight when I do not try to correct the off alignment. I just got my clockspring in the mail too.

I'm thinking of doing an alignment after I switch my front springs, then once its aligned do the clock spring last. Why alignment before the clock spring? Figured it would be better to have it centered/aligned prior to the clock spring to be sure its all set right.

Dextron III is what is recommended for 2nd gen. I went to O'Reillys and I got their brand of ATF, which says also used as Dextron III.

Not sure about the Toyo ATF, just check if its Dextron III.

 

You can change out the clock spring at any time without any ill effects on the alignment (from the video I've seen anyway). That said, if all of the parts are at your house and you don't have to drive it I would make all the repairs at once and finish it off with a good alignment. But you can certainly do the clock spring afterwards.

 

I stopped at my local Toyota Stealership today, and asked for some Dextron Type III ATF and the guy said they didnt have any, just Type 4, and then I told him I was putting it in my steering and he said No, No, No, you just use steering fluid, and went and got me a quart of their crap knock off PSF. I proceeded to tell him that the manual says Dextron Type III ATF, and that is what I wanted, but he didnt have it, and I could tell he didnt want to sell it to me. Another reason I never go to my stealership, they suck.

So I proceeded to Advance Auto and got a quart of Mobil 1 Dextron III ATF.

The sales staff did come out and admire my truck and ask questions about it which was cool.

 

Replaced my power steering rack today. Did not remove the AC compressor and did not cut the bolt. Instead I removed the guide wheel next to the AC compressor's pulley wheel. I was able to wiggle the rack over to that point and remove the bolt.

 

Good job OP on your write-up and to the others that have now completed this job and chimed in.

I have a question that hopefully one of you can answer.

Because of some major A/C problems I am fixing, I currently have the grill, condenser, radiator and the A/C compressor all removed.

Since so much has been removed, it superficially looks like I could unbolt the two rack bolts, lift the rack with 2Xs or something else high enough and possibly remove those bushings while the rack is still in the truck.

But I don't know. Do you think this even doable? What major obstacles would I encounter attempting to do this?

 

You'll be able to remove the rack bolts and rack easier with the A/C compressor off. You can just lift it high enough as you say but the largest obstacle is removing the stock bushings. These took a lot of effort with my rack OFF the truck.

I mounted the rack in a vice and flipped/rotated the rack to allow different angles to hammer the pickle fork into the sleeve. I had to start each side of the bushing off with a hammer and flat head, then pry the sleeve around enough to be able to beat it out with a pickle fork just as the procedure here shows. Doing this for the 4 sides of the bushings would be VERY difficult with the rack still in the truck.

Just remove the rack. Once you remove the tie rod ends and the two rack bolts, not difficult at all to remove since the A/C compressor is out.

 

first thing I did was change out the rack bushings when I got my truck, it can be done without taking the rack out, but is a bit of a biatch, well worth the effort though...

Polyurethane FTW....