Steering column final fix

Just did this mod..... didn't realise that you cant just cut the original posts and knock out the rivet caps....also thought the original posts were hollow.....

12 hours later......

Finished it at 3:30 am...... before a workday at 6..

 

I think we have all had a similar problem repair or two. I feel your frustrations.....

But - Did it work ??

 

Yes.. absolutely.. I also discovered that it helped my 65 mph shake (knock on wood)..

When I was first pulling the shaft out.. I noticed that as the shaft flexed at the rubber disk.. it forced the u joint above it to flex to compensate..which in turn forced it to spin.. causing the steering wheel to "shake"..

Only time will tell if that is actually the bane of all of our shakes... but it's definitely a factor..

In the future I'd like to get another one of these joints from toyota.. and have the machinists at work use the drill press to widen the holes professionally so I can run bigger bolts for this mod for peace of mind.. I have 1/4 bolts in there now... which im sure are strong enough... but I'd rather use 10mm bolts to ensure they don't ever snap from any twisting off-road...

 

Friendly suggestion: Make sure you use locktite and lock nuts! You don't want that to come apart when driving.

 

I definitely did.. used locktite and coated all the nuts and washers in locktite glue where they meet the bolts.. my own concern is whether or not 1/4 inch bolts will hold up to offroading.. part of me wants to order a new rag joint.. do this same mod.. but enlist the help of the machinists at work.. take my time.. and use 10mm bolts to hold the entire assembly together.. for peace of mind..

I also considered jb welding the central shaft to the upper u joint part.. just for some extra grip... just in case...

But anyhow.. steering is definitely tighter... shimmy is still there on certain roadway pavement types.. but it's definitely manageable instead of severe and violent... truck feels "controlled" now.

 

Just a thought .... How a about a split nylon flange sleeve bearing? ID to fit the shaft, split, then wrapped around the shaft and slide into place??

http://www.pobcoplastics.com/bearin...ded-nylon-MD-sleeve-slit-flange-bearings.html

 

My other car, 88 Monte, also had a rag shaft. However, instead of modifying it, a jeep shaft was/is compatable. It also gave more room for headers. Picked up one from a boneyard, cleaned it up, etcc.. Very easy install. Remove and replace. Cheap mod.

Wonder if there is a compatible shaft out there for the taco?

 

Sub

 

I literally just did this fix maybe 10 minutes ago. Fuck them for using that bullshit soft bushing they did. They could had at least used a polyurethane bushing in place of squishy rubber. Steering feels nice and solid now.

 

I have a slight clunk in certain road condition bumps after i installed ny 884's. I inspected my rag joint and found movement in it. I installed the zip tie which tightened it up and went for a ride. The clunk is still there with no improvement... Do you guys think moving the shaft down as stated on page one is mt next move? Why would the movement and slack be tightened by the zip tie not fix the clunk? Very frustrating

 

Sorry to revive an old thread.. but my clunking is still there.. but I found movement on the piece above the rag ujoint... the lower part of the telescope column actually has some play.. and it clunks when it slides upwards into the telescope housing under/behind the steering wheel.

Anyone else found this? or a fix?

 

Ok I'm attempting a repair. I noticed when you wiggle the joint it has a lot of play and clunks,I figured this is the noise I'm hearing. Anyway I cut up a coke can and made shims,slid them in and sprayed some grease on it. I then wiggled the joint and it feels a lot tighter. I'm going wheeling tomorrow so I'll report back.

 

^^I hope you have better luck that I did trying that same fix. Mine came out because the center shaft constantly has axial movement. I was going to try it again but bend or otherwise secure the alum pieces better but gave up and bought and installed the TSB shaft instead.

 

Seemed a lot better off-road,I'll have to check and see if the inserts are coming out yet. At least I know how to fix it, now to figure out how to keep them in.

 

When I go over bumps I hear clunking and it sounds like suspension bottoming out but It is not.... Is this the type of experience every one is having? It seems to be a different issue for everyone.

 

You do know about using zip ties in there? A lot of guys seem to give the zip tie(s) thumbs up.

Another guy and I went after the looseness and clunks in a serious way a couple of years back.

Both our trucks were new at the time so we could not attribute things to worn out steering parts, but both of us found slop in the center plastic bushing of the rag joint so we replaced the upper intermediate shaft with the TSB one. This certainly helped but did not completely cure the problems.

We found two additional sources of looseness and clunk that transmit both noise and feel back up through the steering column. The first has to do with the preload on the steering rack between the rack and the pinion. Wiggle the steering wheel just a little and check for freeplay where the shaft enters the rack. There really should be none. Mine had a lot and I made some tools to adjust (o-so-slightly tighten) the preload.

The second was we discovered that there was wide variance at the time of manufacture from truck-to-truck in the amount of axial preload of the upper and lower intermediate shafts. We adjusted this at the steering yoke (this is the coupling part with (2) 12mm bolts between the lower shaft and the upper). This modification involves loosening those two bolts and either pushing the upper shaft a little ore into the yoke, or pulling the shafts away from each other (both of us used pushing) and then tightening the two bolts on the yoke. You will see that the rubber disc in the rag joint flexes one way or another depending on which of the techniques you use and takes some of the axial play out.

 

How did you get the shaft and coupler twisted correctly to fit back together?

 

I have had a buzz driving over textured roads for a while now and I couldn't figure out where the hell it was coming from, it has been driving me absolutely nuts. I thought for the longest time that the issue was actually a buzz coming front the dash, but it turns out it is originating from the steering wheel linkages directly. Thanks to your post I went out there just now and wiggled the shaft to check for slop. I found there was some originating from just above the intermediate shaft collar or sleeve due to it being a little too low on the shaft. I am going to loosen both bolts a bunch then force the sleeve up further up the shaft. Retighten and then recheck. Thanks for the advice! Phew! At least I know what direction I need to take this now.

 

Oh, um, yea, and I hope the steering thing improves too!

Also some of the clunk that others may experience can originate from the steering rack guide within the steering rack. It a real pain to tighten up the rack guide but can be done.

 

Has anyone tried the 1st Gen tacoma steering column weld? Or is that not possible with a 2nd Gen because it's a telescoping steering column? Really wish I could figure out the sloppy feeling above 60 MPH. It sounds exactly like the issue 1st Gen users have with it needing constant correction and hearing the rattle but I replaced both sections of the upper intermediate shaft and tried putting a shim between the rag joint. Still the issue persists. Thinking it's something in the steering column now.