Steering Column detached while driving

are you kidding ? it is steering malfunction. this is a huge huge deal, absolutely nothing like 'out of warranty' problem,
this is critical safety item....age of vehicle matters not...and even if this was 20 years old the steering just does not ever fail.

any car maker would be all over root cause analysis to determine the problem and to know if
other vehicles on the road could experience the same issue, or if this is a one-off

failing inside the cab is does not involve parts that are subject to yearly
inspection like front end parts, tie rods and linkages.

this type of issue is much bigger than you realize

 

I don't know how to say this nicely. If you have been paying for a rental for 12 weeks out of your own pocket, then you kinda deserve what you are getting.

Is this the only problem you had with the truck in 10 years? Seems kinda trivial. Shit breaks. Fix it.

Going by what you described, this is a tilt wheel option issue. No?

Could you still steer, even though the wheel was in your lap?

Secondly, I don't think we are getting the whole story.

 

You're just one of none that I heard that had this problem. If this was was a once-in-a-while issue to the members of TW, I'd say talk about it in public, otherwise, I don't see this as a mfg defect or the like.

I'm with 'FTMFW on the issue of why a 9-10 year old truck steering column now being the fault of the current owner.

 

I'd like some pics.

I feel for OP it fell off & is otherwise not altered.

I wonder if this IS the issue that drive her to sign up for TW today.

 

Well it was her first post, and this is fairly common - joining TW and rail against Toyota happens monthly.

 

Now I'm really stepping away, you guys can throw your arms up all day long and not read anything accurately enough to comprehend what's being said.

Good luck!

 

Who am I kidding?, I love a good mystery.

 

The OP's issue is no different than the failed axle picture. Axle retaining clips are not part of an inspection either.

If just one steering column drops on someone's lap for every 2,000 Tacomas out there, I'd say get on the evening news with the story..... This is the first I've heard of this 'problem'.

 

My steering wheel adjusts up and down less than an inch, and in and out less than that. It's a joke. It should hit the windshield or my knees, and either the dash or my face. Right?

 

You won't, you can't

 

Hey OP, just saw your thread and wanted to chime in, even if I'm a little late. This is not an isolated incident. I had the same thing happen to me about a year ago on my 08 Tacoma. Pieces of the steering assembly that were made out of plastic (wtf) had broken, and the steering wheel dropped into my lap and then pulled completely off of the steering column spline when I tried to move it back into position thinking the tilt lever had gotten opened. Toyota refused any responsibility and claimed it was impossible for that to happen, yet it obviously did, and I've talked to other people it has also happened to. There are also multiple claims on the NHTSA website related to steering wheel/column failure in Tacomas of that generation. It is a serious flaw, either in design or manufacture, and Toyota needs to take responsibility and find a solution. I was driving 80mph only a few minutes beforehand and could have been seriously injured or killed had it occurred then, and its only a matter of time until that does happen to someone.

 

@ForeRunner check for duplicate accounts?

 

And now they are crawling out of the woodwork...

 

That's too bad.

 

This happened to me too on my 2015 Tacoma when I took acid, drank a 12 pack and snorted a huge line of cocaine. Oh, and then I woke up from my dream.

In today's world everyone wants someone else to be responsible. This is obvious by all of the frivolous law suits common folk file that become a money making scheme. It is time that people lose their sense of entitlement for everything and take respsonsibily for certain their actions and behaviors. This isn't just about a steering wheel coming off it is about placing the blame onto someone else when the consumer should be animate about keeping the truck in proper shape. I find it hard to believe this didn't happen in negligence because columns don't just all of a sudden snap in half and disintegrate.

If you are driving a '67 Ford Mustang and while taking a turn you mat the gas and the ass end slides out and you hit into a tree and get hurt, are you going to blame Ford? How about the tire manufacture because the tire doesn't have enough traction? How about who ever paved the road last? NO, IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY!

People these days have grown up to be COMPLETE pussies in every sense of their life. It is time to grow up and accept responsibility for things that happen and stop placing blame!

 

Had the same issue on 2008 last night.

 

Can anyone tell me where this came from

 

That’s nice