Stiff Steering

I actually figured it out and apparently I fell short of spraying the snot out of it with PB Blaster. However for round two I'm going to get some white lithium grease on there too.

 

Having the same stiffness with mine. Just started last week. When you're driving straight and go to turn either way a bit it wants to sort of stick. Checked fluid. Its full and very clean looking.
Was thinking I'd try this fix here. Do I need to jack the truck up to get to the u-joint or is it accessible from through the hood
Forgot to mention mine is a 09 SR5 TRD

Thanks

 

You can see it past front driver's side wheel, or crawl under driver's door and it is visible to get at to spray. I have new part on order from VillageToyotaParts for $167 plus tax. (Toyota Canada wants $382 for part before tax)

 

Finally got my Intermediate Shaft #2 replaced to remedy the stiff steering.
Toyota Canada wanted $382 + $37.30 Tax for the part alone. I ordered it online from a dealer in Florida who sent it to a shipping address in Florida, they shipped it to us and then Canada Customs got their bite out of me and I stll saved $150 on the part. (It is a genuine Toyota part) And I had a local garage replace it at a cost of about $85
I supplied pictures of the one that was removed.

 

Since I have had this Intermediate Shaft #2 replaced I have noticed some play or looseness in steering when driving over rough roads. (Not side to side looseness but there is a rattle there now). I have seen this rattle disussed on here in another thread.

 

Thank you for this great thread (and the other similar threads)! I've been driving my truck with what felt like no power steering for a few weeks and I was worried that I wouldn't be able to diagnose the problem without having to swap a lot of parts or pay a dealer big dollars. Five minutes on tacomaworld using the search function, five minutes under the truck with a rust inhibitor, test drive, more rust inhibitor and my truck is steering like normal! I now know that the proper long term solution is to change the intermediate steering shaft #2. Thanks again!!

 

Just remember when you do buy, if you can get it out of the USA, you will pay enough less that it will probably cover the installation too. I paid $150 less than Canadian price and I think it cost me about $80 to have it installed at a garage.

 

I thought the symptoms would lead to heavy front end work involving the 4wd system. As Kevindust said so well, this forum saved me a bunch of troubleshooting. Unlike the photos above, my joint looks rust free. I gave it a good blast with a cleaner and she steers free again.

I have felt a tiny feel in the steering since I got it that I thought was just the 4wd drive train. Could have been this joint all along. I'll be following the advice here and change out the part ASAP.

Thanks!

 

If you have had an issue with stiff steering on your Tacoma, please read the forum post at this link: http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2n...iff-steering-intermediate-steering-shaft.html

If you follow-up with a report to the NHTSA (link in post, and easy to do), you may help initiate a TSB or possible recall for this issue.

 

STEERING COLUMN FIX - LOOSE STEERING

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd...olumn-fix.html
STEERING RACK BUSHING FIX
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd...placement.html
Stiff Steering
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/tec...teering-2.html
STEERING WHEEL SHAKE
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd...eel-shake.html

 

Hi Coveylane, I live in N.S.(Halifax) as well. I own a 2008 Toyota tacoma. My steering started to get stiff when the cold weather arrived. It is now worse then it's ever been. It's really bad at low speeds, and is intermittent when I accelerate. After running the vehicle for awhile, it seems to be fine ?? It's become a serious safety concern as just when I think the steering is operating good, I slow down to take a turn, and half way thru the turn I loose the power assist, and have to recover with two hands. It really catches you by surprise……not good. I'm wandering if you ever ordered the part you have listed above ? If it worked ? and, have you been to any Toyota dealers to see if they would do anything about this problem that so many seem to be having. I'm thinking about going in to Oregans tomorrow. It sure feels like a power steering pump to me ?? but what do I know, LOL. Anyways, thanks for your time and please let me know on the questions I've asked. Thanks !

 

Sorry everyone ! I was reading the thread, and it came to an end, last one being coveylane. I wrote a reply, then submitted. After submitting, there were 4 or 5 more posts with all the answers posted months ago. Maybe my computer was just slow loading the rest of the posts ??? Macs eh!

 

Buy a can of PB Blaster (It's a penetrating oil) at Canadian Tire or Home Hardware. Get down there and spray that little universal joint really good and it should loosen up enough to get you through until you get the part. I paid a garage about $100 to have it installed.

 

Thank you for all the info on this. I had the same issue, steering was stiff and really hard to turn. Happened out of no where, I think maybe the cold weather had something to do with it but it warmed up and was still happening. Sprayed the shit out of the U joint with PBblaster and then greased it with White lithium grease. Turns as smooth as butter now!

 

to those who have sprayed the joint to loosen it up, did you get a shaking/studdering afterwards when braking at highway speeds ?

 

I blasted the U-Joint about a year ago with a PB Blaster type of spray. Again, the joint looked brand new. It got much better, then felt stiff a bit more, but then the problem went away and has not been back since after almost a year. Not sure what happened.

It always felt I was overcoming a flat spot. Had it in for recall work. Toyota dealer always does a "free" alignment check. That was in February 2015 and all was within limits.

 

Being in Maine, your weather is about the same as ours in Nova Scotia. I found mine fine through winter but as the roads dried up from Winter and still had lots of salt on them, that is when the joint felt worse. I really don't think an alignment will show anything concerning this joint. Spraying it with PB blaster will help it but it is a temporary fix. If you realize what could happen if it separates, I would consider replacing it.

 

For the record, here's a pretty good video explaining the process of replacing:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bqPF_SNueyg

 

Nice video Onedivinetaco!
I have the same issue with my Tacoma 2007.
Toyota Dealer explained to me the problem,when i stoped by just to have some fluide stearing oil.
I thought my gage was a little low,but as he told me,the problem was more my u shaft stearing part.
He did sprayed some stuff on it just to show me that it will better for a little while but will need a new one soon.
So i will probably have it done next week or so,just added new Bilstein 5100 last Friday,so i am a litlle broke,lololo
They told me close to two hours if work,Man,this thing will cost me around 600 bucks,but no choice i guess.
Cheers from Ont. Canada
Charly