Tacoma 2020 Power Steering Pump Problems

I just bought a new 2020 Tacoma TRD Off-Road and... after putting a few hundred miles on it the power steering started wigging out. I was unable to turn the wheel if the car was at a standstill. If I was barely rolling the steering wheel would begin to move but I could tell something was wrong.

I took it into the dealership and they initially thought it had something to do with the steering shaft... They ordered a new one and were about to install it until they realized that the problem was the power steering pump. I was told there was some sort of connector that was missing which sealed the connection between the power steering pump lines and the steering shaft (I don't really understand that...). They ended up replacing my power steering pump and now we are back in action – no problems. I was told it was a defect from the manufacturer.

Just wanted to get this out there just incase someone else encounters a similar problem. The fix took about a day.

 

Thank you for the information and welcome to TW

 

Fair informative post first post. Welcome to TW!

 

Pretty much textbook. Good job op! I think there's a pressure sensor so the ECU can bump up rpm to make the steering easier. Wonder if that's what the issue was.

 

Welcome to The Forum!

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Welcome to the forum, OP.

I might suggest you change your post title to something more informative. Such as, "Power Steering Pump Failure - Manufacturer Defect"

This would help anyone searching for this issue in the future. Many people (me) only search titles to avoid massive search results.

Ultimately, your call. Great first post though.

 

Good info to share for awareness, OP. I'm surprised that checking the pump wasn't done before ordering a whole shaft, though? I mean, I only work tech support but I follow the logical chain for the issue most of the time.

I just crossed 2k miles on mine and zero issue have popped up as of yet.

 

Sorry you had to deal with that @plmkrzy. I have had my Taco for exactly 3 weeks and have put 1200 miles with no issues (knock on wood). Hopefully you won't deal with something else failing any time soon.

I remember when I bought my 2004 Jeep Wrangler brand new I had a starter issue within 6 months of owning it. After that was replaced it was trouble free for about 10 years. So hopefully you have the same luck I had with my Jeep going forward.

Also welcome to TW and thank you for informing us!

 

If u type @ before their username, it'll tag em.

 

Just bought a 2020 OR myself. Since you said it was a manufacturer's defect I was curious if your truck was built in Mexico or Texas and what was the mfg. date?

 

Thank you!

 

@plmkrzy, bout a 2020 TRD Off Road this weekend and same day I drove off the lot I had power steering problems exactly like your described. Unfortunately it took all day Saturday for them to diagnose the root cause, and they don’t work Sunday, so part will come in Monday and be back on the road Tuesday.

 

When was your truck built?

 

@docsg Mexico, 9/19

 

Ok I’ll have to keep an eye out for this. The truck I just picked up, the build start date was 11/25 in Mexico

 

Sorry to hear that! Hopefully it gets fixed quick!

 

Do the 2020s have electric power steering ?

 

No

 

I have a 2021 TSS model with 7k miles and just dropped it off at the dealer for what I suspect is the same issue.