Warranty Replacement: Steering Shaft Assembly - Clunking Noise Issue Fixed

[mars001]

oh man... yeah i haven't felt that kind of symptoms... sorry that its taking you more than 1 visit to get this resolved

just a weird single thump/clunk in the whole car when the momentum shifts from acceleration to deceleration like its from the drivetrain.

Shouldn't it NOT doing even that?

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[ah4rsr5]

Shouldn't it NOT doing even that?

No clue... im researching and its possible that its the U-joint? Seems common with trucks at low speed when getting off the gas pedal after a little load (15-20mph then release)

 

[Vlad23i]

No clue... im researching and its possible that its the U-joint? Seems common with trucks at low speed when getting off the gas pedal after a little load (15-20mph then release)

Drove my 2017 lifted, on 35s, tacoma for over 40k miles (90k when sold it) and it never had this issue nor any vechile i ever owned so this is abnormal

 

[KRunner]

Yes, after installing the new steering shaft it’s no longer doing it - vehicle feels so much better! Hopefully this is the end of the issue for good! I’ll report back if it returns.

Thanks so much! I’m yearning for that same feeling & relief. It’s been driving me crazy these past few weeks as I’ve been trying to figure out what the root cause was.

What complicated matters was I had a leveling kit installed shortly before this issue started becoming more prevalent. So naturally the focus was on the lift kit & installation.

Appreciate you taking the time to share these details. This gives me hope that this is the same issue I’ve had and it can be fixed.

If anyone else is feeling or experiencing something similar please share! Because this attention and visibility to Toyota will help us all. Perhaps there were some defective steering shaft assemblies on the early production

 

[mars001]

Drove my 2017 lifted, on 35s, tacoma for over 40k miles (90k when sold it) and it never had this issue nor any vechile i ever owned so this is abnormal

Agree. I never experienced that in any car or truck I drove. My current 2003 4Runner with 4.7V8 never did that since new and now it has 190k miles and still doesn't have any clunk.

 

[Vlad23i]

Thanks so much! I’m yearning for that same feeling & relief. It’s been driving me crazy these past few weeks as I’ve been trying to figure out what the root cause was.

What complicated matters was I had a leveling kit installed shortly before this issue started becoming more prevalent. So naturally the focus was on the lift kit & installation.

Appreciate you taking the time to share these details. This gives me hope that this is the same issue I’ve had and it can be fixed.

If anyone else is feeling or experiencing something similar please share! Because this attention and visibility to Toyota will help us all. Perhaps there were some defective steering shaft assemblies on the early production

When we put it on the lift at brothers shop to look it over we noticed fluid on steering column (at 300 miles, issue began at 200 miles, now at 2400 miles) but of course toyota said its normal despite havi g these strange symptoms/issues and them not taking any action to resolve it.

 

[mars001]

When we put it on the lift at brothers shop to look it over we noticed fluid on steering column (at 300 miles, issue began at 200 miles, now at 2400 miles) but of course toyota said its normal despite havi g these strange symptoms/issues and them not taking any action to resolve it.

Having some kind of leaking fluid visible on the steering column and they called it "normal"?

 

[Vlad23i]

Having some kind of leaking fluid visible on the steering column and they called it "normal"?

Shockingly yes, i mentioned that this is anything but normal, but you know, despite me working on cars for 15yrs and my dad and brother being master mechanics, the 20 yr old toyota mechanic somehow knows more than me.

 

[mars001]

Shockingly yes, i mentioned that this is anything but normal, but you know, despite me working on cars for 15yrs and my dad and brother being master mechanics, the 20 yr old toyota mechanic somehow knows more than me.

That doesn't sound right at all. You should have it escalated somehow.

 

[Vlad23i]

That doesn't sound right at all. You should have it escalated somehow.

Will be calling to toyota and escalating this issue tomorrow actually.

 

[Jpr18]

Thanks for posting, I have this issue and it's highly audible and tactile.... It's been this way since 600mi and driving me crazy

 

[Dphotos]

So I posted in here earlier about the clunking noise I was having in my steering column and brakes. To summarize again I started to notice this at about 2000 miles and it progressively got worse and more frequent.

After the second time at the dealership they confirmed the noise and contacted Toyota. Toyota said they had seen several of these cases and they sent a new steering assembly for replacement under warranty.

Today it was installed and my 4R SR5 feels 100 times better. I hope this is the end of this problem, and that there’s nothing else to it. I’m bummed that my new 4R had this issue, but happy with the way my dealership and Toyota handled it by quickly replacing it. Attached is the information about the repair.

Note, I also asked them to replace the fender flares which were not totally flush on the front two wheels. They did the replacement however it did not solve the problem. The gaps are small, but still noticeable. They said at this point I would have to contact Toyota if I want to further continue the request for a fix.

Well that good new you got the problem fixed but not good news because this could be a recall becasue others are experiencing the same issue.

 

[mars001]

Well that good new you got the problem fixed but not good news because this could be a recall becasue others are experiencing the same issue.

And if they just installed the exact same part, there is no guarantee that it won't fail again.

 

[risurfstyle]

And if they just installed the exact same part, there is no guarantee that it won't fail again.

Well, I suppose that's true for any part?

 

[mars001]

Well, I suppose that's true for any part?

But this one failed prematurely and that may imply a design fault that an exact part with the same design won't fix. We'll see over some more time.

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