Power Steering too stiff

Now it makes sense, thanks!

 

Yes. I remove boot and post 24 is what you’ll see.

 

For some reason I'm really struggling with this. I can't figure out how to get the backing fabric off the firewall to even see the bolts. There are some clear clips for the fabric, but then it's stapled around the steering shaft. Any hints or tips?

I cleaned it up as best I could with a toothbrush and then used PB blaster and it's much better now, so If I can really get in there, maybe I can buy myself some time before dropping $300 on the new parts.

 

IIRC, that cover under the brake pedal is stapled on. Start pulling gently and it should reveal itself. The staples will stay on the cover and you just push them back on when re-installing. Nothing will break easily if you take your time. Should come right off.

 

Good morning sirs, ladies. I'm Trigger Adams. I've been Trigger Adams all my life. Someone always uses my username. So on here I'm triggered. The boot that covers the ujoint is held on by stapled Velcro. The ujoint on mine is not stiff but a plastic coeccentric flat cam disc between two round flanges is cracked and possibly binding. Of course parts to repair this is not available. A new intermediate shaft is available but is almost $400. If I am successful in a meaningful repair I'll post pictures and description.

 

Thanks very much all for tip on steering shaft u-joint lube. Fixed stiff steering on my 2003 Sequoia!!

 

Interesting. I never thought that required occasional lubing since it’s in the cab and protected from the elements.

 

Just wanted to pipe in on this subject. The steering on my '06 Tundra became increasingly stiff--that is to say that once the wheel was turned, effort was required to return the steering wheel back to neutral position as if one were to be driving with very underinflated front tires. I accessed and lubricated the knuckle joint behind the brake pedal, but there was no amelioration in the problem. Fast forward to 2 days ago: my passenger side front suspension ball joint broke causing the left side of the car to drop 6", locking the steering and making the truck immovable. Luckily this happened as I was approaching my driveway & not at 75 mph on a freeway.

My point is that stiff steering may be an indicator of something potentially serious.

 

Yup, it's a symptom we've warned many other forum members about. One recent thread I remember mentioning it recently HERE, but I know @KNABORES and I (and probably others) have both warned multiple people in the last 8 months. Since the LBJ itself often doesn't show play before fail, some things to watch out for:

• Difficulty steering / turning
• Steering doesn't return to center on its own
• Creaking sounds when turning (can also be steering bushings)
• Clunking when going over bumps or turning (easily confused w/swaybar links or lower shock bushings)

Per Toyota, LBJ is a wear item. Like timing belt, you should replace no later than every 100-125k miles if and only if you use OEM parts with new bolts each change. With aftermarket, which nobody should use, it's more like 5k-50k miles given dozens of experiences of premature aftermarket failure.

Glad you got away with the least possible damage possible, some scrapes to the wheel it looks like. That link I just posted of failures, see the one dude who threw his LBJ on the interstate. Lucky he walked away unscathed.

 

PS - For the 2005-2006 Tundra, here's your OEM LBJ for left, right, and get 8 of these bolts to go with it. Those links take you directly to Toyota's national pats site, where you can pick up the parts from any local participating dealership, often at a nice discount (check each one if there are multiple nearby).

And if you can't find any local participating dealerships OR all local dealerships are charging full MSRP thru the site, consider using these links (left, right, and get 8 of these bolts) to order from Serra of Birmingham, who does 20-30% off MSRP, free shipping, and no-tax for non-Alabama residents.

Blue threadlock on the bolts. 48ft lbs torque spec on that specific bolt, although many of us on here are using 59ft lb due to a typo - that bolt is good w/o failure up to at least 80ftlb, but overtightening is a recipe for failure, also.

Any visitors from the future, if you're driving a pre-2005 truck, see THIS THREAD for your part numbers and bolt options.

 

Ugh, looks like it milled the inside of that rim. Stiff steering and failure to return to center is definitely something to watch out for.

 

New full size spare! Woohoo!

 

I just did a front end rebuild on mine and I have stiff steering now that’s it’s consistently cold out in the mornings. I’ll grease my U-joint and report back. (Better not be my new ball joints… lol yes Toyota LBJ)

 

Can confirm that lubing that joint helped my steering in the cold mornings. Still have to investigate if parts are worn out.

 

I just want to thank everyone for this post. I just purchased a 2000 Tundra with 250k miles for doing dump runs and chores. The steering was stiff through different areas of turning the wheel and I opened up the access to the steering shaft and found 25 years of gunk there. I cleaned it up and sprayed both areas above and below with PB Blaster. It didn’t seem that it cleaned things up right away as I drove around that evening. But the next day it was free and clear and turning good. It may help a while before I fully replace the steering but I am going to work on the LBJs soon also since reading this I thought that would be good to do.

 

Welcome to your new truck! This community-created thread is for you @Rockcrusher : https://www.tundras.com/threads/so-you-wanna-buy-just-bought-a-1st-gen-tundra-eh.115928/