Rack & Pinion question: I am confused

I was at Toyota of Santa Barbara today and a mechanic looked underneath at my rack and pinion assembly on my 2001 Tacoma, V6 4X4. while I was moved the steering wheel back and forth.

Based solely on a quick look, the Toyota mechanic says that I probably need new bushings.
I took a video for you all.






I then took it to another mechanic who pulled back the bellows of my driver side inner tie rod and he stated that its actually the pinions on the rack & pinion assembly that is causing play in the tire when I shake it from side to side. He seemed to downplay the issue with the bushings. He says its best to simply replace the whole rack & pinion assembly. Wish I took a video of him showing me the pinion moving inside while he was holding the inner tie rods.

Are both mechanics correct and that I should replace the entire assembly or could it just simply be the bushings causing the play that the second mechanic showed me?? Initially I thought I just needed new tie rods. I hear a single metallic pop or crunch sound underfoot when I am turning at low speeds and its getting worse.

There is no power steering leakage in the bellows and the power steering reservoir level is stable and never needs topping off. Pretty confused as ever


If I need a new rack & pinion assembly I'm currently looking at the ULTRA-POWER 971618 set for my truck, its $275. Is this one any good?



I assume I will need bushings with this set up??
There are the DORMAN 905401 {#4425035042} rack and pinion bushings.





Here is list of options for my rack & pinion.

Perhaps there is a better option? Edelmann makes a assembly. Also Cardone but I was told to stay away from remanufactured rack & pinions as they will end up leaking.

I was told if I am going to replace the rack & pinion I should also replace the return hose and do a full flush of the power steering system to prevent contamination. Is it difficult to put this new hose in or really necessary?

-prerunnersd

 

If my memory serves me right there are seals within the rack and pinion assembly that wear and when they do you should notice a leak. I mean I seen your entire rack and pinion move within the rack and pinion mount and judging by the video I didn't notice any leaking. Your pinion is the gear that is driving the rack assembly and while there should be no play you can look up around where the pinion goes into the rack assembly and check for movement there.
So if you don't have any leakage on the left or right side where the shafts go out and the rubber boots are good then your rack and pinion is serviceable.
Replace the bushings where you see excessive movement and you should be good to go.

Also if your pinion is worn there would be some free play at the wheel.

 

Did the video you wish you'd taken look like this?


That's an almost brand new aftermarket rack & pinion at work. Thankfully, the guys at this shop hooked me up with a local company that re-manufactures OEM racks. I called the original shop that installed the aftermarket one, they refunded me the price of the one they installed and put the OEM reman in for free. I've since put more than 6000 miles on it this summer driving round trip cross country and the reman is working fine.

 

My experience with steering racks:

With the truck on the ground - turn the steering wheel back and forth a tiny bit while you look at the. If you can move your steering wheel any amount and you do not see the tie rods moving, there is play between the gear and the rack teeth, and there shouldn't be any.

The steering rack should NOT move at all when turning the steering wheel. Your video shows the rack and the bushing moving.

The lack of leaks from a steering rack tells you the seals are still good and that's all. The internal parts of the rack could be worn and causing play.

IMO, any rack other than a Genuine Toyota Parts steering rack is no more than a band-aid.

 

Yes that’s almost exactly as I remember it. So I guess that means my rack is bad then? Could this also be causing the crunch/pop sound that I hear & feel under my feet when turning? Earlier this week I thought it was a bad inner tie rod.

Is it a good idea to flush out my power steering fluid and the hoses too or is that over kill?

Are non OEM rack and pinions really that bad?

 

I had a thought today: I've had my P265/70R 16 tires inflated to 32 PSI for a many years. The specs on the door say inflate to 26 psi. Does anyone know if the over inflated tires can cause more energy to transfer to the rack and pinion and thus cause it to wear out faster?
After all according to Newton every cause has an effect.

Regarding the rack & pinion which is part number 44250-35042 I might go the OEM remanufactured route for $450 shipped.

I did find a TRQ rack and pinion assembly with outer tie rods included for under $275 shipped. TRQ seems to have good reviews on there site at: A1Auto - not sure if they are any good.

I don't do any off-roading, I just want a replacement that will last a few years and not have to sink a ton of money into this truck.

None of these racks include replacement bushings. Will a replacement bushings set meant for a stock rack fit for me even if I go non OEM?

Will these bushings fit? They are only around $20

They are the DORMAN 905401 {#4425035042} rack and pinion bushings.

 

My tire guys thought 26 psi was ludicrously low for the tires I ran. Not sure that extra bit of PSI is making a huge difference. I inflate mine to the low 30’s and can be rough on the truck on forest service roads.

I’d personally go OEM reman, but that price seems a little steep. Especially since I believe Camelback Toyota (which a lot of people on here use for parts) sells brand new ones for not much more. There seem to be a lot of horror stories with off brand aftermarket racks, but probably some success stories as well.

 

The tire pressure specs on the door are only good for the brand and size of tire that was on the truck when it was shipped new from the factory.

 

Your rack mount bushings are definitely worn out, there should be no movement or very little. The second video showing the left side looks to me that it could the rack guide, it’s under that big nut just inboard of the boot. Very common problem. “Timmy the tool man” @Timmah! has a great video on the subject with a list of the updated parts that are needed. I can’t seem to post the link, maybe someone else can. I did mine a few years ago and it got rid of all the play, quick and inexpensive fix.

 

The brand is not a factor, how could it be? Indeed the DOT does regulate this and the tires have to be interchangeable regardless of brand.

The PSI specs are for the tire size and position of the tires only and for my tire size (indicated previously) it’s 26 psi front and back. That’s Toyotas official recommendation but that doesn’t mean you can’t do as you wish. If you’re driving on deep sand, like the dunes of Cape Cod, you would want your tire pressure to be as low as possible for example.

I actually like 26 psi, feels less stiff.

 

yes you’re definitely right about the bushings…

if it is this internal rack guide that is bad this basically means my rack and pinion is shot correct? That I might as well just replace it. This is the general consensus?

thanks

 

No, your rack is probably fine. Watch the video, it’s a very common problem with these racks to the point that Toyota updated/changed the design of the part to fix the problem.

 

how many total miles on taco .........................

runnin big wooooly boooooga tyres put MORE stress on front end components

more resistance

more friction

more leverage

more wear / tear

while Ur at the repair U might as well get it ALL done

no matter what if U dont................... everywhere U go WILL Find Something WRONG

 

My Tacoma has 267,000 miles. The tires I’ve had on it are a regular and common size. I do regret the lift because of the increased wear on the front end and wouldn’t recommend people do it because it’s not without trade-offs.

when you say get it all done what are you referring to. I’m not even sure what to repair at this point… I definitely want to put in new inner and outer tie rods and bushings also drain out all of the old power steering fluid and refill.

slaps 65 says my rack is prob fine… I’m going to look into what he’s saying. The steering feels fine except for the play when I manually move the tires plus there’s no leaks I can’t imagine the whole rack and pinion is shot.

 

if U plan on keeping Ur truck a while longer

fix whatever is tired worn

whatever U neglect will soon become apparent.................new parts/repair

will throw SPOTLIGHT ON WHATEVER U MISSED

not sayin throw Ur chkbook at them

fix whats goin to keep U goin L O N G term

 

thank you what year was your truck? mine is a 2001, in the video it states that they use the new guide style from 2001 and on. If I gave my Vin number to the Toyota dealership would they maybe kno which one I have or is this to much of a nuanced thing?

prior to you fixing the rack and pinion guide did you have any kind of metal pop sound coming from your rack and pinion area this definitely seems like a good lead I really appreciate it!

mechanic looked at it the other day definitely said there’s play coming from the rack and Pinion itself on the driver side, this definitely seems like something I need to look into as a possible solution

 

thanks for the general advice I’ve already fixed and replaced many things in my front end and can’t get to the bottom of this pop/clunk sound. I need to diagnose and locate this problem.

I do believe in the maxim, “if it’s not broken don’t fix it” because no good deed goes unpunished.

 

Mine is a 2000, and after watching your video again it appears that your rack has the newer style guide, large Allen wrench to remove the cap. So what I would do is take it apart and inspect the guide. Probably all ya need to do is adjust it. Possibly a new guide and spring but I bet if ya follow the video and adjust it properly it will get rid of the slop . So adjust the guide and new bushings and I’d bet you’ll be good to go.

 

Hey thanks, that would be really great if it’s that easy. Would a bad guide cause the play and the metal clunk sound?

Cheers

 

Definitely cause the play at the left side, mine was sort of a thud and occasionally a clank going in and out of driveways. I did the mount bushings and updated guide at the same time so I’m not sure exactly what fixed it. You definitely need bushings so do those and inspect/adjust the guide and go from there.