Garys99yota

I wanted to thank everyone for their insight. I took it to eastern offroad and they replaced the bushings and said everything is good to go.

desertcamper67

Call Beeline @619 273 2911. I know they have dealt with this problem in the past. An aftermarket bushing kit is offered I believe.
If I remember right this is one of the only bad reoccuring problems with this toyota streering.

desertcamper67

sorry thats 858-273-2411

Garys99yota

I think it is possible but from the people I have talked to said the bushings wouldn't stop the rack from pulling away from the frame. Its almost like the tierod is too far up which causes it to push away from the frame when I turn the wheel. Maybe its a possibility that the truck is jacked up too much.

BajaRunner

One thing that comes to mind, is that the u-bolt goes one way (I am pretty sure of this). Is there a possibility they put it upside down?

Your CV angles don't look TOO bad, I've seen worse, without problems.

Did you take the rig to a dedicated alignment/front end shop to make sure the alignment is good?

red97taco

It definitely seems like the bushings to me.
Check out this article: http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/mainte...ering_bushing/

You should not have had to cut out any part of the factory frame/rackmounts to gain access to the nuts/bolts. This has probably caused the frame mount to become weak.

My bet would be that the worn out bushings have caused the rack to move excessive ammounts in ALL directions. This in turn is putting extra stress on the u-bolt and in turn it is putting stress on the frame. the bolts may not have been tightened enough, which would also allow more bolt movement. All combined movement caused the beveling out of the holes and this is now allowing everything to move even more.

Your tierod angle could be causing extra stress, but not the main problem. How much lift do you have? I am pushing close to 3.5" of lift from my front suspension and probably have more of a tierod angle than you. I have not had a problem with mine, my bushings are worn out also, but I have yet to replace them. The only thing that this is causing on mine is 'steering lag' (i have no clue what the real term is) so when I steer, i have to move the steering wheel a couple inches before the steering is actually inputed. This is a play in the steering wheel from the bushings being compressed and the rack moving so much left to right, before the steering is acutally inputed.

I would say for you to take the rack off, reinforce the mounting bracket, do something with the beveled out hole, check your bolts and nuts, and replace ALL bushings with polyurethane ones.

http://www.wheelersoffroad.com/tacorackbushkit.htm
Never bought from them before, but it was the first one to come up after searching.

Garys99yota

It is very possible the U bracket was put upside down. Is the shorter bolt end suppose to go on the top or bottom? I took it to eastern offroad in Virginia Beach and they said the bushings may not be the main problem but need to be replaced regardless. I don't understand how the original rack got screwed up when the girl had it so she put a junkyard one on and then the junkyard one busted, then the one I put on last year has screwed up bushings. I have never heard anyone have to replace the rack so many times. It's not like I go on expeditions, mudding, or anything like that. I have taken the truck on the Beach for two weeks in Hatteras Nc and thats it. I feel like there is something screwed up that is causing the rack to be screwed up. When you buy a new rack new bushings are included right? The truck has a 3 inch body lift and two inch spacers so 5' inch lift in all. Thanks for all of the insight guys, I feel like I am getting somewhere.

Ron Helmuth

I am lurking in the shadows to see what the verdict is-

I just returned from alignment at Firestone and they showed me how the rack moves up and down and all around by shaking the drivers side front tire.

How does one tell if a bushing is bad?