I took the shifter assembly apart and see no obvious fix. my service manual has no mention of this. it looks as if there was some type of bushing or fitting that might be worn or missing. has anyone experienced this

 

I think there are some bushings on the linkage. Probably your best bet would be to stop by your local Toyota parts dept. (bring your VIN) and see if they can look the the shift linkage on their computer. Likely those parts would be Toyota-only items anyway.

 

I sawwed a piece of PVC (I think it was 1/2'') down one side and trimmed it to fit the inner shaft.It takes a little trial and error but it works perfect and will likely outlast whatever was in there to start with.Dont forget to grease it,or put a grease zerk in it.