OK, got my alignment today and my steering wheel is still crooked. WTF!! I was told there wasn't enough adjustment in it to straighten the wheel. Can I pull this thing off and put it back on straight? I even bought a steering wheel puller...

Any thoughts?

 

Sure.. I have done that before.. It is really easy to do, Toyota does not have a keyed steering shaft, just mark the wheel and the shaft where you took it off..

 

Thanks for the quick reply. I feel much better now!

 

Make sure your steering is truly straight when you put the wheel in the position you want. On my '85 pick-up it took a few tries, seemed fine in driveway but going do the road was few clicks off. very easy to change.

Nathan

 

Thanks guys. Boy was that easy!! It did take two tries to get it right though

Was nice driving with the wheel straight and no pulling or sloppy steering...

 

Yep, it's easy. I've done it without a puller. Just loosen the big bolt most of the way, but don't take it off. Then yank on it really hard, it'll pop loose, and the bolt will keep it from flying all the way off. I always scribe a mark in it before I remove it also, so you know where you're starting from.

 

I've gotten my front alignment done twice now and it's still pulling to the left! Any ideas on whats wrong?

 

I'm not sure if Toyotas have this problem, but sometimes if a caliper is beginning to lock up it will make the car pull. The problem is that the caliper just isn't releasing. Thats the only idea I have.

 

Is it easy to pull a steering wheel off if it has an air bag? because i have the same problem.. my wheel is alittle off on my 3rd gen. so whats the steps to pull it off or any percautions i should take...i've adjusted my car's wheel before but never the runner
Thanks

 

Yep! they do...at least mine did

 

Sorry, don't know the answer to that one. I remember hearing horror stories about alarm installers deploying airbags by poking around the wire harness with a test light. Hopefully someone here has tackled it with an airbag.

 

Same problem here.... the wheel on my 97 has been about 5 degrees off to the right since I bought it gently used. Been buggin' me for 3 years, but afraid to touch that airbag. Would love some help!

 

This happened to me in my old 86 Jag. It didn't have a tilt wheel, so I took it off when installing my remote start, and put it on crooked, so I had the wrench on my lap and I adjusted it at stop signs on the way to my girlfriend's house one day.

 

Mine did too on my '94

 

The air bag shouldnt give you any trouble. Unscrew, unplug. I wouldnt recomend working infront of the wheel while disconnecting. D/C the battery and the airbag *should* be inactive after a few min.

 

After changing the steering shaft seal, my steering wheel was also off.
The steering wheel does not need to be touched.
All that needs to be done is loosen the steering shaft bolts on both sides of the fire wall, push the shaft from the engine bay towards the wheel until the shaft comes apart, then turn the shaft until the wheel is in the correct position and reconnect.
P.S. Make sure your front wheels are lined up straight before starting.
This would also be a good time to check and maybe replace your steering shaft seal. It will stop that tick. tick, tick you hear while driving.
This is only for 2nd Gen, I don't know about 3rd Gen.