Steering Rod Relay Connection Problems of Toyota T100

Received a safety recall notice for a specific part (steering relay rod); took vehicle to dealership for replacement; dealership refused to replace the recalled part, unless we agreed to have a couple other "bad" parts replaced & paying over $1,000 (those parts also pertained to the steering. We did not have the money for the other parts to be repaired at that time, & the dealership refused our recalled replacement. . . (although he did give us an oil change. ) unsure of exact month & day (guessing), but was in 2006, just after receiving the first recall notice .

See all problems of the 1997 Toyota T100 🔎.

(1) while backing out of a parking space, I heard a noise like a pop. I thought someone might have been walking behind me and thumped my truck to let me know they were there. Approximately two miles down the road my vehicle started to veer off the road. The steering wheel turned unusually freely, but there was no change in the direction I was moving. I was moving across the opposite lane of the road, and heading for a hill, so I used my brakes to stop the vehicle. After stopping the vehicle I got outside and watched the front wheel on the driver's side, while I turned the steering wheel. Both front wheels were free of any connection to the steering wheel! (2) the cause of the loss of steering ability was a broken steering relay rod. It broke at a point close to the power steering box, in the same place that other steering relay rods on vehicles similar to mine have broken. The failure of the steering relay rod was due to defective design and manufacture of the part, as proven by the difference in rockwell harness from one side of the rod to the other,(rockwell hardness of 31 on one side, and 13 on the other side), at the break. The consequences were; a. The vehicle could no longer be driven, because it could not be steered and had to be towed to a repair shop. B. I was very frightened when I found I couldn't steer my vehicle, which was headed for a hill. C. I am worried that other drivers of vehicles equipped with this part may unexpectedly loose steering control of their vehicle, causing great bodily injury, including death. E. I have lost confidence with Toyota, because the Toyota customer assistance representative who took my report said that they had no history of problems with this part, yet three similar instances have been filed with NHTSA. (3) the steering relay rod was replaced with a new one (pn 45451-34010). The old part is available. I have digital pictures of the broken part, as well. This was on a1996 Toyota T100.

See all problems of the 1996 Toyota T100 🔎.

On July 28, 2004, my 1998 Toyota t-100 4x4 suffered a complete lack of steering control as I started down my driveway. The cause was a steering rod relay that broke in two. I have the failed part. It appears to have been either a two-part failure or a flaw in the original casting. One-half of a cross-section through the break is bright gray steel with the rough surface characteristic of fatigue failures, the other half is comparatively smooth and the same rust-color as the outside of the part. My truck has never been used for rock-climbing, nor has it been rammed into a solid obstacle such as a curb or large pothole. The only trauma it has been subject to is low-speed maneuvering in heavy snow and ice. Although the failure did not cause death or damage, if it had occured a few minutes later, I would have been doing 60 mph on the highway. While I don't think Toyota owes me anything on a six-year-old vehicle, I am worried that this flaw might represent a bad batch of steering rod relays. If so, then there are other t-100s out there that could kill their owners.

See all problems of the 1998 Toyota T100 🔎.

Steering rod cracked and showed evidence of a long term defect and old rust deposits.