troopy steering issues help please

[JEWIENEWIE]

I need some help or advice please. I have a 2000 model landcruieser troop carrier 4.5l petrol. Over the past few months i have noticed that when cornering, if the front end hits some uneven or rough road, the steering wheel will violently shake nearly being ripped out of my hands. This will happen randomly, it soesnt mtter if turning left or right, and it is nearly impossible to control the vehicle. I have to nerly cone to a full stop before it goes. I have had a new steering dampner fitted no change, tyres balaanced and aligned, no change, new tyres on front, no change. When the vehicle is stationary, if i shake the steering wheel from side to side there is a faint knocking noise, could this be the problem or maybe shockies, she has done 145000ks and been a gem since new until now. Any advice woul be greatly appreciatled. Vehicle has been put up on hoist by mechanic and inspected various joints etc with no visible problem.
Frustrated!!!!!!
Jewie

[Brett1907]

Sounds like the stearing box. If you are on the Gold Coast, go see the boys at the neumans servo on Isle of Capri. The mechanics there are magicians when it comes to toyotas. The owner and a couple of the mechs worked at toyota for years (I think the owner was service manager). I take all my utes & the missus car there.

Brett

[GBC]

Like what Brett said.

Steering boxes on the leaf sprung models,

Trailing arms to axle welds and stripped panhards to look for on the coilies.

None of the above are difficult to repair, but aren't too easy to break either so it would have hit something maybe???


Good luck with it.

C.J.

[JEWIENEWIE]

Thanks for the tips boys. I to thought it must be in the steering box. This model has coils on the front cj so will inspect axle welds and panhards, i have not hit anything hartd on the front end but i got the vehicle when she had done 35000ks so it may have happened before i got her but the problem has only occured in the last few months.
Jewie

[akman1]

Its a scary feeling at 100k
Go and get a proper wheel alignment,you will find that the caster is out (think of a dodgy shopping trolley),the way to fix it is to use offset trailingarm bushes.

[JEWIENEWIE]

Cant find any problem with the panhards, so i think akman1 might be on the money. She is booked in tomorrow for a thorough check by anothr mechanic, heres hoping i can find the problem and a not to expensive solution. Thanks guys.
Jewie

[snasman]

My quess would have to be shockies,they are critical in troupies ,did you notice any flat spots on your old tyres if so this is a giveaway that they need replacing.good luck with it m8

[JEWIENEWIE]

snasman, shockies eh, good point, now that you mention it the old tyres had what the tyre mechanic said had been scalloping? When i asked him how to stop it he seemed real vague about it so i prtty much dismissed that theory but may have to bring it back into the equation. Could flat spoting be described as scalloping?
Jewie

[murf]

snasman, shockies eh, good point, now that you mention it the old tyres had what the tyre mechanic said had been scalloping? When i asked him how to stop it he seemed real vague about it so i prtty much dismissed that theory but may have to bring it back into the equation. Could flat spoting be described as scalloping?
Jewie

scalloping? I have had a set of tyres self destroy arter developing a tread lug wear of high at the front of the lug and low at the rear of the lug, looked like 3mm differance on each lug. the supper diggers only lasted 50,000km, Hilux used to get up a bounce at the end at 60km/hr. replaced with Cooper ATs and got 110,000km? shocks were fine just tyres prob?

when shocks are U/S when on dirt roads they will throw the car arround or wander all over the place.

good luck with it

Cheers Murf

[JEWIENEWIE]

Thanks Murf, but i have had new tyres fitted to the front and still have the problem. Could having split rims be a cause?
Jewie

[JEWIENEWIE]

Murf, from Corindi mate, spent a week in the caravan park there last year, thought it was bloody awesome. Lauched at Arrawarra and headed out to the island and had a ball mate, Kingies trevors and even got some beatiful snapps on the way home on a patch of reef. I live in Byron so it is that close i will be down there a bit in the future i think. Beatiful place, except for the group of idiots running amock, they ended calling the police and there was a mini riot!! Bloody Hell!
I just want to drink my beer by the fire not try and defend my family from a pack of young punks!
Jewie

[murf]

if its done 145,000kms on the original shocks its a fair bet that they are U/S even if they are not causing the problem you are experiencing

sounds bigger than just shocks but they could be a contributer to the problem overall?

Have fun

Murf

[snasman]

yes m8 thats it, scalloping is the tech term so I didnt want to confuse any 1,that is the defanent sign that your shockies are u,s (unserviceable) replace them first and im positive that your problem will be gone.

[JEWIENEWIE]

Well i just got truck back from mechanic and they did a thorough check of whole front end and suspension , steering etc and they found no problems at all, everything looks a1 they sdaid so i think that you are on the money snasman. The only thing left is the shockies which will be replaced next week. One comment that the young apprentice did say is that maybe the pressure valve in the power steering is going off randomly?? His boss brushed it off but the look on the young fellas face made me think twice. Is it possible?
Frustrated!
Jewie

[snasman]

no m8 I wouldnt be looking at the steering box ,please keep me posted of the out come after youve had the shockies replaced (just so you know Ive spent over 20 years in the suspension game) it did surprise me when you mentioned about the tyres and the mechanic just shrugged, thats first year apprentice stuff.If your north bris based(or dont mind travelling) p.m me and Ill have a look at it 4 you,shockies on 4x4s are hard to diagnos unless they are leaking as the springs are so dam hard to compensate for the extra wait of everything being built a bit tuffer than cars ,with a car you bounce the vehicle a few times and count the amount of rebounds any more than 3 and your shocks are stuffed with a 4x4 its impossible to bounce unless the springs and shocks are really really stuffed good luck with it m8 hope I helped .