As I get closer to finishing my 2008 RX350, there is one apparent difference from the Highlander that bothers me quite a bit - the steering. Steering in the Highlander has just the right amount of “heft” in it when you make turns, it provides excellent feedback while still being very comfortable. In the pursuit of road feel, I bought a steering rack from a 2002 Highlander. The RX’s rack isn’t too bad or anything, but it feels a little more over-boosted and numb, which makes the car more boring to drive despite me upgrading the suspension.

The “new” rack is from Texas and is in excellent condition. No rust or leaks of any kind, compared to my rusty, leaking RX one. I put some Nolathane poly bushings from a 2005-2015 Tacoma in it to freshen it up before it goes in. I will document the two racks as I have them out of the car, and will update this post when its in the car, possibly by tonight! Let’s see if this will fix the slightly vague steering.

 

It'd be great to see if the ratio's are the same.......I installed wider wheels w/ 20mm offset to increase track width w/ bigger tires as well as addtional castor, yea it does add more scrub radius, but it adds more road feel....With the additional castor, negative camber isn't really needed & for sure you don't need negative camber in the rear as that'd increase corner entry push, then you couldn't get the rear to rotate mid corner.

 

Nice clean rack.
Looks like low miles.
Sweet find, how much $$$ you have in it with shipping and the seals it needs?

Haven't had to replace mine yet but the day is coming eventually.
I have tech docs on installing this, you prob don't need but if you do feel free to pm me.

PS- appreciate any tips and tricks you can think of for when I need to do mine. Not sure yet if this job will be very fun on jack stands and may hire it out if better done on a lift. Waiting to hear how it goes for ya.

 

I think I’m going to chance it on the seals, they’re holding strong and the rack is bone dry. I got it out today and after doing this job on my 2002 Highlander I can say it is a lot easier on an RX. No CRAPPY exhaust system to deal with! I didn’t need to remove anything other than loosening the sway bar bushings and end links to push the bar out, which I’m already replacing with a 2010-2015 RX350 26mm bar vs stock 23mm and 2007-2009 ES350 end links (Did this two years ago on my Highlander).

The sway bar is more involved, you’ll need to remove the rear engine mount and a catalytic converter brace on the driver’s side for more room if you don’t want to drop the subframe.

BUT!! This Highlander rack will fit! I’m laughing yet again at how similar Toyota keeps their parts. The 01-03 Highlanders all came with a Koyo made rack, while 04-07 Highlanders or the 2RX came with a JTEKT rack. This JTEKT rack is kinda crap in comparison for spirited driving! I can’t wait to retain that steering feel in the RX that I missed so much from my old Highlander.

The only thing difference I can see other than the steering feel is the transfer lines, but I do plan to confirm if they can be swapped as well, as with the other components.










Some tips and tricks:

- Spray that intermediate shaft where it meets the rack with a bunch of penetrating oil days before the job

- Use a screwdriver to spread open the shaft after removing the shaft bolt, then use an air hammer to push it off and break the rust

- Swivel sockets are your best friend!!

- Prepare the oil containers, it’s going to be messy! Don’t be lazy like me and suck up the extra PS fluid first lol

 

Yep the racks have the same ratio and turns to lock! Should be installed by tomorrow and I’ll update this post on how it feels.

 

I'm blessed that I haven't done a rack yet. I have 278k km's, and its been in the family since ~2007.

My brother drives it now, ended up doing the return/supply lines in 2020, as they were getting soft due to corrosion (the car has been coated yearly, its entire life), but time did its thing.
And its had two P/S pumps. Luckily no leaks, nothing noticeably bad about it. Maybe I was lucky?!?

 

Definitely, the boots were torn on mine for a LONG time clearly the PO never noticed. Lots of grit and crap got in and just destroyed the seals, especially on the driver's side. Mine is still on the original pump surprisingly and I think it's pretty funny how it says "TOYODA" on it.

 

Two p/s pumps, LOL....I as well went thru to p/s pumps. I ended up going cheap & went w/ a oreilly reeman pump, well its been seeping for awhile down the on to the cradle & A-arm & had it replaced last Wednesday w/ a oem reman, $380. vs $160. as I did a warranty return.....

 

DIRECT FIT! Now my RX is fun to drive like the Highlander! It also reminded me of how apparent the front sway bar upgrade is.

If you want more steering feel/feedback, I would definitely consider an 01-03 Highlander rack!


EDIT: Posted about it in a separate thread, I didn't realize I had already started this one!

 

Matt, any update on how you're enjoying the power steering replacement? any drawbacks you notice? This is basically my dad mobile now so i need to keep the upgrades reasonable, but my power steering rack has been leaking for the last 10 years and I think it's finally time to replace it. what kind of sway bars did you get?

 

I’m loving it, I’m glad I decided to go for it at the end of the day. The turns to lock & steering ratio are the same as the stock rack, but the road feel & feedback are a definite step up. The RX stock rack isn’t too numb, but this 01-03 Highlander rack feels a little heavier. The only difference I can feel between the two cars is that the RX’s PS pump works better under tight maneuvering, and the RX still feels more vague because I have Bridgestone Blizzak winter tires on it right now with the skinny 6.5” stock rims and 225/65R17 tire size. The 18x8” 245/50 setup on the Highlander feels much better.

I have a 2008-2019 Highlander / 2010-2015 RX350 AWD 26mm front sway bar & upper brackets on both my Highlander and 08 RX, and a Addco 2109 22mm rear sway bar on the Highlander. RX still has the stock 14mm rear bar until I get one custom made next year. The RX handles surprisingly well, but the Highlander feels like it’s on rails, and can be pushed a lot harder around corners. The handling is very neutral with understeer being limited, and liftoff oversteer possible. Very fun!

I’d say my single favourite things I did on both cars was the rear sway bar followed by the front. They’re cheap, and they improve the capabilities of the car without many drawbacks. If you want to keep the suspension stock, the sway bars will still make a decent difference, but when I lowered they worked even harder. Even doing just the front lets you corner harder without any excessive understeer. Maybe that’s why all the newer cars have it, as Toyota determined that the chassis could benefit from it without any drawbacks, and the cars became more “road-oriented”.


I made an update a few days ago here, and some more possible rack swaps that could work:

https://www.toyotanation.com/threads...#post-14703551

 

Margate said you might be able to help.
how do I get the intermediate shaft off the steering gear? I took the pinch bolt off the u joint and it won’t budge. Or is this a dumb question and all I need to do is Just wedge a pry bar in the u joint and tool on it in an upwards direction?

 

On both my Highlander and RX, I had to use an air hammer on the shaft to get it off. Using a pry bar & punch wasn’t cutting it for me.

 

UPDATE:

Still working flawlessly! If you're trying to save a buck and are a bit of a mad scientist, this may be the "mod" for you. 2001-2003 Toyota Highlander steering racks continue to litter the digital shelves of eBay for very tempting prices. A little cheaper than the 04-07 Highlander / 04-09 RX330 & RX350 racks, but I wanted one mainly for the heavier weighted steering along with more feedback especially on-center.


Some info I left out in the original post: Both the RX/Facelift HL and 01-03 HL racks have a 16:1 ratio, 3 turns to lock and a stroke length of 5.71", the difference lies in the pinion size and valving inside the rack. The Highlander's pinion size is 44mm vs 46mm for the RX, which certainly helps road feel. The only thing to note is you'll need 04+ Camry or 04-07 HL / 04-09 RX outer tie rods for a proper taper fit into the knuckle. I scored my '02 HL rack from Texas for 180 CAD shipped to my door around 2 years ago, and have been very happy with it ever since. It was one of my favourite things I have done to the car, along with the 05-10 Scion TC power steering pump flow valve, do both of these and you'll have some sporty 2001-2003 Highlander V6 steering!

I have mentioned this in other posts before, but I figured I'd make a thread about it as a reference. Another rack I see as a good alternative is the 2002-2006 Camry / ES / Solara. This one is very similar to the ones that come on our RXs. Has the same specs (16:1, 3TTL, 5.71" stroke, 46mm pinion) and feels almost identical to a 2004-2007 Highlander or one of our RXs. Should be a direct fit too as long as the outer tie rods are the correct 04+ Camry ones.


Parent post: https://www.toyotanation.com/threads...#post-14573602