Wow, thought the old mini van was destined for the scrap heap. Steering was really hard at 10 and 2 positions. Until I found the solution on google, and got some penetrating lube into the u joint. Toyota quoted me $1200 to change the intermediate steering shaft. Played dumb, too, that they had never heard of it before. When I told them the solution I found, they then informed me "that is what most people are doing, as a temporary fix" and " the angle of the shaft was poorly engineered". This, along with multiple other problems one should never have on a vehicle (door falling off, brackets breaking when changing the timing belt) ensures I will never purchase another Toyota again....

Just to let you know... I think I may have a cheap fix. Every winter, the u joint (otherwise known as the Steering Knuckle or Universal joint) gets stuck. AS the temp gets cold, esp here in the northeast, it gets worse. It feels almost if I am driving with front tires that are low on air... Anyway, all you need to do is take it to a shop, have them lube the knuckle and move it a bit... lube some more. Should last the winter, but will happen again when cold weather returns. There are 100's of reports of this on the NHTSA website and others... too bad I did not know until after I got suckered into replacing my rack and pinion steering!

Good luck!

I thought my steering problem was under a recall so I waited until now to have it fixed hoping to receive the recall notice in the mail. When the problem became too great, I had to have it repaired. I was told at my local Toyota repair shop that my particular car was not covered under the recall because it depends on the "production date" of the vehicle. Apparently, my production date was not included in the recall. Since the problem is the same, I think ALL 2004 Sienna's should be included, not just those being produced during a particular month!

Great Van, not as large as the Chrysler. Van but did everything that was asked of it. Toyota replaced front door,under program. Tires avg. 40K per set. Brakes 80K. but this steering tightness is a pain. Will replace fluid first to see if that is problem as power steering fluid does get old and at 114K miles that may be problem. Same as on Dodge van, at 90K the fluid should have been replaced. I maintain my auto's by the book and that makes the cost reasonable as a problem where I live is a long way on the truck to the dealer. Dealer has done great job of keeping this van at peak performance. I use 90+ fuel each sixth fill up.