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SoCalCruiser

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Jan 18, 2018
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united_states
Anyone else have an issue with their new Land Cruisers pulling to the right under acceleration? According to the dealer, since the new model came out with the 8 speed transmission, the car pulls to the right anytime you press on the accelerator. They tried to get me to accept this stating "it is common for the new model to have torque steer." This is highly unusual to me considering I have to drive down the highway oversteering my car to the left just to keep it straight. 2 visits to the dealership now and I am awaiting a formal answer from Toyota. Not acceptable in my opinion considering I just paid about $80,000 dollars for the car. Both the alignment and toe-in have been worked on twice now at the dealer. Both times they told me this had nothing to do with what is causing it.
 
Torque steer shouldnt affect accelerating in a straight line as far as i know.
If turning out of a corner and hitting the gas then yes i can buy that.
What tyres and pressures are fitted?
Does it brake in a straight line?
 
Thanks for your reply Ben. This vehicle brakes straight. It also drives straight if you take your foot off of the gas pedal and just let it coast. If you throttle up or put the cruise control on then it pulls to the right. We tested this on a very long straight new stretch of highway going up to Mammoth. When we turned off cruise control it immediately starts to straighten out. I then used just foot pressure on the accelerator. As I gassed it, it pulled right. Let off on gas and it would want to straighten out.
 
Just to quantify - it pulls to the right when ever you apply power ?

So even light throttle application or as you say using cruise to maintain speed and it just wants to turn gradually right ?

If only under hard acceleration then it would seem to be an issue with rigidity of the front subframe mounting.

Torque Steer is commonly associated with high HP front wheel drive car's where the front drive shafts are not equal lengths .
Not sure about the 200 but I know the 100's have a central diff and equal length shafts so should not be affected and I think the 200 has a similar set up .

Torque Steer in a permanent 4WD set up is not acceptable under any circumstance and I fail to see why a gear box type change would cause it....they must have altered the front diff and drive shaft assy or have they fitted a self locking diff of some type ?

You should never have to counter steer to keep it straight.

You have done the right thing by going direct to Toyota ........keep pushing them........this is not an annoying issue it is potentially dangerous as the dynamic changes under load and then lift off of throttle .

Go to a consumers right's organisation or motor vehicle safety organisation and inform them ....send a copy of the correspondence to Toyota .
 
I fear he accelerated away from some light's , turned right and kept going ......
 
Thank you Grimbo,
Yes. At low speeds (torque is low) it is not as noticeable hence the reason why this was not detected during the purchase test drive. When accelerating up, the car pulls right. If I remove my foot from the throttle, the car straightens out. This is particularly noticeable on a long straight drive on a newly paved highway. When activating the cruise control and the conditions are level and same, the steering wheel must be turned left to keep going straight. At high speeds such as 55 to 75+ this becomes even more apparent. Apparently, the other local dealership has verified this as well as the manufacturing rep according to my service manager at the dealership.
 
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Anyone else have an issue with their new Land Cruisers pulling to the right under acceleration? According to the dealer, since the new model came out with the 8 speed transmission, the car pulls to the right anytime you press on the accelerator. They tried to get me to accept this stating "it is common for the new model to have torque steer." This is highly unusual to me considering I have to drive down the highway oversteering my car to the left just to keep it straight. 2 visits to the dealership now and I am awaiting a formal answer from Toyota. Not acceptable in my opinion considering I just paid about $80,000 dollars for the car. Both the alignment and toe-in have been worked on twice now at the dealer. Both times they told me this had nothing to do with what is causing it.
Did you ever figure out what is going on with your Cruiser? I have a 2018 doing the same thing. It always pulled a little to the right and I figured it was "normal". I installed an OME-BP51 suspension system with a 50MM lift and your explanation above is word for word exactly what is going on with my rig.
 
Something’s not right, the greatest thing being that they seem to think the consumer should accept it. Complain to Toyota Japan with independent verification by a motoring organisation or test house. In the UK you would need to reject the vehicle as not fit for purpose but I don’t know what US law has to say.

Shame you put the OME setup on Reagan as this has probably invalidated the warranty and taken away any right to complain about ‘torque steer’ due to you having made modifications. Of course, if you put the original bits back, would anyone know?

If there’s enough fuss made about this (did the dealer that sold it mention this before you bought it?) Toyota should work out a recall. Sounds like it’s a known issue but undisclosed by the dealership before sold, which stinks!

Then there’s always social media and YouTube to spread the word unless you get satisfaction.
 
Something’s not right, the greatest thing being that they seem to think the consumer should accept it. Complain to Toyota Japan with independent verification by a motoring organisation or test house. In the UK you would need to reject the vehicle as not fit for purpose but I don’t know what US law has to say.

Shame you put the OME setup on Reagan as this has probably invalidated the warranty and taken away any right to complain about ‘torque steer’ due to you having made modifications. Of course, if you put the original bits back, would anyone know?

If there’s enough fuss made about this (did the dealer that sold it mention this before you bought it?) Toyota should work out a recall. Sounds like it’s a known issue but undisclosed by the dealership before sold, which stinks!

Then there’s always social media and YouTube to spread the word unless you get satisfaction.

I have been thinking a lot about the addition of the OME setup that I put on my Cruiser. I could put all of the original bits back on and push for a recall that way. That is one option. However, I have a very good service technician that will most likely work with me on the issue. It is also a dollars and sense thing. To remove and install the old suspension would run about $750US. Then I have to hassle with Toyota on my vehicle. This will take hours of my time. Once the issue is identified and corrected, I will want to reinstall the OME back to my Cruiser. I can tell you that the OME-BP51 system absolutely changes the handling characteristics on this big lumbering vehicle in a very good way. I have no desire to return to the stock setup. The setup is easy to lower back to factory settings. I see no reason why replacing a shock or a spring would invalidate a Toyota warranty. That is the same line of thinking that if you replace the tires, the warranty may become invalid. Or use a different brake pad. How about not using Toyota specific oils for the engine? All of these parts are subject to wear and tear and it should be up to the consumers discretion if they decide to use OEM bits or third-party parts.

So, the point I am trying to make is this. I don't mid paying to remedy the issue to fix the torque steer pulling to the right. I would rather do that than pull the bits off, waste hours of my time, then put them back on again. Hopefully, through research and interaction within our Toyota communities, I will find my answer. If not, I will keep at it until I do and share it back out to our groups. Thank you for taking the time to ping me.
 
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