The lever that locks the telescoping steering wheel in place loosens/disengages, resulting in the steering wheel 'lurching' forward. I have experienced this issue multiple times now. The lever is underneath the steering wheel column and engages/tightens by pushing it up toward the steering wheel. The lever engages by 'compression' only - there is not clip or spring that physically 'locks' the lever in place. Over time, for whatever reason (road bumps/vibrations/etc. And with the help of gravity) the lever loosens/disengages. This is an inherent safety design flaw in the telescoping function, and could result in a serious/tragic accident if this occurs while driving at a higher speed or while in the middle of making a turn. There were numerous similar complaints logged by other toyota avalon owners on various websites when I searched this issue on the internet.
2008 Toyota Avalon steering complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 17 of 17, newest first, as owners wrote them.
The lever to adjust the telescoping steering wheel on my 2008 toyota avalon does not stay in the locked position. It disengages (falls down), releasing the steering wheel and enables it to slide in and out while driving. This has happened on several instances in the two years I have had the car. It has happened twice in the last couple of days. I have seen other internet sites that owners with the same complaint have tried to obtain a remedy with no luck.
The lever to adjust the telescoping steering wheel on my 2008 toyota avalon does not stay in the locked position. It falls down, releases the streeing whieel and then it slides in and out while driving. In the lowered position I have torn clothing getting in/out of the car. I have permanently scared my knee as well. I've taken the car in for warranty repair three times. The first time they replaced the steering column. Not sure what they did the 2nd time. The 3rd time they said there's nothing wrong with it! Yeah, right! Very poor design and dangerous. And injurious.
Cks of these defective vehicle. We have and are going to lose big by devaluation of our vehicles upon attempts to sell or trade. The attention to remedy these issues on a timely manner has gone by the wayside . This we are experiencing with cardenas toyota in harlingen, texas where we bought our vehicle new. Our government agencies should be protecting the consumer, not encriching the government treasury.
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 toyota avalon. While driving 45 MPH and holding the steering wheel straight, it would drift to the left and right. It became difficult to drive the vehicle when it continued to drift. The dealer was contacted and they stated that they would not work on the vehicle and to take it some where else. This occurred since he purchased the vehicle. There have been no repairs made to the vehicle. The failure mileage was unknown. The current mileage was 40,000.
Vehicle is a 2008 toyota avalon. The safety issue is with the steering column adjustments of which there are two on our vehicle. The greater concern is with the locking latch on the telescoping steering column. In approximately six separate incidents, the latch for unknown reason slowly drops without warning. The latch can not be seen from the driver position. An alarming shock occurs when you brake hard and lean on the wheel causing the steering wheel to telescope downward suddenly. Loss of control is temporary but is dangerous.the up and down adjustment latch similar drops without warning but not as often as the telescope lock. These concerns have been reported to the dealer where we bought our vehicle. According to the dealer they noted no defect. We have our doubts and concerns in view of the recent accelerator pedal recalls. Our avalon accelerator has already been repaired, but we remain apprehensive. The transportation department should open an investigation on the steering columns.
I have a 2008 toyota avalon. The telescopic steering column will randomly depress. The latch that holds it in place will randomly loosen up and the steering column will go all the way in. I asked my dealer about this and they said it wasn't under warranty. I asked toyota and they said there had been no recall on this item. Just thought I might mention it with all the other problems toyota has been having.
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