Around the 12th of October 2012 I started to notice a sound when turning the steering wheel to the left. Within a few days I could hear it when turning left or right at slower speeds. I took my car to my mechanic for an oil change and mentioned it. He said that it seemed to be the steering intermediate shaft. I contacted a Toyota dealer to enquire about cost of part and repair. I was told that the part was around $400 and that it would take approximately 1.6 hours to repair at $80/hour. I contacted Toyota headquarters and was told that even though there was a service bulletin out on this same problem, that there was not a recall and the car is not under warranty now. If I had not asked my mechanic to check the problem I very likely would of had an accident when the splines finally gave out. I have the old shaft now as I had my mechanic order the part from a Toyota dealer (the price was just over $100) and it took him 1.7 hours to do the repair, so it cost me about $200 total. Toyota said that if there were a recall I might be able to get some of my money back. Does someone have to die before they have a recall on this. It would be stupid of them to wait until there is a death!! I've had 2 recalls taken care of and there are 2 more that will need to be done soon. Did someone die to get them to recall for those problems. There was a recall announced yesterday on this very same problem with the prius 2004-2009. I have a 2007 Toyota Rav4...this is a bigger problem than they have acknowledged.

- Bridport, VT, USA

There is a steering shaft defect in Toyota Rav4 2007 too.

- East Brunswick, NJ, USA

Soon after purchasing my 2007 Rav4 sport I started hearing a clicking noise when I made turns in either direction. This clicking occurs while turning and does not depend on speed or degree of turn. I've read several complaints from other Rav4 owners and believe Toyota should initiate a recall.

- Syracuse, NY, USA

There is a known issue with the steering shaft causing complete failure in steering. Toyota is well aware of the issue but has not recalled the defective parts... I would like to see this very serious issue addressed by Toyota.

- Santa Maria, CA, USA

Dealer informed me yesterday that intermediate steering shaft needs to be replaced for the third time since manufacture.shaft was replaced a couple of years ago at a cost of $880, of which I had to pay $500 as vehicle was out of warranty. Dealer downplayed whether this is a safety issue but insisted that I should pay $715 to replace the shaft which is making knocking noises when driven. This has to be a design and/or manufacturing defect and I've heard that other models in the line have also suffered similar steering issues. Can only hope it doesn't lead to steering failure.

- Columbia, SC, USA

When you turn left or right a strange noise happening and you can feel some sort of bump or catch in the steering. There is a service bulletin out on this intermediate steering shaft. A new shaft is going to run $400 plus at least an hour of labor. This mean that it is going to cost each owner of this Rav4 model at least $500. Toyota has put a service bulletin out on this very problem. The bulletin # is tsb-0318-08 rev1. I am afraid that this will become a safety issue and I believe that there is some manufacturing defect or design problem at the basis of this problem.

- Bridport, VT, USA

At any speed, an audible "clunk" is present when steering wheel is turned right or left. Furthermore, one can feel a vibration in the steering wheel that exactly matches the "clunk" sound. During low speeds after starting the vehicle the noise and vibration is prominent any time the steering wheel is turned. At higher speeds, the sound is less pronounced, but a vibration and feeling of "looseness" in the steering is prominent. Since this vehicle is used as a family car with young children (and a pregnant woman) present, this noise/vibration combination is disturbing as we fear steering failure. I am not sure if this problem is related to Toyota's technical service bulletin ST001-08 which matches the description of my problem. However, it is apparent that Toyota issued this tsb as a result of customer complaints and developed a procedure and replacement parts to cure such a problem.

- Wakefield, MA, USA

Hi good day, I am writing this complain about my vehicle problem Toyota Rav4 2007 "steering knocking" which affects my driving ability cause it bothers me while driving due to noise everytime I turn my steering wheel left and right. I already write the company about this matter but there is no proper answer about the defect. I search the vehicle defect online and there are a lot of Rav4 owners with the same problem. I hope it's not to late to notify this problem and not waiting for the time that it will cause accidents to the owners of the vehicle in the near future. I am just anticipating that there will be no future accidents arise related to this vehicle problem.

- Hobart, IN, USA

For 2 years prior to taking the car to Toyota for repair, I was hearing a clicking noise when I turned the steering wheel back and forth, normally when I began using the car early in the morning. I took the car to the Toyota dealer to find the problem, expecting it to be a slight adjustment. I was told that the steering shaft was broken along with a yoke assembly that needed to be replaced. I was alarmed that I had been driving a car with a broken steering shaft for so long. Toyota replaced the broken parts and charged me $600. I thought Toyota should cover the cost as a warranty item but they refused. It seems to me that a steering defect should be taken care of via a safety recall. Had the shaft broken or become more damaged then a high speed accident could have occurred.

- Lakeway, TX, USA

Defective intermediate steering shaft causing partial loss of steering. Car feel very unsafe to drive, especially on vet surface and during braking.

- Lebanon, CT, USA

On March 29, 2012, I pulled out of my driveway & heard a clunk. Checked rear underside & saw nothing amiss. Arrived in downtown Chicago and heard 3 more clunks (when making right turns). Then the final extra loud clunk as the steering went out of control. I was on Michigan ave. In front of the hilton hotel during rush hour traffic (5 pm) doing 25 to 30 mph. Cars all around me. Gently applied brakes & emergency flashers to warn others, as I kept turning the steering wheel from way left to way right. Eased my way from center lane over to the curb. Can't believe I didn't hit anything! right rear wheel was tilted at about a 45 degree angle--top outward, bottom inward. In another 15 min. I would have been on the expressway doing 50 --60 mph. Vehicle had to be towed back to Indiana. Toyota service advisor said: "bolt rusted through. If keeping car, suggest getting left rear suspension replaced too because it is getting ready to go. A company rep is going to come out to look at it because we have had another exact failure just recently." The rep decided he did not need to see it. (I'm sure he was already aware of the bigger problem Toyota would be facing.) vehicle facts: 2007 rav-4, mileage: 43,185, one owner, garage kept (except for vacations). Last 27-point inspection: (1-21-2012) 2 months before failure. No items in the section titled "under vehicle" were even checked off as completed (good or bad). This included "suspension & steering linkage". I paid $778. To have both left & right suspension assemblies replaced & an alignment. When I asked about reimbursement from Toyota, the service advisor said "no. They consider it normal "wear & tear". note: Cases like mine are not going to show up as "traffic accidents" because I didn't hit anything or anyone. And those that are accidents could possibly be mistaken as: "over-corrective steering!"

- Hobart, IN, USA

My Rav4 was making popping noises in the steering, I took it to the dealership to have it looked at. The dealership said that the steering shaft had to be replaced and there was not a recall on that. I have never heard of a car having a serious problem with steering, especially one with only 70,000 miles on it. Anyway, I had to pay $380 to have that fixed and they also did an alignment. They said that I needed the alignment because of the repair. I picked up the car and on the way home, it started making a horrible popping and clunking sound in the rear-end. I called the dealership back to tell them to come get it because I did not feel safe driving it back to them. After the tow truck came, my husband found that there is a recall on the car because of rear suspension after an alignment. I am writing this to let you know about my problems with 1) the steering problem and 2) the rear suspension problem. Again, this alignment was done at a Toyota dealership!

- Williamsburg, OH, USA

Felt a looseness in the steering, a popping noise when making turns. Under warrenty, at approximately 33,000 miles, the intermediate steering shaft was replaced. At approximately 56,000 miles, the same problem recurred. Was advised by the local Toyota dealer the intermediate steering shaft had failed once again. Cost of replacement estimated at $628. Called Toyota customer experience center and received a case manager. Case manager informed me the final offer Toyota would make is to pay the cost of the part, I would be responsible for the approximate $300 labor costs. They would not guarantee future replacements should the part fail again. Clearly a safety issue that Toyota refuses to properly address.

- Irmo, SC, USA

About 18 months before the dates above, I noticed a knocking in the steering wheel when I turned it. I didn't think too much about it until it started getting worse and I mentioned it to a friend at work. He mentioned researching it online to see if there were any recalls or problems and suggested having someone look at it. I took his advice and saw that Rav4S did have some steering issues. I took my car to the local Toyota dealership diagnosis and repair. The steering column was replaced at the charge of $45 for diagnosis and $428.77 parts and labor for the repair.

- Kings Mountain, NC, USA

The car makes a clunking, popping noise when turning at low speed. Dealer says it is a intermediate shaft, and although there is a service bulletin for it, it is not covered out of warranty. The dealer quoted a price of $350, for the intermediate shaft and $ 700. If both shafts would need to be replaced, if this is a safety issue, it should be covered by the manufacturer.

- Lansing, MI, USA

Took my Rav4 in for service of five thousand miles oil change. At that time when I picked up car was told I needed to get my steering lower shaft replaced. I have been having strange noises since about 30000 and was told it was not the steering. All of a sudden it is the steering and I need to get it fix right away. I feel this is a much bigger problem than Toyota wants to acknowledge. This needs to be recalled. Is this being looked into? reading online there are thousands of people having the same problem I am having with my 2007.

- Billerica, MA, USA

When turning right at low speed, passenger side rear tie rod assembly failed and wheel turned at 45 degree angle, disabling the automobile. If this had happened on the highway, it would have caused a catastrophic accident. Dealership had previously checked a knocking noise in rear, but was unable to find a problem. I was told that this problem was a design fault and that there were not enough threads on the tie rod assembly to hold the tie rod sufficiently. I have found other reports of this tie rod failure. Should be a safety recall.

- Middletown, RI, USA

Steering popping when turning left or right at low speed.

- Waxhaw, NC, USA

I have 2 Toyota Rav4S - both have the same problem, the steering column is making a "clunking" noise when turning the steering wheel at low speeds. It appears that this is a problem that many, many other Toyota Rav4 owners have experienced and Toyota has issued T-sb-0318-08 bulletin with at procedure to repair an inadequately designed intermediate steering shaft. There are concerns about long-term safety and losing control of the vehicle if this repair is not done. Toyota should be compelled to issue a safety recall and owners should be notified immediately.

- Farmingdale , NY, USA

This Toyota Rav4 began having clunking with steering the vehicle right and left directly after the power train warranty was expired. The clunking worsened so it was inspected by the dealer's service department. I was told that it needed a replacement part that was not in the original manufacturing of the vehicle. There is a technical service bulletin on this Rav4 with the steering component. The service department described this as a safety issue. Why is this not a recall if it is a safety issue and a factory defect? the service department quoted me a $3500 charge for repair. This is ridiculous that I need to pay an enormous cost for a factory defect that is also a safety concern.

- Eveleth, MN, USA