does the light tracking maybe comes with the new tires that comes stock, or only some brands and types of tires, the Newer Camrys feel much lighter than the old, and a light breeze seems to send them off to the side... hard to compare with other cars, but it does seem it takes more input to keep this car straight... could be the tires, could be other things,,, too bad there is no adjustable dampener like on motorcycles, where you can adjust the steering input... that would be better... I drives lots of country roads and always constantly adjusting the steering to stay in the lane, I keep wanting to compare with other cars, we had a 1993 Camry that rode better, felt heavier, and a more Cadillac like ride. I can't compare a BMW at all to the Camry ride, so I won't. In all it just feels very light, a bit top heavy. Maybe the designer should put some chassis design changes, or a lower front valence or spoiler to keep wind from shifting the car so easily in the lanes on the road. It steers very good, but maybe too easy. In the scheme of things, it's still a great car.

 

There have been a lot of complaints in this forum over the years about the rather large center-of-steering "dead zone" in some TCHs. I think this is what you are experiencing. The symptom is that if you crank the steering wheel to put the car into a slight (to moderate) curve and then take your hands off the wheel, the car won't center itself and track a straight line, but instead will continue to track the curve. Some here have claimed that adjusting some alignment parameter (toe-in?) to its maximum allowed setting will reduce this phenomenon, but that comes at the cost of increasing rolling resistance and tire wear, thereby decreasing gas mileage.

I've learned to live with it in my TCH, but every time I get into the driver's seat in someone else's car, it hits me: Oh, this car is so easy to steer -- I don't have to fight the steering anymore.

 

This is exactly what I wanted to ask. That dead, no-sense-of-center feel is the only thing that really annoys me about this car. Are there any common fixes that can make it a bit better without doing drastic things to the car?

 

I've tried to post a reply here, but signing in has become so difficult that I've forgotten what I wanted to say. Probably only an evil hacker would be able to get past such great security.

Bob

 

I find that this car wanders a bit at highway speed. I have a 2012 TCH LE. I haven't noticed the 'dead zone' as described but it's in that zone that I feel the car wanders more than my previous vehicles.

 

I always find it amusing when people ask for power steering adjustments for high speed. Why? Power steering, whether it be electronic or hydraulic, only operates at either, low speeds or particular situations, like if you take a tight high speed corner. The issue has nothing to do with power steering, but rather how Toyota has engineered the overall steering of the car to function.

 

My 2017 Highlander does the same but to a lesser degree. I think some of the corrections I make are in response to the sway-bars. As the suspension responds to minor road bumps I find that I correct the steering wheel to hold the car on a straight line. If I point my car straight and take my hands off the wheel, the car will go straight but it "feels" like it needs like it needs to be corrected. I wish that the steering assist could be adjusted.

 

Caster adjustment to more positive