2007 es350

Moving or idle- if I grab the steering wheel in the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock position, I can move it back and forth like I'm doing a back exercise. I hope this makes sense. The steering wheel moves an inch or two back and forth.

Is there a nut I can tighten or something?

 

Aloha June, if you are talking about slight turning of the steering wheel, it is generally from the steering under the car. Can you have someone look under the car for loose parts of the steering. It should be evident which two pieces are sloppy down there.

 

Here's a video. I'll pulling the steering wheel in and out. There's one nut that bolts the steering wheel to the steering column which you can see of you remove the airbag. I think something in the actual steering column in loose/broke.

https://jumpshare.com/s/NA3znLnQie9mVt9M4luZ

 

You should not drive the car. Please remove the steering wheel and check the central nut, it may be loose. If that nut is tightened then there's a problem with the steering column.

 

I found the issue (I'm almost sure). Thank you CCN. Look at the video below at the 19:25 stamp where he talks about the snap ring.

Now look at the 26:25 time stamp where he says, if not installed correctly, it will cause the steering wheel to move in and out. He says nothing will happen but it will hit the cover and wear the bearings.

and last but not least, at the 52:30 time stamp, he talks about the snap ring again and says it's not a safety concern.

This video solves 2 problems:

1- if your steering wheel is moving in and out, it's the snap ring
2- for those of you that have a knocking noise when wiggling the steering wheel, it's the shaft that needs to be replaced. On other certain toyota models, the steering column had a star shaped plastic piece that needed to be replaced.