Does it have lane-keeper assist? If it does, it can feel like the steering is loose if you get too close to a lane line because it will try to steer the car itself since it assumes you’re screwing up. Try turning it off and see if that feeling goes away.
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it also helps to develop a feel for the car inertia and plan trajectory this way
unfortunately modern “low steering resistance” cars do not help here much
I think @shadowfax may be onto something - lane keeping makes the car feel really odd if you’re not expecting it. You’ll need to have it shut off to know for sure how you like the car, and also see if it can be set to not turn on every time.
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texases and shadowfax:
I don’t see “lane-keeper assist” listed for the XLE. It does have “Electronic Stability Control” and “Traction Control” - I don’t know what those do.
volvo-v70: we’re clearly looking at this differently. I don’t have a “phobia”. What I do have is that I don’t feel I have good control of the car at that parkway speed. My “question” about the 4cyl/6cyl was whether the more powerful engine, enhancing the acceleration, contributes to that feeling of a loss of proper control.
One word - Google
Take offence if you want to but I really wonder about your driving skills because you seem to have problems that hardly anyone else has . People buy new vehicles al the time and get used to them before they even get home.
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Which version of the XLE? There are 3. The top one got lane keeper assist as part of the “safety package.”
If your cars direction does not change with 1/2 to 3/4 turn of the steering wheel your steering box needs an adjustment or repair. That is not safe. I had a Blazer that had that issue and it was an adjustment to move gears within the steering box closer together. Quite simple actually.
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Most cars nowadays have rack and pinion steering, not steering gearboxes, like on your old Blazer
I mentioned that because op was “test driving a 2016 Toyota car”
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I’m still stuck at his lack of clarification of whether he is trying to describe “slop” or “effort”. I have 5 cars and a P/U. it takes virtually no effort to adjust to any of them when I get in ( except for the placement of the shift lever–muscle memory). It sounds like he is describing slop and doesn’t realize that is a serious problem with safety concerns. That he can’t define it leads me to wonder if he should be driving at all. I can imagine a service writer completely misunderstanding what he is trying to describe and dismissing a potential serious problem.
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I believe the OP is tring to describe the difference in steering ratio between to old car and the new, not loose play in the steering.
It’s also possible, being that this is a used car, that the particular 2016 Avalon he drove has a steering problem. He should drive a different one and see if it feels better.
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It’s NOT the top XLE trim.
Try out a Mazda 6, should have about the best road feel of that class.
Nevada_545: Yes, steering ratio sounds like what I’ve been trying to describe but in perhaps less than precise technical terms.
37chev: That’s an amazing conclusion you have, not knowing me nor anything about my driving skills. Having driven my 2000 Camry for fifteen years and my '91 Camry for 7-8 years before that, that type of steering - moderate resistance-effort (steering ratio)- is what I’m used to and what feels “right” to me. That’s nice that you can switch easily between your six vehicles with no effort - I regularly rented more cars than that each year over the many years when I traveled for business and vacation and had to become immediately comfortable and confident driving each one. I did, at most after a few minutes, but I don’t recall any having as dramatic a difference as I find with the Avalon. Even with the “late model” cars that I’ve rented - e.g. the '15 Caddy SUV and the '17 SUV (Hyundai??). Hence my initial question as to whether this type of steering (effort/resistance/ratio) is now standard.
VOLVO-V70: Yes…people buy and get used to new new vehicles all the time. But you’re assuming the period it takes when the car handles very differently from what they were driving for some twenty years is the same as when it’s more similar. And I as said earlier, I had an Aspen many years ago that handled like that and was not happy with that. Given a choice, with all things (e.g. reliability) being equal, I’d look for a car with steering similar to my Camry. If this is the “standard” of how steering is with recent vintage cars, then I’ll have to make the concentrated effort to get used to handling that.
OK , you don’t like the Avalon so stop thinking about it and look at other vehicles .
Theoretically, if you are driving a car without power steering,you can supposedly feel feedback through the steering wheel if your tires are about to lose traction in a hard turn. My theory is that if ur driving that fast into turns, just slow down.
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I really do not understand what this is really all about. Driven cars where one finger could do all the work while at a stop and 72 ford pickup for 14 years after power steering was lost to to a $450 high pressure hose I decided not to replace. I have only been driving 52 years, so my experience is maybe limited, but cannot recall driving any car that I thought power steering was an issue except my pickup truck, and it was not perfect though fine by me.
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For 99% of the population, they don’t know or care what feedback is about. They just want to steer with one hand while texting with the other. I’ve talked to people who actually thought steering feedback is too raw and unrefined. And for 99% of the situation, good feedback is nice to have but unnecessary in city driving situation
Check out this corny video on steering wheel centering
The reason some people want natural feedback, including me, is because we want to feel this natural torque in thru the wheel. If it starts to level off or I hit a patch of something slippery, i want to know thru my fingers before i see the skid.
In some cars with power steering that mask this, the driver would think everything is fine until the steering wheel torque drops off suddenly
If you watch the video you provided the return to center of the steering wheel is based on castor angle, yes if your wheels are sliding on ice you will have troubles, not sure what you mean about before I see the skid.
By the time your inner ear and your eyes perceives the skid, it may be too late. I want to feel the impending skid with my fingers before it happens