I have a 3rd gen prius 2010 Japanese import and I loosened the nut on telescopic lever shaft for a different project. Unfortunately, the nut does not re-tighten nor completely come off. Now the lever is flaccid and does not lock up at all. I looked pretty much everywhere but I couldn't find anything relevant to the mechanism. Pics below. Does anyone have experience with this problem?
It appears that the assembly uses a “ prevailing torque nut ” that would require the use of a back- up wrench. This special nut is probably, precisely torqued and controls the clamp force of the mechanism. Your photos shows a flange nut that has a flat sided surface to accommodate a thin ( special) wrench. This is most likely where you need to hold while you tighten the collared, prevailing torque nut.
No personal experience with this mechanism but understand fundamentally how it works. Secondly, yes, I am/was a mechanic for 45 years or so. In fact I have been involved in the automotive industry in serveral capacities. Thanks for asking.
