electric steering

[red106]

The "Car Guys" received a letter from a Priius owner where he said , at low speed, he was turning and the steering wheel locked and would not straighten out. He had to shut the car down to keep from crashing. The Car Guys said we were all guinea pigs for the Electric steering on this car and if it happens at high speed we're in trouble. Any problems like this reported? i Don't any TSB's related to steering.

[snapontool]

Hey Red106,
There is alot of 'he said/she said' from guys who know his buddy who has...... (you know what I mean).
Here's the site to check for yourself, since I don't know what year Prius you're referring to: TOYOTA PRIUS Service Bulletins (TSBs) and other Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs) and Free Car Reports
Mine is 08, and there's nothing having to do with the steering on my yr of car.
Hope this helps you.

[Patrick Wong]

The complaint may be valid. I know of two steering-related recalls, one for Classic and the other for early-production 2G:

The Classic electric steering gear was a known weak point of the car. The torque sensors can get dirty after a while and cause severe vibration in the steering wheel. See SSC Y05, attached below.

2004 - 2006 Prius are subject to a recall to have the intermediate steering shaft replaced. The problem is that the electric steering gear is located near the steering wheel. Hence the full torque required to steer the car passes through the steering shaft down to the rack and pinion gear. The original steering shaft, subject to this torque, could become loose or develop a crack. See SSC 60C, which is too large for me to attach. If interested, send me a msg with your email address and I will forward on to you.

Considering all the technology present in the Prius, I suppose it is reasonable to say that Prius owners are "guinea pigs" to the extent that the major vehicle systems are relatively new - and although relatively reliable, are not 100% perfect. Electric steering, engine and transaxle control by wire, and regenerative braking are three prominent examples of systems that you are entrusting your life to every time you drive Prius.

[Bill Merchant]

Originally Posted by Patrick Wong

Considering all the technology present in the Prius, I suppose it is reasonable to say that Prius owners are "guinea pigs" to the extent that the major vehicle systems are relatively new - and although relatively reliable, are not 100% perfect. Electric steering, engine and transaxle control by wire, and regenerative braking are three prominent examples of systems that you are entrusting your life to every time you drive Prius.

You're right of course, Patrick, but I wouldn't want Red to get the idea a Prius is any more or less dangerous than a conventional car. Power steering can fail, transmissions eat themselves at speed, and hydraulic brakes fail or fade from heat. And while they are all rolling death-traps, at least the Prius has an ultra-high-strength steel cage around the cabin.

[patsparks]

Once upon a time diabolic oops I mean hydraulic steering was new and experimental. I guess MR2 drivers have been guinea pigs for longer than Prius drivers, MR2s have had electric steering for a long time. What happens if your petrol engine stalls or you blow a hose mid corner with hydraulic steering?

[tochatihu]

I tried to track this at the car talk forum. Info posted there indirectly indicated that the driver was moving at low speed and had to use "all her strength" to straighten out after a turn. To me this sounds very much like a EPS shutdown after the sensors start to disagree. In my experience 'no-assist' Prius steering if easy enough at highway speeds, but car really test your arm strength for parallel parking and similar maneuvers.

[miscrms]

I think the important thing to point out is that we are talking about the assist, not the entire steering control. The steering control is plain old mechanical linkage, not truly "by-wire" as many folks believe. Same goes for the brakes.

As I recall the concern in SSC 60C had to do with hitting something like a curb hard with the wheel at full lock. This could transfer significant force into the intermediate shaft and damage it (or something like that). The concern was that it could be damaged and then fail later leading to a loss of steering. I also believe this was a hypothetical failure, not one that had actually occurred in the field.

Hard to say if they were discussing an incident related to this recall, or if this guy was just full of it. More often than not these sorts of things are user error related and not unique to the Prius. Do a google search and you will find that almost every major car model has a dangerous habit of unintended acceleration and needs to be recalled. Usually the people making sure we all know about these problems are our friendly neighborhood class action lawyers.

Rob

[red106]

thanks for the input. i have not received a recall notice on the intermediate steering shaft. will have to check with tnhe dealer on that.
i have had no problems with the car an we really love it. i think driving at altitude cuts our mileage but its still real good.

[kp0825]

I ran into a problem this weekend with my 2001 Prius; warning light flashed and "PS" appeared on the display. The first time it happened, a few seconds later "problem corrected" appeared on the display. The second time it happened, my husband said he lost the power steering. Right now it is driving OK with no warning lights and power steering is working. I took it to my local dealer and they said it came up with a code C1513 torque sensor and they recommended I replace the steering rack at a cost of $1655. Seems kind of high...checked with local parts dealer and they don't even carry this part...Anyone have any ideas?

[David5]

thanks for the input!