2012 Safety Recall (C0T) - will Toyota replace

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Prius_Gnome, Mar 23, 2021.

  1. Prius_Gnome

    Prius_Gnome Member

    Joined:
    Jun 29, 2008
    76
    26
    0
    Location:
    Long Island, NY
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    This recall was from 10 years ago so hopefully some experts can weigh in.

    C0T Recall:
    This recall had to do with the Prius Steering Intermediate Extension Shaft. 2 links about the recall are:
    I checked service history of my Prius in the Toyota Owners website and see that the recall was performed in January 2013 (66K miles):

    C0T INSP BOLT HOLE, REPL EXT SHFT, 3 BOLTS, ADJ STEERING
    C0T INSP BOLT HOLE, REPL EXT SHFT, 3 BOLTS, ADJ STEERING ~|~CHECK VEHICLE FOR OPEN RECALLS ~|~COMPLETED

    Parts
    Name = EXTENSION KIT, STEER
    Part # = 0400141212
    Qty = 1​

    History of my Prius:
    • Jan 2018 - 113K miles - I purchased my 2009 base Prius.
    • Feb 2019 - 123K miles - I purchased new tires from Costco, and they mentioned that my front wheels had a lot of "play" and that I should get it checked out.
    • Mar 2021 - 135K miles - I mentioned the "play" to my dealership service department. They looked into it, and said I needed to replace rack & pinion, sway bars, and both front tie rods. They quoted ~$1K for just the rack & pinion fix. I'm getting a second opinion from an independent mechanic later this week.

    Questions:
    1. Do you think the dealer would replace the rack and pinion under warranty? Or it's been too long that any issues would be attributed to normal wear and tear?
    2. Based on Luscious Garage link, the defective shaft is countersunk (04001-41212) while the correct shaft is not countersunk (45221-47041). Based on the service history, I suspect the shaft is still the defective countersunk one. Should I ask the independent shop to take a photo of the shaft to confirm whether it's countersunk or not? If the shaft is the countersunk one, is that enough evidence to convince Toyota to replace under warranty?
    3. Do you think it's time to sell the car for junk if repairs are excessive (i.e., ~$2K)? It seems it's better to just use that $2K on a replacement car.

    Thanks in advance!
     
    #1 Prius_Gnome, Mar 23, 2021
  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 10, 2013
    16,632
    8,492
    0
    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Check the history of the car and see what was replaced during the recall. If only the "bolt" was replaced, then you should get a second opinion to see if the intermediate shaft is indeed the cause for the "play" in the steering. If during the recall, the intermediate shaft was replaced, then your problem probably is not that item
     
    #2 JC91006, Mar 23, 2021
  3. Prius_Gnome

    Prius_Gnome Member

    Joined:
    Jun 29, 2008
    76
    26
    0
    Location:
    Long Island, NY
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Thanks for your thoughts, JC91006. Yes, I'll definitely be getting a second opinion later this week.

    The service history states "C0T INSP BOLT HOLE, REPL EXT SHFT, 3 BOLTS, ADJ STEERING" which sounds like Op Code 2510LC on page 6 (of 33) of the pdf I linked which states "Perform Inspection, Replace Steering Extension Shaft and 3 Bolts, and Adjust Steering Wheel Off Center Condition". Since it looks like the shaft was replaced during the recall, my current issue is probably not covered under warranty so I'll unfortunately have to pay for any repairs myself.
     
    #3 Prius_Gnome, Mar 23, 2021
  4. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 29, 2020
    11,552
    2,028
    0
    Location:
    Durham NC
    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    Model:
    Base
    That's the most ridiculous nonsense I've ever heard kind of I wouldn't replace any of that except possibly for the rack if that's where the problem lies in this shaft The shaft is in the rack in the rack is only the rack and the pinion and the tube it slides through so I'm not sure if this shaft is coming out of the electric assist and going down to the yolk and then ties into the spleen shaft on top of the manual rack which is a manual rack like a Corolla has they are dead reliable and very rarely does anything go wrong and when they do you just chuck the rack and stick in a new one and the new rat consists of outer tie rod to outer tie rod and everything in the middle that basic manual rack can be had from A1 cardone the major rebuilder in the country for a dealer cost of about $99 it retails for about $160 that can go in a Prius and can go in a Corolla there's a few changes I think I'm almost positive I have seen the rack for my generation 2 Prius from A1 for the prices I'm talking about whether it'll fit in the Corolla I don't know I'd have to have one in hand and take a look but they look almost identical and given that the Prius is basically built on the Corolla platform if you will and I'm not taking big liberties with that either so there's always that all that replacing this way bar business out of the question I mean unless you're in rust country and all that stuff is ruined then possibly but if that's the case then the cars got to be pretty much ready to be out to pasture You could change the rack in the car on a Saturday afternoon and not get very dirty I'll put it to you like that The instructions are right here in these files.
     
    #4 Tombukt2, Aug 20, 2024
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)