2002 Toyota Prius

A YEAR AGO, I HAD MY 2002 TOYOTA PRIUS SHIPPED TO ITALY WHILE I WAS ON SABBATICAL. STARTING IN OCTOBER (2005), I STARTED REPORTING TO THE LOCAL TOYOTA DEALER THAT THE STEERING WAS STIFF WHEN RETURNING THE WHEEL STRAIGHT AHEAD ON SHARP TURNS OR WHEN MOVING OUT OF TIGHT PLACES WHERE I HAD PARKED. I RETURNED TO THE US FOR THE SPRING SEMESTER, BUT RETURNED IN JUNE, AND FOUND THE SAME INTERMITTENT PROBLEM. MY FIRST THOUGHT WAS THAT THERE HAD BEEN SOME DAMAGE TO THE CAR DURING SHIPPING. THIS PAST SUNDAY (JULY 9, 2006), HOWEVER, I HAD A CATASTROPHIC INCIDENT THAT MIGHT HAVE SENT MY WIFE AND ME OFF THE SMALL COUNTRY ROAD WE WERE TRAVELING ON ABOUT A HALF MILE FROM OUR HOME HERE SOUTH OF FLORENCE IN THE CHIANTI REGION. I HAD BEEN ON A STEADY DOWNHILL STRETCH WHICH THEN REVERSED TO IN AN S-CURVE ON AN INCLINE. I TURNED NORMALLY THROUGH THE FIRST HALF OF THE S-CURVE WHEN SUDDENLY THE STEERING WHEEL FROZE SOLID IN A STRAIGHT FORWARD POSITION AND I HAD TO JAM ON THE BRAKES TO STOP FORWARD MOTION OF THE CAR OR GO OFF THE SIDE OF THE ROAD INTO A RAVINE. I WAS PROBABLY TRAVELING UNDER 15-20 MPH, BECAUSE THE CURVES WERE SO SHARP AND I WAS TRAVELING UPHILL. TO GET OFF THE ROAD, I STOPPED AND STARTED THE PRIUS A COUPLE OF TIMES TO SEE IF THIS WERE AN ELECTRICAL-COMPUTER FAULT AS THE STEERING SYSTEM IN THIS CAR HAD BEEN REPLACED AT 26,000 MILES (MORE ABOUT THIS LATER). ON ABOUT THE THIRD TRY, I WAS ABLE WITH TREMENDOUS FORCE TO MOVE THE WHEEL OFF CENTER AND NORMAL STEERING WAS RESTORED. BECAUSE THERE WAS NO ADEQUATE SHOULDER ON THE ROAD, I RETURNED THE CAR HOME, EXPERIENCING THE SAME STEERING WHEEL LOCK-UP MORE THAN ONCE, JAMMING ON THE BRAKES TO BRING THE CAR TO A HALT, AND THEN WRESTLING WITH THE STEERING WHEEL TO THE RIGHT AND THE LEFT WITH THE SAME IMMENSE FORCE UNTIL IT BROKE FREE. THIS WAS NOTHING LIKE THE PREVIOUS STIFFNESS I HAD EXPERIENCED BRINGING THE WHEEL BACK TO CENTER FROM A FAR LEFT OR FAR RIGHT POSITION. (TO BE CONTINUED). *JB

JUST WANTED TO ALERT YOU THAT THERE MAY BE A POTENTIAL DEFECT WITH THE TORQUE SENSOR, WHICH AFFECTS THE POWER STEERING. I RECENTLY ENCOUNTERED THIS IN MY 2002 TOYOTA PRIUS WITH 43,000+ MILES ON THE VEHICLE.*AK \ BASICALLY, THERE ARE NO PRECEDING SYMPTOMS BEFORE THE POWER STEERING FAILS. UPON FAILURE, THE PRIUS CENTRAL COLOR TOUCHSCREEN LCD DISPLAY SHOWS THREE ICONS, WITH THE "PS" ICON IN RED. YOU WILL ALSO SEE AN EXCLAMATION POINT ICON LIT ON THE GREEN LCD DISPLAY NEXT TO THE SPEEDOMETER. AT WHICH POINT, YOU HAVE NO POWER STEERING AND THE CAR WILL BE HARD TO STEER. \ WHEN THIS OCCURS, THERE MAY BE A TEMPORARY FIX, WHICH WORKED FOR ME. PULL OVER TO A SAFE AREA AND TURN OFF THE CAR. WAIT 30 SECONDS, AND THEN TURN ON THE CAR. YOU HAVE EFFECTIVELY REBOOTED THE PRIUS COMPUTER SYSTEM WITH THE TORQUE SENSOR, AND THE POWER STEERING SHOULD RETURN FOR THE TIME BEING. \ THE VEHICLE SHOULD BE TAKEN TO THE NEAREST OFFICIAL TOYOTA SERVICE SHOP (AKA DEALERSHIP) AND HAVE THEM RUN A DIAGNOSTIC CHECK. THEY SHOULD SEE CODE "C1513 TORQUE SENSOR ABNORMAL" IN THE PRIUS' MEMORY BANKS. THEN SIT DOWN FOR THE PRICE TAG: $3159 - $4,160 TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE POWER STEERING RACK, SINCE THE SENSOR IS INTEGRATED IN THE RACK ITSELF. THIS INCLUDES THE LABOR OF ABOUT $261. \ IT IS RECOMMENDED NOT TO ACCEPT ANY "COST COVERAGE OFFER" FROM THE SERVICE SHOP UNTIL YOU CALL THE TOYOTA CONSUMER SUPPORT LINE AT 1-800-331-4331. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A SERVICE QUOTE FROM THE SHOP, THEN CALL THE SUPPORT LINE AND COMPLAIN. THE SUPPORT LINE WILL ASSIGN YOU A CASE WORKER AND PROVIDE A CASE NUMBER. THEY WILL CONTACT THE SHOP AND MAKE ARRANGEMENTS TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE. TOYOTA COVERED THE COST OF THE PART 100% FOR ME, AND ALL I HAD TO DO WAS PAY FOR THE LABOR SINCE MY CAR WAS OUT OF WARRANTY PER THE 36,000 BUMPER-TO-BUMPER COVERAGE. \ IN CONCLUSION, I AM VERY HAPPY ON HOW TOYOTA HANDLED THE POWER STEERING ISSUE. THIS IS TO INFORM OTHER 2000-2003 PRIUS OWNERS IF THEY ENCOUNTER A SIMILAR PROBLEM.

2002 NEW TOYOTA PRIUS DELIVERED WITH BRIDGESTONE POTENZA TIRES. THESE TIRES HAVE FAILED AFTER 12,000 MILES. THEN CHANGED TIRES (ALL 4) WHICH FAILED AT 10,000 MILES. TOYOTA CORPORATE SAYS ITS NOT THEIR CONCERN. DEALER TOLD ME THEY ARE NOT SAFE TIRES. I HAVE REPLACED TIRES EVERY 10,000 MILES. TOYOTA CORPORATE RECOMMENDS THESE TIRES AND TAKES NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEM.*AK

STEERING COLUMN AND CAR VIBRATE WHEN TURNING OR BACKING. LESSER VIBRATION IN STEERING ALSO SENSED WHEN DRIVING STRAIGHT. BROUGHT CAR INTO DEALER ON AUGUST 14, 2002. AM TOLD THAT REPLACEMENT STEERING RACK IS UNAVAILABLE AND DATE OF RECEIPT OF ONE IS NOT KNOWN. REPORTED THIS PROBLEM TO TOYOTA CONSUMER SERVICES AND FILE # 200208260148 WAS ASSIGNED TO MY REPORT. THERE IS ALSO EXTENSIVE DISCUSSION OF PROBLEMS WITH PRIOUS STEERING ON SEVERAL WEB SITES AT WHICH I DETERMINED THAT THERE WAS A RECALL OF THE 2001 MODEL. MANUFACTURER HAS NOT CORRECTED DEFECT ON 2002 MODEL.*AK