Toyota Prius - Special Service Campaign (Steering Shaft Assembly Issue)

i have never noticed a click when turning the wheel but rarely (actually never) am in car without some sort of audio distraction

 

I tried it again at lunch after my previous post. Just sitting in the car, not moving, turning the wheel a little bit (just free play, not enuf to turn the wheels or anything like that) to the left, then right, etc., there is a distinct but soft noise, like a click, always at the same point: when the steering wheel goes through the center. Anyone else?

rob

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(onerpm @ Jul 5 2006, 09:26 AM) [snapback]281453[/snapback]</div>

No clicks in my car while turning the wheel - pre-recall. Haven't seen a recall letter yet.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(gopher @ Jul 1 2006, 06:36 PM) [snapback]279806[/snapback]</div>

Gopher,

I was stunned to see your mention of the instrument pod bouncing around on rough roads. About 25,000 miles ago, I posted a whine on PriusChat and Prius Online about how my dash and instrument pod were bouncing around on bumpy roads after they did the fuel gauge TSB that required them to dismantle the dash. Nobody on either discussion board responded that they had ever seen the same problem with their Prius. Today I brought my 04 in for the 4th time for repair of this item, and finally this afternoon the service manager told me the tech showed him a couple of other Prii that did the same thing - this is normal! My fear was that the pod or the MFD would fail, but they say this isn't an issue. OK, just give it to me in writing. I'd love to know if anyone else had noticed this!

They're doing the steering shaft recall as long as they have the car tomorrow morning. I've never heard any clicks or had any other symptoms.

Susan
04 silver package 9
40,060 miles

 

A click [or is more like a clunk?] when turning the steering wheel
back and forth is NOT a good sign -- sounds like one of those spline
connections could be loose. Did they torque all the shaft bolts
right while doing the SSC? If they left one loose, there's a chance
that turning hard could jump a spline tooth or strip the thing and
make things worse -- in other words, almost like the original problem
that the SSC attempts to correct.
.
Make sure it's not a deep metal-to-metal type noise; if you can maybe
find where two pieces of plastic are touching while passing center
or something innocuous, you would have less to worry about.
.
_H*

 

Got my safety recall notice today (Thurs 7/6). I live in the SF Bay Area.

I called my dealer (Toyota 101) when the announcement was first made. The sales rep assured me that my Prius (an early '06 that I got on 12/7/05) would NOT be covered by the recall. Hmmmmm..... (Their service dept was good though. They did my 5K mile service in an hour.)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hobbit @ Jul 5 2006, 09:32 PM) [snapback]281741[/snapback]</div>

OK, I tried it. I didn't notice any clicks when turning the steering wheel, even after the recall. Like hobbit said, it might be a problem. Better bring it to the dealer.

 

Thanks for your replies, everyone. My wife is dropping the Prius off today to be looked at again. It's a very light noise, does not sound like a clunk, or metal-to-metal. It almost sounds like a piece of plastic is loose and is laying on the shaft somewhere, and rattles over bumps as well as "clicks" when the wheel is turned past the center. It's up high in the column. Also, the plastic surround that goes around the shaft down where it passes through the floorboard doesn't seem to be fit together completely, so I'll have them look at that as well, although I am confident that that isn't the source of the noises.

I'll let you all know how it goes today.

rob

 

I received the recall notice yesterday and had the recall performed the same day.

Took about two hours, but the part that annoyed me was the mechanic running the AC the whole time. I know this because the tank mileage did not change, but the HV battery was depleted from green to purple, and about 0.2 gallons of gas were used based on the tank mpg change. Considering that it was 70F yesterday, I'm not sympathetic.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(EricGo @ Jul 6 2006, 10:19 AM) [snapback]281971[/snapback]</div>

I had exaclty the same experience, and it's not the first time. I just got home from picking it up after the recall. I remember turning the climate system OFF when I dropped it off, and this morning when I turned the car on the AC came on, set at 69 degrees. I only ever set it to 72-73, so clearly they did that and let the battery run down to 2 pink bars.

Also, the left driver's side vent was not in the right position inside its frame, which I did not notice until I was almost home. I fiddled with it and got it back. It was pushed in and down relative to the silver outer frame. When I got the key, I decided to take a walk around the car before getting in it, and saw that the hood was ajar. That was lovely, too. Wouldn't they have heard a beeping or seen a flashing light as they were parking it?

Susan

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(efusco @ Jul 6 2006, 08:31 AM) [snapback]281943[/snapback]</div>

I gave my dealership a week's notice so they could get parts in. When I arrived today, there was another Prius waiting for the SSC 60C work. The service managers had a short conference about whether or not they had parts for everybody. Don't know the outcome for the other Prius, but they had enough parts for mine.

The guy who did the paperwork said it was hard to get more than one set of parts on a single order. He said something to the effect of, "there's a lot of competition for the parts for this fix."

 

Well I just got my notice on thursday, but have not made the appt yet. I want them to do a few before they
do mine. My car is a 05 produced in 4-05 and have about 22,000 miles on it and never had a problem with
it. My steering wheel does not click or anything while parked when I move it, for the record. We will see how Kearny Mesa Toyota does with my recall.

 

Well......I took mine in today and had my steering shaft replaced.....Great !


NOT....

I picked up the car just as they were closing this evening and shortly after I left the garage I noticed that the steering wheel is not central anymore when the wheels are straight !!!!

So I will have to take the damn thing back again....

 

I was looking through that 42 page document from NHTSA and came across the following interesting table. It shows the number of cars by state that the recall affects. This is the bulk of Prius on the road, sure there are some earlier and later ones, not affected, that don't show up here, but it's a good snapshot to show the approximate distribution of vehicles. If you're in North Dakota, you're not alone, but nearly so...

 

Thanks Bill.

Now, I just have to normalize to state population, and my state of NM will shine !

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(EricGo @ Jul 7 2006, 08:51 PM) [snapback]282876[/snapback]</div>

It's already been done. See http://priuschat.com/index.php?act=ST&f=19&t=20850

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mark Whaley @ Jul 7 2006, 09:11 PM) [snapback]282824[/snapback]</div>

Good luck; mine took THREE times! :angry:

 

Because of my affinity for a straight steering wheel, I must admit I am disinclined to get the recall done, even though my safety could be at risk. This is enhanced due to the fact that no vehicle failures have occurred as a result of the presumed-defective part.

I have no tolerance for stealerships, as I have worked at one in the past and know the tactics used by the various departments to pad the bottom line.

I'm with galaxee on this one, though.....find a good prius mechanic and give them your business! As it stands, my Prius is still in AK and won't get the recall performed until I get back, and that can only be done by the one Certified Prius mechanic in Anchorage.

Here's hoping he's had some practice.