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

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(galaxee @ Jul 20 2006, 10:06 AM) [snapback]289326[/snapback]</div>

That is correct, our parts have to be sent back to Toyota when a warranty repair is done(mainly the SSC's)

 

I had my SSC60 done yesterday at Bob Bridge Toyota in Renton. It took about 30 minutes and was perfectly aligned, thanks to this board I checked it before leaving the dealership. They vacuumed and washed it too.

 

This is what happened when I had my recall done yesterday. If you don't want to read the story please skip to the last paragraph because I have a question.

I had my recall done yesterday at Campbell Toyota in Hermiston, OR, could have been better and it could have been a lot worse. When I went down to set up the appointment and have them order the new shaft I told them a lot of people had gotten their cars back with the steering wheel off center and I ask them to please secure the steering wheel correctly so it wouldn't happen to me. I told them that in their 30 some odd pages of instructions it told exactly how to do that. When I took the car in to have the work done I told them the steering wheel was centered perfectly and reminded them to secure it so it would be centered when they got done.

I got the car back about an hour and a half later, they did wash it. By the time I got 100 feet down the street I could tell the steering wheel was off by 5 to 10 degrees. I really don't think they heard a word I told them about keeping it centered. It also means they most likely did not test drive it when they got done, because if they had they would have noticed the steering wheel was off center.

I took it back immediately, scowled and grumbled at them in my best grumpy old guy fashion and ask them to fix it right away. The service manager apologized with a smile and agreed to fix it as soon as the mechanic who had worked on it came back from lunch. To their credit they did not even mention trying to fix it by doing a wheel alignment. When the mechanic got back he apologized and said it looked about one spline off. He took it in right away and moved it one spline in the correct direction. That fixed the problem, almost. I would, and most likely will, go back to this dealer because they corrected their mistake with a smile and an apology and I was treated with courtesy and respect.

MY QUESTION:

The steering wheel is now off by about 1 degree and I am not sure how that can happen? If one spline off moves the steering wheel 5 to 10 degrees how can it get 1 degree off? Unless the splines on the new shaft are lined up a little differently than the old ones. Has anyone else seen this? I marked the steering wheel position while going straight down the road before I took it in so I don't think this is my imagination, it has moved about 1 degree to the left. It drives fine and 1 degree is not enough to worry about but I am curious how it can happen. I am sure they did not do any kind of alignment, the only work done was the steering shaft recall.

 

i'm quite sure it was danman32 over on priusonline who said that the steering wheel was in line with the plastic trim over the steering column rather than in line with the dash. or vice versa. or something like that.

noone could accuse me of paying that much attention :huh: but it's good that someone is!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tumbleweed @ Jul 25 2006, 12:39 PM) [snapback]292129[/snapback]</div>

You could try the self-recalibration or take it back and grumble appropriately.

Self-calibration, as I understand it, is to drive in an open area not filled with objects/on-coming cars, and turn your steering wheel all the way to one side, let the car roll forward 2-3 mph for a few seconds, then steer all the way to the other side and roll a little. Reminds me of the calibration for Playstation steering wheels.

Anyways, if this doesn't permanently fix it (I couldn't take the 2-3 degrees off mine before the recall), then take it back in?

 

i think that a one degree movement is probably tolerance built into your measuremnt. i would have to assume that the steering wheel is more than one degree off.

you know how far a second is on a wall clock. i find it hard to believe that without gradients, you can notice a difference 1/6th of that

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tumbleweed @ Jul 25 2006, 12:39 PM) [snapback]292129[/snapback]</div>

Well, one degree is pretty fine. Mine is very slightly off now as well. I placed an angle finder on top of the center part of the wheel, carefully found the level point, and secured it. Then I took the car for a drive along some straight, flat, smooth roads. It's about 4 degrees off.

 

here's the quote i was thinking of, quoting danman32 in a thread on priusonline.

 

I recently saw Hobbit's website with pictures of his improperly installed transaxle cover. Would it be reasonable to ask the dealership to check on that when they're doing my steering recall work to see if my car has it wrong too? Thanks!

 

I just took mine in at Kearny Mesa Toyota here in San Diego, Ca. I dropped it off and just asked them to do the recall, and do a complete exterior detail. I picked it up this evening and they did a great job. The steering wheel is in the same place as it was before, and also seems like it maybe a little stiffer at the steering wheel. The Detail is Great

I am glad it all worked out for me.

 

I've dropped mine off this morning, at about 8:00. They told me it will be about 3-4 hours, I'm hoping that's just them stating a horrible time and making themselves look wonderful. It's not a big deal, since I shouldn't need the car until this evening, so I won't stress over it as long as it's done right.

We also just had the cargo cover messing up. It stopped retracting a few days ago. Since it's still under warranty, they're looking at that too.

 

Wow, we have yet to have a customer come back with the steering wheel issue non being centered. Granted the techs take their time marking everything and all.

Knock on wood. Hope you all get yours taken care of.

 

Got my steering gear fix. They said on the phone it would take up to 4 hours. I brought it in and they said it might take 2 hours. Was all done fine in about an hour.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DaveinOlyWA @ Jul 25 2006, 03:38 PM) [snapback]292226[/snapback]</div>

You are right, I just measured it and it seems to be off by 3 or 4 degrees. About the same as Wilco's. Does anyone know how many splines are on the shaft? I tried to count them on the picture but can't get is close enough.

 

Just had my 2005 Prius in for the Steering intermediate shaft replacement safety recall. It WAS totally free, and it took less than an hour. There were two problems though I thought I would relate to everyone.

The first thing we noticed when we got in the car was that the smart key did not work. Simple fix though, the Tech had accidentally pushed the "key" button under the steering wheel that disables the smart key when he was doing the work. We pushed the button and the smart key worked again.

The second problem was more indepth and requires more explanation. The steering wheel was no longer centered. After we picked up the car, I drove it for the rest of the morning, doing the "yard sale thing" and tried very hard to blame the crooked wheel on street conditions. (the wheel was so close my wife didn't notice it,,,,,but i did). I would estimate 15 to 20 degrees tilted to the right.

I called the dealer that afternoon and the service adviser told me there was no way the steering wheel could be offset because it had a "timing spline" that prevented incorrect assembly. I looked underneath and saw that the yokes on either end of the shaft were indeed "timed" as the advisor properly told me.

However a closer inspection showed me that the slip spline on the intermediate shaft itself was not timed and could be rotated to any direction. (I am a Mechanical Engineer and work with this kind of stuff all the time)

To make a long story short, I returned to the dealer the next day, showed the service advisor what I had observed and he sent the car back and confirmed that the slip spline was indeed off by one single spline.

So, I write this just to advise everyone that if your wheel is not aligned properly after you get the intermediate shaft replaced, be aware that the shaft CAN be timed wrong. No matter what they might say.

Wow, I'm embarrrased. I only read the first couple of posts on this thread and then added my reply. Now I read there are a lot of steering wheel alignment issues. Sorry for not reading fully first.

Kagrims

 

Well, they called almost exactly 3 hours later. The recall work was done, the steering wheel is aligned properly (at least as far as I can tell, and that's good enough), and a replacement cover has been ordered. So, my compliments to Dick Campagni's Carson City Toyota.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tumbleweed @ Jul 26 2006, 10:11 AM) [snapback]292634[/snapback]</div>

I had a quick look at mine and would venture a guess that it is either a 36 or 40 spline shaft.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(wilco @ Jul 26 2006, 02:30 PM) [snapback]292770[/snapback]</div>

I looked under the dash board and that's about what I thought too. So if it's 36 or 40 that means we are off 1/2 spline, how can that be. But I'm sure it is off that much because I had it marked before I took it in and it's to the left about 4 degrees now.

I went to the dealer a few minutes ago to see it I could look at the old one and count the splines, they couldn't or wouldn't find it.

I talked to the mechanic who I thought had told me he moved it 1 spline the first time I took it back and he said he moved it 3 or 4 splines. I ask if he could move it back 1 spline the other way to make it right and he said he wasn't sure he could move it 1 spline! I don't understand! The service manager said he thought they could fix it so I should bring it back one more time.

I have to think hard about having it in again, I would rather have a root canal, this whole recall is a mess.

 

Another SSC60 success story. For you Prius owners in San Antonio, Cavender Toyota had me in an out in just over an hour. Steering wheel was aligned perfectly with little perceptible change in the already fine handling characteristics. Hurrah! Thanks Toyota! :lol: