Poor steering and handling on the highway.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DaveinOlyWA\";p=\"47031)</div>

Galloping Gertie WAS the original Tacoma Narrows bridge, and it galloped because of lack of torsional rigidity and designers' ignorance of the likelihood of resonance when driven by a force like the wind.

i know about this because the designer of the original bridge came from my alma mater, and they beat all of us over the head with the story and movies when we came to the mechanics and engineering classes....

 

I have a '05 Prius with 2000 Km on it in Ireland, above 80 Kph on the motorway it's all over the place, I'm going to try the camber and tire pressure's to see if it helps.

 

That's about when I noticed mine acting up, when I first took delivery. At Trans Canada speeds of 100 km/h the ride became very exciting indeed.

It took two trips to the dealer to get rid of most of the wander.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hyo silver\";p=\"73109)</div>

Seen this off the European site? Click on the red-circle in the bottom-center.

It shows that those flaps (front and rear) are there to deflect air away from the tires as you mentioned for drag reasons? Or is there something more?

"With specially designed,[sic] smooth panels, the underside of the new Toyota Prius plays an important role in reducing drag and improving stability at high speeds." Sure, okay.

 

the wife says this thing is all over the place,as i drive down the expressway. It must be me i think, it can't be my baby[only2500 miles so far]. then i start paying attention, hey she does wander around a lil at highway speed, drat, now i can say i have my first problem.

 

These posts of handling problems seem strange to me for my Prius is very steady. Even going down the hiway at 75 mph with cruise control I barely touch the wheel. I have my tires at 38-36 (which seems to give me exact speed relationships) and the alignment has not been touched since delivery. Side winds do seem a bit worse but not drastically so.

I have noticed that some people I have allowed to drive the car are constantly steering. On one occasion I reached over and held the wheel and it then went straight. I had her take her hands off the wheel and it continued to go straight. The power steering is very sensitive. Pehaps I have been lucky in having a well setup auto.

 

I've had my Prius for 4 months and I am very unhappy with the highway tracking. I didnt notice it at first but since school started up in the fall I do alot more highway driving. I've had my Prius to the dealer twice. They say the alignment is perfect and there is nothing more they can do. I called toyota customer service and they say thats just how the car handles.

I noticed this thread goes back to early 2004, so this is not a new problem. Has anyone found any new solutions to the problem? I would appriciate any additional feedback.

 

BT Tech Chassis Stiffening Plate available here!

BT Tech Prius Rear Aero Spoiler now available!

 

i have just moved the little air dams as prescribed in this thread.Case closed.Car wanders no more.I waited til we had some strong winds here in so. Jersey .today was the day.very noticable change.well done 200volts! thanks.car is 3mos old 5500miles.@70mph on 295 consistant 49-50 [email protected] love it.

 

Mike;
Mine is a 2005 Prius with the same problem.
David Corley
Saint Louis, MO
Case # 2005 11030414

Hope this helps.

 

Tried moving them back, or had somebody else do it without you knowing?

I had removed the air flaps, and the car felt stabler. Then I moved it back, and it felt the same, so it was placebo for me.

 

The biggest single improvement I made to my Prius highway tracking was to move the little chin spoilers (The spoilers in front of the front tires) to the very front of the car, as described by 200volts et al.

My Prius tracking isn't perfect, but it's way better. Before I left Winnipeg on a business trip last Monday, I put the winter tires on my car. I suspect it's going to be a long and tiring winter: with the Yokohama Ice Guard 10 tires on the car, I have to learn to drive it all over again.

It requires constant highway correction and turns are very sloppy. <sigh>

With my parents 2003 Buick LeSabre, it doesn't matter if you have the Michelin Harmony tires on the factory wheels, or the studded Cooper WeatherMaster S/T 2 tires on their steel wheels, that thing tracks like on rails.

 

Toyota's announcement of changes for the '06 mentions the addition of a front lip spoiler. I wonder if this was done to address some of the issues mentioned in this thread.