1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Defective steering wheel cover?

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Technical Discussion' started by dslomer64, Mar 6, 2019.

  1. dslomer64

    dslomer64 Member

    Joined:
    Oct 3, 2014
    157
    90
    0
    Location:
    Cincinnati, OH
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Last summer, my 2017 Prius steering wheel cover looked similar to the attached pictures. I went to Joseph Toyota (JoTo) who said it was cut and not a defect. I objected.

    They sent me to Fisher-Griffin Upholsterers (FGU), where they send all such problems. An employee (no doubt Fisher or Griffin) said it looks like the cover stretched, forming a crease or wrinkle, and said to go back to JoTo and tell them that "It's not a cut but a stretching and gathering of the fabric." Toyota objected.

    So i was on my own. I paid FGU $165 to fix it. They did such a good job that i called on the way home to praise their work.

    In January, i found the smaller "wrinkle" shown in my attachments and called JoTo, who said to send pictures. They then said to take it to FGU and see what they say. Same guy looked at it and said the same thing that he said about the one they fixed. Conclusion: "The cover is defective " (He hadn't seen how the wrinkle grew in size over just two weeks. Other attachment. Neither had JoTo.)

    JoTo agreed. Rather than just fix it again or attempt cover replacement, they took FGU's evaluation to heart and replaced the steering wheel. (While waiting for its delivery, the wrinkle grew to the size in the second picture. Its cover feels different, more solid, but soft enough. i expect no more wrinkles. Its design is only similar, having just two "radius stabilizers". I'm okay with it.

    JoTo wrote "Good will" on the paperwork. I noticed the cost was $638.
    This doesn't really bother me, but didn't they have to fix it under warranty?

    Anyway, i wondered if other Prius drivers experienced similar problems.

    P.S. Joseph Toyota wouldn't refund my $165 but said to call the Toyota 800 number and see if they'll cover it. I'm preparing a letter to convince them that clearly JoTo misdiagnosed the problem, thereby having me pay for an unnecessary repair. I'll keep y'all posted. But one reason for this post is to be able to honestly tell 800 Toyota that this isn't the only instance of my problems. Screenshot_2019-01-29-04-56-22.jpeg IMG_20190301_090749765.jpeg

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #1 dslomer64, Mar 6, 2019
  2. alanclarkeau

    alanclarkeau Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2016
    7,041
    7,580
    0
    Location:
    near Brisbane, Australia
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    There have been a few threads on Steering Wheels. Maybe you'll find them in SEARCH.
     
    #2 alanclarkeau, Mar 6, 2019
  3. krmcg

    krmcg Lowered Blizzard Pearl Beauty

    Joined:
    May 15, 2008
    2,592
    2,388
    0
    Location:
    Whittier, CA
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    There are other threads about the damaged steering wheels. Mine was replaced free of charge at two years.
     
    #3 krmcg, Mar 6, 2019
  4. Frankemtp

    Frankemtp Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 22, 2016
    16
    8
    0
    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Four Touring
    I definitely had the same problem with my 2016 Touring 4. I used stretch tape to fix it. I am way outside of the warranty period. It is definitely a defect.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #4 Frankemtp, Mar 22, 2019
  5. alanclarkeau

    alanclarkeau Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2016
    7,041
    7,580
    0
    Location:
    near Brisbane, Australia
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I'd still log a claim with TOYOTA - as its a regular fault. They need to be proactive.
     
    #5 alanclarkeau, Mar 22, 2019
  6. padroo

    padroo Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2008
    2,763
    2,250
    13
    Location:
    Chesterton, Indiana Another third world country.
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    I remember seeing other threads and I need to look at mine. How many miles on the car?
     
    #6 padroo, Mar 22, 2019
  7. Frankemtp

    Frankemtp Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 22, 2016
    16
    8
    0
    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Four Touring
    I have approximately 60000 miles on my 2016 Touring 4.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #7 Frankemtp, Mar 23, 2019
  8. orangebang

    orangebang Junior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 29, 2016
    22
    24
    0
    Location:
    Arcadia, CA
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    FYI, Mine appeared only 1 year after I bought my brand new 2016. It appeared at the top of the steering wheel, around the 1-2 oclock position. I tried to live with it for a few months, and it's not like it got huge, but it was about 2 inches long when I finally mentioned something.

    The regular service guy made ZERO effort in helping me resolve my issue. He said once a week, if I got lucky, I could catch the actual Toyota Corporate guy that shows up to do inspections on warranty issues. I followed up with him again twice in the month, no return calls, nothing. When I got a survey a few weeks later, I blasted the sales rep. The General Manager of Longo Toyota actually called me directly. I sent him pics, he sent them directly to the Toyota guy. They offered me a new steering wheel, admitting no fault, and saying it was a one time courtesy replacement.

    I've had my new steering wheel for around 18+ months now, and it's still perfect.
     
    #8 orangebang, Sep 11, 2019
    krmcg likes this.
  9. Sherrie

    Sherrie Junior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 26, 2018
    3
    0
    0
    Location:
    california
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I also had my steering wheel develop a split in the wanna be leather, on my 2016 Prius 3 touring. Crown Toyota in Ontario ca replaced the steering wheel no problem. Now the black coating on the Qi charging pad has wrinkled from something overheating. Funny thing is I’ve never once used that charging accessory. If I could do over, I would buy a Honda.
     
    #9 Sherrie, Jan 28, 2020
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)