Gen II Power-Steering Problems

Yesterday I posted a long entry in the thread "03 Power Steering," started by phlsphr in 2007.

However, I own a 2008, Gen II Prius, and I had severe power-steering problems during a recent long drive from Massachusetts to North Carolina and back.

Here's a short recap: On the way South, my wife and I took a break from the horrors of I-81 to do a short length of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Getting back to the interstate, we descended via a small, windy mountain road.

Back on I-81, the power steering stopped working -- no warning lights. Suddenly I found myself steering manually. At the "Welcome to Tennessee" rest area, stopped, I found Page 171 of the manual, which warned against overheating the EPS, saying that it could prevent overheating by shutting down. Remedy: let car rest for 10 minutes.

We did that, and resumed our trip.

On the way home, the dreaded Red Triangle of Death suddenly appeared, right at the West Virginia line. Dealer in Mass. suggested tightening fuel cap. Later, the "P/S" warning light also appeared.

We stopped car at rest area inside Pennsylvania, opened hood and waited for 20 minutes. When we started up again, without air-conditioning, the warning lights disappeared. We proceeded home, after a night in Pennsylvania, without air-conditioning. No problems.

I reported incidents to Toyota, got an incident number, and the car is now at my dealer. BTW, the car hit 61,000 while on the trip, but I have a Toyota Platinum Extended Warranty, so I should be covered.

Any other Prius owners having power-steering problems?

Thanks,

--Joe

 

Patrick:

First of all: The dealer called about a half-hour ago. He said they were ordering "a new computer" and that the replacement would be covered by my warranty. I don't know which computer he was referring to (forgot to ask).

Second: Thanks for the info. Where else would I find out that the EPS system was located next to the steering column--inside the passenger compartment? Actually, since the assistance is rendered to the operation of steering, it does make sense.

Third: The air-conditioning operated well. However, I was afraid that it might be putting too much of a load on the electrical systems and would, perhaps, contribute to the overheating of the EPS.

Anyway, the dealer agreed that the situation was extraordinary, and the situation has, I hope, been resolved.

(Interesting hypothetical question: The first P/S failure occurred right around 60K, when I think the conventional warranty would have run out. Does that mean that Toyota would not have covered the replacement?)

Once again, thanks to PriusChat for its technical advice, and for helping me save money on my extended warranty. I was beginning to think that it was a foolish expense, since this car has been, until this trip, the best vehicle I've ever owned.

--Joe