NHTSA Complaint #11306536 — 2002 TOYOTA PRIUS

I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AND FELT A JERKING AT MY STEERING WHEEL A FEW MONTHS BACK, I THOUGHT OK MAYBE THE STEERING WHEEL LOOSE OR SOMETHING, I WAS GOING AROUND 65 MPH. FAST FORWARD TO TWO WEEKS AGO AND THE STEERING WHEEL COMPLETELY LOCKS UP ON ME DRIVING TO A DR APPOINTMENT I HAD TO GO TO. I WAS GOING AROUND 30 MPH IN TRAFFIC THE STEERING LOCKED UP AND THE TRIANGLE ILLUMINATED ON MY NAVIGATION SCREEN AND THE DREADED TROUBLE SIGN APPEARED. ONCE THIS APPEARED ON MY SCREEN THE STEERING WHEEL FELT LIKE IT HAD NO POWER STEERING. AT FIRST I THOUGHT, I NEED TO CHECK THE POWER STEERING FLUID, I RESEARCHED AND REALIZED THIS PRIUS IS COMPLETELY ELECTRIC POWER STEERING. SO I ARRIVED AT MY DOCTORS AND TURNED THE CAR OFF, WHEN I CAME BACK AND TURNED IT BACK ON TO MY AMAZEMENT THE LIGHT TURNED OFF AND THE POWER STEERING WAS BACK. THEN THE WEEK AFTER SAME PROBLEM HAPPENED, BUT I DIDN'T HAVE MY OBD 2 READER WITH ME, SO AGAIN I SHUT OFF THE CAR AND THE PROBLEM WENT AWAY. I STARTED TO DO RESEARCH AND REALIZED THIS IS A SERIOUS COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE ELECTRIC POWER STEERING, THE COMPUTER CHIP THAT CONTROLS THE STEERING MALFUNCTIONS AND NEEDS TO BE REPLACED, SO I CAME HERE TO CHECK IF ANY RECALLS ON MY VEHICLE AND THERE IS NOT. THE SAME PROBLEM HAPPENED AGAIN TODAY, THIS TIME MY GIRLFRIEND WAS DRIVING AND WAS GOING AROUND 45, SHE SAID SHE ALMOST CRASHED. THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY HAZARD AND TOYOTA APPEARS TO BE BEHIND THE EIGHT BALL IN THIS AS I HAVE READ NUMBEROUS FORUMS OF THIS MALFUNCTION, IT'S A WIDE SPREAD PROBLEM AND EXTREMELY COSTLY TO FIX. THIS PROBLEM SHOULDN'T FALL ONTO THE OWNERS AS IT IS THE MANUFACTURER'S FAULT FOR NOT DOING THEIR DUE DILIGENCE AND ADDRESSING THIS PROBLEM AT THE FACTORY BEFORE MASS PRODUCING AND SELLING TO CONSUMERS LIKE I.