2002 Toyota Prius — Known Issues & Recalls

Your steering wheel has intermittently locked up while driving, with warning lights appearing on your dashboard. When this happens, your power steering stops working, making the steering wheel hard to turn — though the problem goes away after turning the car off and back on. This issue has occurred multiple times at various speeds (30-65 mph), creating a dangerous situation. The fix likely involves replacing the electronic control module that manages your car's electric power steering system.

Your steering wheel shakes violently and becomes difficult to control when temperatures drop below 32 degrees, particularly on winding roads at low speeds (10-35 mph) and sometimes when turning. This happens several times per week throughout winter and requires significant physical effort to regain control, creating a safety hazard. The issue may involve inspection of the power steering system, steering linkage components, or cold-weather fluid performance.

Your electric power steering suddenly failed without warning, causing your steering wheel to veer sharply to the right and forcing you to drive over a curb. Turning the vehicle off and back on temporarily restored steering control. Your dealer indicated that the steering gear and computer may need to be replaced to fix this issue.

While driving on the freeway, your steering wheel started oscillating back and forth, then later suddenly tried to turn hard to the left and vibrated between center and left position. The power steering warning light came on, appeared to clear itself, but the problem happened again. This sudden steering pull at freeway speeds could have caused you to hit the center divider if you hadn't been paying attention.

When you turn the steering wheel at slow speeds, it suddenly jerks back and forth violently and becomes uncontrollable, forcing you to stop the car. This can happen in the middle of a turn or intersection with no warning, creating a dangerous situation.

Your steering has been intermittently failing for several months, and on September 28, 2018, you completely lost steering control while driving. You were able to safely pull over and turn off the ignition, and steering returned to normal when you restarted the engine. You've noticed that Toyota previously issued voluntary recalls for this same problem but has since removed them.

Your steering wheel violently vibrates when you try to turn, forcing you to pull over and shut off the car. The problem started intermittently about a month ago but now happens every time you drive. A Toyota dealership diagnosed it as a faulty steering rack that needs complete replacement at a cost exceeding your car's value, and after paying for diagnostics, your power steering warning light stays on permanently with steering assist disabled, making turns difficult and potentially unsafe.

Your steering system is making a rubber-squeaking noise when turning right at low speeds, and you've experienced a pulsing sensation in the steering wheel as if power assist is cutting in and out. The power steering warning light appeared on your dashboard, and the next day the steering became difficult to control with significant shaking, making it unsafe to drive.

Your steering wheel began shaking violently while driving at low speed, causing you to lose control and hit a rock. The shaking occurred intermittently before and after the accident, particularly in cold weather or while backing up, and could only be stopped by turning the car off. You had the electronic power steering system inspected by Toyota, but they found no defect despite witnessing the violent shaking in their parking lot. Addressing this issue will likely require Toyota to inspect and potentially replace the electronic power steering system components, possibly including the pinion nuts or the entire power steering unit.

Your steering wheel became very hard to turn without warning while making a left turn at about 40 mph, and this problem happened several times when turning left. A mechanic diagnosed that your rack and pinion steering component failed and needs replacement. This is a serious safety issue since you lose the ability to steer your vehicle easily when it happens.

While merging from the 91 freeway to the 57 freeway, your power steering suddenly stopped working completely. You were able to safely exit the freeway, but the loss of power steering made the car much harder to steer and control.

Your power steering has cut out twice while driving on slight inclines at low speeds (15-25 mph). When this happens, you lose power assist and steering becomes much harder to control. The issue appears unpredictable and you're concerned it could happen again without warning. A mechanic will need to diagnose the power steering system, likely checking the pump, fluid level, and electrical connections.

While driving at 55 mph, your steering wheel vibrated severely and the power steering warning light came on. A mechanic diagnosed that your steering rack needs to be replaced. This problem happened intermittently and occurred at around 170,000 miles. Fixing this will likely involve replacing the steering rack assembly.

While merging onto the freeway, your car's dashboard displayed a red hazard warning and a 'PS ERROR' message, and your steering wheel temporarily locked up. You were still able to steer, though with significant difficulty, and the error cleared after you turned the car off and back on. The power steering system appeared to recover on its own, though the underlying cause of the temporary failure wasn't identified. A power steering system diagnostic or fluid flush may be needed to prevent recurrence.

Your steering wheel shakes when you drive in very cold weather, but the shaking stops once your car warms up. This happened at 140,000 miles on your 2002 Prius. The issue may be related to cold fluid viscosity or suspension components that need inspection once the vehicle is warm.

Your steering wheel shakes violently when you turn or back up slowly. You took your car to the dealer, but they weren't able to diagnose or fix the problem. This shaking is likely caused by worn suspension or steering components that need inspection and replacement.

While driving at low speed on a familiar street, you applied the brakes to stop for a car ahead, but your Prius accelerated instead of slowing down. Even with increased brake pressure, the car continued accelerating to about 30 mph and collided with the other vehicle's front fender and bumper. You were eventually able to stop the car after passing the struck vehicle. This suggests a potential problem with the brake system or the interaction between the brakes and the hybrid electric motor that needs professional diagnosis to determine the root cause.

Your anti-lock brake system is not pressurizing properly, which means the anti-lock feature isn't working as intended. This reduces your braking system's ability to prevent wheel lockup during emergency stops. The brake system will need to be inspected and repaired by a technician to restore proper pressure and function.

Your headlight lens covers are clouding over repeatedly, making it hard to see the road at night. The dealer has cleaned them, but the cloudiness returns within about a month. The dealer is now asking you to pay $750 to replace the lenses, which you believe is a manufacturing defect and safety issue. Fixing this will likely involve replacing the headlight lens assemblies.

Your hybrid circulation pump failed, which caused three warning lights to appear on your dashboard. The circulation pump is responsible for moving coolant through your hybrid system to keep it operating at the right temperature. Fixing this will likely require replacing the failed pump and possibly flushing the cooling system.