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.
2002 Toyota Prius: jerking or lurching
7 of the 167 complaints about the 2002 Toyota Prius describe jerking or lurching.
- owner complaints
- 7
- of this car's complaints
- 4%
- typical mileage
- 98,000
- recalls
- 0
Jerking or lurching by model year
What owners say
Violent shaking in steering wheel upon ignition; sporadic jerky steering; repeated loss of power steering at various speeds including highway speeds. This seems to the same phenomenon that was the subject of a safety recall of 2001 priuses. The recall should be broadened.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 toyota prius. The contact stated that upon starting, the vehicle jerked forward. In addition, while attempting to stop at a stop sign, the contact depressed the brake pedal but the vehicle hesitated to stop. The failure occurred on an intermittent basis. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and an authorized dealer for diagnostics. The technicians were unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 33,000. .. Updated 09/15/11 *bf the consumer stated he/she took the vehicle to the dealer auto shop on august 2, 2011 for the replacement of the electric power steering pinion shaft nuts. They adjusted the gear, accelerator and steering. However, the problem still exists. The vehicle accelerates and moves forward as soon as the consumer starts it. Updated 10/03/11
When driving in traffic hybrid battery completely discharges causing car to lurch when trying to accelerate. Once the car is out of traffic the battery over charges causing the battery to over heat and cause the cabin to fill with a scary smell of burning. The hybrid battery fan is on. Took to toyota dealership paid nearly $300 for diagnostic and they could find no error codes related to the problem. Call chp to assist in tow to dealership.
Since I purchased my toyota prius in late 2001, it has intermittently surged when the brake is pressed. While I do not have the high speed surges that other drivers have reported, periodically when I am at low speeds and press the brake to stop, the car will slow to a stop, then lurch forward, requiring me to press the brake harder to maintain control. I reported this to toyota in 2001 and 2002, but I was told that this was normal for a hybrid, which was fairly new technology at the time. I am concerned that in the future I may have a higher speed surge. So far my surges have been low speed, and I have been able to control them by pressing the brake harder.
Tl*the contact owns a 2002 toyota prius. The contact stated that the steering wheel jerked violently when making sharp right and left turns. During this failure the power steering indicator dimmed. The dealer stated that the torque converter sensor provided abnormal readings. The current mileage was 103,000, and failure mileage was 98,000.
While driving, the consumer noticed a noise was coming from the front end. The first failure of the front tires was july 2,2003 at 20624 miles. New replacement tires were put on the rear. The old tires were moved to the front. The front tires failed sep 27 2003. Took vehicle to dealership and the consumer was informed by the mechanic that the tires wore out badly on the inside and would need to be replaced. Tire size p175/65r14xl. The vehicle jerked when started. No problem found. *ak *tt
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2002 Toyota Prius jerking
Is jerking or lurching a common problem on the 2002 Toyota Prius?
7 of 167 owner complaints about the 2002 Toyota Prius (4%) mention jerking or lurching. The model year with the most reports is 2010.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2002 Toyota Prius?
There are 0 recalls and 2 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2002 Toyota Prius
Power steering loss 15Loss of power 8Check engine light 7Stalling 7Brake failure 6Tire blowout 6Steering lock-up 5
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