Power steering quit - Toyota GR86, 86, FR-S and Subaru BRZ Forum & Owners Community

jeffchap · 01-17-2018, 12:09 PM

My power steering quit this morning on my '13 FR-S with 41K miles. It was very cold (around 6 deg F) but I was already 6 miles or more into my commute and driving 65 mph when it happened. The warning light on the dash came on and the power assist was obviously not working.

I shifted into neutral (MT) and shut the car off and then restarted it. The light went out and everything was fine the remaining 10 miles to work.

Anyone else experienced this or have any ideas? I'm hoping it's temperature related, but it seems strange that it would happen after the car was already warmed up. We'll see what happens on the way home today.

humfrz · 01-17-2018, 01:42 PM

This post may be helpful.

"Well, supposedly the issue is resolved. I arrived at the dealer with the power steering not functional to be sure that the techs could observe it (left the car running). They did observe it, and observed it several more times on a test drive around the lot. Pulled a code C1513, which they said is a control module failure. From there, they disconnected the steering module harness, reconnected it, and could not get the fault to reappear.

In total, they had the car for a about an hour and a half and charged me $80 for the diagnostics time. Oh well. Kicking myself for not getting into the dash myself and checking for loose connections, but I've been busy, and my driveway is a cold place to hang out at the moment.

Could have been worse. A new steering module would have been $629.

So, for anyone else experiencing this and comes across this thread: if you're handy, you might try poking around under the dash, looking for loose wire harness connections in the vicinity of the steering column. Might save yourself $80."

humfrz

Icecreamtruk · 01-17-2018, 02:44 PM

Had it happen to me twice, about 6 months appart each time. Turning the car off and on again resolved the issue. Judging from our experiences and the post humfrz linked, I'd say its a connector that can get loose and transmit a weak signal, and the EPS is probably programmed to shutoff if any weird inputs are detected (probably a safety measure).

Leonardo · 01-17-2018, 05:02 PM

I had a weak battery that caused this same issue. Extremely cold temps can exacerbate this problem too.

jeffchap · 01-17-2018, 05:48 PM

I didn't think to pull the code. I'll do that tonight. I'm hoping for a weak battery cause as well. It did crank over pretty slow this morning.

Thanks all! Believe it or not, I did search before posting but didn't find any of this.

stevesnj · 01-18-2018, 10:33 AM

That assist motor pulls a good amount of amps so if it's not within range I'm sure it will act up.

ermax · 01-18-2018, 10:58 AM

Shouldn't the alternator be able to supply enough to run the power steering though? If not then that is a seriously poor design.

jeffchap · 01-18-2018, 12:29 PM

I just checked, and no perm or temp codes set. No further problems either, but it's about 20 deg warmer today. I'll post back if it happens again.

humfrz · 01-18-2018, 09:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeffchap

I just checked, and no perm or temp codes set. No further problems either, but it's about 20 deg warmer today. I'll post back if it happens again.

Since it's a 2013 age car, It wouldn't hurt to have your battery "load tested" and the alternator output checked.

humfrz

BRZnut · 01-19-2018, 06:57 AM

and if your still on the original battery, just replace it!

IDFWU 420 · 01-19-2018, 07:10 AM

Yup, happened to me about 3-4 times now all at RANDOM TIMES...
Never got it to check because it just goes away after turning off and turning back on the car.

I recently got a new battery so let's see if that was the issue.

JD001 · 01-19-2018, 08:10 AM

My car was the subject to recall notice, Subaru changed the steering ECU and wiring loom. Any relationship?

jeffchap · 01-19-2018, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BRZnut

and if your still on the original battery, just replace it!

It was replaced last year.

PatSciFRS · 01-29-2019, 09:44 AM

This intermittent power steering failure should be considered a safety concern. Toyota and Subaru should do the right thing and issue a TSB/recall for it. If this happens whilst in the middle of a sharp turn, it can really cause a bad accident.
Anyone knows how to contact the right people at Toyota/Subaru?

01-17-2018, 05:02 PM	#4
Leonardo Country Boy 4 Life Join Date: Jul 2012 Drives: 19' & 06' Ridgelines, 13' FR-S Location: EUGENE Posts: 5,228 Thanks: 6,719 Thanked 5,291 Times in 2,720 Posts Mentioned: 47 Post(s) Tagged: 1 Thread(s)	I had a weak battery that caused this same issue. Extremely cold temps can exacerbate this problem too. __________________ I LIKE TIRES!

01-18-2018, 10:33 AM	#6
stevesnj Senior Member Join Date: May 2013 Drives: 2016 FR-S Oceanic Blue Location: Southern NJ Posts: 2,958 Thanks: 2,158 Thanked 1,601 Times in 923 Posts Mentioned: 30 Post(s) Tagged: 2 Thread(s)	That assist motor pulls a good amount of amps so if it's not within range I'm sure it will act up. __________________ My 2016 Build thread TRD Exhaust with custom quad tips, TRD Lowering Springs,TRD Quick shifter,LED;DRL, Projectors, and turn signals. Re-badge, 86 Nanny, WinmaxW2 Pads, K&N Drop In, Antenna delete

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01-17-2018, 01:42 PM	#2
humfrz Senior Member Join Date: May 2013 Drives: 2013 FR-S, white, MT Location: Puyallup, WA Posts: 29,871 Thanks: 28,793 Thanked 31,824 Times in 16,428 Posts Mentioned: 708 Post(s) Tagged: 2 Thread(s)	This post may be helpful. "Well, supposedly the issue is resolved. I arrived at the dealer with the power steering not functional to be sure that the techs could observe it (left the car running). They did observe it, and observed it several more times on a test drive around the lot. Pulled a code C1513, which they said is a control module failure. From there, they disconnected the steering module harness, reconnected it, and could not get the fault to reappear. In total, they had the car for a about an hour and a half and charged me $80 for the diagnostics time. Oh well. Kicking myself for not getting into the dash myself and checking for loose connections, but I've been busy, and my driveway is a cold place to hang out at the moment. Could have been worse. A new steering module would have been $629. So, for anyone else experiencing this and comes across this thread: if you're handy, you might try poking around under the dash, looking for loose wire harness connections in the vicinity of the steering column. Might save yourself $80." humfrz

01-17-2018, 02:44 PM	#3
Icecreamtruk Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2015 Drives: Track preped NA FRS Location: Montreal, Canada Posts: 987 Thanks: 1,056 Thanked 680 Times in 405 Posts Mentioned: 12 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Had it happen to me twice, about 6 months appart each time. Turning the car off and on again resolved the issue. Judging from our experiences and the post humfrz linked, I'd say its a connector that can get loose and transmit a weak signal, and the EPS is probably programmed to shutoff if any weird inputs are detected (probably a safety measure).

01-18-2018, 10:58 AM	#7
ermax Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2017 Drives: 2022 BRZ Limited Silver Location: Jacksonville, FL Posts: 2,532 Thanks: 882 Thanked 2,045 Times in 1,188 Posts Mentioned: 68 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Shouldn't the alternator be able to supply enough to run the power steering though? If not then that is a seriously poor design.

01-19-2018, 06:57 AM	#10
BRZnut Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Drives: BRZ DGM Limited Location: USA Posts: 1,237 Thanks: 5 Thanked 431 Times in 250 Posts Mentioned: 8 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	and if your still on the original battery, just replace it!

01-19-2018, 07:10 AM	#11
IDFWU 420 Honarary Member Join Date: Nov 2014 Drives: 2015 FRS Location: LA Posts: 145 Thanks: 84 Thanked 35 Times in 23 Posts Mentioned: 0 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Yup, happened to me about 3-4 times now all at RANDOM TIMES... Never got it to check because it just goes away after turning off and turning back on the car. I recently got a new battery so let's see if that was the issue.

01-19-2018, 08:10 AM	#12
JD001 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2015 Drives: Subaru BRZ Location: UK Posts: 6,028 Thanks: 7,652 Thanked 6,187 Times in 3,474 Posts Mentioned: 25 Post(s) Tagged: 2 Thread(s)	My car was the subject to recall notice, Subaru changed the steering ECU and wiring loom. Any relationship?

01-29-2019, 09:44 AM	#14
PatSciFRS Member Join Date: Mar 2014 Drives: Scion FRS 10 Series Location: USA Posts: 48 Thanks: 1 Thanked 22 Times in 13 Posts Mentioned: 0 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	This intermittent power steering failure should be considered a safety concern. Toyota and Subaru should do the right thing and issue a TSB/recall for it. If this happens whilst in the middle of a sharp turn, it can really cause a bad accident. Anyone knows how to contact the right people at Toyota/Subaru?

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