Steering pre-emption: AvtoVAZ to check Lada Vesta electronics

AvtoVAZ announced the launch of a service campaign for the Lada Vesta model. The reason is unexpected steering wheel locks, noted earlier by some drivers of this car. They complained on social media and forums that the steering wheel could lock while driving. Anton Shaparin, the head of the National Automobile Union, also asked to check the steering system on the Vesta in his letter to Rosstandart. Izvestia interviewed independent car service stations and found out how dangerous a malfunction could be and why customer complaints were not included in the official dealers' reports.

What will be checked in Lada Vesta

AvtoVAZ has announced the launch of a steering repair campaign for Lada Vesta models. This is done to avoid unplanned locking of the steering wheel.

"Currently, the official Lada dealer network has a free service campaign aimed at improving the consumer properties of the second-generation Vesta. According to it, at the next scheduled or unscheduled visit to the service, the firmware version of one of the electronic units is checked and, if necessary, updated. An additional operation is related to the algorithm of actions when stopping and restarting the engine, which is fully described in the vehicle's operating instructions (you must wait 5 seconds between these actions)," the company said in a statement.

It clarifies that the updated version of the software completely removes the 5-second interval and allows you to start the engine immediately after stopping.

Lada Vesta owners began to report problems with steering on social networks at the end of May. They posted videos where you can see that the car is moving along the road, the ignition is on, but for some reason the steering wheel is locked and does not turn even with great effort.

Earlier, Anton Shaparin, president of the National Automobile Union (NAS), appealed to Rosstandart with a request to carry out a set of supervisory measures, including contacting the Ministry of Internal Affairs to analyze accident materials involving Lada Vesta cars.

"Blocking the steering wheel of a car is such a serious problem that any automaker should immediately conduct the most in-depth investigation of possible causes and invite motorists who have experienced similar situations to a dialogue. A direct consequence of the steering wheel lock can be accidents with deaths and injuries," Shaparin warned.

The public figure asked Rosstandart to identify the causes of the Lada Vesta steering wheel lock, using materials from accident investigations involving her. In case of problems with the steering of this model, the public figure suggested that the agency initiate a recall campaign.

Steering wheel lock may occur if the engine is restarted quickly. For example, if the power unit is turned off and on in the parking lot, the steering wheel may suddenly lock. The electronic control unit does not have time to work out the chain of commands and locks the steering wheel. To avoid this situation, the Vesta operating instructions even have a recommendation: wait five seconds between turning off and turning on the motor so that the electronics can work out the tasks and avoid making mistakes.

Meanwhile, this feature is extremely rare. Izvestia interviewed dealerships and service stations that repair Lada Vesta cars. Authorized dealers said they had never encountered Vesta steering wheel locks on the move, but independent service stations observed them. The Union of Car Service Stations and the Eurorepare car service network explained that this malfunction occurs, but is extremely rare on restyled Vesta with a start button.

"The steering wheel was locked on our working Lada Vesta with a 2024 variator right while driving," the head of the car service told Izvestia. XXAUTO.pro Maxim Bakhvalov is in Ivanovo. — Our employee did not have time to slow down in winter and rammed through a snowdrift. The car was slightly damaged, and the bumper was scratched. Other people's property was not damaged in the accident.

He explained that when the engine was restarted, the steering wheel unlocked. Representatives of the service contacted the official dealership, because the car was under warranty, but they could not find the problem during diagnosis. A statement about the problem was not registered, since the car was, as they said, serviceable at the time of acceptance, he noted.

According to Maxim Bakhvalov, the next time we were blocked, we were asked not to turn off the engine, register an accident and take the car in a tow truck to dealers with the steering wheel locked. Only in this case, the repair can be guaranteed.

"It's difficult to do this, because in any accident, the driver instinctively turns off the engine so as not to cause more serious damage to the car," he noted.

Apparently, such requirements are reflected in dealer statistics, which makes it difficult to fix rare but dangerous defects. There is no way to figure out Vesta electronics on your own due to the lack of unique equipment, Maxim Bakhvalov noted.

"Currently, domestic automakers, including AvtoVAZ, do not disclose technical information to third—party services," Yuri Valko, chairman of the Board of the Union of Car Service Companies, told Izvestia. — Therefore, independent experts cannot diagnose the electronic blocks of cars, identify errors like these locks, which makes it difficult to repair such cars.

Owners of new cars are heavily dependent on authorized dealers, who are not always in a hurry to respond to complaints, he said.

— We have asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade to introduce information disclosure requirements into the current legislation in order to allow independent specialists to diagnose, but this has not been done yet, — said Yuri Valko.

Problems with steering were on Lada before, for example, with an electric booster, automotive expert Vyacheslav Subbotin told Izvestia. Due to a software inaccuracy, it could work incorrectly, give the wrong force, which could lead to emergencies.

— Now there are also questions about the firmware responsible for locking the steering wheel. This is a sign that the automaker has problems with the preparation of high—quality software," he said.

How serious is the problem with the steering wheel lock Lada Vesta

According to Igor Morzharetto, an auto expert and member of the Public Council at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, AvtoVAZ's response to the information that appeared on social networks is fully justified and timely.

— So far, we are talking only about complaints from individual users. While operating the Lada Vesta, I did not encounter the described steering problems," he stressed.

In his opinion, so far no accidents have occurred due to the blocking of her steering wheel, so the recall campaign of Lada Vesta does not make sense now. But additional checks are really worth doing, he noted. Igor Morzharetto is sure that it is definitely worth responding to user requests: for example, earlier in the United States, Toyota faced lawsuits for $10 billion due to problems with the accelerator pedal.

There is indeed a problem with the steering of the Lada Vesta, but based on what the service centers and the manufacturer themselves say, it is not yet widespread, says Oleg Pavlov, chairman of the Public Consumer Initiative. In any case, car owners have every right to contact independent expert organizations and service centers for quality control and expertise and, subsequently, depending on the nature of the defect, to demand its elimination or refund, he added.