Power Steering issue..surprise surprise
 

So I recently purchased a 2007 Mazda3 S.

I was driving on the freeway and the light came on. This wont be a surprise to many as it is a VERY common problem I am finding out.

Took it to dealership and they said they would fix it right up. the title is BRANDED FYI. They called back and said the controller was not getting any power.

Took apart the the wiring harness and checked all fuses. Everything was golden. I am not sure what the voltages on the input should be but they were all getting some sort of power.

Called them back and told them what I had found out. They said they would have to do a diagnostic ($105), but would probably need to replace the controller ($600 part + $130 to flash).

Power steering works at low speeds, but cuts out around 20 MPH. So ic ant imagine that the controller isnt getting power.

Wondering if this should fall under the recall and they are yanking my chain because it is a branded title and they dont want to deal with me. Any help would be much appreciated as I cannot afford a $700+ fix.

And sorry to those who are sick and tired of threads on this topic. I cannot find a similar situation to mine.

First, look up the power steering recall, see if your VIN is covered.

The issue isn't simply the controller missing power or you'd have no power steering. Since it's speed sensitive steering, there's probably a bad signal coming into the module. Then again that could be part of how the failure operates (covered with recall).

There's a slim chance to find one of these in a junkyard, but i've seen a couple wrecked & being parted out on eBay, so that's a possibility of getting a used part & swap stuff yourself.

You could also get a shop manual, i'd suggest the factory one. I'm sure there's a step by step for diagnosing this fault, as well as voltages at different points to test.