U0320
Software Incompatibility with Power Steering Control Module
- Severity
- Critical
- Driving
- Drive only to a garage
The software in the power steering control module is not compatible with the rest of the vehicle. On a car with electric power steering that module provides the assistance, and a version mismatch normally stops it initialising at all - so the steering will be very heavy from the moment you set off, rather than becoming heavy without warning while you are driving.
Possible causes
- CommonThe power steering control module replaced but never programmed or coded to this vehicle
- CommonUsed module fitted from a different vehicle, model year or specification
- CommonSoftware update interrupted, often by battery voltage falling during programming
- CommonOne module updated while others were left at their old versions
- CommonWrong part number fitted - steering modules vary by market and specification
- RareCorrupted module software
What you might notice
- Steering very heavy from the moment you move off
- Power steering warning light on
- Steering assistance not available at all
- Fault present since a repair or service visit
What to check, in order
- Do not drive it far. Heavy steering is manageable at speed but very difficult in a car park or at a junction, and the effort needed catches people out.
- Ask what was done to the vehicle recently - a steering rack, column or module replacement immediately before this appeared is the answer.
- Read the module's software and part numbers and compare them against the vehicle's build specification.
- Check whether the part number matches the vehicle's market and specification. Steering modules are calibrated to the car's weight and steering geometry, so a physically identical unit from a different variant will not do.
- Do not replace the module again. It is almost certainly the wrong software rather than the wrong hardware.
- This needs manufacturer-level programming. A generic scan tool cannot resolve it.
Read this code from your own car
Plug an ELM327 adapter into the OBD-II port under the dashboard. Pin16 reads every stored, pending and permanent code, explains each one like this page does — offline, with no account — and shows what the car recorded when the fault was set.
Where this code sits
U00xxU01xxU02xxU03xxU04xxU05xxU06xxU07xxU08xxU09xxU0AxxU0BxxU0CxxU0DxxU0ExxU0FxxU10xxU11xxU12xxU13xxU14xxU15xxU16xxU17xxU18xxU19xxU1AxxU1BxxU1CxxU1DxxU1ExxU1FxxU20xxU21xxU22xxU23xxU24xxU25xxU26xxU27xxU28xxU29xxU2AxxU2BxxU2CxxU2DxxU2ExxU2FxxU30xxU31xxU32xxU33xxU34xxU35xxU36xxU37xxU38xxU39xxU3AxxU3BxxU3CxxU3DxxU3ExxU3Fxx