power steering...!

[Ed_Strong]

2005 Malibu LS 3.5L V6 @ 55K miles (Epsilon body with GM's Electric Power Steering Assist) I got the car at 50K miles.

Today I went for a drive to go grocery shopping and while leaving my complex the car's electronic display came up with a 3 ding warning bell and "POWER STEERING" on the center console, this happened right after I drove over a speed bump. Don't know if this was the cause or not but I always drive very slow over this bumps since I've heard bad things about this GM electric steering components.

As soon as I got to the first traffic light I stopped and shut the engine off while waiting for the green light. Then started the car and drove off to the grocery store and then back home and nothing else happened. Thru all duration the steering didn't give me a sign of anything being wrong, so it puzzles me as to why the need for a warning!

I didn't feel anything strange or any noises from the car since I own it, the car actually drives like it just came out of the dealer. I drive about 25 miles a day on straight, flat, new and clean roads (no pot holes or sharp turns) which is pretty moderate use.

What can I expect out of this. What preventive measures can I take to make sure I don't become stranded on the road or worse, with a very expensive repair bill...!
Thanks in advance for your help.

[Ed_Strong]

As it turns out GM extended the warranty on the 2005 epsilon body models (Malibu, Malibu <axx, G6, etc) for the Electric Power Steering Assist...

Check the last 8 digits of your VIN, you may qualify for:

Subject: 07126 -- SPECIAL COVERAGE ADJUSTMENT - LOSS OF POWER STEERING ASSIST

Condition
Some customers of 2005 model year Chevrolet Malibu, Malibu Maxx, and Pontiac G6 vehicles may experience a loss of power steering assist caused by electrical input signals within the steering column assembly. If the power steering assist is lost, a chime will be heard and the DIC will display a Power Steering warning message. The Service Vehicle Soon light will also illuminate. The vehicle can still be steered in a safe manner but will require greater driver effort at low vehicle speeds or when stopped.

Special Policy Adjustment
This special coverage covers the condition described above for a period of 7 years or 70,000 miles (110,000 km), whichever occurs first, from the date the vehicle was originally placed in service, regardless of ownership.

Dealers are to replace the steering column assembly. This repair will be made at no charge to the customer.

Hope this can help someone else in the near future!

[Ed_Strong]

UPDATE:

Got the car fixed today under warranty...!

I went to the dealer yesterday and eplained the problem with the electric power steering and the extended coverage program and at that point I was told that they have never heard of such a thing.
So I showed them a printout of the letter that someone posted for me stating the Model years and Vins covered and after a brief talk to the manager they took the car to hook it up to their computer and was told that the car qualifies and everything would be covered under warranty.
They asked if they could keep the letter I showed them for reference, I said fine, hopefully a lot more people will benefit from it!
It saved me a lot of cash as I was already shopping around for the parts to fix it my self...