Damn. This is very sad news to me :/ Is there a good alternative to a failed torque sensor then? Such as disassembling it, finding the circuit board, etc.
I know Miata guys have found a way to use the electric steering rack belonging to like a Saturn and retrofit it into their steering racks.

 

Most of the issues can be resolved with disassembly, clean, regrease. There is an excellent diy instructions on this forum.

Don't try the just leave it installed and spray soke cleaner trick that some suggest. Cures symptoms for a short while, but washes grease where its not supposed to go. Definitely not something you should try.

But sometimes parts just fail, even this one (though rarely). So doing this clean and regrease on a used part is possible.

Someone was looking into another sensor from another car. Like an Izuzu suv from same era, iirc. Woukd require some minor mods, but seemed promising. Not sure where that effort stands at the moment.

 

There is a pretty high chance that either new old stock was found, or the torque sensor has returned. Generally, if it's available on Amayama, it's available from Japan: 53101-S2A-A03. Other places within Japan list it as: ｾﾝｻ-ASSY.,ﾄﾙｸ.

So far people have only bought used torque sensors... but only time will tell.