10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
103,383 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2005 Toyota Prius lights problems

lights problem

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2005 Toyota Prius Owner Comments (Page 2 of 16)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #296

Jun 132017

Prius

  • 10 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Head lights dims after 2 minutes of driving then few seconds later completely shots off.

- San Jose, CA, USA

problem #295

Mar 282017

Prius

  • 200,000 miles
Lights would go off while driving, at first 1 side or the other, acouple times both went off with the last time almost causing a collision and I had my kids in the car.

- Hamburg, NY, USA

problem #294

Aug 312016

Prius

  • 230,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that the instrument panel failed to illuminate after the vehicle operated. The contact also stated that the reverse lights failed to illuminate. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the instrument panel unit needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 230,000.

- Rochester, MI, USA

problem #293

Mar 232016

Prius

  • 70,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Intermittent hid/xenon headlight operation. Must cycle power using headlight on/off switch to reignite headlight. Happens occasionally during cold starts in the morning as well as during vehicle operation.

- Temple City, CA, USA

problem #292

Nov 242014

Prius

  • 87,401 miles
The passenger side headlight has gone out 3 times in a 3 year period. Each time the bulb has been replaced at significant expense ($300 at the dealership), but has gone out again after a period of several months. The last time it happened was 11/2014. Since then we have been unable to use the car at night due to the obvious safety issue it presents. We cannot and will not continue to spend hundreds of dollars to replace these bulbs when there is clearly a defect in the system. Based on the hundreds of similar reports I have seen online about this very issue, I know my story is not unique. I request that a recall be issued for the affected model years, which includes 2005!

- Santa Barbara, CA, USA

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problem #291

Oct 012016

Prius 4-cyl

  • miles
My driver's side headlight doesn't stay on. It will go on for a minute then turn off. If I turn the headlights off and on, it starts back up again, then goes out again. I replaced the headlight control and it still continues. It does this if I'm driving or not.

- Savage, MN, USA

problem #290

Dec 222016

Prius 4-cyl

  • 239,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My headlight intermittently goes off while driving & then back on. I paid a local mechanic to check it out; he couldn't find any loose connections, etc. But did advise me of a class action suit for this exact problem on the 06 - 09 model yrs. I've contacted both a local dealership & Toyota Corp. Who both refuse to fix it at no cost to me (see attached response from Toyota Corp.

- Copperopolis, CA, USA

problem #289

Nov 222016

Prius

  • 79,650 miles
Left headlight is dim, goes out, comes back on when lights are turned off and then on again, but then dims and eventually fails again. This happens whether in motion or stopped, regardless of speed, and whether turning or going straight. I read that this is very common among 2005-2009 priuses, and a design change in 2010 fixed it. That means it is caused by a design problem, and Toyota should do a recall to fix it.

- Washington, DC, USA

problem #288

Nov 092016

Prius

  • 159,000 miles
The headlights are going on and off while driving. They will stay on for a few minutes and then the left or right one will go out so then I'll reset the lighting and it will come back on and then I will go out again. Sometimes the right sometimes it's the left sometimes it's both.

- Kirkland, WA, USA

problem #287

Sep 062016

Prius

  • miles
Takata recall im having a problem in headlight of my Toyota Prius 2005 the driver side always missed up and once I turn it off and on it works for a while then same problem I been pulled over by the police many time I have changed the light but same problem its also dangerous sometimes when im driving in a curve where is no light and the light turned off I found my self in the shoulder that really weird.

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #286

Sep 232016

Prius

  • 230,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

One headlight or both will randomly go out while driving. Has happened sporadically 6 or so times over the last 6 months, including this evening when both headlights failed. Totally random, can happen on short or long trips, city streets or highway. So far lights have come back on by cycling the light switch on and off

- Vista, CA, USA

problem #285

Aug 282016

Prius

  • 260,000 miles
Both headlights will flicker and go out, mostly at different times than the other but can happen at the same time. By turning the headlight switch off, then back on after 10 to 15 seconds they will come back on. Driving on the freeway this leaves you in a very dangerous situation. Thank god for fog lights, a life saver at 70 miles an hour. This can also happen sitting in my driveway before leaving for work.

- Grants Pass, OR, USA

problem #284

Mar 122014

Prius

  • 150,000 miles
One of my front headlight always goes out once I make a turn by using a turn signal. If I switch the headlight off and on again, the head light will come back. I read similar post from website, and found some people have the same problem with me. We all suspect this is a design problem by the manufacturer.

- Warrington, PA, USA

problem #283

Jun 252016

Prius

  • 175,000 miles
Head lights turn off after being on for a while. Turning off headlight switch and turning it back on turns the light back on. High beam stitch does not affect the light which is off. This happens while in motion on both highways and city streets. This occurs frequently

- Livermore, CA, USA

problem #282

May 232016

Prius

  • 107,865 miles
Headlights go off, one at a time, intermittently, while driving on any road. If I turn the lights all the way off and then back on again they will usually stay on for 15 minutes before going off again. I am not aware that they have both gone off at once, but I have not driven the car at night yet

- Barre, VT, USA

problem #281

May 182016

Prius

  • 112,000 miles
I was driving through Nevada at 11 pm at night towards reno (approx. 180 miles away) on I-80 at 75 mph when suddenly my headlights went out. I immediately tried turning the lights off and on manually with my left hand, and the lights came on again (I couldn't see anything in the dark, scared out of my mind). Then, about 2 minutes later the same thing happened (I was driving slower this time). I did the same turning off and on again, and the lights came back on again, although somewhat dimmer. A few minutes later (5 minutes?) I was passed by a vehicle, that then slowed down and came in behind me, and then turned on the police lights and I immediately pulled in an exit ramp (fortunately there was one right there). After the policeman checked my license and registration, he informed me that one of my headlights was out. He asked me to try and flick on and off the lights a couple of times, and to try the brights, but none of this brought it back into working order. He then out of the blue mentioned to me (without me bringing this up) that the Prius' were notorious for having intermittent issues with the headlights, especially on the passenger side of the car (which is the side that was out, coincidently). He let me proceed using one headlight without ticketing me. A few miles later I pulled into a rest area and turned off the car for a few minutes while I went to the bathroom, and when I got back into the car and turned on the headlights they both came on, but within 20 seconds the passenger side light went out again. When I got home the next day and turned on the headlights they were both working again. This intermittent failure of the passenger side headlight has occurred a few times in the past, and I have had the toyoto dealer look into it and they claimed that it was fixed. However, this time it was life threatening.

- Berkeley, CA, USA

problem #280

Mar 012016

Prius

  • 197,479 miles
Left and right headlights sporadically turn off which is extremely hazardous when driving at night in roads without street lights. Definitely a safety issue which Toyota must issue a recall. Light bulbs are not the issue. The issue is in the computer or balast that controls the lights.

- Winnetka, CA, USA

problem #279

Apr 112016

Prius

  • 206,000 miles
Headlights will randomly go out while driving. Most of the time it is only one headlight but sometimes both go out. To "re-light" them you have to turn the headlights off and then back on. Replacing the bulbs does not solve the problem. At night this has almost led to disastrous effects and, from a risk management perspective, it is only a matter of time before something bad does happen as a result of losing your external headlights while driving at night. It happens whether the car is stationary or in motion. Some element of this happens every time I drive the car (multiple times per day).

- Cincinnati, OH, USA

problem #278

Feb 022016

Prius

  • miles
While drivin both headlight turn of intermittently while I can turn off and back on they come on to one or the other or both going back off sometimes and sometimes they work perfectly this is very dangerous as you only use headlights at night.

- Spotsylvania, VA, USA

problem #277

Mar 252016

Prius

  • 137,507 miles
Driver's side headlight went out in 2015 and was replaced by local mechanic. Before it went out it had flickered but came back on. I was driving at night when it went out and was pulled over by police. Fortunately I only got a warning. March 2016 the headlight went out again (I noticed it in my driveway) and was replaced at a Toyota dealership on 21 March 2016. That very day, the headlight went out again (noticed it in my driveway). It would come on periodically but kept going out. 25 March 2016 the Toyota dealership replaced the "computer sub-assy, H" for $458.52. 28 March 2016, the headlight is out again (noticed it again in my driveway).

- Manhattan, KS, USA

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