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.
On Monday, April 12, 2010, in the morning, on a rainy day in sacramento, California, I was driving about 15 mph when the traffic in front of me slowed. I was driving over railroad tracks with steel plates between the tracks in my 2007 Toyota Prius. I braked but the car did not stop. I had time to actually look down at my feet to confirm that it was definitely the brakes that I was applying major pressure to. I also noticed that the light was on indicating that the car did not have traction. I hit the car in front of me. The first words out of my mouth were, "I had no brakes, I'm so sorry, but I had no brakes." The initial estimate for my car is over $6,000, I have not heard what the estimate is for the other car. I did everything I could have done, the car failed me.
Constant peculiar noises from brake system, premature brake wear computer system had to be re-initialized at 15,000 miles. Brakes pads had to be replaced and rotors resurfaced at same mileage. Brake pedal depressed to the floor before vehicle stopped, it was an emergency stop. These problems have persisted for almost 3 years and the dealer and factory rep. Says it is normal. Arbitration in favor of Toyota. I have never heard these noises in any other vehicle I have driven in 62 years. These noises could be a problem waiting to happen.
The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Prius. The contact was driving approximately 40 mph, approaching a traffic light. When the brake pedal was engaged, the brakes failed to respond in a timely manner. Additionally, the electrical system failed without warning. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was in the process of being repaired when the complaint was filed. The failure mileage was 23,406. The current mileage was 30,000.
Car seems to lose brake power for a fraction of a second when driving over potholes, on bumpy pavement, or on wet slippery dirt roads. Occurs each time when braking under said conditions.
1. wife is leary of driving our 2007 Toyota Prius because of problem brakes. We need a better description of what happens when we try to turn off the engine going 100 mph. 2. lights are poor. We cannot see very far ahead in this deer infested environment. I have better lights on my 1997 Hyundai 3. one or the other headlight flickers and goes out for no understandable reason. We turn the lights off and turn them on again and it works ok. This could be a safety hazard. What is being done to fix it. 4. seating. My first encounter with the Toyota complaint system cam about as I was trying to get the driver seat moved back because I have long legs. The dealer said they have no way of fixing this but that I should go to the after market. I asked if Toyota would accept an aftermarket solution. The dealer said that they will evaluate it after it is installed to tell us if it meets safety specifications no aftermarket supplier will try to fix this because they have not assurance that it will be accepted by Toyota. Yet Toyota gives no technical information about what is acceptable. I complained formally to the dealer and got nowhere. I then sent a formal complaint to national Toyota. They passed the complaint back to the dealer for response. For me this is a major flaw in the Toyota complaint handling system. They have a closed loop when it comes to complaints. 5. I like the car and it gets the mileage I expected. I am not sure I will ever get another Toyota if there are reasonable alternative that get good mileage.
- Hedgesville, WV, USA
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Just completed a left turn behind another vehicle. The other vehicle then slowed to make an immediate left turn into a gas station across the road. I was gently applying the brakes to keep my following distance (10ft, traveling about 8mph). The other car suddenly applied the brakes harder to turn, when I pressed harder there was no reaction until I hit the other car, at which point the brakes engaged and I stopped.
2007 Toyota Prius. Consumer states when applying the brakes, one wheel of the car hits a bump in the road with the brakes applied, the brakes release for a short time.
I own a 2007 Toyota Prius, and when decelerating on a bumpy road, I have on several occasions felt an unexpected acceleration which lasts only for a fraction of a second, but its enough to cause me to feel alarmed. I have asked my dealer if this has been addressed by recalls as he informed me it has not.
While turning into a parking spot, I experienced a total loss of braking while the vehicle began accelerating without gas pedal pressure. After jumping a curb, the brake pedal became active and the car was stopped.
I was driving my vehicle and exiting a highway when I applied the brakes and the vehicle sped up and hit the vehicle in front and pushed it into two other vehicles.
2007 Toyota Prius. Consumer states delayed brake reaction. Must press firmly for brake to stop the vehicle. The consumer stated she noticed the problem with the brakes when she first drove down a hill. When she applied the brakes, it took a long time for it to hold instead of holding at the first pressing of the brake pedal. The vehicle continued to roll down the hill until the pedal was applied harder.
2007 Toyota Prius with tire failure and brakes grabbing. The battery and headlights failed. The consumer stated Toyota has since removed this particular type of bulb and assembly from production. When the vehicle was 1 year old the consumer was stopped by the police and given a warning for the headlight being out. However, when the consumer and her husband exited the vehicle, they along with the police officer found both headlights were working and he let them go without a citation. The consumer has since discovered that one headlight or the other will just go out on occasion during every drive. The brightness of the headlights began to dim when the vehicle was only a year old. Toyota recommended using the headlights less and they further recommended not using the highly touted feature that allows the lights to automatically turn off after the vehicle has been turned off. Last month, the consumer received a letter from Toyota regarding information about a problem with the hid headlights. The letter stated the customer support program would reimburse for some cost relative to the defective headlights. However the local dealer did not agree and the cost far exceeded anything mentioned in the letter. The dealer informed the consumer the cost of installation for new bulbs would be $245 in labor for each headlight replacement, that was in addition to the exorbitant cost of the bulbs themselves.
I own a 2007 Prius. I have noticed on many occasions that when you go over a pothole, or there is gravel on the road, the traction control light comes on and for a moment, the car loses its braking ability. You accelerate for a bit before the brakes come on again. It is very scary. Thank god nothing has happened, but how many injuries have to happen before Toyota does something?!
2007 Toyota Prius - braking issue on rainy or slick surface. Upon normal braking on a slick or wet surface the car becomes unstable, the ABS braking becomes irregular and the car goes into a skid and does not stop in a normal fashion or within a normal braking distance. The same braking response occurs if I hit a pothole while braking. The Toyota dealer tells me that this is normal. It is not normal as I cannot drive the car under wet or snowy conditions for fear of an accident. The braking issues noted in the 2010 Prius make me wonder if a similar condition exists for the 2007 model year. I suspect that it is the ECU which is faulty.
The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Prius. She experienced break failure while driving 20 mph in inclement weather. Her first failure occurred when she was unable to stop the vehicle when the brakes were applied with a vehicle in front of her. She was forced to make a left turn to avoid crashing into a vehicle. She has experienced the failure for a couple of years and thought that it was drivers error. She has not taken the vehicle to the dealer. The failure mileage was 12,000 and the current mileage was 38,000.
1. safety ' while driving on a bumpy road in darien (West avenue near the train station) last year the Prius brakes did not stop the car. Although the speed was low (about 5mph), the resultant accident damaged its front end and the car in front of us. 2. drivability and safety ' the cruise control holds the minimum speed but allows over speed conditions. While returning from danbury on route 7 the cruise control holds 40mph until going downhill. On downhill slopes the speed increases and intervention is required to turn off the cruise control and apply the brakes. 3. drivability ' during cold weather the main battery accepts a charge but does not return much energy to the drive system. The mileage decreases by 10-15mpg. Toyota of stamford refused to do a free safety inspection.
The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Prius. The contact was driving approximately 30 mph on an uneven road surface. While braking the vehicle loss slight control and skidded. Suddenly, the skid control warning light indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. The driver was able to gain control of the vehicle. The failures occurred whenever encountering uneven road surfaces, and potholes. The failure mileage was 6,000.
I am aware that there is a problem with the brakes on the Toyota Prius. News reports indicate that the problem is confined to the 2010 model, but I would like to report a brake failure incident with our 2007 model Prius. In June of 2009 my wife and I were driving our Prius down a hill approaching a stop light. It had been raining and the pavement was wet, but there was no standing water on the road surface. The light turned yellow as we approached the intersection at a speed of about 35 mph. I applied the brakes but the car continued to move forward down the hill with no braking action and no deceleration. I had no alternative but to speed up to try get through the intersection before the light turned red. The light did turn red just before we entered the intersection, but we were able to make it through before any opposing traffic entered the intersection. It is important to note that during this incident the car showed no evidence of being in a skid - - it simply moved forward without any swerving. Furthermore, there was no vibration in the brake pedal nor any sounds that might be associated with anti-lock brake action. I took the car to the Toyota dealer and asked the service manager if there could be something wrong with the anti-lock system. I was told that they had no way to check that. We have had no further problem with the brakes, but I am concerned that this behavior may recur because of the current braking issue.
I am the original owner of a 2007 Toyota Prius. My brakes seem to fail momentarily when I am trying to stop at a bumpy intersection. This has happened more one time. Although I have not had an accident as a result it is a very uncomfortable feeling, because you just don't know if they are going to bring you to a stop. I have reported this problem to the Toyota dealer (smart Toyota - madison, wi) and their analysis at the time I took it in on May 14, 2009 was that it could not be duplicated and essentially found nothing wrong.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Sacramento, CA, USA