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.
About 2 months ago the headlight on the passenger side would go off, but if you turned the lights off and then back on, the headlight would shine again. It was an intermittent occurrence, but now it is happening more frequently and I'm afraid that my wife, since she drives the Prius, may end up in an accident. I've done research on the internet and it seems as though this is happening to many other people.
The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving the headlights and the dashboard lights shut off. He had to drive onto the emergency lane and within a couple of minutes the lights came back on. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and they were unable to duplicate the failure. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 31,000 and the current mileage was 31,500. Updated 3/1/11 updated 12/19/11
Hid headlamps on 2007 Toyota Prius dim and then go out. This happens everytime the lights are used. One headlamp has been replaced at the cost of over $200 and now the other headlamp exhibits the same behavior.
Hid bulb failure. Bulb on passenger side was sometimes on and sometimes off. Bulb is V. expensive (~$200) and replacement by dealer costs another $100.
The hid head lamps on my vehicle flicker and go out. If I switch the lights off and on again they light back up. This happens intermittently and randomly. It has happened several times while driving on the highway at speeds in excess of 70mph at night and I feel unsafe. Toyota has refused to accept this is a safety problem, but it is a very common issue with this generation Prius.
- Poquoson, VA, USA
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2007 Toyota Prius with hid headlights. Headlights will continuously go completely off while driving and require that the headlights to be switched off and on to turn them back on. This will occur intermittently anywhere from every few minutes to perhaps a half an hour or more. The bulbs appear to be in good working condition once they are on but then will go completely dark until you cycle the switch on/off. Literally thousands of owners of these vehicles have reported this same problem. These lamps are very expensive and are supposed to last much longer that regular headlamps, but it appears that Toyota has again failed to adequately test these systems to assure that they are reliable. When the lights go out while driving at night you are left with no visibility at all, a definite safety issue. This has been going on since at least 2006 with no action taken by the NHTSA. Why don't you guys do your job and require that these companies fix these obvious safety related issues caused by faulty parts or engineering!
Intermittent right hid headlamp. Problem started about 40K miles. The light dims, flickers and goes out. Turning lights off to on will fix issue temporarily. Same problem reported by thousands. Repair costs vary from $300 to $2000. The problem occurs daily. Each time there is a risk of being in accident. Toyota and NHTSA are aware of the problem but nothing being done about it.
Passenger headlight works intermittently. Will turn off while driving and occasionally come back on if the lights are turned off then back on again. Dangerous to drive with one headlight working and I can't imagine what would happen if driving and both went out. Does not appear to be a loose connection as turning the lights off and back on will occasionally fix the problem until it happens again.
I have a 2007 Toyota Prius with about 85,000 miles and the passenger side headlight only works periodically. Sometimes it doesn't come on and sometimes it works for the entire trip. I do not know when it is working and not since there is no alarm or light indicating that I have a problem. The dealership wants me to replace both hid lightbulbs for $300. I am not sure that this will fix the problem since sometimes it does work and stays on for a long period. This could be a major problem, especially if both headlights start having the same problem at the same time.
Toyota motors sent me a letter saying they installed faulty headlight bulbs in the 2007 Prius and they would only charge me $389.65 to replace them and you can't replace 1 bulb, you have to replace both. This is a safety item that they admit was their problem and I have to pay to fix it? talking to other owners and all of have traffic tickets that Toyota could pay for also.
2007 Toyota Prius is experiencing intermittent hid headlight failure. Right headlight was replaced in 2009 and now left headlight is experiencing same problem. Problem with left headlight began about 3 months ago and now light stays off for much longer and is quicker to occur. Car is at 52K so warranty does not cover this replacement.
Vehicle hid headlights just stopped functioning, they are still intermittent at this time, with the problem getting worse by the week. By shutting the car off, they may be turned on again, but only for a (variably) short time, sometimes less than 2 minutes, sometimes more than 15...
Driver-side headlight functions intermittently at startup....I have to turn switch off completely and turn on, and light functions....many Prius owners have complained about this over the years, and Toyota has done nothing....some theorize the circuit board controlling the hid lights is in a poor location and overheats/defective....anyway this is not a bulb problem, but a system problem.....please help us......
The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Prius. While driving at any speed, the contact stated that the headlights on the vehicle would shut off without warning. He would then turn the switch off and on and they would come back on intermittently but would shut off again. Both the dealer and manufacture were notified who denied that there was a problem. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The current mileage was approximately 110,000. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000. The VIN was unavailable.
While the car is in operation and the headlights are switched on, the driver side or passenger side headlight illumination would intermittently fail without warning. This has occurred for the past couple thousand miles. The current mileage of the car is 39,750. The lights would function again after switching them off and back on. This happens at least once a day and has progressively been worse. Safety is a key issue here in that if both lights fail while driving at night, could seriously cause a crash or accident. An online search for other drivers of the same make and model have revealed similar incidences/experiences. I proceeded to first call the manufacturer of the vehicle to see what can be done since the vehicle is barely out of warranty range and I have noticed other drivers online have received repairs and/or parts at no-cost to them for the same incident. They wanted me to bring the car into the dealer and get a diagnosis to determine if they can reimburse me for the repairs. The dealer reports that I need two new hid (high intensity discharge) bulbs and the total cost for the repairs would be approximately $600. I had no choice but to proceed with the repairs because my safety is at stake. I called back the manufacturer, as instructed, and without even considering review of the findings of the diagnosis performed by the dealer, I was told that the repairs would not be covered at all. I proceeded to ask why some drivers reported online that their repairs were covered outside of warranty and mine would not be. I simply wanted to know the criteria for choosing who gets to have them replaced for free and who would have to pay for repairs. I was told that to their knowledge, nobody has received full reimbursement for their repairs, only a reimbursement for the difference in the cost of the bulbs (which was reduced from $300 to $150/each). Had I been told this before, I would not bring the vehicle in for a "diagnosis" for a problem I knew already.
I've got 2007 Prius. One of the headlights keeps going out. I can't really tell when or how it goes out since I can't see it. I'll notice it when I see the reflection in the back of another car. If I turn the bright lights on and off it has no effect, but when I turn them all the way off and back on the light comes back. Sometimes on long trips it will stay on the whole time, sometimes it won't. sometimes on short trips it will go out, sometimes it won't.
Hid headlight in 2007 Toyota Prius keeps going on and off. This is a known issue with Toyota. It is expensive to replace the bulb. I wanted to add my name to the list of people affected by this problem.
The headlights on my 2007 Toyota Prius go off after they have been on for a little bit. This has happened to the drivers side and on the passenger side headlights. This happens every time I turn the headlights on. It has been happening since the beginning of the year. I have had two different establishments check the wiring and headlights and they have found no problems with the wiring or the headlights being burned out. The headlights can't be burned out because when the headlights are turned on both headlights are on.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Bonita, CA, USA