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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
26 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
22 / 3
Average Mileage:
73,073 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.

2008 Toyota Prius seat belts / air bags problems

seat belts / air bags problem

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2008 Toyota Prius Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #31

Jun 062023

Prius

  • 240,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 MPH, the brakes failed when pressed causing the vehicle to crash into the rear end of a second vehicle. During the crash, the air bags did not deploy and the rear driver-side seat belt had sprung outward, although no rear seat passenger was present. The second vehicle's rear driver's side passenger was later treated for an undisclosed injury. A police report was taken at the scene and the vehicle was towed away. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 240,000.

- Newberry, SC, USA

problem #30

May 102021

Prius

  • miles
Air bags did not deploy Driver's side Seat belt adjustment did not go low enough Seat belt tightened so tight my pelvic bone could have broke and killed me The reflection of the dash lights on the windshield at night The battery replacement(s) being way too expensive and explosive Needs the blind spot mirrors The undercarriage needs to be more secure The cost of amount of public knowledge for muffler Needs lifted up a bit Easier ways to add covers to seats I guess the whole Navy missed coach buzzer a little more than we did lol Headlights t Center vents air flow Speedometer change delay by maybe.2 seconds Not enough charging ports Nor were they real None of my hands free electrical safety features worked properly Gas guzzler My boyfriend thinks I tried to kill him Backseat adult who doesn't listen really just didn't listen or care Driver remembers everything Braking should always be left up to the driver No too close warnings or nothing Security system failed when my car and tires were not left untouched Back hatch will still open if keys are locked in the car Other drivers hit me and ran Needs a more sturdy beam to use for the jack to jack up to change a tire

- Conway, AR, USA

problem #29

Mar 252019

Prius

  • 123,000 miles
Went off the road into a ditch to avoid a deer. Ditch was im guessing about 4 foot deep. Air bags did not work. Hit my head and have a large bruise on my chest.

- St Anne, IL, USA

problem #28

May 052018

Prius

  • 100,000 miles

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

Struck a car at approx 50 mph spun then crashed into a tree dead center of car. Air bags did not deploy.

- Winter Garden, FL, USA

problem #27

Feb 192015

Prius

  • 185,000 miles
I was in an automobile accident in Feb of 2015 I hot another vehicle going approximately 15mph no air bags were deployed and the police officer and body shop both were surprised no air bags deployed. I'm curious if this was due to a fault you airbag and luckly I wasn't seriously injured. My dash computer sensor went out in 2015, causing me to not be able to read an odometer, speedometer, etc. I had this part replaced at my expense due to the safety hazard it potentially could cause I'd like to see a formal recall for this part. Toyota acknowledged the safety error and did issue a extended warranty which I was not covered by. I replaced my inverter a third time in 2017 die to over heating. After the recall was performed I did noticed deceased power which greatly affected the performance of my vehicle making it more sluggish. Due to the performance loss I've not been able to use the car for normal trips that were taken previously due to safety concerns.

- El Mirage, AZ, USA

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problem #26

Feb 202017

Prius

  • 170,000 miles
The vehicle combination meter sporadically will not turn on which prevents the display of the speed of the car. During this condition, the fuel economy will not display, the car may not be powered off by normal procedure, and the fuel gauge, drive train mode indicator, and odometer are not visible. This has occurred for the past 2 years, primarily during cold weather, but also during warm weather, and I have a video recording of this problem while operating this specific vehicle dated February 20 2017. Toyota will not honor their own warranty extension described in their document pol12-05, related to tsb T-sb-0172-09, stating that the dealer must be able to reproduce the issue in order to cover the replacement. Toyota's document pol12-05 specifically states "this condition is primarily found in cold weather climate conditions. When the vehicle is brought to your dealership it may no longer be in a climate which allows duplication of the condition. If this occurs, please verify with the customer that the experienced condition is in accordance with this warranty extension and proceed with replacement of the combination meter." On 5/12/2017, andrea N. (would not provide last name) with Toyota customer experience center, assigned me Toyota case # 1705121649 and stated that "the dealer must reproduce the issue in order to cover replacement under warranty" despite the Toyota letter explicitly allowing for warranty replacement when the condition cannot be reproduced by the dealer.

- Shawnee, KS, USA

problem #25

Mar 242017

Prius

  • 155,980 miles

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

Passenger side seat airbag bad

- Wakefield, MA, USA

problem #24

Sep 032016

Prius

  • 101,000 miles
My daughter was driving with a passenger in the front, on a town street and a vehicle pulled out in front of her. The impact was on her front bumper and hood pushing the side quarter panels back. The other vehicle was an older Pontiac grand pris, their airbags deployed. No airbags deployed on the Toyota Prius.why did the airbags not deploy?

- Meyersdale, PA, USA

problem #23

Jun 272016

Prius

  • 131,500 miles
I was impacted directly from the side, while in motion on a city street heading straight. I slightly swerved to the right. The other driver ran a stop sign from a cross street. The impact was hard enough to total the vehicle, and to bounce my head against the driver's side window, push me into a curb on the opposite side and cross traffic. The damage was at the majority toward the rear door, but impacted the center of the car and driver door enough where it was pushed an 1-inch and the driver door could not be opened. Firefighters at the scene were concerned that the curtain airbags did not deploy. I am also concerned. I would like to know if this is a defect that could involve other cars and other people in an accident.

- Tulsa, OK, USA

problem #22

Jan 042016

Prius 4-cyl

  • 30,442 miles
Passenger side airbag light shows off when passenger is riding in passenger seat. Precision Toyota told me the weight limit is 80 pounds to turn on the airbag. My wife is between 90 and 95 pounds and sometimes the airbag will say on and other times it will say off. I had a 2015 Prius V for the last week and it has the same problem with the passenger airbag not turning on when my wife is present. This is a safety issue, because if something was to happen, then the passenger will be dead because the airbag did not work. When I went to pick up the car, one of the manager told me the airbag will not be active until the passenger is 150 pounds or more. Two people in the same dealership gave me different number for when the airbag will actually work and save the passengers life. I believe this is a design problem that has been around since 2008 and is still the same in the 2015 Prius V model that I had this past week. Please review and let me know what I can do to help you to get Toyota to fix this design problem with the passenger side airbag not being turned on when somebody is in the passenger seat. Thanks [xxx], email: [xxx] cell phone [xxx]. every time we drive around town, passenger airbag will be on sometimes and off other times. This is always happening when the vehicle is in motion on city streets and highways. This has been happening for years. Toyota wanted $ $129 to test. They did test and said that it is working per design. This design needs to be changed. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Tucson, AZ, USA

problem #21

Oct 232015

Prius 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 56,000 miles

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

Hit - T-boned. Drivers side - front quarter panel -knocked out- car totaled- four air bags in front- not one went off- want to know why "??" car was in motion......updated12/07/15; updated 04/27/18

- Coloma, CA, USA

problem #20

Jan 012015

Prius

  • miles
Letter from senator nelson on behalf of constituent re 2008 Toyota Prius airbags. The consumer stated no one was able to tell her, if the vehicle was manufactured with takata air bags.

- Sarasota, FL, USA

problem #19

Jan 172015

Prius 4-cyl

  • 63,000 miles
2008 Toyota Prius pulled into the path of a pick up truck and was struck in the driver's door. Side air bags did not deploy. Updated 9/19/2017

- Lakeland, FL, USA

problem #18

Oct 172014

Prius 4-cyl

  • 85,000 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. While driving approximately 45 mph, the vehicle was involved in a head on crash and the air bags failed to deploy. It was unknown if any injuries were sustained or if a police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 85,000. Updated 8/31/2017

- Frankfort, KY, USA

problem #17

Jul 172014

Prius 4-cyl

  • 120,000 miles
This car was in an accident and the airbags did not deploy. The airbags did not deploy at all. The car was totaled.......updated 08/14/14

- Meadow Vista, CA, USA

problem #16

Jun 102014

Prius

  • 80,000 miles
My husband was T-boned on the drivers side of our 2008 Toyota Prius by a SUV going approximately 40 mph and not one air bag deployed. Thankfully the impact was near the front driver tire instead of directly on the door. The drivers side door was impacted and my husband had to wait for the fire department to pry open the door so he could get out of the vehicle. We bought this car brand new and it has never been in accident before...updated 12/09/15 updated 8/31/2017

- Oak Harbor, WA, USA

problem #15

Mar 312012

Prius 4-cyl

  • 55,960 miles
On 09/01/10, we took our 2008 Prius in because there were two times the car didn't stop when we used the brakes. I told the service manager, the car was accelerating on its own. It was scary and I feared an accident. After they worked on the car, I was told that it was the floor mats that interfered with the accelerator pedal. It didn't make sense to me because I had to put my foot under the pedal to raise it up since it was stuck. I was angry they completely ignored the fact the car was accelerating on its own and acted as though the problem was handled. On 03/31/12, w. manchester/hindry, before 2:00 P.M., it had drizzled, I stopped at a light, drove ahead and at a fork in the road I tapped my brakes to slow down on a curve. Instead, the car kept accelerating. I stepped on the brakes but the car did not respond. The car kept gaining speed! I was at least 3 car lengths behind other car, plenty of time to stop but the car accelerated no matter how hard I stepped on the brakes. It was terrifying! I realized I was going to crash and there was nothing I could do to prevent it. I rear ended the Mercedes, the airbags failed to deploy. I had 2 boxes of books in the trunk that hit the back of my seat and knocked down the rear seats from the impact. The car was towed. Damages: $5,988.79. Medical: $25,000. Next month, a cracked pump was discovered at firewall, due to the accident. The black box showed impact was at 35 mph, (35-27) mph, 0.02 sec. Injuries: Concussion, whiplash, back spasms, double-crush injury, ptsd, depression, migraines. I couldn't drive or start physical therapy for 4 mos., until 07/27/12. My therapist worked alot to relax my muscles, I had traction, bought a traction device $400. And 6 mos. Of chiropractic for muscle spasms. 12/08/12, I had a nerve-test, it was abnormal for a double-crush injury. Prescribed xanax for ptsd, anxiety.

- Lake View Terrace, CA, USA

problem #14

Mar 312012

Prius 4-cyl

  • 55,960 miles
On 09/01/10, we took our 2008 Prius in because there were two times the car didn't stop when we used the brakes. I told the service manager, the car was accelerating on its own. It was scary and I feared an accident. After they worked on the car, I was told that it was the floor mats that interfered with the accelerator pedal. It didn't make sense to me because I had to put my foot under the pedal to raise it up since it was stuck. I was angry they completely ignored the fact the car was accelerating on its own and acted as though the problem was handled. On 03/31/12, w. manchester/hindry, before 2:00 P.M., it had drizzled, I stopped at a light, drove ahead and at a fork in the road I tapped my brakes to slow down on a curve. Instead, the car kept accelerating. I stepped on the brakes but the car did not respond. The car kept gaining speed! I was at least 3 car lengths behind other car, plenty of time to stop but the car accelerated no matter how hard I stepped on the brakes. It was terrifying! I realized I was going to crash and there was nothing I could do to prevent it. I rear ended the Mercedes, the airbags failed to deploy. I had 2 boxes of books in the trunk that hit the back of my seat and knocked down the rear seats from the impact. The car was towed. Damages: $5,988.79. Medical: $25,000. Next month, a cracked pump was discovered at firewall, due to the accident. The black box showed impact was at 35 mph, (35-27) mph, 0.02 sec. Injuries: Concussion, whiplash, back spasms, double-crush injury, ptsd, depression, migraines. I couldn't drive or start physical therapy for 4 mos., until 07/27/12. My therapist worked alot to relax my muscles, I had traction, bought a traction device $400. And 6 mos. Of chiropractic for muscle spasms. 12/08/12, I had a nerve-test, it was abnormal for a double-crush injury. Prescribed xanax for ptsd, anxiety.

- Lake View Terrace , CA, USA

problem #13

Jan 142014

Prius 4-cyl

  • 187,411 miles
My brother was killed in a car wreck on 1/14/2014 as you can see from the article of what happened. Not one airbag went off during this wreck. There is video and pictures of the severity of the wreck. 54-year-old [xxx] was killed in a three-vehicle accident on I-75 Tuesday morning, January 14, 2014. [xxx] I-75 accident.according to Georgia state patrol, traffic was stopped in the northbound lanes of I-75, near exit 64, for an earlier accident. [xxx], of orlando, was either slowing or stopped in his Toyota Prius in the inside lane when a GMC Envoy crashed into the back of [xxx] Prius, forcing it into a stopped semi-truck in the middle lane. Tragically, [xxx] perished from his injuries. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Peyton, CO, USA

problem #12

Dec 012011

Prius 4-cyl

  • miles
2008 Toyota Prius. Consumer writes in regards to air bags never deployed in accident. The consumer stated there was no need to keep sending recall letters, because the vehicle was totaled in an accident in December 2011. The consumer stated he struck the center guardrail, during a winter storm.

- Orleans, VT, USA

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