10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
49 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
8 / 1
Average Mileage:
5,881 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.

2010 Toyota Prius brakes problems

brakes problem

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2010 Toyota Prius Owner Comments (Page 30 of 38)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #165

Feb 022010

Prius

  • 1,000 miles

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

I own a 2010 Toyota Prius and have encountered the same issues with the brakes that many others have reported. When braking (which I do over a longer than usual distance and timeframe because of the car's ability to regenerate power while braking), the brake pedal drops and the car suddenly accelerates whenever the vehicle hits a bump or pothole. This has happened multiple times since I took possession of the vehicle in June 2009. No accidents or injuries have resulted, but I must be particularly cautious of road conditions when braking because this happens frequently and I am concerned about the possibility of future accidents or pedestrian incidents.

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #164

Dec 252009

Prius

  • 3,000 miles
2010 Toyota Prius - braking issue on slippery service - I find the braking distance required to stop the vehicle is excessive when compared to my previous vehicle on slippery services. This has resulted in the vehicle rolling forward into intersections before coming to a stop. I live in mn where road conditions can become less than ideal. I do not believe that I am traveling at an excessive speed but I have know adjusted my driving habits to account for the extra distance required to stop.

- Saint Paul, MN, USA

problem #163

Feb 022010

Prius

  • 3,000 miles
When braking and going over rough road or potholes, the car feels like it is accelerating. It is necessary to exert additional pressure on the brake pedal, but sometimes does not feel like this is helping.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #162

Jan 202010

Prius

  • 300 miles

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

My 2010 Prius has been exhibiting momentary loss of braking when passing over a rough surface. My neighborhood has several roads with steep slopes and although my speed on these routes is almost always under 20 mph, on several occasions I have noticed an uneasy feeling of loss of control on passing over potholes or seams in the pavement when going downhill. I had written this off to unfamiliarity with a new vehicle, since I only purchased the car on 12/31/09 but when I read today's NY times article, the symptoms it described were exactly what I had been experiencing. I have not yet contacted the dealership but plan to do so right away.

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

problem #161

Nov 152009

Prius

  • 5,000 miles
I have had the following occur several times since I purchased the vehicle in July 2009: When braking on snow or ice or braking when passing over a bump or pothole the brakes will feel as if they are slipping and the car will accelerate for a fraction of a second. It's as if the ABS is releasing the brakes too long before reengaging them, resulting in the car to stop decelerating momentarily.

- Bethesda, MD, USA

problem #160

Dec 152009

Prius

  • 150 miles
Driving 35mph on straight road and ran over some unseen potholes. Applied brakes and they did not function as expected. Much less braking power than normal.

- Arlington, VA, USA

problem #159

Jan 182010

Prius

  • 1,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated as she was driving 5 mph she slowed down and applied the brake to stop the vehicle and it lunged forward. This happen twice. The vehicle had not been taken to the dealer. The failure mileage was 1,000.

- Columbus, OH, USA

problem #158

Dec 172009

Prius

  • miles
While driving my 2010 Toyota Prius on roads with lots of bumps, potholes, sewer covers, etc, I have braking problems. When driving over one of these "obstacles" and I touch the brakes, the car lurches forward as if accelerating or slipping. I can then release the brake and step on it again to slow/stop the car, but if there was a car close in front, I would have certainly hit it. I purchased the car in August 2009 and have had this same problem happen at least 6-10 times.

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #157

Nov 152009

Prius

  • 1,500 miles
The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. While the contact was driving 30mph traveling over a rough terrain he attempted to brake and noticed that the vehicle suddenly surged forward before the brakes would activate. The vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealership and there were no prior warnings. The current and failure mileages were 1500.

- Washington, DC, USA

problem #156

Jan 032010

Prius

  • 200 miles
2010 Prius brake surge when hitting bump in road when brake is engage.

- Mechanicsburg, PA, USA

problem #155

Jan 252010

Prius

  • 1,500 miles

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

Prius 2010. Intermittently lose braking ability. Especially when road is wet and uneven. When coming to a stop light and traveling relatively slowly, if the vehicle goes over uneven pavement (pothole or just "rubbly"), it's as if the ABS gets confused and very temporarily gives up. This is in city driving. Starting from under 20 mph. Trying to stop at a light and with cars in front of me. I have driven the exact same route in other cars and not had the same problem. (prior vehicle was BMW 528I (model year 2000). This is a route I drive daily (between dropping my daughter at school and going to work.) I have observed the problem multiple times.

- San Mateo, CA, USA

problem #154

Dec 292009

Prius

  • 500 miles
I bought Toyota Prius 2010 in early December 2009 and have experienced at least five times brake problem. I basically can't make my car stop effectively when I hit the brake. It is worse when you drive fast or in a snowy or icy days. Now I have to slow down way before the stop sign so I can avoid the brake problem, and I wouldn't let anyone else to drive the car for the fear of car accident.

- Middleton, MA, USA

problem #153

Dec 102009

Prius

  • 100 miles
I purchased a new Toyota Prius 2010 in December 2009. Almost immediately I noticed braking was 'odd' and I felt like when I would brake sometimes, the car jolted forward before stopping. After some self monitoring, I realized this particularly happened when crossing railroad tracks near my home en route to work. I have not had an accident but instead, have tried to brake more slowly and in general this has helped. However, a few times in traffic I have had to stop abruptly and about half the time it does the same thing, causing me to fully slam on the brakes. In the past I have had several Toyota cars and rarely needed the full force of my anti-lock brakes in such situations. I have reported this problem to the dealer and he requested I wait until the 'break-in' period was over before making any decisions. That break-in period was defined as 5000 miles and I am now at about 4800, and the problem has not changed. When I reported it to the dealer, I had about 3000 miles on the car, and it was about one month after purchase (early January). At the time, the brakes were checked and no problem was identified. Today I contacted the dealer about turning the vehicle back in since I am concerned and not happy with the vehicle's performance.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #152

Feb 032010

Prius

  • 1,000 miles
My 2010 Prius iv purchased in June, 2010 has on several occasions when I brake at slow speeds and I cross over a bump in the road the car momentary surges forward.

- Elk Grove Village, IL, USA

problem #151

Jan 272009

Prius

  • 800 miles
2010 Toyota Prius III, purchased December 2009 from dch brunswick Toyota, North brunswick, NJ 08902 I experienced atleast 3 different incidents of the following, sometimes at the same spot on a road - when braking, if a pothole or bump in the road is hit, the car seemingly jerks forward/accelerates for a split second.

- North Brunswick, NJ, USA

problem #150

Jan 102010

Prius

  • 5,000 miles
The car has hyper-sensitive brakes whenever I am backing up from a parked spot (e.g. backing up from a parking space at a store.) when backing out of a space (using just idle speed and tapping lightly on the brakes to control the speed) tapping lightly results in the car brakes forcefully engaging and slamming the car to a stop. This happens only after the car has been warmed up; parked (like going to the store to shop) and then you re-enter it to leave. The hyper sensitive breaks continue for a short period of time while I am positioning the car to get out of a parking space and onto the road. After the first occurrence of the forceful braking, putting the car in park, pumping on the brakes several times usually corrects the problem. Since it happens randomly, you never know when it will occur. Toyota says there is nothing wrong with the brakes when I brought it to their attention. They said it is common with priuses. This is not true. I own a 2007 Prius and never had this problem. This problem has been mentioned several times by other 2010 Prius owners on the priuschat.com website.

- Simi Valley, CA, USA

problem #149

Sep 012009

Prius

  • miles
The brakes seem to release if they are being applied while driving over a rough surface - speed bump, potholes, etc. This has occurred about 10-15 times since buying the vehicle in August 2009.

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #148

Jun 132009

Prius

  • 100 miles
The contact has a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that the vehicle feels as if the brakes release if he hits a bump while pressing the brakes. The contact stated that it felt like the vehicle surged forward.the contact stated that it only happens when the vehicle hits a bump or pothole. The failure mileage was 100. The current mileage was 5000.

- Cedarburg, WI, USA

problem #147

Jan 122010

Prius

  • 3,400 miles
2010 Toyota Prius seems to accelerate when I apply brakes to slow down and car goes into shallow pothole. This event is repeatable and happens every time I slow down at a particular stop sign with a pothole in front of it. Fortunately there has never been a car in front of me and I now know to avoid this spot. Car behaves normally once it has cleared the pothole. This occurs at slow speeds ( 20mph down to 0 ) has not happened anywhere else, but happens everytime at this location.

- Alexandria , VA, USA

problem #146

Dec 172009

Prius

  • 1,800 miles
I purchased a 2010 Toyota Prius V in November 2009. Shortly afterwards my wife experienced the problem with the brakes. She went to apply the brakes but the car just would not slow down. She practically had to stand to apply enough pressure to bring the car to a stop. We went back to the dealer twice, but could not find anything wrong.

- Flushing, NY, USA

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