10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
15 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
7 / 0
Average Mileage:
27,706 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.

2014 Toyota Prius brakes problems

brakes problem

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2014 Toyota Prius Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #32

May 112023

Prius

  • miles

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

Brakes are not woking at full specification due to brake accumilator having an internal leak C1391

- San Jacinto, CA, USA

problem #31

Sep 262023

Prius

  • miles
After I started my car and began driving away from a shopping center, I noticed that there were 3 static warning lights on the dashboard that had not been there before. They were the slip indicator light, the brake light, and the ABS light. I also heard a short, repeating buzzing sound coming from the front of the car that I had never heard before. As I was driving, the brake suddenly felt loose. Luckily, this happened as I was pulling out of a shopping center parking lot, so I was able to pull over to the side of the road instead of getting on the highway, which I was about to do. The following day, a Toyota dealer indicated that the issue was the brake booster pump/actuator system and that my car returned with error code C1391. The dealer indicated that this is a known problem with Priuses within my year range. I was told that I would have to replace both the pump and actuator. After talking to the dealer, I realized that there had been subtle clues of this problem beforehand. In the few months leading up to this incident, sometimes if I hit a big bump in the road, for a moment the Slip indicator light would flash and I would feel like I had no control of the car i.e. I was ever so briefly slipping. However, because this happened so briefly and when I hit a bump and everything went back to normal, I didn't think this was an actual problem, but now I believe this was an early sign of the brake failure. I contacted Toyota Corporate Office. They confirmed that this was an issue known to them with Priuses and said that they had sent letters to the previous owner of the car in 2019 offering an extended warranty not a recall. However, apparently, the previous owner had not fixed the problem and the extended warranty expired. Toyota refused to pay for the repair for this and refused to forward a copy of the 2019 letter to me, . This brake defect is a serious issue with no major warning signs. As of this writing, the part is available for inspection.

- Miami, FL, USA

problem #30

May 022023

Prius

  • miles
Good Evening, I'm writing to request a callback in regards to my 2014 Toyota Prius which is subject to a recall. "The involved vehicles were designed to enter a failsafe driving mode in response to certain hybrid system faults. Toyota has found that in rare situations, the vehicle may not enter a failsafe driving mode as intended. If this occurs, the vehicle could lose power and stall. While power steering and braking would remain operational, a vehicle stall while driving at higher speeds could increase the risk of a crash." I recently just moved back to South Florida, I was living in NJ for a few years and had the Inverter malfunction earlier this February, 2023, forcing the car to enter the fail safe mode described giving me the warning to "Check Hybrid System, Stop the Vehicle in a Safe Place". The car was at Toyota Universe, Little Falls, NJ for about 45 days, since this was going to take the complete replacing of the inverter and an update of some sort of software. After receiving the car back around March 17th, I moved back to Florida about 2 weeks later. This evening around 5:30 returning from work, the car stalled again while I was driving surrounded by dense traffic, wouldn't accelerate with all lights flashing. Thankfully I was able to pull over slowly into a parking lot after which my steering wheel locked, and my car was no longer able to be put into Drive or Reverse. Car was only able to shift into Neutral and Park. This was the most terrifying experience of my life had something worse happen in the middle of traffic. I have dropped off my car to the dealership parking lot and will be checking it in first thing in the morning. I'd like to ascertain what I should expect from Toyota Manufacturing should this issue be unfixable? I am more than happy to let them attempt fixing it, but I also need to live a normal life and don't feel the need to be responsible for a manufacturing defect putting my life in jeopardy every time I go drive.

- Pembroke Pines , FL, USA

problem #29

May 022023

Prius

  • miles

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

Good Evening, I'm writing to request a callback in regards to my 2014 Toyota Prius which is subject to a recall. "The involved vehicles were designed to enter a failsafe driving mode in response to certain hybrid system faults. Toyota has found that in rare situations, the vehicle may not enter a failsafe driving mode as intended. If this occurs, the vehicle could lose power and stall. While power steering and braking would remain operational, a vehicle stall while driving at higher speeds could increase the risk of a crash." I recently just moved back to South Florida, I was living in NJ for a few years and had the Inverter malfunction earlier this February, 2023, forcing the car to enter the fail safe mode described giving me the warning to "Check Hybrid System, Stop the Vehicle in a Safe Place". The car was at Toyota Universe, Little Falls, NJ for about 45 days, since this was going to take the complete replacing of the inverter and an update of some sort of software. After receiving the car back around March 17th, I moved back to Florida about 2 weeks later. This evening around 5:30 returning from work, the car stalled again while I was driving surrounded by dense traffic, wouldn't accelerate with all lights flashing. Thankfully I was able to pull over slowly into a parking lot after which my steering wheel locked, and my car was no longer able to be put into Drive or Reverse. Car was only able to shift into Neutral and Park. This was the most terrifying experience of my life had something worse happen in the middle of traffic. I have dropped off my car to the dealership parking lot and will be checking it in first thing in the morning. I'd like to ascertain what I should expect from Toyota Manufacturing should this issue be unfixable? I am more than happy to let them attempt fixing it, but I also need to live a normal life and don't feel the need to be responsible for a manufacturing defect putting my life in jeopardy every time I go drive.

- Pembroke Pines , FL, USA

problem #28

Apr 072023

Prius

  • miles
Was at Toyota dealership looking at 2023 Prius and 2023 Corolla Cross for daughter. I decided to leave and when I started backing up, my daughter noticed the Brake, ABS and Anti-Skid lights all came on at once. She asked if that was normal. It was not. A few minutes later, they stated flashing, then went out after I turned the car off. I live over an hour away and decided to drive it to Walmart, which is approximately 2 miles from the dealership and upon getting into the Walmart parking lot the lights started flashing again and upon applying the brakes, we heard a loud grinding sound. We didn-??t think we were going to be able to stop! I immediately parked it and called my husband to tell him our horror story and to come pick us up. Our prayers were answered when he came and we were able to drive it slowly to the dealer. It was a cold rainy night to be on the road with braking issues. This is a very dangerous if not deadly situation! Shame on Toyota for not recalling this. How many lives have to be lost before you take ownership of your faulty hybrid braking system. We demand this be fixed for free regardless of mileage and be made a recall-??NOT A CUSTOMER SUPPORT PROGRAM. RIDICULOUS!!! I don-??t think our daughter wants a Toyota hybrid anymore-??

- Rocky Mount , NC, USA

problem #27

Mar 102023

Prius

  • miles
I was in stop and go traffic. We got into a crash and my vehicle was totalled. I-€™ve never been in an accident before. It felt like the break system just broke down.

- Harlingen, TX, USA

problem #26

Jan 102023

Prius 4-cyl

  • miles

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

2014 Toyota Prius. Consumer writes in regard to hissing sound coming from brakes.

- Marietta, GA, USA

problem #25

Nov 262022

Prius

  • miles
My brakes completely stopped working while driving on a busy road. I took it to Toyota and they said it was my brake booster pump assembly. There is a known issue with the booster pump assembly and Toyota has a program to extend their warranty to fix this, but I was never once notified of this issue and never received any mail or notifications. They refuse to cover the repair because my mileage is out of warranty, despite the fact that this is an issue they caused and I almost wrecked and could-€™ve died. I was on a very busy road and my car was completely uncontrollable due to the brakes not responding. My passenger, others on the road, and myself could-€™ve died. The Toyota customer service representatives confirmed that this is part of the -€œcustomer service-€ program and it does not qualify due to it exceeding 150,000 miles. No warnings appeared on the dash until the brakes stopped working. The vehicle was inspected by Toyota and was confirmed to have said issue. This needs to be immediately recalled, I almost got into a very serious wreck.

- Clarksville, TN, USA

problem #24

May 072022

Prius

  • miles
Aloha! I got 3 lights lid up on a dashboard: traction control, abs and brakes. C1391 error is coming up on obd reader. I researched online and found that it-€™s a common issue, brake booster and actuator needs to be replaced. Many people having same problem. I found your website because of this YouTube video where many people found same problem: https://youtu.be/xA9jyrbZDWo

- Kailua Kona , HI, USA

problem #23

Jan 202022

Prius

  • miles
BRAKE BOASTER FAILURE. Dashboard lights illuminated: Brake, ABS and Traction. Brakes themselves felt spongy. Car felt very unsafe. I did find out that Toyota has a hidden Customer Support Program ZJB. However, the dealer found my diagnostic code to be c1202 and the Customer Support Program ZJB only supports repairs for codes c1391, c1252, c1256 or c1253. However, the exact same symptoms and safety issues were experienced and all the exact same warning lights also came on. The dealer-€™s diagnostics resulted in a $2,087 replacement of the brake booster.  The dealer did contact the Toyota district manager along the way.  He denied coverage based on the diagnostic codes reported BUT again I am arguing that my crazy expensive repair had the EXACT same symptoms, safety issues, and repair (e.g, brake booster replacement). The car clearly could not be driven. Note my Prius only has 92K miles.  Attached is a picture of the dashboard warning lights that came on and the dealer invoice for the repair. 

- Newport, RI, USA

problem #22

Oct 142021

Prius

  • miles

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

Brake being less effective to be spongy and keep losing pressure. The brake actuator constantly making boosting noise. Making driving unsure that the brake working even no warning light on yet.

- Sarasota , FL, USA

problem #21

Aug 282020

Prius

  • 102,500 miles
On August 28,2020 we were driving in heavy rain for 1 1/2 hrs to fayetteville. Our brake ABS and engine light came on. We assumed the lights would go off, when we did not drive it doing the night, but next morning it came back on. We carried to mechanic shop today Sept. 1, 2020. They could not read any errors and said need to carry in to a Toyota dealer. We have not set up apt. Just left vm. Hopefully they will call us back today

- Katy, TX, USA

problem #20

Sep 182019

Prius

  • miles
The Prius vehicles covered only by warranty enhancement zjb are suffering the same dangers from brake booster pump failures as those Toyota covered safety recalls D0H and K0L. By excluding Prius with defective brakes from D0H and K0L, Toyota has left the owners to helplessly experience life-threatening brake failures or malfunctions before Toyota will provide the replacement brake components needed to make the car safe. The law requires Toyota to prevent the life-threatening dangers of this defect before brake failure occurs. Toyota's cost-cutting strategy is causing crashes. Injuries and crashes caused by the brake defect explained herein have been reported to NHTSA. Toyota's decision to provide post-failure repair reimbursement - instead of a preventative safety recall remedy - explains many of the crashes and injuries reported to NHTSA. Here is a list of relevant complaints from safercar.gov: 10794873,10875685,10876015,10927047,11231660,11219354,11014878,11151142,10680404,10627821,11154835,10983408,10704553,10734278,11173353,11064519,10971881,11186947,10923921,10573591,11243249,10819439,10592400,10919990, 10851950,10855586,11240240,11197067,11193820,11173721,11156466,11144698, 11235210,10550179,11253950,11102264,11044156,11253725,10616134,10875625, 11231596,10584723,11207636,10749388,11014797,11203834,11203591,11193354, 11182610,11155778,11130742,11129946,11164336,10498096,11219901,11154783, 10598545,11228248,10547701,11110691,11164990,11222966,11207630,11192342, 11184751,11183661,11183178,11173804,11173173,11173044,11162242,11144888, 11139660,11121916,11088447,11080403,11061959,10984549,11073636, 11034572, 10870866,10929397,11104163 when the brake booster pump assembly fails in a Prius vehicle excluded from D0H, C1256, C1253, C1252, C1391, U0293, and other dtcs indicating dangers and FMVSS noncompliance are being stored.

- San Juan Capistrano, CA, USA

problem #19

Apr 022019

Prius

  • 77,000 miles
When I start the car and it becomes idle the brake pedal becomes stiff and gets stuck. I have to put the car back in park and restart it for the brake to work properly. This doesn't happen all the time but happens enough for me to be concerned. I took it to two Toyota dealers and they couldn't duplicate it and couldn't find a problem but it is still happening. This only happens when I start car not while driving.

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #18

Nov 122018

Prius

  • 176,619 miles
The edr report clearly showed that the brake oil pressure changes did not correlate with the progressively increasing vehicle deceleration. The issue is occasional, rare and cannot be reproduced every single time. This leads to disparity in assumed braking distance from routine experience by driving the vehicle and actual braking distance at the time of failed braking which supposedly may be as a result of inverter issues that are responsible for exclusively regenerative braking at low (<50 mph) speeds.

- North Charleston, SC, USA

problem #17

Nov 212018

Prius

  • 64,000 miles
Brakes completely failed and I rear ended a car. I was stopping normally on a city street. According to dashcam I was traveling at about 25mph. The car slowed to about 12mph when the brakes went down to the floor and the car accelerated.

- Santa Clarita, CA, USA

problem #16

Nov 122018

Prius

  • 176,619 miles
The car brakes failed at low speeds (10-15 mph) and bumped into the car in front in a stop-and-go traffic on the wet freeway after a recent rain. The brake pedal went all the way down to touch the floor, as if the brake pedal was disengaged from the braking system and the ABS light did not turn on at the time of braking. The car was driving in the straight line and immediately before this I was able to successfully brake the car on the very same trip. So the problem is intermittent. This is the second time with this car, as my spouse also experienced the similar brake failure at even lower speeds (<10 mph) resulting in touching the car in front and minor scratch on the bumper. It was a dry day then and almost similar circumstances. Associated geico claim number is 0423477190101054. We opened a case with Toyota to check the data recorder. Associated Toyota case number is 181112370.

- North Charleston, SC, USA

problem #15

Jan 222018

Prius

  • 27,000 miles
On a winter day my car slid down a steep road and would not stop while breaking, both front fender flares broke off causing the car to act like it was on a sled. The car eventually stopped after I placed it in neutral and then slid again and then it finally stopped. I almost killed myself.

- Caledonia, MI, USA

problem #14

Nov 222017

Prius

  • 106,000 miles
In Nov 22 2017 I parked my car at 1719 brader pl. South in seattle, Washington in a city street. Approximately at 1500 pm, I puled the car from the street parking I-order to pick a passenger about 4 feet and the car accelerated by itself toward right into the building complex on right and flipped on the side of the driver side. The car was on drive but I was trying to stop to pick up a passenger, but failed to stop and accelerated and turned and found myself flipped on the side as you can see on picture.

- Renton, WA, USA

problem #13

Apr 262017

Prius

  • 60,000 miles
Vehicle increased acceleration while making a right-hand turn and braking, into a covered parking stall. Vehicle did not stop under breaking until front end went over cement parking bumper.

- Lodi, CA, USA

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