Interior instrument failure. Temperature app. 23 deg. F. car started normally mfd came up fine. Main dash instruments failed to come on. No speedometer, gearshift indicator, fuel gauge, or odometer. All exterior lighting worked fine. Vehicle shifted into reverse and drove normally for about 15-20 min. When I parked and tried to turn off the car by pressing the power button the vehicle failed to shut down. Contacted Toyota usa and was informed that they rely on their dealerships for tech support. Went through manual drivetrain shutdown by pressing and holding the power button. Shutting down all accessories to limit accessory battery. Could not lock vehicle. Approximately 30 minutes later went out to the car and vehicle powered up as though nothing had happened. I believe that the temperature was the issue and there is some software issue that is not in the owners manual. Anytime you cannot turn off a vehicle there is a risk for an accident and or injury from an unoccupied vehicle. The dealership service dept. Theorized that the accessory battery may be low. But this would result in the car not bringing the main battery online. Toyota should address this issue.

- Sioux Falls, SD, USA

Today, I went to work driving my Prius (2008 with 11000 miles) without any dash board lights. The dashboard under the windshield is a reflective type with a whole array of operating indicating lights across to the passengers side. Only the airbag indicator light worked for the passenger side. The cruise control did not work. I tried various power on/off brake on/off combinations to get the dashboard lights working. I pressed the power button with or without the brakes engaged during startup. The engine still ran and the headlights, turn indicators, brake lights, radio and fuel consumption gauge worked. I had no idea of my driving speed other than what other car speed around me were doing. I had to drive under the risk of braking the law as well as the distracting no lighting. Then a worse problem developed. I could not turn the shut car off and I could not lock it after I got out. It gave me the usual beep that it was still running. I tried pressing the power button numerous times. I tried locking the car with the mechanical key and it electronically kept opening. I tried various combinations of braking while sitting, walking a greater distance from the car, using the emergency brake and slamming on the dashboard hoping it was a loose wire. Nothing worked. The car is sitting in the parking lot right now still running without a key. I could not lock it. As I walked away, I pressed the electronic key numerous times. The little red light indicated it was working. What else can I do. L was late for work and I start at 6 am. The dealer, (Toyota heartland of bremerton), doesn't open until 7:00 am and its 6:25 am. I manually turned off the display and radio so the minimum amount of lighting was showing. As far as I know, the car is still in the parking lot running and easy to steal. The engine would not power down nor would the car lock. The dashboard (below the windshield) not lighting was same problem I had a couple of months ago.

- Gig Harbor, Wa, WA, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. While driving 10 mph, the front driver's side tire went flat. The contact replaced the tire with a spare. The vehicle then began experiencing numerous failures. The instrument panel gauges illuminated and the odometer began to fail. The dealer stated that it would take a few days to diagnose the cause of the failure. Days later, the mechanic explained that there was an issue with the computer system not recognizing the oversized tires. The mechanic placed the regular size tire back on the vehicle, which corrected the issue. The contact is concerned that the spare tire could cause dangerous driving conditions if it ever needed to be used again. The current and failure mileages were 14,500. Updated 11/14/08. Updated 11/18/08.

- Leesville, LA, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. While placing fuel in the vehicle, it will not fill to its full capacity. This is a continuous failure that occurs in all weather conditions and temperatures. There is a malfunction with the fuel gauge device. The inaccurate readings of the fuel gauge causes discomfort when driving. The Toyota manufacturer stated that the vehicle would only consume 6-7 gallons of gasoline, even though the fuel tank capacity was 11.9 gallons. The manufacturer is aware of the failure, but the fuel tank cannot be replaced in these vehicles. The tank would need to be redesigned. The contact recently took the vehicle to an authorized dealer and the mechanic stated that the fuel tank failure was related to the bladder system. The vehicle is currently being repaired for the failures. The failure mileage was 5,000 and current mileage was 9,000. Updated 07/07/08. Updated

- Woodland, WA, USA