Our 2009 Toyota Prius is known as a Gen 2 Prius (model years 2004 -2009). All Gen 2 Priuses has a bladder inside their fuel tank. Over time, these bladders are known to deteriorate. In our case, the fuel tank capacity is shrinking and fuel can be difficult to add to the tank (pumps click off repeatedly and occasionally, fuel splashes back out of the tank). Additionally, the fuel gauge reports unreliable statuses and drops or adds multiple "bars" at a time yet fuel, when added, and tank status as reported by the gauge, are inconsistent with one another. Thus, we, the drivers, don't know how much fuel is in the tank and may consider carrying a full gas can to avoid being stranded along the roadside. We believe Toyota knew about this Gen 2 defect at the time we purchased our 2009 Prius, which was in March, 2009. In fact, the new Gen 3 Priuses, starting with the 2010 model year, had already had their fuel systems redesigned and factories were probably being retooled when we purchased our vehicle. Thus, they knowing sold us a vehicle with a known product defect. Now, with the bladder deteriorating, the local Toyota dealership wants to replace our fuel tank/system at a cost of almost $2,000. The replacement tank will be of an identical design as the one they sold me in 2009. So they want me to pay an additional two grand for a tank that has been known to be defective for the past 13 years. This is unbelievable!

- Sanford, NC, USA

My 2009 Toyota Prius abruptly lost power while driving. The electrical system turned off and the vehicle stalled while going 50 mph on a 2-lane parkway. While I was able to put my hazard lights on and steer the vehicle, I had no other control and was at a high risk of a crash. There's no emergency lane and few areas wide enough to pull over on the parkway. I was forced to coast the vehicle until I could pull off the parkway onto a patch of grass off the busy road. There were no warnings, messages, or other symptoms of the problems prior to failure. I had plenty of gasoline in the tank, so it wasn't due to a lack of fuel. The car would not start after pulling over and I had to get towed. After researching the issue, it sounds very similar to the safety recall involving certain 2013-2015 Model Year Prius and 2014 -?" 2017 Model Year Prius v in the United States, the press release for which was published on June 24 2020: https://tinyurl.com/4mrnz9nr Furthermore, the Los Angeles Times wrote an article on April 23 2018 about a similar issue, referring to a recall in 2014 which was intended to fix overheating problems in the 2010-204 Prius inverter. Those recall documents suggest that Toyota has been tracking this issue with the inverter since 2011. https://tinyurl.com/afwvt2sc A sudden power loss is generally considered a serious safety defect. I could have gotten into a serious car accident today and injured myself or other drivers. The 2009 Toyota Prius model had a recall issued on recall date: 11/14/2012 under NHTSA Campaign ID: 12V536000, referring to a "short circuit between coil wires and a possible open fuse, creating a stall-like condition of the hybrid system while the vehicle is being driven. This may increase the risk of a vehicle crash." At this time, I don't believe Toyota has conducted due diligence into ensuring the safety of the 2009 Toyota Prius model. The vehicle has not yet been inspected by the manufacturer or insurance reps.

- Arlington, VA, USA

Catalytic converter

- Hacienda Heights, CA, USA

The contact owned a 2009 Toyota Prius. While driving 30 mph, the rear passenger side of the vehicle caught fire. There were no injuries. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to the impound lot. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 80,000. The VIN was not available.

- North Augusta, SC, USA

A year ago, upon taking off from a stop my car began to stall. I drive two blocks it continues to putt along and stall, then after less than a mile it starts to run as normal. I take my car in to be told it is out of gas, which it did not indicate low fuel, it had over a quarter of a tank. I insist they continue to check my car over days of them driving it, after a week they experience something similar and replace my junction box. Since then I've replace the water pump, taken my car in for a steering recall. Also, there are instances where my car upon take off stalls, but nothing severe, just something you feel when accelerating. Recently, 6/5/14, I experienced the same issue, but this time I immediately put gas into my car even though my indicator panel shows I have fuel. Only this time I start my car and the air conditioner is not working and it continues to stall, after turning my car on and off several times and driving a few blocks the ac cuts on and my car begins to run fine. I have been told by Toyota that bc there is no indicator light and it's running fine there is nothing they can do. There was a recent recall in February of 2014 with similar issues I am experiencing but my car was not apart of the recall. Not sure what else I can do. Numerous Toyota dealerships have been of no help and I fear that my safety is at risk.

- Kemah, TX, USA

Unable to add any gas to the fuel tank even when tank is near empty. Gas just spurts back out of the filler neck. Over time we have learned that this is temperature related. At or near freezing temperatures and colder it becomes impossible at times to add any gas to the tank. The only way to add fuel is to get the car to a warmer location and let it sit for a few hours. We have detailed records documenting several instances where we could add no fuel and many instances where a near empty tank will take only 1-2 gallons. The car has been seen by two different Toyota service centers but they claim they can find nothing wrong. Toyota usa has stopped responding to our requests for help. We are unable to trust the car for extended trips in the winter due to fears of getting stuck with an empty gas tank. A (related?) problem is that the fuel level indications are not consistent and thus cannot be trusted.

- Walla Walla, WA, USA

The contact owns a 2009 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while starting the ignition, a strong odor of fuel emitted inside and outside of the vehicle. The contact did not detect a fuel leak. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for diagnosis. The technician was unable to duplicate the problem. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 77,771.

- Philadelphia, PA, USA

Car exhibits symptoms consistent with fuel tank bladder collapse. Have observed widely erratic fuel gauge indications and difficulty adding fuel - particularly in colder weather, (temperatures below approximately 45 degrees F). On occasion it has almost impossible to add gas to a nearly empty tank even at a trickle as the fuel filler auto shutoff keeps tripping. Attempts to add even small amounts of gas can result in gas spewing back out the filling accompanied by belching sounds coming from the tank. Often the tank cannot be filled to the advertised capacity even in warmer weather. Toyota dealer service denies ever having heard of this problem and has offered no credible solution. On an extended trip this could easily result in being stalled with little warning as there is no reliable indication of how much usable fuel is in the tank or when the fuel gauge is going to quickly drop to near zero. This is also an environmental concern due to emission of gasoline fumes and spurting of raw gas during refueling.

- Walla Walla, WA, USA