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.
Driving a 2010 Prius coming to a stoplight. Went over a raised portion of road resulting in a very noticeable bump. Car seemed to lurch forward and braking didn't seem to work for a short time. Thought I was going to go through the red light into cross traffic but brakes took hold and I was able to stop.
When on a slippery road and you are applying moderate brake pressure and the antilock brakes are engageing and you hit multiple bumps or potholes you have a momentary loss of brake pressure and braking action untill the bumps stop or you press the brake down further and braking is restored. I have had this happen on several occasions and once in our parking lot a vehicle was struck requireing $1200 in repairs.
I have on at least 4 occasions experienced the braking issue (that is being investigated) on my 2010 Prius. It happens when I go over railroad tracks, or hit a pothole. Please add my complaint to the others that report similar problems.
It appears that the car either does not respond or even accelarates when braking on uneven surface. It happened to me more than 10 times, I have the car for 4.5 months.
- Westfield, NJ, USA
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My 2010 Toyota Prius, purchased 12/28/09, has briefly lurched forward on multiple occasions when I was braking and crossed a bump in the road. I am reporting one date below, but the brief brake failure has recurred repeatedly, always at the same spot on the road.
The brakes on my 2010 Toyota Prius at times do not engage immediately. It may be necessary at those times to depress the brake pedal by 1/3rd before braking begins. There is a similar delay when braking is used to turn off cruise control. Neither of these have caused an accident, but in both cases there is some risk.
I was driving down a hill that has a slightly uneven surface and was a bit icy and when applying the brake in my Prius, my car sped up slightly when it hit the uneven surface and seemingly jumped faster before the brakes kicked in and brought my car to a stop. This has happened twice on different roads, both of the road surfaces being slightly uneven. Nothing has been done to correct this problem, when I called Toyota they told me that there was nothing they could do.
The brakes on my Prius have failed numerous times over 7 months in both city and rural driving conditions. When brake failure occurs, the Prius brakes not only disengage (fail) but the car seems to lunge forward. It's as if I am braking with my foot on the gas pedal and then let up on the brake while the gas pedal is still depressed. It is not a safe vehicle. I have great concern for my safety and the safety of my family and others, particularly pedestrian safety at intersections.
Brakes disengage momentarily when braking on a rough or rippled surface. It gives the feeling the vehicle is being accelerated. Uncontrolled travel distance can be lengthly. I have experienced four such instances.
Purchased 2010 Prius V apporx. Mid-June. Drving in first wk of ownership, observed break problem. Vehcile had approx. 50 miles on. Drining 25-30 mph on straight, smooth, blacktop road on a sunny, nice day. A car backed out of a 45 deg parking spot without warning, I had to slamp on breaks at the same time the gas/electric motors were switching. The break pedal lost feeling that it had pressure until I pushed the break pedal another 2 inches more to feel pressure and that the breaks were grabbing. I did not report this in June, due to I thought I was imagining things due to the emergency stop took my attention to some degree. I was a service manager for Chrysler years ago, so I am very familiar with vehcile mechanical systems and I have purchsed approximately 25 new vehciles in my lifetime.
I own a 2010 Prius. I notice that on many occasions, the warning lamp on the dashboard for the anti-skid system comes on very easily, when the car is not in any danger whatsoever of skidding, and that it sometimes comes on when the car is actually at a stop. I have also noticed that when driving on uneven pavement, at moderate speeds of about 30 mph, the brakes do not feel reliable, and that sometimes they feel very sloppy: Slow to react and very soft in their impact. I have been driving earlier model Prius cars for several years and did not notice this same problem before I started driving my 2010 Prius. I am not confident about the brake system and feel reluctant to drive the car, except at very low speeds.
Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). [xxx] to whom it may concern: I purchased a Prius 2010 in the summer of 2009. I called my dealer a week ago to report that I too had experienced the braking issue that was reported on the news. I was not sure if the car was skidding the first time I experienced it, I was going slowly and braked over a slippery patch and the car lurched before braking, but then it happened again over a rough surface. When I reported this to the service department of my dealer, conicelli Toyota of springfield, pa, I was told that no recall had been announced, no other concern or care was given to me at that time. I did ask for the contact information of the company and was given an 800 number and the website. I tried calling the customer service line of Toyota twice to report my experience, and was on hold for over 10 minutes before hanging up without being able to leave a message. I contacted my dealer again and spoke with the customer relations manager, I asked that they report my experience to you and that they work to advocate for a solution for the brake issue. I am awaiting a response from them. I again tried the 800 number without success and then accessed your website. I was unable to locate a place to send or post my comment/concern, so I wrote this letter. Please add me to the 210 complaints reported for the Prius braking problem. I am deeply concerned that Toyota 'fixed' the problem on the production line but was not proactive in finding a correction for the models produced before January 2010. I will be contacting my lawyer and other authorities about this issue. My safety and the safety of my family and those that share the road with me are of utmost importance to me. I am concerned that they are not of the utmost concern of Toyota, who would leave us all at risk unless public pressure is brought to bear.. [xxx]
2010 Toyota Prius. This week, Toyota is supposed to announce whether the 2010 Prius will be recalled for problems with its braking system. I brought my Prius on September 4, 2009 from san francisco Toyota. I have the problem that has been described in the media: Though I have not driven it in rainy conditions, the braking system fails when I hit a pot hole while applying the brakes. There is a hill near my home that I drive most every day. It happens in the same place every time: I am headed downhill toward a stop sign; I hit the pot hole and for a second my car feels as though it were hydro planing--I have absolutely no control. I didn't think to complain about this before I began hearing the news. I don't drive very much in the city and it was only in this one specific place that the brake system seemed to fail. But it is terrifying to feel that your car is out of control. If I drove my Prius more I am certain I would be experiencing this design flaw more. I encourage NHTSA to bring its regulatory weight to bear to force Toyota to fix this problem--which it has for 2010 Prius's sold after January 2010. I would like the same safety measures taken for those of us who have defective and potentially dangerous vehicles, but who bought our Prius's before January 2010.
Since I purchased my 2010 Prius in August 2009 I have felt the car had braking issues, I.e. brakes seem to not engage momentarily when brakes depressed as well as brakes seem to go in and out when I initially start up the car. I thought it was just the new car which I have not gotten used to and that it needs to be broken in. I have not driven the car since late December due to fear of problems in the rain. I have had to purchase another car early January in the mean time.
2010 Toyota Prius has "jumped forward" three times since purchase two weeks ago. Twice when traveling over a pot hole with my foot applied to the brake and once when braking over a speed bump on a side street. The car felt like it accelerated and that I was not in control of the vehicle.
Since I purchased the vehicle, the brake seem to have problems engaging; it is sluggish and I have to depress down hard on the pedal to engage the brakes.
Experienced lack of braking when my 2010 Prius was going over bumpy terrain. I was pressing on the brake as I was approaching an intersection, and no braking was occurring until the car reached smooth ground again. Instead it felt like I was skidding, and the brake pedal just vibrated back at me. I can confirm that the problem being reported in the news media in Japan, is in fact, a real problem. When I heard about it on the news, I realized, hey, I experienced that. I would encourage a recall. It is a legitimate problem that does indeed sometimes occur in the situation I described. It is scary.
I noticed my breaks would not function properly when I tried to stop on uneven pavement or wet pavement. My husband later drove the car and thought we got hit from behind when he tried to break. The car surges forward before it stops. I took the car to the dealership in late November-December for the problem they tell me the brakes function properly. I have since scheduled another appointment, they did not seem to care that a brake announcement had been made on my Prius. I explained to them that if they did not want to fix or address my problem, that when I hit someone because my car does not stop and surges forward, I will sue Toyota. I am considering filling for lemon law. I feel very unsafe. I drive my children to school everyday and feel that Toyota does not seem to care if the Prius brakes function properly.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Cottage Grove, WI, USA