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.
Low beam headlights stopped working during night driving. Had to drive home with high beams only at night. Felt endangered and very unsafe both for myself and the public.
I was driving back home from work on a country road at night when my low beam lights both went out. I had to drive home with my high beams on. This is the 4th set of headlights in a year that we have replaced.
I do not have the need to do much night driving. Last Saturday, while returning from a family visit, night had approached. The dim lights were next to worthless. The cars approaching me from behind lit my path. I had visited Toyota a few weeks back and they advised me the headlight bulb was loose. I tightened it, but that night, the illumination of the headlights was lacking. I returned to Toyota today and they tell me these headlights have a "projector" that is bad...both sides! there is no recall or manufacturer's defect that covers the replacement. They will gladly replace these for $852. I have regarded Toyota as a top contender in car manufacturing. I am terribly disappointed and appalled that this safety issue is not covered by Toyota.
Driving home at night going approximately 40 mph both low beam head lights went out at the same time. Turned on the high beam and they worked ok. Bought new bulbs the next day and installed but did not resolve the problem.
The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that the low beam headlights failed and the contact had to utilize the high beams in order to drive at night. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer. The technician replaced the low beam lights but the failure recurred. Also, the contact mentioned that before the short in the low beams, the marker lights had to be replaced as well. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 35,000 and the current mileage was 70,000. Updated 11/24/14 updated 05/06/2015
- Roanoke, VA, USA
Search CarComplaints.com for these popular complaint phrases...
2010 Toyota iv Prius: Returning home at night in a dark, rural country area of Pennsylvania. Windy, two-lane road with frequent opposing traffic. Left front headlight goes out making it very difficult to see with remaining headlight. Switched to high beams which worked ok until opposing traffic appeared and had to switch back to low beam (singular). A dangerous situation with opposing headlights in your eyes and not enough light from my own car to illuminate the road in front of me. Later, it turned out that the headlamp bulb was ok and "something" was making it either intermittent or go out completely. Sometimes striking the headlight lens assembly with the heel of your hand would get the light to come back on. My wife recently was cited for driving with a headlight out in our local area. This is not a safe situation and the local dealer says he can't help us.
We have owned this vehicle since it has been new and have replaced the driver's side front headlight annually. This time it went out just 4 weeks after a local mechanic replaced the bulb. When I took it to Toyota and complained of the problem and asked about a warranty fix I was told that the prior bulb had been installed incorrectly and now the entire headlight should be replaced for $500. This is the same problem we have always had.
The headlights burn out on a regular basis. Shortly after replacing the bulb it will burn out again (usually within a week). At times both sides burn out at the same time without warning causing a safety hazard. This is a known problem for Toyota Prius products. We have contacted the company who states this problem was resolved with the 09 model year and refuse to admit or assist with repairs of the known electrical defect.
Low beam headlight bulbs burn out much faster than they should. I have replaced both low beam bulbs at least 6 times in the last 2 years. Typical bulbs should last well over a year, whereas mine only last 2-3 months. I do not drive with headlights on during the day. This happens with both low beams, but not simultaneously. As a result, I am installing new bulbs every other month. I never touch the bulbs (always wear disposable gloves) so this is not a result of finger oil reducing the bulb life.
I was leaving a parking space and exiting the parking area when both headlights went off leaving me in the dark. I pulled over and turned them on and off several times but nothing happened. I had the running lights, the turn signals, the high beams but no low beams. I drove home with my high beams on. I went today and replaced both bulbs then tried the lights again. Nothing. I took the bulbs back and exchanged them and still no headlights.
(40) fleet 2010 Toyota Prius. Consumer writes in regards to vehicles headlights malfunction. The consumer stated he had to routinely replace 7-8 headlamps per week on the fleet of 40 vehicles. The dealer informed the consumer the frequent burnout of the bulbs was likely due to wither security officers not properly caring for the vehicle or the vehicles being used more frequently for personal use. Also, the wiring harness failed on the vehicles. The consumer stated there is currently 1 vehicle in the shop now, and the dealer quoted a price of $8,000 to replace the wiring harness.
The low beam bulb lamp came loose from its housing - melting the socket, and while still "working" did not provide proper illumination for night driving and perhaps posed a fire hazard. Upon taking to the dealer, they replaced the entire unit (for $720.08) and have ordered a retrofit bracket (it is on back order) that they will installed to prevent re-occurrence. Seems there is a problem - they know it - but the public bares the cost and possible safety issues associated with the problem. They are not taking any proactive action to install a retrofit bracket to prevent the working lamp on the opposite side of the car from dislodging and causing a similar problem.
The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that the low beam headlights failed and had to be replaced every few months. The vehicle was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 95,000 and the current mileage was 100,000. Updated 6/17/14
The driver's side headlight went out in late March 2014. It was replaced by the dealer on March 29. On April 12, both headlights went out while driving in the dark. On April 13, the smaller lights above the headlights were also out. They continue to not work. The lights in the rear of the car are functioning.
Both headlights (low beams) failed simultaneously, resulting in the owner having to sleep in the car overnight until sunrise. There have been 17+ similar reports
My daughter was driving hone from work and got on the freeway early Monday morning approximately 1:05 am and suddenly the headlights went out. She tried turning them back on and off and on again but still no lights, so she had to drive home in the dark with no head lights. She was almost hit by other drivers because they could not see her. It was a scary ordeal for her and my headlights are still not working. I just purchased this vehicle on December 10, 2013.
I have had repeated issues with the low beam headlights since purchasing my 2010 Toyota Prius. The low beam headlight bulbs burn out and have to be replaced every 2-6 months. Replacement bulbs have included bulbs purchased from Toyota and auto parts stores varying in price level and lumens. I have had two instances where both headlights simultaneously malfunctioned would not illuminate. The first was when I had my car turned off for several hours and when I started the car the lights would not illuminate. I turned the car off and checked the headlight bulb connections. I had to drive home approximately 5 miles using the high beams. I took my car to oxmoor Toyota, the dealership where I purchased the car new, and the service department determined that my car was functioning normally. They replaced both low beam headlight bulbs with Toyota bulbs. The second time that both low beam headlights failed the car was parked but running with the low beam headlights illuminated. The headlights were switched off but the car remained running. When I switched the lights on, the low beam headlights would not illuminate. I turned car off and checked the low beam headlight bulb connections. The high beam lights, turn signals, backup lights, and brake lights functioned normally. I drove home approximately 20 miles with the high beams. Once home, I verified that the fuse was not burned out. Two months later the front driver's side low beam headlight would not illuminate. I decided it was time to return to the dealership where I brought my car to see if Toyota had found a solution to this issue. The service manager said that they only issue was the burned out low beam headlight bulb.
After leaving a skating event with 4 kids in my car at approximately 8:30 pm, I noticed that I had no headlights which had worked 2 1/2 hours prior. Both lights went out at the same time. All other lights worked, including high beams which I used to continue driving that evening. I called the local Toyota dealer who informed me that "this was a common problem in the 2010 Prius. I made the appointment to take my car in for repair and was informed that it would be $800 to fix the problem since my car was out of warranty. When I dropped my car off, the service rep showed me a spec sheet stating that I needed a "headlamp durability enhancement" (spec sheet was issued Oct 2012) and stated that the problem was "low beam headlamp bulb lifetime was shorter than customer expectation". that wasn't the problem, the problem was that both lights went out at the same time which is a safety issue. I requested to have the old parts returned and an experienced friend went with me to question why I was charged for joints when none had not been taken off my car. I was told that this was not on my car previously and that I could review a technical service bulleting (tsb-0204-12) on the Toyota website which I cannot locate this document anywhere online. A formal recall for this problem was never issued even though Toyota knew that this was a recurring problem in the 2010 Prius model.
The headlights went out suddenly while driving. My husband changed the bulbs but that didn't help. All fuses are good. I read online that it is the relay and that many other Prius owner's have been having the same problem.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Portland, OR, USA