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.
I am writing to bring attention to a critical safety issue affecting the 2012 Toyota Prius and other Toyota models equipped with the brake booster and actuator system. These components are failing at alarming rates, leaving vehicles with no functional brakes, ABS, or traction control. Additionally, this failure compromises the hybrid system due to the regenerative braking no longer working, potentially causing further damage to hybrid components and resulting in repairs costing several thousand dollars. Toyota issued Customer Support Program ZJB, which covered these issues for a limited period. This program was in effect from August 31, 2021, with no mileage or year restrictions, but offered secondary coverage for up to 10 years or 150,000 miles from the vehicle-??s first use. Unfortunately, my vehicle, with approximately 130,000 miles and 12 years of age, was denied coverage when brought to a dealer after the program had ended. Despite the brake booster and actuator failing, the dealership did not advise me not to drive the vehicle, further emphasizing the gravity of this oversight. This is a significant safety hazard, as vehicles with these failures lack the ability to stop effectively, risking lives on the road. Furthermore, this problem is not isolated to my Prius; it affects thousands of Toyota vehicles equipped with these components. The estimated repair cost exceeds $3,000, an undue burden on owners for an issue that stems from defective manufacturing. I firmly believe Toyota-??s decision to address this problem through a limited Customer Support Program, rather than a full recall, is inadequate and irresponsible. This issue meets the criteria for a safety recall and should be treated as such by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). I respectfully urge the NHTSA to investigate this matter further asap/mandate a recall for all affected vehicles. This is a big safety issue. [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)
The brake actuator has failed in this 2012 Prius with 135,000 miles. No issues were noticed while braking, however, when starting the car, the ABS, Brake and Traction Control warning lights lit up. The Toyota Dealership said this is a failed Brake Actuator and quoted $3,800. We have learned there is a secondary warranty on this part due to constant failures that Toyota issued, however, this warranty only applies to Prius up to 150,000 miles or 10 years from initial use, whichever comes first. This is unfair to most Prius users as this is a common problem happening, but typically happening after the 10 year mark.
The ABS, Brake, and Traction Control lights all illuminated while driving. I took it into a local shop, the computer scanned "brake accumulator leak". The accumulator is buzzing every 10 seconds and the brake fluid needs topping up. Now there is a brake fluid puddle under the car. The fix is to repair the brake master cylinder and replace the brake booster pump. The car is a 2012 with 110,000 miles. This is a known Toyota Prius vehicle issue but they decline to service it and can the brakes can fail.
Without warning, the ABS, Traction Stability, Brake and other lights lit up and I lost braking on the highway. Luckily, I was in very light and narrowly avoided a crash. I was able to get home with far less braking power and no regenerative braking. Since then, I have researched the problem and found that this is an extremely common issue. I can remedy it for ten or twenty minutes by putting the car in DIAG mode and pumping the brakes, but it will do it again, and again. I need a new accumulator and ABS module, and the dealer wants thousands for it. I cannot afford it and it is a known flaw and a safety issue. I take my daughter to school in this car, thankfully it's nearby, but it's terrifying. Our other Prius has no issues, and I understand that Toyota has repaired other cars under a warranty program of which I was never notified.
2012 Prius in very good condition with 180k miles- only 12 years old. Driving on back roads (thankfully) and the drivers side rear wheel compelely fell off while driving. I was doing about 30 MPH and felt like there was a flat tire so I was in the process of pulling over when the whole rear assembly snapped. The wheel hit the rear quarter of the car and bounced about 100 feet down the road. I could have been on the highway and this could have been fatal I believe. Very, Very scary. As can be seen in attached photos the issue was rust from the inside. This is very concerning since there was no way for me to know this was an issue. I could have been killed or killed someone else. I believe Toyota needs to look into this since there are other Prius' out there the same thing happened to on this very thread. Although this is a Massachusetts car I have owed it since 25k miles and have maintained it impeccably. I always have the undercarriage cleaned after driving on salty roads. Safety inspection was current- only done the month before. Had that wheel bearing replaced about 2 weeks before the incident and the reputable mechanic reported no issues. There was no warning except for maybe a minute before it happened- the car was vibrating like I had a flat tire. The damage repair estimate on this was $8500. Catastrophic fail Toyota. Is this a rust issue like the Tacoma, Tundra, and Sequoia"???"
- Plainville, MA, USA
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2012 Toyota Prius 5 with 105k miles. ABS, Brake, and Traction Control lights all illuminated while driving to work. Drove to the dealership and had their service department run a diagnosis for 200$. Their scanner reported CODE C1391, and that a new BRAKE PUMP and MASTER CYLINDER ASSEMBLY would need to be replaced for a total cost of $4,000. Toyota has a Customer Support Program Bulletin indicating that certain 2010-2015 Toyota Prius will experience internal malfunctions and require repair for BRAKE BOOSTER AND BRAKE BOOSTER PUMP ASSEMBLIES. Since this is a safety issue, Toyota should extend the program indefinite and repair their faulty systems.
Wednesday morning I went to start my car to go to work. I noticed the brake would not go down. It was difficult to press. I was unable to go to work safely. I brought my car to a mechanic where I was informed it was a faulty brake booster. When I researched online, I saw many many other Toyota owners went through the exact same issue. There is no recall but it-??s a huge issue and a a safety problem.
ABS Pump and Actuator failed at 100,000 miles. Traction control, ebrake, ABS light came on while driving. Many other stories of Toyota vehicles with the same failure.
My actuator is failing. This is a known issue for Priuses and a danger to those on the road. Toyota issued a voluntary service program on these parts to avoid a recall and now many are on the road with actautors that should have been replaced.
ABS brake system doesn't work with three warning lights on and warning beeping sound. I'v learned that Brake actuator failed. Current mileage is only 67300.
I started noticing a strange noise when I applied the brakes. It was an electronic type of almost grinding sound. When I looked into it, it was determined that the brake actuator was failing despite no warning lights coming on. This started around the beginning of March. Finally in the beginning of July the noise stopped and a lot of dashboard lights came on including ABS, BRAKE, and others. This is when the brake actuator actually failed, and the battery no longer was charged when the brakes were applied. This is extremely concerning that a major brake component can fail like this and affect the safety of the vehicle. I am attaching a photo of the dash that shows the lights that came on when this failure occurred.
In 2019, I took my Prius in for service. I reported that when I suddenly brake, the pedal feels spongy as if the brakes will not stop vehicle and lights on dash lit up. Toyota did diagnostic, no action taken by service department at Toyota dealership. I have service history documentation. On June 29, 2024 we had routine maintenance and the service department of the Toyota dealership recommended brake fluid serviced. On July 1, 2024, I was driving my child home from his summer camp and when I tried to stop the brake did not work. I started pumping the brakes several times until the car slowed and came to a stop. The lights on the dash lit up again. The brake failure put my son and I in danger. We had the car towed to the service department of the Toyota dealership. The service department sent the following information after their diagnostic. "The warning lights re-appeared after we drove it a few times. Now regarding the brake fluid service we performed, it is not related to those warning lights. Your accumulator is internally failing. The accumulator is a computer that distributes and controls the amount of pressure going into the brake system, and the computer was not untouched. Unfortunately it was bad timing and the computer started to internally fail. These vehicle's are known to have bad brake actuators, and Toyota created a type of recall for it to get replaced under no charge. Unfortunately they only cover up to 10 years and your warranty expired last year." My husband and I did not receive information regarding this recall. We did an online search to find out more about this recall and found several pages and posts of people describing the same situation.
Completely lost vacuum brake assist without any prior warning, while driving on the interstate. Got warning lights on the dash for brake and ABS, when it happened. Fortunately there was little traffic, but if there had been even moderate traffic, it could have caused a crash. Checked the codes and found a C1391 leak in the accumulator. Dealer has quoted me $3200 to repair.
Hi NHTSA, I have a 2012 Toyota Prius and all the Brake-related lights came on the dash. ABS and TC stopped working and the Brake Pedal lost sensitivity. I was about to crash the car and immediately took my car to the Toyota Dealership. They said that there was a Recall unfortunately the program has expired on my vehicle. I asked a couple of Toyota Prius owner friends and half of them had the same issue and they have been fixed under a program. But they said my 95k miles Prius is barely out of the program. My concern is that they charged the diagnosis cost released my vehicle and said that it was not safe to drive! I don't have the budget to cover the Manufacturer's low-quality BRAKE Booster production and I have to drive my car every day! I don't want to risk anyone but I have no choice. I hope you can help!
The contact owns a 2012 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle did not stop as intended. In addition, several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact used the parking brake to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed brake master cylinder, accumulator, and brake booster. The contact was informed that the brake master cylinder, accumulator, and brake booster needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The contact was informed of an unknown recall for the failure; however, the contact was informed that the recall had expired. The failure mileage was approximately 136,000.
Traction control, brake, and abs warning lights all came on at once while driving on freeway. Braking became harder. Car has fewer than 60,000 miles. I took it to the mechanic. He says I need a new booster pump.
Decreased braking performance. Sudden loss of ABS and Traction Control capabilities. (ABS light and Traction Control lights are now permanently illuminated on the dash). During the drive home, the brake response changed dramatically. More force is now required to operate the brakes. This failure occurred during a merge into traffic while on a merge ramp, going about 35 mph. It took what felt like a few seconds for both the vehicle and myself to adjust to the new braking requirements. During this time, it felt like a brief loss of braking ability. I continued to depress the brake pedal, and finally noticed a slowing of the vehicle. The pedal clearly requires much more effort and depress distance to begin slowing down the car. This decreased braking performance appears to be sustained until repairs are made to the vehicle.
ABS, Stability Control and Brake warning lamps on dashboard. Faulty Brake Booster/Pump/Accumulator doesn't allow for safe stopping. Looking on the world wide web, it appears to be a common issue with this generation Prius (and it is COSTLY to repair).
Was 8 days out of warranty so Toyota would not honor offer to replace the brake booster/actuator. Paid personally to have it done with genuine Toyota parts. 16 months later same parts need replacing. Toyota refuses to help.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Kihei, HI, USA