10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 44 / 0
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 20 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 67,230 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
Hi- I have a Toyota Prius 2010 model and I encountered a braking failure yesterday. My ABS lights, brake lights and another light came up on my dashboard of the car. Upon diagnosis, I was informed by Toyota dealership that my car has a faulty C1391 - Abnormal leak in accumulator. This condition may be caused by small internal brake fluid leak inside the brake booster assembly with master cylinder. This is a known issue by Toyota and lots of press coverage on this issue since the past few years. I was told today that if this issue occurred within 10 year or purchase or <150K then the repair work would be covered by Toyota. I purchased the car in 2010 and I past the 10 year mark but mileage coverage is 125K (<150K). Toyota is unwilling to bear the cost and would want me to pay for the fix. This is a known issue with Toyota and the braking system can fail anytime before/or after 10 year mark. It is now costing me $3000 to repair. I am shocked with the Toyota's response in this matter. There are lots of blogs I read online who have similar issue. Class Action lawsuit: https://www.classaction.org/news/toyota-hit-with-class-action-over-alleged-refusal-to-fix-braking-system-defect-in-hybrid-vehicles Here is one example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xA9jyrbZDWo Thanks.
- Manvel, TX, USA
The Traction control, ABS, and Brake light all came on simultaneously. It was random with no trigger. The brakes feel spongy, and will not regenerate to charge the hybrid system.
- Clarksville, TN, USA
My brakes have been making hissing noises whenever I press on the brake pedal for the past year. While driving on the freeway 300 miles from my home, numerous lights on my dashboard came on including brake, VSC, PCS, ABS, Triangle and "CHECK PCS SYSTEM" warning message. The brake also makes pumping noise every 4 seconds. The vehicle has no regenerative braking. The brake pedal is mushy and doesn't slow the car down until the pedal is fully depressed. I contacted Toyota and was told that there was a Customer Support Program ZJB that covers 2010-2015 Prius Vehicles for Brake Booster and Brake Booster Pump Assemblies. However, that program only covers 10 yrs 150 miles. My Prius has 110k miles but it's 21 months passed the program coverage. The car is dangerous to drive and Toyota will not honor the recall. I am stuck with a car with no brakes.
- Bakersfield, CA, USA
On March 25, 2022, I was driving my 2010 Toyota Prius, approx. 209,000 miles. When I had parked my vehicle, and turned my A/C on, my vehicle started to make this annoying beeping noise non-stop and all of the light on the dashboard had lit up. My brake lights, ABS, and the slip indicator all came on. When I went to drive my vehicle all of sudden my brakes did not respond. I had to force break and push down on the brakes very hard, to the point where I'm flooring the brakes. I checked with Toyota to see if there was a recall on my vehicle, and they told me that there were no recalls. When I did my research on 2010 Toyota Prius, I found that this is a common issue that the brake actuator and brake booster pumps are faulty on these vehicles. I did not receive a recall notice for this vehicle. Currently, my vehicle is not drivable and not safe to drive. For this to happen out of nowhere with no warning is unacceptable.
- Green Valley, AZ, USA
As nitrogen is released into the brake fluid, the brake pedal may have reduced hydraulic pressure. Under certain circumstances, this condition could affect stopping distance and increase the risk of a crash.
- Moreno Valley, CA, USA
A number of things have failed on this car. 1. The hybrid battery pack system shut down and warned that I needed to see a mechanic. My mechanic diagnosed that the hybrid invert was defective and causing the battery pack to fail. 2. When braking at both low and high speeds, the car increasingly struggles to come to a stop. When applying foot pressure, you can hear the pump winding - this occurs while at rest as well as when trying to slow the car down. There are times when applying the brake that the floor pedal will lock and cause the car to skid while barely reducing the speed of the car. I have had multiple near accident incidences as a result and put myself and others at risk. 3. The car ferociously vibrates every morning - discovered that the head gasket has failed prematurely and due to the car overcompensating for the failing hybrid battery that is being impacted by the failing hybrid inverter. All problems have been reproduced and diagnosed at independent service centers. Multiple codes, warning lights and messages have alerted me to engine and battery issues - all of which appeared after the various issues and failures.
- San Francisco, CA, USA
2010 Prius Brake, ABS, Traction Control Lights On/Off with no codes I bought new car and running smooth so far. I got this lights 2 months back and off for sometime and came back on and off and now quite often coming back and forth, 106K miles had the ABS, Traction Control and Brake light all come on at once same time and off same time and back and forth. No codes and no flashing but this is very critical as all related to brake systems failures may leads to crash because we don't know when this lights on and off and no codes to fix this issue.
- Plymouth, MN, USA
Brake system fails under normal driving conditions. Dealership diagnostics confirmed this falls under the Customer Support Program ZJB. This program expired in 2020 and Toyota customer care is unwilling to fix or reimburse for the $2200 expense associated with the defective brake booster and brake booster pump assembly. The Toyota case number is #220318001387.
- Lehi, UT, USA
For the past 2 weeks my prius has been acting very strange. When driving I have a hard time coming to a stop when pushing the brake and I realize that that the ABS light is on as well the brake light is on. Sometimes it will work fine with the lights off, and somtimes it messes up again. I heard that it could be a brake booster or module. I believe it was already recalled a few years ago, but seeing a lot more people complain about recently is a bit concerning. The part that was replaced, it should work for many years not less than 10. Its a huge risk for myself and others. I didn't realize what was happening until I needed to stop fast. This needs to be fixed fast and the right way this time before somebody dies
- Lake City, MN, USA
Brake warning lights, traction control, and ABS warning lights all illuminated on the dash. Taken to the dealership and was told brake failure due to actuator or brake boost. Upon further research, it looks like this is a known issue with the Prius but Toyota is only providing service/repair to certain vehicles who already show brake failure instead of issuing a recall for all potentially affected vehicles.
- Northridge, CA, USA
In Nov 2020 I was informed that my ABS actuator needed to be replaced since all warning systems went off and brakes were disabled. On March 13, 2022 the ABS and traction system warning came on again. On March 14, 2022 I had my car towed to Daves Ultimate Automotive in Austin, Texas because my brakes failed. They told me I needed to replace the Brake Booster which is going to coat me $2500. I have looked at car complaints and this seems to be a faulty system that Toyota is aware of because they extended a warranty to Dec 2019. It is my belief that this should be a recall because of the dangerous potential of no brakes when this system fails.
- Austin, TX, USA
The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle started making a beeping noise. The contact stated that an unknown warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled into an apartment complex and while depressing the brake pedal the failed to respond. After driving over several speed bumps and using extra energy to depress the brake pedal the vehicle responded and slowed to a stop. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it remained. The contact stated the dealer informed her that the brake master cylinder and brake booster pump needed to be replaced. After researching the cause of the failure, the contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V235000 (Service Brakes) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was contacted and informed of the failure. The contact was then informed that the vehicle warranty had expired. The approximate failure mileage was 180,000.
- Tamarac, FL, USA
The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated while exiting the highway and getting into the right lane at 60 MPH, the ABS warning light, brake light, and the traction control warning light illuminated and the vehicle lost braking functionality. The contact depressed the brake pedal with added force to get the vehicle to slow enough that he was able to get off of the highway ramp and pull over. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle; however, the warning lights were still illuminated. The contact stated that extra force was needed to stop the vehicle. The contact drove the vehicle to his residence. The contact has not taken the vehicle to a local dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 182,000.
- El Monte, CA, USA
The Brake booster and master cylinder failed causing the braking system to fail while driving
- West Palm Beach, FL, USA
My prius appears to have the same problem that an excessive number of other 2010 priuses have with it's regenerative braking. This is a common and well known issue among these cars. Despite the fact that I am at 132k miles, under the 150k limit for the extended warranty, I am going to be stuck spending thousands and thousands of dollars to get my vehicle fixed because it is about 2 years past the 10 year limit.
- Millersville, MD, USA
While driving, my traction lights, ABS light, and Brake light came on the dash with no noises or other messages. I noticed my brakes took significantly more distance to stop and then stopped working altogether. I had to use my emergency brake to get stopped safely.
- Franklin, KY, USA
The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the ABS, traction control, and parking brake warning lights illuminated. Additionally, the brake pedal was difficult to depress. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed with brake booster pump assembly failure. The brake booster pump assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V235000 (Service Brakes) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 88,500.
- Fontana, CA, USA
The brake assembly is noisy while stopped at lights. The brake pedal continues slowly downward when pressed as if there is a leak in the brake master cylinder. Toyota has issued a warranty extension for a problem of fluid leaking in the brake booster, but did not notify me. Toyota's code for the warranty extension is Customer Support Program ZJB. Two local dealerships have refused to perform the repair because the warranty extension expired before I became aware of the issue.
- Austin, TX, USA
2010 toyota prius brake booster failure. according to multiple resources online, there have been known issues with this part from Toyota across multiple models. After recalling only a small portion of vehicles due to this failure, complaints have been filed with nhtsa to address toyota's lack of corrective action regarding the vast amount of vehicles utilizing this technology. this is a dangerous defect that caused my brakes to malfunction during a cross-country trip. my brake and ABS lights suddenly came on, and i could tell my prius handled differently. the brake pedal became hard to depress and stop time increased drastically. i am having a mechanic diagnose and repair this issue costing no less than $1200 in austin, TX. i would like to make a complaint to toyota for not recalling all the models with this issue and instead choosing to recall a minute fraction of potentially defective vehicles.
- Austin, TX, USA
- Vista, CA, USA