Table 1 shows one common unknown or other related problems of the 2005 Toyota Prius.
| Problem Category | Number of Problems |
|---|---|
| Unknown Or Other problems |
While driving the vehicle, the sun visor on the drivers side flips down, blocking the drivers view. The visor can be returned to the up (out of the way) position. However it repeatedly and spontaneously slips down, both blocking the drivers view and creating a constant distraction for the driver. This is dangerous and a severe driving hazard.
When starting the vehicle up, no speedohmeter display is illuminated. The display for the vehicle enviromental controls (miles per gallon/energy use) still works. Along with the speedohmeter display, the rear hatchback door does not work. I tried to adjust the inside light display to see if the light level was turned off. This was not problem. I turned the light adjustment knob in both directions, and still no speedohmeter display. Upon trying to turn off the engine, it will not turn off. I was able to shut the vehicle off by disconnecting the car battery in the passenger side rear hatch back area. Note that because the rear hatch back door does not work, all the vehicle parts which leads to the rear battery has to be taken out from the rear seat of the vehicle. One particular time I disconnected the car battery on the black portion of the battery,and the vehicle did not shut off. I brought the vehicle to the Toyota dealership several times, and because this problem happens intermittently. Toyota was unable to duplicate it. However, one day when it was not working, I brought it in to them. They later claimed that it was a "cold start" problem to the computer that is responsible for the speedohmeter display (besides other things, rear hatch back door, cruise control, etc. ). Toyota claimed they found the problem on the internet, and it was not a recalled part. This particular part (computer) normally happens only in the states that are very cold.
On 7/31/11 I noticed my cruise control would not set. The light came on indicating the cruise was on, but I could not get the speed to hold. The next day, the cruise control worked. Midday on 8/1/11 while parked, I shifted to the d position, but the light indicated I was in n. I shifted back and forth between r and d several times, but the light indicated n. I took my foot off the brake and the car moved backward. The light indicated n and the knob was in the d position. It did this several times. I turned the car off and back on and everything worked like it is supposed to. On 8/1/11 at approximately 10:30 p. M. I was driving home on a narrow, two-lane rural highway. On a blind curve, both of my headlights went out. I could not see anything. I tried cycling my headlights off and on and nothing happened. I applied my brakes and stopped. I opened my door to see where I was in the roadway and determined I was on the fog line on the opposite side of the road and there was a hillside less than 5' from me. I was able to drive to the shoulder on the right side of the road by using the light from my door. I was extremely lucky no cars passed by while my lights were out. I could have been killed or caused a catastrophe. I turned the car off and back on and both headlights came back on. A motorist stopped to assist. I was able to follow him to a store where a friend met me and I followed him home. During the drive home one of my headlights kept turning off. Both did not go off together again. I took the car to the dealer on 8/3/11 and was told I need a new auxiliary battery and two new headlights. Cost is going to be around $700. I read about a class action suit regarding 2006-2009 Prius' headlights and that Toyota knows there is a problem with them. I believe there should be a recall because of my harrowing experience and those of many others.
Generally speaking, thousands of Prius owners complain about their radio reception to Toyota to no avail (I have written the ceo 2-3 times already and had phone conversations with customer service as well as an exchange of emails) only to be told to contact the dealership - which has no way of assisting with this problem). Poking around on the internet, it seems to be a "grounding" problem - which has now been fixed I understand in subsequent models. This points to the fact they knew it was a problem. I contend it is a safety issue if you are not able to hear your radio in case of emergency - especially in a rural area such as ours (olympic peninsula) where hearing emergency warnings while driving could be considered life and death in certain circumstances. . Read more...
At random, the car does not start. There is nothing different about events leading up to the failure from one day to the next. My neighbor has the same problem, and so did a friend of mine. Aaa told me that in the winter the car is particularly prone to having trouble starting.
We received a recall notice for our Toyota Prius. I wrote them a letter asking them to acknowledge that they were going to do only the mechanical modifications they described and not any work with the computer or electronics. Their response was to assign a subordinate to call me back and simply read my letter back to me. I want the courtesy of a written reply to the points I made in my letter before we leave our car in their hands. The California dept. Of consumer affairs bureau of automotive repair put me on hold for 20 minutes and then told me to contact you. The car is registered in my wife's name. Updated 01/31/11.
2005 Toyota Prius. Consumer writes to express discontent regarding the dealership and the handling of recall repairs.
My 2005 Toyota Prius has a problem when I hit a bump when I am applying the brakes. The brakes momentarly stop funtioning. I never thought much about it thinking I hit a slick spot. I was talking to anothr 2005 Prius owner today who told me he had this problem, and that it is a know problem with the newer Prius. I just wanted you to know it is happening with the 2005 model as well.
My 2005 Toyota Prius arbitrarily lost braking ability as I approached a ramp to enter another highway. Many lights went on including the red triangle with an exclamation point. I used the emergency brake to stop the car. I have been told that the skid control unit is broken and needs to be replaced. I will need to replace this part at a cost of $2200. Is this unit a safety threat?.
Continuation to incident# 10310144, the problem showed up at the dealer's service bay. The service technical people saw that but still wanted a separate diagnostic fee of $57 to tell me the real issue. I am sure they would have seen this before.
Car seizing up in 2005 Prius when I go over large bumps in the road-- have experienced this problem continuously over past 2 1/2 years since I bought the car in may 2007 with 19,000 miles. I have seen reports that this problem has been reported in the 2010 Prius and a very large recall is about to happen, but I just want you to be aware that I have experience the same problem in my 2005.
The car suddenly and momentarily accelerates when coming out of a dip or pothole, or over a speed bump. Momentarily sounds unimportant but one speed bump was ahead of a crosswalk at the zoo, with many people crossing. It has also accelerated for longer periods (30 seconds) on the highway. I did not report this to Toyota because my in-laws Prius did the same thing, only they almost had an accident and when they reported it to Toyota, they were told that there was no problem with their car. They ended up selling it out of fear. The momentary accelerations happen frequently. The longer acceleration has happened twice, about 6 months ago.
I have a 2005 Toyota Prius. When I hit a bump and try to slow down, the car jumps forward. When I hit the brakes the car accelerates. This does not happen all of the time but is intermittent. I have tried to complain to Toyota but cannot get through.
Wanted to let you know the problem with braking on rough pavement is not limited to the 2010 Prius. We have suffered with this problem on our 2005 Prius since the beginning.
During a drive on us224 in ohio, my husband was driving my 2005 Toyota on cruise control. After passing a vehicle, he attempted to slow down by braking but the car was still trying to accelerate. It took four iterations of pushing on the brake to finally make the car slow down. We were able to pull off of the highway and stop. During the incident, we could feel the pull of acceleration even when he was depressing the brake. If he let off of the brake the car would begin accelerating again. We did have an aftermarket floor mat on the driver side, however it is a very heavy, thick mat that does not move. We are 100% convinced that the floor mat was not on top of the accelerator pedal during this incident (as proven by the car finally slowing down and stopping with out the floor mat being adjusted).
After only about 3 years use, the rubber cover on the hatch release handle (the exterior handle of the rear hatch) of our 2007 Toyota Prius, melted into a sticky tarry black rubbery gooey mess. I can best describe it as being a viscous black glob like roofing tar. To open the hatch, you have to touch this black goo each time, which makes it difficult to operate the hatch release. We believe this melting process started at about the 2 yr. Mark. I thought that this might be a singular issue, but have found that this has happened to several car owners, . Toyota knows about this, and is selling the entire wiring harness for $96 plus repair costs, and has done nothing about recalling this. From a safety perspective, this means you can experience extreme difficulty opening the rear hatch (a life safety access point), and will get sticky black tar on you from the melted down rubber cover of the exterior hatch release handle. To me, this is both a serious life safety issue and a serious quality defect that Toyota is opting to ignore and only fixing on vehicles with extended warranties, since the failure appears to occur at around the 3 year mark (ie after 3 years of exposure to the bright sun in north carolina for example). I am aware of the outstanding work done by NHTSA on other safety issues, including the problem with rusty frames on 02 isuzu axioms, and I find this problem to be similar in nature, so I am asking for your agency to take a look at these instances and also to inquire from Toyota why they are not recalling these handles that are melting in the sun!!! it's outrageous. I think a door handle or hatch handle should be made to last more than 3 years.
2005 Toyota Prius. Similar "braking" problem as is in news for 2010 Prius. After going over a (even a small) bump, car almost lurches forward; glad I wasn't near another car, or might have hit it. Has happened a few times when going over small bumps took to dealer-did not find anything. Seems like more of an acceleration. Drivetrain problem. Second possible Prius issue: a few times when I pushed down accelerator to enter highway from full stop, nothing for a second-a delay that could be lethal. Seems as bad as nader's corvair-based "unsafe at any speed". Would not buy another Prius.
In 2005 Toyota Prius, even slight wheel slippage engages the vehicle control system and cuts power to the wheels. When it is sometimes necessary to accelerate quickly into traffic, acceleration cuts off completely and leaves one in a dangerous situation. Even if I back off the accelerator it takes several moments for the vsc to cut out before acceleration can resume. The vsc cannot be turned off as it can in most other cars. It is most likely to occur when entering a highly traveled highway from a side street and I have no choice but to accelerate quickly. Toyota provides no warning this dangerous feature. I believe it causes accidents.
I have a 2005 Toyota Prius. I got my car 8-23-2005 and on 10-13-2005 I was hit on the passenger side while making a left hand turn. The intersections was just after a traffic circle, signs was missing, it was raining, dusk and the person who hit me did not have her lights on and was driving too fast for conditions. My car stopped, and could not be restarted. It was towed. I called my insurance company and was sent to a repair facility. After several days they got my car, but because it would not start, towed it to a Toyota shop. It sat there for 10 days, until I called, then it was sent back to the repair shop. It took 6 more weeks for the car to be repaired. One delay was in getting the seat-belt, which was supposed to come with the seat, but did not. It had to be shipped from japan (I was told). After the repair was done, 9 weeks after the accident, the car would not start. It was towed to another Toyota dealership. Two weeks later, I am told that a wiring harness was the problem. This has to be shipped from japan, and the expected date of arrival is 1-11-2006. Meanwhile, I have not had my car for nearly 3 months. My insurance paid for 30 days of a rental car (I waited a week to get the rental car), then I paid for another 4 weeks. I have notified Toyota 2 times about this situation. I have called the dealership, where I have a "special" customer convenience card. This card only seems to be good for purchases, and not for actual assistance. I think Prius owners need to know that their cars can only be repaired at a few locations, and most dealerships can not repair them properly. Additionally, I think the car has a significant blinds pot, as I am frequently surprised by other cars suddenly appearing.
The consumer stated there was no alarm to alert him the emergency brake was on. The manufacturer has been contacted. Updated 07/03/06.
We have a 2005 Toyota Prius. We have experienced the braking problem that has been noted with the 2010 models - the brakes seem to pause, especially when stopping on rough or slippery pavement. We had not reported this earlier, because we didn't know if this was just an illusion resulting from the hybrid system. Now that the recall is in full effect, we believe that this is the same defect that is being reported. This has been a consistent item since we bought the car in 2005. At this time, we have done nothing to correct the issue.
The shift-by-wire transmission selector in my 2005 Toyota Prius ignores my shift if I move the shift lever too quickly. This has almost led to several accidents. On my first day driving my Prius, I was parked in a diagonal, on-street space. My view of approaching traffic was blocked by the vehicle beside me. When I backed out far enough into the traffic lane, I realized that traffic was coming. I needed to move forward quickly to avoid getting hit. I quickly moved the shift lever to “d� and accelerated. The car lurched backwards instead of forwards. I hit the brake and quickly but carefully shifted to “d� again. Approaching traffic was now almost at my location. I accelerated again but the car lurched backwards, not forwards, again. The car had ignored both inputs from me and remained in reverse. Luckily the approaching traffic slowed to avoid crashing into me, giving me time to slowly and deliberately move the shift lever to “d. €� this time the car moved forward. I can easily shift the lever too quickly, which results in no gear change. Toyota said this dangerous condition is normal for the Prius. Also, there is a column-mounted stalk too close to the dash-mounted gear shift lever. It is easy to momentarily put your hand on the wrong stalk when trying to shift gears. Finally, the car loudly beeps whenever reverse is selected. This is inside, not outside – I assume to let you know that you are in reverse. That loud, distracting interior beeper is a safety hazard. I was not aware of hearing it when I had the backing incidents described above but I am very aware of it when I am carefully backing up and trying to watch and listen for pedestrians, cars, etc. Behind me. My Toyota dealer told me that it cannot be disconnected. All drivers – from owners to valets, expect the gears to change when they shift. The public should be warned about the Prius until Toyota makes a transmission fix – such as retrofitting the cars with a conventional shift mechanism.