general problems of the 2005 Toyota Prius - part 2

Hybrid battery exploded in car, I thought someone shot at me or bomb went off in car. Later I realized there was a problem with the hybrid system. I couldn't get a hold of Toyota or representative of Toyota, I took battery out so there wouldn't be a fire. When I opened casing up I saw the damage where a cell or two exploded inside hybrid battery pack. When I finally got to talk to someone from Toyota 4 days later and told them I removed the pack so it wouldn't start a fire in car and for the authorities to inspect battery, they started yelling at me for driving the car and removing the battery. I said this is a safety issue, it can happen to anyone. It has affected me, my child and dogs hearing as a result and negligence of Toyota. I was scared and frightened by Toyota's response and the call back after I yelled at the and hung up. I got a call back from them where I was threatened by a man. I thought Toyota cared about customers, not to threaten them, and to tamper with evidence and hide a safety issue.

I went from a stationary driving position, to driving off at 20 mph down a 3 lane highway, suddenly a few seconds after, all these lights came fashing warning lihgt, brake lights, abs light and a loud beeping noise. I had no power, no brakes…. . Fortunately there was nobody in front of me or close behind and I could veer into the side of the road. I turned the car off totally. And then tried to turn it back on again to see what would happen, and all the same lights and beeping noise started again. Had the car towed to Toyota in santa monica. There was no manager on site. One of the service guys said he would have it checked. They refused to give me a temporary rental or substitue car - they said they would give me a ride to a rental place! this is 11 a. M. The following morning. The manager at the dealership is stil not there. The associate called me and said I could pay to have it repaired !! I have called the Toyota customer relations service, who say they will get back to me in "a day or so". Aside from my life and others lives, being put in total jeopardy by my cars' failure, I think the lack of urgency on this matter is appalling. There may be other Prius cars that will have the same failure, and people killed.

In 2007, we purchased a certified used Toyota Prius 2005 with 13,298 miles. We have owned this car ever since. We currently have about 81,000 miles on this vehicle. Brake failure incident on June 30, 2014, I was driving the 2005 Prius slowly (10-15 mph) along a roadway located in a tecumseh, mi city park: ¢as the car approached a local street, I braked for a stop before making a right-hand turn. As I engaged the brake, the abs system red light appeared, the red brake light was lit and the related buzzer was activated as well. ¿¢as I braked, my right foot went all the way to the floor. I experienced complete and total brake failure. ¿¢I finally stopped the car with the emergency brake. ¿¢I drove the Prius very slowly over the two miles home, using the emergency brake to stop as needed. ¿¢my wife and daughter were riding with me in the car and witnessed the incident. On July 1, 2014, I contacted aaa and arranged to have the car towed to a repair shop in ann arbor, mi ¿ 30 miles away. After a week, at the repair shop I arranged to have the vehicle towed to the local Toyota service facility. Over the previous five months, I experienced another curious problem that may be brake related. When braking on bumpy roads (we have horrible pot holes on many major streets and roads) or curb cuts, the car accelerates ever so briefly. The feeling of loss of control is very disturbing. It remains to be seen if this problem is related to the brake failure noted above. There were no injuries as a result of this brake failure. However, I had just returned home from business in a neighboring community 35 miles away. I often drive backcountry county roads with posted speeds of 55 mph. If I had experienced the brake failure then, I might well have been killed along with others.

Both of my Prius headlights went off, for no apparent reason, while driving down a busy highway. Flicking them off and then back on brought them on again, but this is a dangerous situation. This has happened one more time since then. This could cause a serious accident. Toyota is unable to isolate the problem. The company wants to replace the bulbs, but this doesn't fix the problem, according to many other people who have had this problem. Replacing the bulbs or adjacent parts can cost hundreds of dollars, which is not sustainable. It seems that a recall is in order.

The dashboard screen goes blank. This has happened twice in the last couple of days. I can't tell how fast I'm going, how much gas is left, what gear I'm in, how much mileage is on the vehicle, whether or not the lights are on, etc. Toyota has a service notice about it, but my vehicle is just 2 months out of warranty. I didn't have this problem before while it was in warranty. It is extremely unsafe.

Intermittent failure of headlight (left and right, though not simultaneously). Problem can be temporarily corrected by turning headlights off, then on. This issue occurs while driving (twice within a one hour drive) and when the car has just been started. Fuses have been checked and headlight bulbs have been replaced with no resolution.

I had just had my oil changed and when I was leaving I started the car but the dashboard lights didn't come on. I drove on and still nothing. When I was at a stop light, the lights came on with the error msg that my brakes were engaged. I tried multiple times to depress and release the emergency brake, but same message. I couldn't move the vehicle because the front brakes were locked. I had it towed to the dealership and they said they had to get Toyota involved but it sounds like three computers are fried. This is very frustrating since I got the vehicle because it had such wonderful reviews (yes this was some years ago) how do computers just "up and fry" without any warning. I am hopeful that Toyota will do the right thing and step up and take the necessary steps to make sure this doesn't happen to anyone else. Also, whatever they could do for me would be greatly appreciated since I was a die hard Prius fan. . . . . Until now??? :,(.

On my 2005 Toyota Prius the hid lights were replaced with Toyota parts. Within a couple of weeks they started to go off and on at random. The dealer replaced them with aftermarket hid bulbs. After about 18 months one of the lights would go off and on at random. The dealer no longer carries aftermarket hid bulbs. They told me they could install the Toyota bulbs which have issues or I could get aftermarket bulbs and they would install them. Well the new d2r hid sylvania bulbs were installed by the dealer. Within 2 weeks one of the new bulbs went off and on at random. Now a week later the other new hid bulb is doing the same thing. I have read that this issue has been going on for years. This is a safety issue and also an expensive repair. When will this safety problem be addressed?????.

Dashboard information suddenly turns blank -- no fuel level, speed, etc. , but headlights work (although no indicator on instrument panel) as well as turn signals, air-conditioning, and radio. I drove straight to the dealer thinking that it was probably a fuse. The service department reports that although they have rarely seen this, it's a problem with a component behind the power switch. The part is in short supply and may take as long as four weeks to arrive. They said it would be covered under warranty and the dealer will be paying for the cost of a rental car in the interim. The service from the dealer is superior and. . . I love my Prius. .

I started up the car this morning, put it into reverse, and a second or two later, it shifted itself into neutral. The shift lever felt like there was more resistance to it than usual. This happened several times and also happened when I tried to put the car into drive. After about 15 minutes of turning the car on and off and trying to shift several times, the car finally stayed in gear. . Read more...

Front right headlight is intermittently going out. I can get it to go back on if I turn switch off and back on but it may fail again within 10 or 80 minutes. Replaced bulb, but still have problem. Dealer said it was the bulb but replacing it has not fixed the issue.

Digital dashboard display is, from time to time, so dim as to be almost invisible. Sometimes it appears to be about 90% of brightness, other times at about 5% or less. This makes it almost impossible to read such information as speed, warning lights, etc. When it is visible, it is a major distraction, taking considerable time and effort. Toyota has extended the warranty for this problem, but my Toyota dealer refuses to perform the repair, claiming that as long as they can see the display at any level, regardless of how dim, there is not a correctable problem. Since the problem is intermittant, they may not see it at its worst.

The multi information display no longer shows the vehicle speed and other specs such as fuel gauge, warning lights, and such. The vehicle sometimes couldn't turn off, and it would require me to press and hold the power button for more than 5 seconds in order to turn off the vehicle. Driving is quite dangerous as I not even sure if the car is even "ready" or not, and what gear (d, n, r) it is in. Toyota is charging me 400 for the repair even though the service bulletin stated that this is cause the manufacturer defect on the circuit board. My sister who owns a 2006 Toyota Prius (16x,xxx) did receive the notice of recall for the multi information display, but I didn't any notice at all. This repair should be covered by Toyota. This is outrageous!.

Outside temperature approx 32 degrees f. Gear shifter on dashboard would not electrically seal-in or stay in position after going into reverse, the first time. Backed car out of driveway and shifted into drive, it immediately went back into neutral position and would not stay in drive - electrically. The only way to keep the car in gear was to physically hold the gear shifter into desired position. Physically held shifter in drive position and pulled back into driveway. Once in driveway, tested shifter and found it would not go into any gear and "stay". After work, temperature was 60 degrees f and shifter then functioned properly. Drove to Toyota dealer and left car. They stated a technical bulletin was issued by Toyota on this item as described. Ticket # 490621; part number 33560-47023 "lever assy. Shift, was replaced. Part cost 164. 93 and labor was 416. 14 for a subtotal of 581. 07 plus tax of 34. 33 for grand total of 615. 40 usd. This is obviously a cold weather and age related issue. Plus, this is not the first Toyota electrical system design flaw issue I've encountered, but the first related to drivability and possible safety issue.

My 22-year-old son had a scary incident in which our 2005 Prius stalled spontaneously on the bronx river parkway (valhalla, NY) with several dashboard warnings lighting up. The hybrid shifted to battery mode in traffic. Luckily he was able to get off highway. Car was towed to dealer. . Read more...

Headlights (one or both) will randomly turn off while driving. Turning the switch off and back on will turn them back on.

I am sure that you won't believe this is true. On oct 25th 2012, I got home and turned off the car after work. I took the bag contained the key and left in the family room which is about 40 feet away from garage. After the dinner, I went to garage to throw trash. I smelled gas and heard music and car engine was on. Suddenly, it reminds me, in the morning when I turn off the car and left, the car started by itself and all electronic system was re-set. I specifically paid attention to turning off the car and locking the door in the evening because of what happened in the morning. The car was turned on by itself again and had been running in the garage for more than 2. 5 hrs based on the clock re-set information. I could not turn it off and the car showed error message that the key was not in the car. Of course, since the key was in the family room at that time. I brought the key in the car and still could not turn it off. I tried to insert the key and still no luck. I called aaa and they sent a technician and a toll truck to my house. He could not turn off either initially and eventually turned it off after move the wheel, step on breaks really hard and shook the car. I sent the car to Toyota dealer right away. The service center could not identify any issue and Toyota refuse to acknowledge there is anything wrong with the car. I was scared and also glad that I went garage to throw garbage today. Otherwise, I don't know what is going to happen! we have furnace with igniter light on in the garage. The house can be on fire with a reason no one will expect and believe! the carbon monoxide could filled the garage and emerge in the house! I called in the customer care center (case # [xxx]) and they told me there is anything they can do about it. What is really upset me is that Toyota does not even acknowledge there is anything wrong with the car! information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The hid headlights fail and turn-off without warning. This leads to dangerous driving conditions especially at night. This is related to a hid headlight leveling sensor failure. Toyota reports this issue in their "technical service bulletin" number el004-06, dated 28th April 2006. Toyota recognizes the problem in the oem part and is providing replacement only on failed parts under 36months, 36,000 miles warranty. However, my vehicle experienced this "safety issue" past the warranty period and hence is not replaced by Toyota. Nevertheless, Toyota has generated a customer program to replace this defective module in 2006-2009 models even if not under the warranty. My 2005 model experiences the exact same problem but Toyota will not cover this safety issue. Furthermore, the 2006-2009 models are covered under the "class action lawsuit" for the exact same problem as my 2005; however my 2005 model is not covered. Please do the needful to include 2005 model Prius (with hid headlights) in the safety issues addressed in 2006-2009 models. Thank you.

The driver side headlight intermittently goes on and off without warning. This began over a year ago, but we cannot name the specific time. We initially thought it was just a light bulb, however, we learned that it can be reactivated by briefly turning the headlight switch off and on. This is a safety hazard if driving at night. It can happen several times during one trip or not at all. We have taken it to a few Toyota dealers and they have indicated that it could cost 400-800+ to repair the problem, which we believe to be excessive so for now we are tolerating the problem.

We were driving on the highway at night and suddenly, without warning, the engine stalled completely, the car died, and all of the warning lights came on, including a red triangle, check engine, brake, and some others. The Prius lost power and I had to turn on the hazard lights and coast to the shoulder. We called the aaa towing service and 911 (as the shoulder was very narrow and we could not get out of the car). The officer and the tow truck driver checked for all possible driver errors, including gas, but did not find anything out of the ordinary (the gas gauge showed 5/8 full). The car was towed to the Toyota dealership in sunnyvale who are working to determine the cause. This was a very dangerous situation as we were driving on a highway, with a child in the car, at highway speeds at night and the car suddenly died. It has left us shaken and we will be contacting Toyota to see if they have a fix for this.

The headlamps repeatedly burn out, which repair people have said indicates an underlying electrical problem. I now have to replace one of the headlamps for the fourth time in just over a year.

I was driving on the highway when my vehicle's check engine light came on. Shortly after I saw a large amount of smoke coming from the engine. I pulled over and shut off the car. Car smelled like burned plastic and smoke. I was worried that the car could catch on fire or blow up! I had the car towed to my nearest Toyota dealership. Toyota claimed that the three way coolant control valve had failed and the steam came from a ruptured line in the coolant system. The job cost me $422. 32. I didn't mind paying the service but after careful research into the problem with the 3-way control valve on the Prius I had learned that this is a wide spread problem. Apparently the valve tends to stick causing no flow of the coolant fluid. I feel Toyota should fix this problem before someone gets hurt either by getting burned from a ruptured line or the car catches on fire.

Headlamp would go out at random intervals. Always came on when first switched on but would go off while driving. Would reproducibly come back on when the switched was flipped to off and back on again. Would then go off again at later time. No way to tell whether operational while driving.

Since about the fall of last year or so, we've been noticing that the headlights have been going off intermittently. The right went out and then came back on. Then another time the left went out and came back on. I've read about this occurring on many other Prius' and that there was a class action suit? anyway, I need to figure out how to get this fixed as it is a serious safety issue.

I was driving with my two children on the 405 north freeway just south of the 10 freeway at 9pm in my Toyota Prius 2005. I had issues with one of the headlights already. It would flicker and then turn off without warning. Last Sunday, however, both headlights failed, including all interior lights, as I was speeding down on of the busiest freeways in the country at nighttime. It was pretty terrifying.

Gauge cluster on my 2005 Toyota Prius is completely dead. I cannot see any information such as speed, temp, fuel, etc. Also, the car does not turn off when I push the on/off button. Dealer says that it will cost $1000 to diagnose and fix. I am very concerned, as this is a safety issue!.

The right, passenger headlight goes out and by turning the headlight switch off and back on, the headlight comes back on. It will go off again and I will have to perform the same procedure to get it to come on again. This happens repeatedly during any given trip.

We were traveling along a familiar country road on a warm sunny day. When we arrived at a rural store there was only one other customer there. I slowly eased into the designated parking area which was situated about 17 inches above the lawn below. I was probably traveling less than one mile an hour. When I braked, the car accelerated and propelled itself over the blocks and railroad ties that are found in front of parking spaces, and we literally flew about 7 feet out and down onto the grass stopping just a few feet from a tree and a fence. While in the air, all I had time to do was put my foot down hard on the brake because there was not enough time to turn off the engine during the 5 seconds this was happening. Our first reaction was that I might have hit the accelerator instead of the brake, and though I found this inconceivable because I had never done anything like that before and because the two pedals are so different, I could not consider another explanation. However, as time passed, we came to the realization that this could not been the case because even if I had pressed the accelerator by mistake I would have had to have "floored" it to get that kind of acceleration in such a short distance, and even mistaking it for the brake I wouldn't have "floored" the brake because I was only about 18 inches from where I was to stop. Even under normal circumstances, the Prius just does not have this immediate kind of acceleration we experienced. I cannot help but think about this event occurring as I stopped at a crosswalk. This is a dangerous automobile that I loved driving for 5 years, and now I will not drive again.

The passenger side headlight would sometimes go out and then come back on after turning the car off/on. Eventually both of the headlights had this problem along with them turning pink in color and back to white while driving. I took the Prius into the dealership and since I purchased the extended warranty of 100,000 miles the hid electronic control units (ecus) will be replaced free of charge but the hid light bulbs are costing $350 to replace. I see that Toyota has extended the warranty of the light bulbs to a five year/50,000 for the 2006-2009 Prius starting Feb 9th 2011, tomorrow. The mechanics say these bulbs should last over a 100,000 miles but the ecus are making them go bad early. I had a "wonderful" conversation with Toyota extra care representative about this problem. He basically told me anything that anything that breaks that is not covered by warranty (headlights) because an item that is under extended warranty(ecu), is not covered. And then he went on to explain this by talking about what came first, chicken or the egg. I was hoping to get into more in-depth evolution discussion with him, but I ran out of time and patience. I still love our Prius, 78000 miles.

We are have a problem with our 2005 Toyota Prius. The headlights (one or both) goes out without warning. The is a known safety problem with headlights on the Prius. Toyota will not issue a recall because they have not been directed to by the government.

2005 Toyota Prius, repeated headlight failure. I have been issued three police summonses for headlight failure and have only owned this vehicle for two years. I replaced both headlights three weeks ago and the passenger headlight is out again.

My 2005 Prius' right headlight (hid) turns off. After turning the lights off and back on, it lights up again. It's very strange because if the bulb was dead, it wouldn't come back on. Just recently, someone made me aware of the issue. But, who knows how long it has been going on. There is no pattern or unique incident that causes the bulb to turn off and on. It happens multiple times on trip between 2-4 miles (sometimes more than 2 or 3 times on a short trip). Since I became aware of the issue, I don't take the car on long trips. My local mechanic said "dead bulbs don't turn on and off, they just stay off. " sometimes my bulb will stay on for 10-20 minutes, then go out. Doesn't sound broken to me. The mechanic told me the ballast could have a problem, but that costs several thousand dollars to fix (not to mention replacing one bulb is like 200 dollars). .

We purchased a Toyota 2005 Prius in August of this year. It had 92,000 miles on it but was in exceptional condition. Just this week October 15 the passenger side headlight started blinking and one day later went out.

2005 Toyota Prius stalled on an overpass with no shoulders. The transmission became stuck in park, and the vehicle could not be pushed since the front wheels were locked up. The car was eventually towed, and it had to be dragged onto the flatbed wrecker since the front wheels would not roll. The problem was determined to be a failed pump for cooling the inverter. The pump failed such that it blew a fuse that also controlled the transmission shifter, preventing the car from being put into neutral so that it could be pushed out of traffic lanes. This is a very unsafe failure mode.

2005 Toyota Prius with hid headlights which has self leveling feature. Have noticed for a while the headlights are shining low, can't see sufficiently ahead of car. Headlights can not be manually adjusted. Found online several reports indicating the control module that sends the leveling message to control the headlights which is mounted on the driver side rear axle fails when water enters the device and corrodes the unit. Poor contruction of this unit lead to water infiltration and has resulted in a dangerous situation due to the poor headlight performance. Toyota has been contacted and they have not answered if a recall is warrented even though apparently the malfuncioning unit has been redesigned to stop water infiltration nor will they provide the necessary repair without charging for it.