general problems of the 2005 Toyota Prius - part 1

I started the car and the speed indicator didn't illuminate. I thought it was a lightbulb or something that that had gone out since the car drove like normal. When I got to my destination I tried to turn off the car but it didn't turn off. I called the campus car service, by the time they got to me (about 30 minutes) the car had turned off by itself. This has happened about 8 times since. There was a recall on this very issue where Toyota admitted that high milage Prius' were experiencing this problem. The recall ended in 2013. I just don't understand how a know issue is no longer being fixed when they clearly stated that it affects high mileage cars. So people like me who's cars haven't reached a �high mileage" during their recall period are basically told to guess how fast the car is traveling?.

Car when in park or stopped (at a stop sign or light) will automatically shift into neutral about a second after I try to put it in reverse or drive. It began happening about a month ago and now happens every time I start the car. It also began happening at stoplights and almost caused an accident when I was trying to accelerate onto a fast highway from a stoplight last week. It takes up to 10 attempts to keep it in drive or reverse now from a stopped position, and I never know when or for how long it will happen. Other than this, my car is in good condition and has not had any problems. I looked up the issue online, and from what a lot of other Prius drivers say, it sounds like a major issue with the shift lever assembly (see below for links to forums where many others have the same issue). This fix costs a few hundred dollars, and it seems common in the 2004-2009 Prius. . Read more...

I was pressing the brake, but instead of stopping my Prius accelerated,and jerked under the stopped vehicle in front of me. The brakes acted like accelerated pedal. Prius occasionally had the accelerating jerks without pedal input, but after fixing all the recalls, I thought the car is fine. But this time, it was not a jerk, it was a full leap, that destroyed the whole front of the car. It was towed from teh accident and it is beyond the repair. I had it only for 9 months.

1) sudden unexpected acceleration 2) steering shaft severed 3) drivers side air bag inoperative along with all steering wheel mounted controls.

The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the vehicle accelerated forward and crashed into two vehicles and a wall. There were no injuries and the vehicle was not destroyed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure and the current mileage was unknown.

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 contact owns a 2005 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 mph and trying to decelerate the vehicle would not come to a stop. She crashed into the rear end of a vehicle due to the failure. The air bags did not deploy. No one was injured. The vehicle was destroyed. The police were called, but did not arrive. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic and she had not received a call from the mechanic. The failure mileage was approximately 36,000. The VIN was unavailable.

2005 Toyota Prius. Consumer states vehicle jolted and sprinted forward on its own while entering a parking lot.

I pulled into a parking place.  â I noticed my car was not straight and I started to release the emergency brake to straighten it.   though I still had my foot on the emergency brake and had not started to accelerate, the car lunged forward. I slammed down on the emergency brake and the regular brake; at some point I remember that my left foot was on the regular brake pushing with all my might.   without hesitation my car smashed into the car parked ahead of me.   my car knocked the other car into the stop sign ahead of it, then exploded into the intersection and continued a short way down the block before slowing down. I waited for traffic and then turned around.   I came back and parked on the other side of the street facing the other way.   I crossed the street to the scene of the accident and told the parking meter lady that I had hit the other car.   I was very shaken. The driver of the other car had just arrived with his farmers market bags.   â  he said he would take pictures so I went back to my car to get my camera to take pictures too.  I noticed that it was my right front bumper that had hit the other cars left back bumper because, trying to avoid hitting the other car,â  I had turned toward the street.   I took pictures of his car.   the officer arrived (called by the meter person) and I gave my report.   the officer asked me if I could drive my car home.   I said I wasn't sure, I would call the insurance company.   in any case I would not try to drive right away as I was too shaken.   the other driver drove away.   when the officer left, I sat in my car passenger side with my feet on the sidewalk still in shock.   I was afraid of driving the car. I called my son to come to get me. I called the insurance company and followed their directions.   intent on stopping the car, I had braked as hard as I could with my left foot. When waiting to turn the car around I saw the emergency brake was on.

I have this problem ever since I bought the car in 2004. The skid light comes on everytime I hit an uneven road surface feeling like im driving in the snow and icy road. On the way home while making a turn, the car hesitated when I stepped on the gas and the warning lights for brake, vsc, trac, and abs came on. I brought it to the dealership and the service representative told me it was the wheel sensor, that my rear right tire is not being sensed, but the rest were. It did not correct the problem of the warning lights in the dashboard; and with further diagnosis, they found out it was the skid control computer assembly. I felt robbed by spending money on the wheel sensor that was replaced when all the while it was the skid control ecm was the problem.

The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Prius. While driving 10 mph on a paved and grassy surface with his foot on the brake pedal, the vehicle surged forward and crashed into a tree destroying the vehicle. The police arrived to the scene and 3 injuries were reported. The vehicle was towed to an independent body shop but the vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 65,000.

The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Prius. While the contact was driving approximately 55 mph minimal pressure was applied to the brake pedal which suddenly traveled to the floor and remained in a stuck position. The manufacturer advised that the vehicle was not included in the recall and was unable to provide further assistance. The vehicle had not been repaired when the complaint was filed. The failure and current mileages were 28,800.

Traction control light flashes and car accelerates when encountering sudden bumps in the road. This occurs when hitting bumps while the brakes are being applied. I have informed Toyota about this and they never replied. The affected car is a 2005 Toyota Prius with 65,000 miles. Purchased cpo in August of 2009 from a Toyota dealer. This issue is a repeat occurance. I have encountered this issue in excess of 20 times since I've assumed this car and noticed prior to the massive recall noise in the media. Thank you for your time.

I drove a 2005 Prius and was behind a semi-trailer. When I accelerated to go, the car lunged forward crushing into the semi's trailer. I didn't have enough time to react because of the close distance, however the brakes were not strong enough to overcome the acceleration power. The Prius ran into the semi for a good 25 seconds while I tried to brake and I then put the car in neutral and turned off the car. There were 3 other passengers inside the car during the incident.

Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6) 2005 Toyota Prius [xxx] when braking on uneven/bumpy road (even freeway lane divider bumps), skid light come on and braking force is reduced. Has happened at both low and high speeds. No issue on smooth roads. Has occured several times, over several years, have never had the brakes serviced. Last occured 3/3/2010.

Having just started the car and enroute to my destination, I was on a city street following a large landscape truck traveling approximately 20-25mph. . Road conditions were dry. Although the truck's brake lights were not on, I perceived the truck was gradually slowing. In anticipation of making a stop, I moved my foot from the accelerator to the brake pedal. When the truck's driver applied his brakes, I also applied my brakes intending to come to a gentle stop by lightly pressing the brake pedal. Without warning the brake pedal 'softened' and my Prius continued to coast with no braking at all. Since the truck's size and width obscured sight of any on-coming traffic, I couldn't turn out of my lane and as a result rear- ended the truck. Since there was no damage to the truck or injuries, a police report was not filed; however, I immediately called my insurance agent and was authorized to drive to an approved body shop. After the repairs were completed, I scheduled an appointment on March 19th 2010 with my Toyota dealer to check my car's braking system. The brake pads/shoes, braking fluid were found to be fine, but no analysis of the computer braking system was discussed. According to the Toyota service adviser, the braking failure couldn't be duplicated and their mechanic found nothing mechanical that might have caused the problem. I am dissatisfied with Toyota's service adviser's dismissive position regarding my brake's failure. Despite their inability to diagnose the problem, the service adviser insists the car is safe to drive, but offers no evidence to support this claim. In the past I've complained to Toyota service about the intermittent 'floaty' feeling I experience when depressing the brake in stop and go traffic. No extensive diagnosis of the braking system was ever offered to me, and indeed, the brakes finally failed. Since no one at my local Toyota dealer is willing to resolve this issue satisfactorily, I find it necessary to file a formal complaint.

3/1/2010 hid bulb out on the Toyota Prius 2005, told that it would cost $450 to replace the bulb. I can't believe that I spend so much money on this car, to be told that something so simple was costing so much. When I used to do this my self. I also complain about my car accelerating and was told that my car was not on the list. That I would have to wait for the notification to bring it in for the rug replacement. I called to complain about acceleration on my car and was told that I was wrong. I have been driver since my teens (over 30 yrs now) and should know when there is something wrong with my car, I am the one driving it. This incident about the car accelerating happen a few times during last summer and the fall season I never noted the dates down.

While braking, my 2005 Toyota Prius sometimes surges forward instead of slowing. This usually occurs on rough or uneven pavement. It has happened between 10 and 20 times since I have owned the car. No accidents or injuries have occurred, and nothing has been done so far to correct problem. A mechanic friend thinks this sounds like the current recall situation with the 2010 Prius, and suggested I report it.

My 2005 Toyota Prius feels like it "jumps" or accelerates when I am braking on bumpy roads. It does not happen often, and only for a second. It has happened rarely since I have owned the care, but it has occurred more than once in the past 4 years. It always happens at one intersection, and so I am especially careful there. I thought that I was imagining it, but then it happened in another place.

On my 2005 Toyota Prius, I have occasionally experienced, when braking, if there is a bump in the road or the road is a little slick, the car seemingly jerks forward/accelerates for a split second. The most recent time was February 1, 2010.

05 Toyota Prius ( my car) was running at 25 miles/hour in local traffic. I found the car in front of me was slowed down, so I stepped down my Prius' brake firmly. My Prius's response the event of brake being stepped down was not agile enough , so Prius hit the front car's back bumper. I would like to report this sluggish of Prius brake to figure out whether my car's safety is compromised or not.

The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Prius. While driving 5 mph attempting to park her vehicle it accelerated into a trailer hitch on a truck. The contacts license plate fell off of the vehicle, the bumper and vehicle had minor damages. There were no injuries. There was no need to contact the police and there were no damages to the other vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where the Toyota representative stated that there were no problems with the vehicle. The Toyota manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 75,000.

2005 Toyota Prius there have been multiple occasions when as I have neared an intersection at the same time as hitting a depression or pothole in the road, my car, while my foot if on the brake bringing the car to a stop has jumped forward. There is one place on my way to work where this has happened many times. Since my foot is already on the brake I press harder and the acceleration stops. Fortunately this has never happened when there was a car or pedestrian directly in front of me. I am concerned though that it could cause harm in the future or that it could get worse or totally out of control. I see no evidence that this has anything to do with the gas pedal. I never did anything about it because it was so momentary, I was always able to stop it. And it never occurred to me that it could get worse or totally out of control. . Based, however, on what I've read, it doesn't sound like Toyota would do anything about it even if I did bring it there for repair. Putting something under the gas pedal is not going to fix this problem.

I realize you've just opened an investigation into 2010 Prius' surging forward on their own, but you need to know it happens with earlier models. I've been keeping a close eye on the Toyota problems because I have a 2005 Prius. And I have the same exact problem with surges that's been reported as 'only' a 2010 model problem. It's not. Whenever I go over a pothole, or bumps in the road, or even sometimes, a wet surface (if it's raining) my car will surge forward without me having used the gas. I kept waiting for something like this to be mentioned in the reports but today is the first time I've heard it. It could easily be replicated in my car, if tested. It does it everytime. I've never hit anyone, though I've been close to rear-ending other cars before. It happens without my foot being on the gas or even the brake. Then once I slam on the brake it will stop. However, the car does this surge all on it's own. I'm growing more concerned about it and am growing scared about driving my Prius. I used to love it-- now I want to trade it in for a Ford! please help. The latest incident was a few weeks ago-- during some rain.

I own a 2005 Toyota Prius. Occasionally, and almost always in rain, the car jerks when I come to a complete stop or attempt to accelerate after coming to a complete stop.

2005 Toyota Prius - when applying brake lightly in the phase of slowing down, as I go over a defect in the road, the car speeds up immediately until I put heavy pressure on the brake and the car stops. This has happened several times. The dealer has test driven the car and has not been able to reconstruct the defect which is intermittent. Their response is disbelief! approximate incident date is latest date but problem has been there all along.

We have a 2005 Toyota Prius that was involved in an accident as a result of the car taking off on it's own and the brakes not working. The Prius only stopped when it hit another car and then we were unable to get the car turned off. This was not due to the floor mat recall. The car was in park and took off, would not stop even with both feet on the brakes, it stopped only upon impact. Literally was seconds away from pinning a person inbetween the two vehicles. This could have led to a death or serious injury. Since then the car was repaired but Toyota engineers test drove it for about 10 miles and of course it didn't happen to them so they indicated there was no problem. We had 51,000 miles on the car before this happened. Currently the car sits in the driveway not being used because of the defect. This model is not part of the recall yet but obviously is defective. We have two additional 2007 Prius models in the family that are of concern. This is of major concern as nothing is being done to correct or address these models, only the newer Prius models. We see Toyota as ignoring the concerns on this model. It is a huge safety hazard as when you look around on the roads, many of these vehicles are still in use.

While driving in a snowstorm in my 2005 Prius, I stopped at a red light on a busy street, the roads starting to become slippery with snow. As the light changed to green, I stepped on the gas, and the"slippery" light came on my dashboard. When this happens, the front wheels will not spin at all. I could not move the car at all, since the computer determined I was on a "slippery" spot. I saw cars and trucks barreling toward me in my rear view mirror, unable to move, and visibility greatly reduced, due to the falling snow. I put my blinkers on, and thankfully on coming traffic was able to avoid me. I was stuck at this intersection for four light changes, slightly panicked. I finally put the car into reverse, and got just enough movement out of the car to find a dry patch and get me moving again. When I reported this to both Toyota, and my local dealer, they told me this is a "safety" feature. It's a safety feature that will surely get someone killed. The front wheels simply will not spin in the least if the car determines it is slippery, which left me no where to go at that intersection. I later googled the problem, and found that this is a very common problem with Prius owners. A few people left the comment that snow tires are necessary to avoid this problem. Not knowing what else to do, I went out and bought 4 new snowtires. It did make a huge difference, but I'm afraid that for someone else, they may find out too late. This safety feature is an unacceptable death trap waiting to happen.

On 11/24/09 I was parked in a san francisco shopping mall parking lot and started my vehicle, put it reverse, released the brake and it, immediately, accelerated out of the angled parking space, across the one-way single lane and crashed into the rear of a car similarly parked on the opposite side of the traffic lane. I frantically hit brakes but the car did not stop and, in fact, seemed to speed up. I am absolutely convinced that the cause of the accident was a fault in the accelerator mechanism. I, at first,thought it was my fault and said so to my insurance company within an hour of the accident. But on reflection, I decided it was the car itself and the following day I called my insurance company and told them that it was a fault with the car that was the cause. I have tried to contact Toyota corp. Numerous times by email and have not been successful. Finally I contacted the local Toyota dealer who was good enough to relay my email to Toyota corp. The local dealer sent me an email the following day telling me that I had to get an official case opened with Toyota,s customer experience center and to contact them at 1(800)331-4331 to get a case number. I have been phoning them for weeks and I am not able to get anything but a recorded message. Trying the local dealer again, he called direct and asked them to call me but they told him that they were not able to do so because of their long waiting list. So I am now trying the NHTSA.

On 11/5/09 in mid-afternoon I was driving my 2005 Prius north on calvert st. In baltimore city, just above saratoga st. , at about 25 mph when the traffic in front of me slowed. At the time I was speaking to my boss on my verizon cell phone using my bluetooth headset. I applied my brakes and the car was braking as usual slowing down normally until about 10 mph, or so, at which point I felt the car bounce very slightly and gently as if there was a small gradual dip and rise in the roadway surface. My foot was still applying light pressure on the brake pedal as I intended to come to a near crawl as I neared the car in front of me, but after the slight bump the brake pedal gradually went to the floor and my car proceeded without any braking in effect. After the pedal was depressed to a point near the floor I pumped the brake pedal once and press on it as hard as possible. At this point the right rear wheel brake applied and the rr tire squealed as it appears it was the only one braking. I continued pressing until the car came to a stop at which point I notice that several of the instrument panel lights were now on, including the ones for the brake, the abs, and vsc. I then continued driving slowly home, about 2 mi. , because it appeared that only the rr brake was working and that there was not power assist with the braking. When I got home I turned the car off and then back on to see if the problem persisted, and upon restart the brakes appeared to work properly and some or perhaps all of the warning lights were off. I took the car to bill kidd Toyota in timonium, MD on 11/9/09 and they reported that scan code c1357 was present. They reportedly contacted Toyota tech assistance who instructed them to clear the scan codes and perform linear solenoid calibration. They road tested the car and said it was ok to drive. My boss was on the phone with me during the entire incident and hear the rr tire squealing and we discuss what was going on. I am a mechanical engineer.

1) car engine starts and revs up to full speed just after turning it on without pressing the gas pedal. Fortunately, the car has been in park during these incidents, but it still lunges forward and is caught by the parked transmission. 2) this has occurred 3 to 4 times during my ownership of the car which has been about three years. There have been no consequences other than once denting a trash can and scaring the driver. 3) I spoke to the local Toyota dealer's service department about it once, and they told me that they have never heard of such a thing, and that it was very unlikely that the car would just do it all on its own, and that maybe I was pressing on the throttle. Evidently, they didn't believed me. I know for a fact that under normal conditions if you press on the throttle, it does nothing since it is a hybrid; so this was out of the ordinary.

Clearance problem between brake pedal and accelerator. While exiting from a major highway as I attempted to slow down on the off ramp my foot got trapped between the brake pedal and the accelerator. This caused the car to accelerate and I tried to brake with my left foot which caused my right foot to further depress the accelerator. I was now at the end of the ramp at an intersection where I was able to turn right and I was able to remove my left foot from the brake, free my right foot and brake with my right foot. If there had been any cars coming through the intersection there would have been an accident. The clearance between the brake pedal and accelerator needs to be increased or perhaps install a small floor mounted divider between the brake pedal and accelerator so that the right foot can not get under the brake pedal.

I was traveling down a residential street and approaching a pedestrian intersection when a pedestrian on her morning exercise run suddenly ran across my path. I immediately tried to stop, but the edge of the sole of my dress shoes were caught behind the brake pedal, and I was unable to move my foot onto the pedal to depress it. Only by steering away from the pedestrian, and her action to stop, did I avoid a serious accident. The cause of this incident is the fact that the accelerator and brake pedals are displaced by several inches, that is, the brake pedal is closer to the driver than what the accelerator is. This requires one to lift your foot by 6 inches or so before moving it over to the brake pedal to depress it. In an emergency situation your reflexive reaction is to try to move your foot over as quickly as possible. However, the displacement of the brake pedal creates an obstacle than, in the best case, results in a delay, and in the worst case results in an inability to operate the brake pedal in time to avoid an accident.

I was stopped at a stop light in my car, a 2005 Toyota Prius. When the light turned green I took my foot off the brake. This is when my car quickly accelerated into the car in front of me while my foot was not on the gas or the brake. After the initial impact my car drove into the car in front of me again. While this was happening I applied the brake but nothing happened. The car stopped moving after the second impact and came to rest on the front car's bumper. The damage to the car I hit was $1000, the damage to my Prius was $7000. Toyota had contacted me in a form of a recall about floor mats being the cause of this problem. When I called Toyota of orange tell them what happened they looked up my VIN number and assured me my car was not a part of any recall. They said I could bring my vehicle in however nothing would be done if they could not recreate the problem. Since the initial crash my Prius has mimicked this same situation a handful of times. None of the times after resulted in a second crash. I have not taken my Prius to a dealer to have the problem looked into. I do not have any other mode of transportation and Toyota does not offer loaner cars.

Brake actuator assembly failure this system failed and had to be replaced by owner of Prius. Owner was driving car and the brakes stopped working almost causing a crash. Toyota recently (2016) offered warranty coverage for repairs in 2005. But having to take them to small claims because was denied on a technicality.