16 problems related to structure have been reported for the 2007 Toyota Prius. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
The check engine light for the electrical system illuminated. I contacted a-1 Toyota dealer and they diagnosed leak on rear window. Heard water sloshing in the car. Water leaked into cargo area. The weather strip was replaced.
I am unable to open my rear hood latch. There is a covering on the latch that is sticky, gooey and impossible to open manipulate and use. . Read more...
I have a 2007 Toyota Prius and the rubber has "decomposed" off the latch and has made it nearly impossible to gain access to the rear compartment of my vehicle. The rubber degradation has made the sensitivity of the hatch door latch erratic and not working mostly. Its cause me to try to yank the hatch door a couple of times which has cause the latch door handle to come loose. Toyota pls address this issue. Thanks.
The rubber latch that provides access to the trunk area of my 2007 Toyota Prius has essentially melted. When I touch it my hand comes away with a black gooey substance. In the summertime this is more of an annoyance than anything (I have to carry around wet-wipes, and I often put groceries etc. In the passenger cabin just to avoid accessing the trunk), but in the winter it can be quite dangerous, as the melted latch freezes, making it impossible to open the hatchback. This means that I cannot access my tools, spare tire, snow equipment, or anything else back there. The degradation of the handle latch actually began some time ago (it probably began after I had owned the car for about 4 years) but it has gotten worse over time so I finally decided to try to get it fixed. My Toyota dealer wanted to charge me over $300 to replace the part. This struck me as absolutely outrageous given that it appears to be a design defect that creates a serious safety hazard.
We have had some unseasonably hot weather here recently; on the day in question the car thermometer said it was 91 degrees in full shade. The rubber gasket covering the hatch opening switch was attached when I parked. When I came back, it looked like the gasket had literally melted off one of the screws; the covering was just hanging on to screw on the driver's side by a few gooey threads. That left a melted, tar-like residue on the hatch opening switch. Now the switch is covered in gunk and nearly inoperable. The Prius does not have a trunk release, and without a repair the hatch is nearly inaccessible. This is a major safety issue because the hatch on the Prius is a safety access point (the largest on the vehicle); the hatch is also the only way to access the batteries stored in the rear in case of fire or accident. When I googled the issue, I found multiple reports in hot weather areas of exactly the same issue, but I found no official response from Toyota. My understanding is that this is a very common problem, especially here in southern California, and dealerships keep the part on hand in hot weather for exactly this reason.
The trunk handle had melted off, making access to the spare tire impossible in the heat.
Hatch latches should not melt down in 2-3 years, and access to the hatch is a life safety issue. As with many other 2007 Toyota Prius vehicles the rubber material on the handle of the rear hatch has been deteriorating on my 2007 Toyota Prius and is getting more difficult to use. Without an expensive replacement by Toyota the part will fail beyond the ability to open the rear hatch. Toyota refuses to recall the part and replace it as a defective part.
The hatchback handle/release is soft and gooey, and at times the release to open the hatchback will not work. Gooey black substance gets all over hands and fingers when you try to "pop" the hatchback. Unable to get the trunk to open on a couple of occasions. There is no internal release switch inside the car. Since the spare tire is in the trunk, there could potentially be no access to the tire. This seems to be a common complaint on this site, including NHTSA id numbers: 10541882, 10541772, and 1053526.
The back latch of my 2007 Toyota Prius has degraded ("melted" almost). It no longer functions properly, and I am unable to open the back hatch door easily. Sometimes it requires considerable effort and perseverance to get it open. I am concerned that in the case of an emergency, I will not be able to get the door open. This is a major cause for concern and it is a serious safety hazard.
The rubber cover on the rear exterior hatch latch melted and is like tar. Big sticky mess every time I use the hatch which is often. The latch now also sticks sometimes. Dealer wants $260 to fix it. Why isn't Toyota covering this obvious defect?.
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, particularly in California. Toyota knows about this, and is selling the entire wiring harness for $200 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 California for example).
My 2007 Toyota Prius' rear hatchback latch rubber covering has melted into black goo. Every time I open the hatch it gets all over my fingers. I asked my dealer if Toyota had recalled the latch and was told no. I didn't have it replaced then because it is very expensive. However I can't take it anymore and am going to get it replaced before the latch fails to open. It is going to cost $257! this is a safety issue and a defect issue, not a normal wear and tear item. Toyota has known about this and done nothing to fix it by issuing a recall. Shameful.
Like so many others with a 2007 Prius, my hatch back rubber latch started getting sticky and then slowly started deteriorating to the point where I couldn't open the hatch door. I took it to maita Toyota in sacramento and asked if they would fix it, but they charged me. I'm seeing that some people complained to Toyota and got this paid for. I'm going to see if I can get reimbursed for this. I'm glad people put their complaints here to see.
The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at 48 mph, the brakes suddenly locked up and swayed to the left side when he depressed the brake pedal. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealership for diagnosis. The dealer repaired the axle and driver side body but it was unknown if the dealer repaired the brake system. The contact believed that the rain was a factor in the failure as it caused the computer chip for the brake pedal to malfunction. The braking system for the vehicle failed periodically in rainy weather. The VIN was unavailable at the time of the complaint. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000. The current mileage was approximately 60,000.
The rubber rear hatch release button (wide rubber piece which activates an electrical switch) first became sticky and black rubber would stick you your hand. Then the rubber piece hardened and became so hard (and cracked) that the rear hatch release does not work. This is a safety issue in addition to making the trunk unusable. Toyota owners of this model year frequently report this problem in all climates, Toyota clearly has a manufacturing defect in the rubber material they used for this model year and should perform these repairs for no charge.
- the contact purchased a 2007 Toyota Prius on February 28, 2007 with 4 miles from beaver Toyota of santa fe new mexico. The day after purchasing the vehicle while driving over 40 mph it did not drive straight, it moved left to right. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer, and was told that this was how the vehicle drove. The service manager explained that these vehicles had many complaints because of the way the vehicle was aerodynamicly made, the vehicle tended to move from side to side going over 40 mph on the highway. The failure mileage was 20, and the current mileage was 300 miles. Updated 04/09/07.