general problems of the 2008 Toyota Prius - part 1

My name is [xxx] ,I am filing this report on behalf of my daughter [xxx] the driver of the vehicle that involved with the unintended acceleration on the 2009 Toyota Prius . On a good clear morning on [xxx] . My daughter drove the 2009 Toyota Prius to work- when she enter to the parking lot at the speed round 5 mile/hour . Just when she was making a left turn on to the entrance gate with her left foot on the brake pedal . On a sudden the vehicle rpm unintended rev up too high and the vehicle had an unintended accelerating to move forward aggressively causing lose control of the steering . Also she could not brake even though her left foot was on the brake pedal and pressing hard to try to stop the vehicle . . This dangerous incident causing her Prius to bumped into the electrical gate panel control box . The accident caused some damages to her Prius and to the entrance gate control box though no body was hurt . But it got us through the terrible experience because it could kill some one for sure . My daughter been driving this commute car daily in the past 5 years and she has the skill of 20 year driving with good record . This Prius of her still have all oem equipments with no add- on parts-,no modifying part on any systems what so ever- and no extra floor mat cause we been warned before about the possible of unintended acceleration causing by aftermarket floor mat to any vehicles. . We feel unsafe after the mystery accelerating problem on Toyota vehicle that could take people lives . So the mystery unintended accelerating on car is real . I am currently checked and find out her Prius has 2 incomplete recalls (un-notice to us ) but none of them related to the unintended acceleration problem . We would like the NHTSA to take this problem seriously to save people life . I will included photos of this incidents and willing to provide all information if needed to address this problem, again to save lives . Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 5.

I am currently having this issue with combination meter, which means the Prius dash board will not show any speed, fuel, p, r, d label and many more important information is not shown on display. I had complained to Toyota, case # 221219001515 on 19dec2022, I have spoken to danial n and manager alex s from Toyota. They both have denied solving this issue from Toyota as the warranty extension ztv has expired. Even I had provided them proof that Toyota knew about this problem, please see doc#pol-12-05 from Toyota regarding this. My Prius has 258000 miles, and it is 2008, it is high mileage as per their documents this will accrue in high mileage Prius with cold weather. I live in NJ, and it is getting cold and my car as high miles. Toyota refuse to take care of the problem and I as a consumer will have to pay over $1200 to get it fix as this is only done at Toyota dealership. Currently I am thinking of getting it fix at paul miller Toyota of west caldwell, 1155 bloomfield Ave, west caldwell, NJ 07006, 973-287-4050. What's sad is Toyota used to rank at the top of best customer service. I'm guessing most of the problems are just after the 9 years, calculated to guarantee fixing the problem to as few people as possible. There's no extension and Toyota won't help. I tried and was told all deals expired and to help one would mean they'd have to help all. We're on our own. Hoping that Toyota has released a solution to the dangerous and consumer related problem related to the failing combination meter. The previous ext. Warranty was only good for 9 years from date of first use which did not help many drivers. Super negligent and ripe situation for class action lawsuits not to mention many potentially fatal accidents on the roads. Toyota has denied fixing this problem even Toyota knows this is on going problem. As a government official please try to help me resolve this issue as this is a major concern for many millions of drivers which Toyota need to resolve this. Please.

The inverter water pump failed while I was driving 50mph, it caused the car to stop working and the brakes malfunctioned as well. When I tried to hit the brakes I had to hit them a lot harder and it still acted like it wasn’t going to stop. I was lucky enough that the light up ahead was still green and the cars in front of me started going forward.

Randomly my instrument panel goes blank while in motion and can only be retrieved by hard turning the car off when stopped, you loose your speedometer, lights, and all until reset. Other issue with speedometer readings that are consistently off between 5-15mph with no fix, resolutions or repairs.

For the past year since I've had the vehicle the car accelerates instead of slow down if I hit a bump or before I step on the break it speed up and slips instead of slow down.

My 2008 Toyota Prius shut off while I was driving on the road I could've involved in big accident if I was on a highway the way it shutdown without any warning sign. It just suddenly stopped.

The speedometer does not display when turning on the car. I figured out that by unplugging the battery in the back it would sometime bring it back on. Now it only comes on every once in a while, it's no longer keeping track of miles when not on, as well as the fuel gauge is not keeping track of gas and have ran out twice because it stated half full.

Toyota has acknowledge an issue with its combination meter in the 2004-2009 Toyota Prius but has not recalled the issue and instead wants payment to fix the problem. Toyota has documented this under the Toyota service bulletin t-sb-0172-"some 2004-2009 model year Prius vehicles may experience an intermittent condition where the combination meter display will not illuminate in cold weather conditions. An updated combination meter ecu is now available to correct this condition" Toyota offered a 3 year warrenty window for this but being outside this they want almost $1000 to fix this. This issue stops the speedometer for illuminating which creates a safety hazard when gauging the correct speed for the road and conditions.

Running on a city street at 20 miles, gas pedal would not work, could not decrease or increase mileage. Brake pedal worked but went all the way down and finally stopped with a jerk. A constant noise and and has a Toyota confirmed brake acctuator problem that Toyota refuses to help since extra warrant expired in 12/2017.

The vehicle combination meter sporadically will not turn on which prevents the display of the speed of the car. During this condition, the fuel economy will not display, the car may not be powered off by normal procedure, and the fuel gauge, drive train mode indicator, and odometer are not visible. This has occurred for the past 2 years, primarily during cold weather, but also during warm weather, and I have a video recording of this problem while operating this specific vehicle dated February 20 2017. Toyota will not honor their own warranty extension described in their document pol12-05, related to TSB t-sb-0172-09, stating that the dealer must be able to reproduce the issue in order to cover the replacement. Toyota's document pol12-05 specifically states "this condition is primarily found in cold weather climate conditions. When the vehicle is brought to your dealership it may no longer be in a climate which allows duplication of the condition. If this occurs, please verify with the customer that the experienced condition is in accordance with this warranty extension and proceed with replacement of the combination meter. " on 5/12/2017, andrea n. (would not provide last name) with Toyota customer experience center, assigned me Toyota case # 1705121649 and stated that "the dealer must reproduce the issue in order to cover replacement under warranty" despite the Toyota letter explicitly allowing for warranty replacement when the condition cannot be reproduced by the dealer.

I was in an automobile accident where I rear ended vehicle in front of me. I tried to stop but the vehicle would not stop or even make an attempt to slow down. My ankle suffered a severe twist from trying to apply brakes. There was plenty of room to stop but the brakes would not react to slow down vehicle. There was a car coming in the oncoming lane so I could not go around vehicle in front of me. My vehicle was in motion in the city and I was going straight. The pavement was a little rough and my abs light was going off and all I could do was hit vehicle in front of me due to brakes failing and not slowing me down.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. While driving 20 mph and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to increase in speed. All the warning indicators illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the cause of the failure could not be determined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 81,500.

I was traveling northbound on the saw mill river parkway. Exited on the northbound taconic state parkway ramp. After crossing the taconic state parkwat overpass. My 2008 Toyota Prius (without any input from my part) turned left and accelerated onto the grassy area. Even though made multiple attempts at correcting my direction by turning the car to the right and to stop the car, neither the steering inputs or engaging the brakes had any effect on the vehicle. After traveling almost the entire width of the grassy area, the car was caught by a branch on the ground, just before the driver side of the car would have slammed into a tree. I then proceeded to turn the car off. When I turn the car back on, everything was back to normal. There was no error message from the ecu during or after the incident.

While driving at night approx. 50 miles per hour pruis lost power and appeared to be in neutral. Did not lose headlights. I pulled over and shut down and restarted without incident buy am fearful of it happening again in traffic.

Tl- the contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at 5 mph, the vehicle shifted gears into neutral while driving. The failure occurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 148,000. Pp.

2008 Toyota Prius. Consumer requesting all recalls associated with vehicle. The consumer referenced recall # 09v388000. He also mentioned information regarding a steering defect.

Gear shifted into neutral without use of gear shift control. Happened several times and wasn't able to shift into reverse or drive. Kept going back to neutral. Park also wasn't working. Powered car off which did put in park. Restarted and drove home without issue. Tried to recreate at home and same problem occurred. Was able to manually hold gear shift in drive or reverse to move car into driveway. Have left car at Toyota service center today for inspection. Did not occur when tech tried it day after incident at 7am. Initial incident occurred on hot afternoon at 5pm with 100 degree temperatures. Have read online of similar problems related to hot temp. Have had car for 5 years with no problems like this. Just crossed 50000 miles and am covered under warranty until oct. I hope it can be repaired. And hope it does not happen while I am driving at faster speeds. So far only happens when parked and recently started. Starter battery was replaced around 2 years ago.

On this date while driving on the interstate 5 near los angeles my Prius made a loud noise and started shutting down as I was driving on the far left lane. The car immediately slowed down and the vsc icon as well as the check engine light icon became visible, however the odometer was blank and I could not tell what speed I was traveling, the car was coming to a complete stop. Once I managed to get to the far right shoulder the car made a stop. I was almost rear ended by a big rig which had to swerve to the left side in order to avoid hitting my car. It wasn't until then that I noticed the red engine light icon displayed on the control panel not the odometer. I have never seen this warning light but after looking at the owner's manual it clearly stated that once this light appears you need to get the vehicle off the road as soon as possible or it will cause an accident. This was the first time I noticed this sign and it appeared after the fact. The car had no engine oil, which was ridiculous since I had not noticed any leaks and I take my car in every 2 months to the dealer for an oil change. The dealer had no explanation other than it did not have any leaks and they were not able to verify when the red engine oil came on. This happened on 5/30/14, my last visit to the dealer was on 4/12/14 and at the time they did not detect any problems with the oil leaking. This clearly makes no sense and they are refusing to take responsibility. Toyota owners should be very cautious as this should have never happened the sensor should have given me a warning prior to the car shutting down. This could have caused many fatalities being in a heavily populated highway.

I have a Toyota Prius and it is used as a taxi in san francisco. I had noticed a few times that the engine revs up while I was at stop and the battery was fully charged. It was like the engine pulse. Idle to high rev and idle again for a few times and that happened for about 2 weeks while on the road. The vehicle started to accelerate by itself at the first week of Nov 2013 and happen again on highway 101 south in mill valley CA around 8 pm. I have called city Toyota and explained about it but the service department just told me to get appointment to check it up. As I assume myself as well experienced driver with 25 years of driving multi type of vehicles, it is not driver error nor the pedal nor the floor mats. It is mechanical or electrical problem.

While driving,no more gas power,warning lights on,vsc too. Throttle response was not working,turned off the car for few minutes and restarted it,it worked for a short while and did it again. . . Toyota oakland said I needed to replace the engine throttle body. $1600!!! one month after the warranty wore off.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle accelerated independently. The failure recurred numerous times. The contact had her husband drove the vehicle and the failure recurred causing them to crash into another vehicle. There were no injuries. The vehicle was towed and stored until it could be inspected. The vehicle was not taken to a mechanic. The manufacturer was notified but no assistance was given. The failure and current mileage was 70,000. Updated 3/22/13.

Tl- the contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while attempting to park the engine revved up. As a result, the vehicle jumped the curve and ran into some bushes. No injuries were reported. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The failure and current mileage was 87,102. Pmb.

Around 4:30pm on Saturday afternoon, we opened the car door to run some errands and were startled by a piercing noise. The dashboard was lighting up (abs & vsc) and although the car started, the dashboard remained lit and the beeping continued. When driving the car to the dealership, the brakes did not brake fully. After a $58 diagnostic test, we were told that acc pressure sensor needed to be cleared and if we returned with the same problem, we may need to replace a "brake actuator part" (cost = $2,560). Before this incident, on Saturday afternoon, we drove the car on the interstate for about 150 miles. For the last 15 minutes of our trip, we were driving through heavy rains on the interstate and on side roads. We did not experience any problems when driving the car in the rain, but are wondering whether or not the water affected the brakes.

On 09/01/10, we took our 2008 Prius in because there were two times the car didn't stop when we used the brakes. I told the service manager, the car was accelerating on its own. It was scary and I feared an accident. After they worked on the car, I was told that it was the floor mats that interfered with the accelerator pedal. It didn't make sense to me because I had to put my foot under the pedal to raise it up since it was stuck. I was angry they completely ignored the fact the car was accelerating on its own and acted as though the problem was handled. On 03/31/12, w. Manchester/hindry, before 2:00 p. M. , it had drizzled, I stopped at a light, drove ahead and at a fork in the road I tapped my brakes to slow down on a curve. Instead, the car kept accelerating. I stepped on the brakes but the car did not respond. The car kept gaining speed! I was at least 3 car lengths behind other car, plenty of time to stop but the car accelerated no matter how hard I stepped on the brakes. It was terrifying! I realized I was going to crash and there was nothing I could do to prevent it. I rear ended the mercedes, the airbags failed to deploy. I had 2 boxes of books in the trunk that hit the back of my seat and knocked down the rear seats from the impact. The car was towed. Damages: $5,988. 79. Medical: $25,000. Next month, a cracked pump was discovered at firewall, due to the accident. The black box showed impact was at 35 mph, (35-27) mph, 0. 02 sec. Injuries: concussion, whiplash, back spasms, double-crush injury, ptsd, depression, migraines. I couldn't drive or start physical therapy for 4 mos. , until 07/27/12. My therapist worked alot to relax my muscles, I had traction, bought a traction device $400. And 6 mos. Of chiropractic for muscle spasms. 12/08/12, I had a nerve-test, it was abnormal for a double-crush injury. Prescribed xanax for ptsd, anxiety.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving 30 mph, the vehicle accelerated without manual force. In addition, the brakes failed to stop the vehicle and the contact crashed into the rear bumper of another vehicle. The contact sustained a concussion, whip lash, and injuries to the neck and back. The driver of the second vehicle sustained whip lash. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a body shop. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 50,000.

While entering a highway onramp in my company's 2008 Toyota Prius, the car suddenly began accelerating out of control without application of the gas pedal. I had to press hard on the brake just to hold the car at 65 mph. The car was surging and lunging forward, and I worried I wouldn't be able to find a place to pull over before losing control completely. For the next 5-10 minutes, as I approached traffic in front of me, the car continued to accelerate, even though I had my foot on the brake the entire time. At one point I noticed the car was reaching speeds in excess of 95 mph. A loud rattling noise ensued and an electrical smell filled the car. Eventually, the brake completely failed to have any effect, and, barreling down the highway at 90 mph, I put the car in neutral, but it continued to accelerate. At this point I had my right foot on the brake pedal and depressed the parking break all the way to the floor with my left foot, this slowed the car slightly, but not enough to regain control. Finally, I turned the car off completely, and with my hazard lights on, managed to pull the car away from traffic and off on the shoulder of the highway, where I coasted for a long distance, speeds decreasing gradually until eventually it stopped. Smoke and a burning electrical smell filled the car. I filed a police report with an officer who happened to also be on the shoulder, giving someone a speeding ticket. My company towed the car to a dealership, and an investigation is supposedly underway, though I'm not optimistic about any sort of resolution based on the testimonies I have read from others who have experienced the same thing. Luckily, in my case, this didn't result in an accident, and noone was killed.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. While driving approximately 5 mph, the vehicle accelerated and crashed into the gate of the garage. The contact turned the ignition on and off and was able to drive the vehicle. The vehicle accelerated a second time and the brakes would not stop the vehicle. The vehicle stopped after the gear was shifted into neutral. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer. The manufacturer was contacted and stated a case manager would be assigned to the case and return the contact's call within 24 hours. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 10,000.

2008 Toyota Prius. Consumer states two problems with vehicle, the abs release momentarily causes a brief surge forward any time there is a small bump in the road when braking and consumer also states he nearly rear ended another vehicle at a stop light when he almost couldn't stop, even by putting his entire weight on the vehicle. The consumer also believed the pedals were designed too close together.

2008 Toyota Prius, when I hit a bump or pothole at relatively low speed, the car sometimes goes into "anti-skid" mode, leading to a brief disconcerting period of lurching/acceleration/loss of braking ability before the car returns to normal. This problem is usually accompanied by the yellow anti - skid icon indicator on the dash.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving 3 mph and attempting a turn into a parking space, the vehicle accelerated independently. The contact stated that the accelerator pedal went straight to the floor and he attempted to apply extreme pressure to the brakes but to no avail. The vehicle went over a curb and a sidewalk. The vehicle came to a stop as the rear tires crashed into a concrete wheel stopper. The contact was not injured. The dealer was informed of the failure and would not provide any assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 30,000 and the current mileage was 30,080. Updated 01/12/lj updated 02/23/11.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that he shifted into reverse gear and the vehicle moved forward. He was able to apply the brakes in order to stop the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure occurred approximately ten times but he did not take the vehicle to an authorized dealer. He stated that the failure occurred in a parking lot when the brakes were applied and crashed into another vehicle. No damage was done to either vehicle. The driver sustained a knee injury. He called the dealer and they referred him to the manufacturer. The manufacturer was called but they have not returned his call. The failure had been on going for six months. The failure mileage was 19,000 and the current mileage was 22,300. Updated 10/05/10 updated 10/07/10.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. While driving at 2 mph the vehicle abnormally accelerated. The failure and current mileages were 17,000. Updated 10/01/lj while slowly moving into a parking space, with her foot on the brake, the vehicle suddenly lunged forward landing on a parking lot divider. The consumer suffered whiplash. Updated 10/10/05.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving 10 mph, the vehicle accelerated after driving over a bump in the road. On a separate occasion while driving 50 mph with the brakes engaged, the vehicle accelerated without driver intent. In addition, while traveling at an unknown speed, the vehicle unintentionally accelerated while driving over a road bump in the road and crashed into a tree. The vehicle was taken to a repair facility after the crash occurred. There were two injuries. The dealer inspected the vehicle but was unable to duplicate or locate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 70 and the current mileage was 100,000.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. While braking from a speed of 40 mph, the vehicle abnormally accelerated. The contact drove the vehicle off the roadway but was unable to stop the acceleration although he was depressing the brakes. The vehicle proceeded for approximately 400 yards, driving over several bumps, grass and other road obstructions before the vehicle finally came to a stop. The brake warning light illuminated just as the vehicle began to decrease in speed. There was smoke coming from the brakes and the front driver's side tire blew during the failure. The police arrived to assist. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer where the contact was awaiting a diagnosis of the failure. The failure and current mileages were 22,000. Updated evoq 08/17/10 updated 01/14/11 updated 04/01/11.

1. While driving and braking over potholes or rough road, the car veers forward even though brakes are being applied 2. Happens ever since we received our 2008 Prius maybe once a month or results in scary few moments, although no accidents yet have occurred 3. Dealer claims cannot re-create the issue.