Suspension Problems of Toyota Prius - part 2

I was driving on a highway and the car on the right started to move to my lane without turning on turn signal, he probably didn't notice me as he was moving on me, I started to break but brake pedal started to work at once, it started to work only after delay and after it started working I lost control over the car, abs signal turned on and I started to move to the left. I tried to prevent it but car was totally out of control and this caused the accident. The same happened to my wife in February when she was driving my car on highway. She just couldn't stop even though the distance to the next car was long enough. Brake pedal started to work with the delay and she bumped into the next car.

See all problems of the 2006 Toyota Prius 🔎.

A groaning noise at all temperatures so far. It begins and then goes away after I drive for a block. It is very loud and it can be heard by others around me. It is embarrassing and doesn't sound like it is healthy for the longevity of the vehicle.

See all problems of the 2012 Toyota Prius 🔎.

On cold mornings the car makes a groaning noise from the rear for aprox a 1/2 block. My dealer was able to verify the problem when I left the car overnight parked outside. They said they are waiting for Toyota to come up with a fix. The car now has just over 10,000 miles but it has been going on for most of the time we have owned it.

When starting to drive the car after is has been sitting for about 3 hours and especially first thing in the morning, the vehicle makes a groaning noise which seems to be coming from the left rear tire area. It lasts for about the first 50 feet and then it stops making the noise. This has happened with temperatures varying between 40 to 75 degrees. When it is really hot in the morning, the noise is not present. The dealer has looked at the vehicle several times and they say that this is a national problem with no solution. I have owned this car for 4 days short of a year with 12,250 miles on it and it does it all the time. This is very frustrating because the car is fine otherwise.

My brand new 2011 Prius class five with alloy wheel, make a lot of noise coming from front left tire. Tire is brand new, try a tire rotate, wheel is still making noise at 5mph to 70. Take it to dealer they say it normal when I don't think it normal. Very staring for a brand new car to make these noise.

See all problems of the 2011 Toyota Prius 🔎.

The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated the tires wore prematurely. The contact had an alignment performed and the vehicle was inspected by several dealers and each time the contact was told there was no problem with the alignment or frame of the vehicle. The contact believed the failure to be a manufacturing defect because of the premature wear on the tires. The contact also owned a 2005 Toyota Prius in which the same failure occurred with the tires. The failure mileage was 17,000. Updated 10/12/lj updated 10/24/11.

See all problems of the 2010 Toyota Prius 🔎.

When going over bumps in the road or potholes, it seems like the car loses control. It seems like it slides out or jerks forward. It catches itself after a couple seconds but is scary.

I was leaving the airport and beginning to pick up speed (approximately 30-35 mph) when I had a very scary incident with my 2008 Prius. It suddenly fishtailed to the left, several seconds later fishtailed to the right, and as it yet again began to fishtail to the left, I jammed on the brakes very hard and it corrected. It was terrifying and fortunately there was no one to my right or behind me and the taxi on my left managed to avoid me. I knew that I would never feel safe in my Prius again. I immediately reported the problem to the Toyota regional manager who said to take it into the dealership. I then spent the next two days reading complaints posted on the internet about the Prius. It is chilling to read how many complaints have been filed and the patterns that emerge in the reporting. I took my car into the dealership where the service manager looked over the complaint that had been written up and said, "I never heard of this before. " I told him he only had to go to the internet to see how similar cases with the Prius have been documented. He told me that I shouldn't believe what I find there. I tried my best to give him a thorough explanation of the problem but he didn't seem much interested in getting a fix on what I was talking about. He asked if I had gone over a bump. "no," I replied, "but why do you ask?" he said that going over a bump can trigger a sensor in the wheel that sets in motion a series of responses. "and going over a bump isn't a problem for Toyota?", I asked. He didn't respond and only said that they will look the car over. From reading the documented reports on the internet, I knew exactly what the findings would be. "we don't find anything wrong with your car," he told me. "but you do agree that there is something seriously wrong, don't you?", I asked. He immediately hustled me out of the area. I knew that I could never sell my car to another person in good faith, but I sold it back to the dealership at a big loss.

See all problems of the 2008 Toyota Prius 🔎.

I was driving at about 65 m/hr on I-95 and noticed my car veering first to the left then to the right. I was puzzled by this and looked over to notice that trees were not moving, I. E. , it did not feel windy outside. This was a very peculiar incident that has happened to my car about 3-4 times in the past 3 years. I later heard on the news the recall of corollas for the same type of issue. They actually showed a test model simulation and it looked exactly like what I have been experiencing. I don't know if this is my imagination but it certainly did not feel that way when the incident occurred.

The steering wheel on my 2001 Toyota Prius suddenly starts shaking violently when I start up the car. It seems to occur during cold weather. I have to stop the car when it happens because steering is no longer possible when the shaking happens. This shaking has occurred at least 5 times. If I let the car warm up for a few minutes before driving it seems to reduce the occurrence of the shaking.

See all problems of the 2001 Toyota Prius 🔎.

Tl-the contact owns a 2009 Toyota Prius. While driving various speeds, the contact approached a slight bump and the vehicle suddenly lifted extremely high up in the air. The failure occurred whenever traveling over a road bump. The vehicle was taken an authorized dealer numerous times for the same failure and they were unable to locate a problem. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 5. The VIN was unavailable. Js.

See all problems of the 2009 Toyota Prius 🔎.

2008 Toyota Prius leans to left 3/4 ". It is visibly noticeable and sits even lower with driver occupant. Toyota dealer says within specs and is safe. They won't replace springs on left side or coils. Many other Prius owners have same problems. I have extended warranty which we paid a lot for and they still won't fix vehicle. This can't be safe can it?.

Purchased a 2009 Toyota Prius. After a week, I started to notice serious issues in keeping the vehicle tracking straight, especially at highway speeds. Brought vehicle to dealer twice and was told there was no issue. Decided to bring vehicle to another Toyota dealer and was told that alignment was definitely off. Issue was fixed, but has come back.

I pressed on the brakes in an emergency situation and there was a slight delay between when the brake pedal was depressed and when the brakes grabbed. I ended up striking the car in front of me. I have the license plate of the car I hit etched in my front bumper. 2007 Toyota Prius.

See all problems of the 2007 Toyota Prius 🔎.

I bought a 2008 Toyota Prius in the summer of 2008 and almost immediately got into an accident. I was turning a corner and the car didn't handle as I expected - I got a "hydroplaning" warning light even thought it was not raining and tried to brake, but the brakes did not react and I ended up crashing into a curb, causing $3,000 in damage to the wheel, axel, and bumper. No one was hurt and there was no property damage other than to my own car. At the time I chalked it up to not yet being used to the car, I had previously had a jetta that handled wonderfully and I was used to that car being completely responsive. I made the necessary repairs to my car and just tried to be more cautious when I was driving in the future. I have always noticed certain things about the handling and braking of this car, and the current recall on the 2010 version made me realize I wasn't imagining these problems. I constantly get the hydroplaning type warning on my dashboard when I go over bumps or in bad weather, to the point where I feel unsafe driving my Prius in inclement weather and often borrow a relative's car. I have been lucky to have no more accidents other than that first one, but there have been most definitely been times when I felt the car was not handling the way it ought to. Even when I had that accident I had maintained to family and friends that I just couldn't fathom how I got into that accident and I felt like it was "the car's fault. " I didn't spread this opinion too widely though because it sounded like I was just making an excuse for my accident. That's really how I felt though; as if something went wrong with the brakes that day. I felt if I had been in any other car I've ever driven that accident could have been avoided. I didn't even know there was an option to file a complaint with the NHTSA until this recall hit the news, so I figured filing a complaint now is better than never filing at all. Thanks for your time.

I recently had a michelin tire separate on the rear of my 05 Toyota Prius. Tire ware has been a continual problem. I discarded the original tires at 40k miles, they were too cupped to rotate and too dangerous to use. There was a lot of tread left on the tire, at least half, but cupping gave intolerable vibration. I had michelin tires installed and had the alignment checked. The alignment was not perfect but was within spec. The michelin separated about 40k miles later and was replaced before it failed. The tread separation caused a total loss of tread in one line at a diagonal across the tire tread. Luckily I had gone in for rotation when they discovered the problem. The extreme tire ware causes noise and vibration. I have been in touch with the dealership throughout my ownership of the Prius which I bough new. I have requested technical bulletins but none have ever been available. The dealer has never acknowledged that the Prius has a problem but it has been documented in online computer sites. The dealer just keeps suggesting that I rotate the tires more frequently. With my past cars I have never had a cupping problem even with rotation and with the Prius since it is within alignment spec, it should not wear tires like it does. Anyone who does not rotate and change tires frequently on the Prius is looking for a blowout.

See all problems of the 2005 Toyota Prius 🔎.

The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that the vehicle began making unfamiliar noises while parked. While driving 30 mph, the noise continued in intervals. The service brake and the abs warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and they stated that the brake actuator assembly (part number 4450047090) needed to be replaced at an estimated cost of $2,600. The year before, the brake actuator assembly was replaced under warranty by an authorized Toyota dealer. The manufacturer confirmed that the part was previously replaced in may of 2007. The failure mileage was 18,799 and current mileage is 32,016. Updated 10-07-08 the tire showed unusual wear patterns. The vehicle pulled to the right. Updated 10/07/08.

2002 Prius has had numerous problems with tires having to be replaced or repaired. The consumer has had to replaced 6 tires and has had 3 tires repaired. The tire on the vehicle are special tire and can only be purchased at a Toyota dealer.

See all problems of the 2002 Toyota Prius 🔎.

My 2005 Prius had a flat tire last week, I took it to a tire shop to find out all four tires were worn due to alignment problems with the car. I have had it serviced each time at the dealer where I purchased the car and they rotated the tires once, I thought they had twice. In any event they said I must have hit a large pothole with my rear tire, because it was the worst. All four tires had worn unevenly. The original tire dealer I took the car to said this was a common problem with the car and the second tire dealer where I had the alignment done and new tires put on said it was a common problem. They have developed a shim for rear wheel alignment and said it was a very common problem with the Prius. They also said they could see no evidence of and damage by a pothole or anything else. I felt bad the dealer would not own up to the problem. I know I didn't rotate tires as often as I should have, but I have a Mercury and Ford that have their tires rotated about ever 15,000 miles. I get great tire wear and have had no problems. By time I got the alignment and the tires I was into it over $500. (that's a lot of gas). The tire dealers said it was the car more than the tires. I have had Toyotas in the past and was very dissapointed in their response to this one. I have sort of lost confidence in this car and even discussed getting a different car with the dealer but they were unwilling to discuss that.

Check engine light kept coming on then going off. Took to dealer but they couldn't get it to duplicate problem. While there they noticed tires were severely worn. Told me I needed 4 new tires and a 4 wheel alignment at 27,008 miles. Purchased 4 175/65r14 re 92 extra load tires. Left after paying for repairs including an oil change of $557. 61 n August 3, 2004. October 8, 2005 had two nearly flat front tires. Have had to put air into tires several times over the past 4 months - even took car to auto garage that changed tires from winter to summer thinking they put them on wrong. Oct. 12, 2005 started hearing a humming noise in front left tire. Took to auto garage on oct 15, 2005 to be told that once again tires needed to be replaced again because they were worn due to needing a front end alignment and front left tire needed a ball bearing. Inside wall of tires is worn off and danger of tire blow-out. Rear tires also show signs of premature wear on inside wall and should be replaced soon. Current mileage is 44,804. I also put on winter tires every autumn onto the front. Garage technician said there was something wrong with burning through 2 sets of 4 tires within 45,000 miles and I should contact dealer.

2003 Toyota Prius with excessive tire wear. First tire failure (Sep 03) at approximately 14k miles; total failure of tire, we lucked out. Remainder of tires replaced at about 18k miles. That good-quality set has now worn to the point of needing to be replaced at 38000 miles. Toyota admits there is a problem, but will do nothing to help the customer with it. A web search shows other owners have had this problem (tire wall failures, like our first failure) -- with some compensated, some not. There are also other defects which the manufacturer will not/cannot repair after several reports. . . . Until they blame the customer for "hurting" the car after they can't fix it.

See all problems of the 2003 Toyota Prius 🔎.

1. The Toyota Prius has an alignment defect that wore out my tires prematurely. . The car rode on the wall and inner tread of the tire wearing it down to the nylon and wire before it popped 3. New tires were put on the car.

See all problems of the 2004 Toyota Prius 🔎.

The contact owns a 2004 Toyota Prius. This vehicle would stall at high speeds. He was going 65-70 mph at time of incident. This happened without warning. It exactly what the reports said happened to him. He can be contacted by odi for this if needed. Also, had premature wear on tires. Had the front and rear ends aligned three times since he purchased the vehicle.

Severe vibration in the steering wheel. This occurred when vehicle was in reverse at low speeds. Dealership was unable to resolve the problem.

While driving and turning either way left o right steering shaking violently. Dealer has inspected and could not duplicate or correct the problem.

Premature tire wear.

The vehicle lost power when the consumer attempted to accelerate. Also the vehicle pulled to the right the tires were replaced several times and the vehicle had numerous alignments. The rack and pinion was replaced and the fuel tank assembly was replace.