387 of the
15,583 complaints filed about the Toyota Prius
are about the steering —
2% of everything owners reported.
The worst model year for it is 2002.
Have multiple warning lamps that light up on and off and the brakes in my car get spongy making the braking unsafe. The lights that turn on are the steering/ traction , brake, and abs light. There are multiple complaints online on YouTube from similar issues ongoing and no recall made. My mechanic says it indicates a leak however there is no brake fluid missing and on YouTube there’s work arounds because people keep getting the same message, yet no recall has been made. This can affect steering and cause an accident. Please recall soon. Including YouTube link so you can see all the comments and issues from thousands that don’t know how to report but view to fix temporarily. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11685121 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
My car suddenly stopped in the middle of the road with message "Hybrid system stopped steering power low". Safety concern to this happen on the middle of road during rain or cold.
NHTSA complaint #11636396 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH, the steering wheel erroneously steered to the left direction on its own. The contact used force to maneuver the vehicle however the steering wheel independently veered again to the left, right, left, and then back to the right. The vehicle crashed into a curb, and violently accelerated across 2 lanes of oncoming traffic where a van crashed into the vehicle head-on. The air bags deployed upon impact. The contact sustained 11 fractured bones (L1 through L5 lower lumbar, pelvic, pelvis, 11th rib, and sacrum) and received medical attention via trauma center where she remained for over 2 weeks. The other driver of the van sustained unknown injuries but did not receive any known medical attention. A police report was not on file for the incident. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 77,000.
NHTSA complaint #11602992 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
- Steering column components are loose. They make the steering unpredictable. The vehicle moves dangerously from side to side when driving over 65 mph. "U-joint" inside the cabin is the component with play. - Previous recall "12V537000" could be related. My vehicle was not called during that campaign but meets the characteristics. - No dealer has confirmed. - No insurance has inspected. - No warning lamps on. Problem started appearing 2 years ago. Replaced all the steering components with OEM replacements but there is no replacement for steering column components to address the issue on my own.
NHTSA complaint #11597152 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that after several days of torrential rainfall, the contact noticed there was water in the tire and 12-volt battery compartment. After having a routine oil change at an independent mechanic, while the contact was driving, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The power steering warning light illuminated after the failure. The driver was able to restart the vehicle and pull over to the side of the road. The contact called Roadside Assistance and was informed that there was a code for the hybrid battery system that needed to be checked. The contact noticed that water might have entered through the rear passenger’s side brake light. The contact removed the water with a sump pump. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who was unable to assist. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 119,000.
NHTSA complaint #11581365 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was dropping my daughter off at school and the car completely shut down on me and turned off in the middle of an intersection. I have just had brakes and oil changed but ever since I got the car codes keep popping up and when checked it’s all good. Front lights keep glitching and even with new brakes there is still a bad sound. My dash computer thing keeps going in and out. It happens a lot more when it rains and makes a sizzling sound I’m afraid to drive it in the rain. I’m besides myself how the car turned off on me and my child we couldn’t move I could accelerate and we almost got hit then another light came on and I couldn’t even turn my wheel. Very dangerous
NHTSA complaint #11569995 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I had lost functionality for some buttons on the steering wheel that didn't directly impact safety. On replacing the clockspring mechanism inside the whweel I decided to inspect the old unit. Four of the lines in the flex cable are impacted by corrosion, three have already failed. The fourth line is one of the airbag's electrical lines. I'm filing an issue report because the airbag would be next impacted by this failure and I believe there's a fair chance the corroded line could fail during the vehicle's attempt to fire the airbag on the wheel.
NHTSA complaint #11547686 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was driving on the 91 freeway west exit ramp to merge into the 57 freeway in Orange County ca. when suddenly I lost all power steering on the car . We managed to get out the freeway on the first exit
NHTSA complaint #11529952 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Driving at highway speed on Interstate 30. Warning lights came on the dashboard. The Prius began to stall. Could not steer vehicle to shoulder. Prius came to a stop in the outside lane of travel. Rear-ended by Tractor Trailer rig. Passenger died. Driver sustained serious injuries. Witnesses called 911 prior to the collision to report that a vehicle had stalled on the interstate with its flashers on.
NHTSA complaint #11526332 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Good Evening, I'm writing to request a callback in regards to my 2014 Toyota Prius which is subject to a recall. "The involved vehicles were designed to enter a failsafe driving mode in response to certain hybrid system faults. Toyota has found that in rare situations, the vehicle may not enter a failsafe driving mode as intended. If this occurs, the vehicle could lose power and stall. While power steering and braking would remain operational, a vehicle stall while driving at higher speeds could increase the risk of a crash." I recently just moved back to South Florida, I was living in NJ for a few years and had the Inverter malfunction earlier this February, 2023, forcing the car to enter the fail safe mode described giving me the warning to "Check Hybrid System, Stop the Vehicle in a Safe Place". The car was at Toyota Universe, Little Falls, NJ for about 45 days, since this was going to take the complete replacing of the inverter and an update of some sort of software. After receiving the car back around March 17th, I moved back to Florida about 2 weeks later. This evening around 5:30 returning from work, the car stalled again while I was driving surrounded by dense traffic, wouldn't accelerate with all lights flashing. Thankfully I was able to pull over slowly into a parking lot after which my steering wheel locked, and my car was no longer able to be put into Drive or Reverse. Car was only able to shift into Neutral and Park. This was the most terrifying experience of my life had something worse happen in the middle of traffic. I have dropped off my car to the dealership parking lot and will be checking it in first thing in the morning. I'd like to ascertain what I should expect from Toyota Manufacturing should this issue be unfixable? I am more than happy to let them attempt fixing it, but I also need to live a normal life and don't feel the need to be responsible for a manufacturing defect putting my life in jeopardy every time I go drive.
NHTSA complaint #11520152 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was driving the 2009 Prius to my storage unit there was a car that I needed to go around so i sifted into reverse when I noticed a scraping sound as I was backing when I shifted into forward the sound again was there is when i noticed I had no directional control of the vehicle steering wheel would turn but the tires would not respond at all. I called for a tow truck, I called think of a greater safety issue than driving a car with no control over where it goes.
NHTSA complaint #11502267 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at 65 MPH, the steering wheel began to vibrate with an unknown message displayed on the instrument panel. As the failure persisted, the message disappeared, and the contact was able to drive to her destination. Upon restart of the vehicle, the contact received a do not drive message on the instrument panel with the steering wheel vibrating. Due to the failure, the contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed with a defective steering sensor. Upon investigation, the contact linked the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 11V304000 (Steering). The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred her to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 176,000.
NHTSA complaint #11491025 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I was driving on highway & the vehicle stopped accelerating as I was pressing the gas. I put my hazards on & got to the side of the road. Then the eps light came on & the dash stopped showing the mph. The ac stopped blowing cold air & the windows were working slow. I turned car off then back on a couple of times then more lights came on. No lights were on prior to this & I haven’t had any problems w the vehicle before this. I just got this car & I feel like it has something to do with a recall but no one wants to take responsibility for the issue.
NHTSA complaint #11484055 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Hello there, my name is Lashyrah and I do not know much about cars so most of this is unknown. The person I bought my vehicle from did not give me much information and I was desperate at the time so I bought it. Most of the lights on the dashboard are on: ABS, Brake system, Engine, Tire/Safety Alert, Fuel pump reset warning, and Stability control are lights that come and go. I have used the code system to try to reset these things and they go away then pop back up. Sometimes while I am driving, all the dashboard lights disappear and the breaks start getting really touchy and it feels completely different driving until the previous lights all come back on. This has been an issue before and when I last went to Toyota to get my car serviced, I asked them to check the lights and system, and if they could do a multi-point inspection. They wanted me to pay $300 just to find out why the lights keep coming back on. Please help me get this fixed at no cost I am a single mom and college student working part time so I need my car to get around or a free loaner car to get around until this is fixed. I strongly feel these are recalls that did not get taken care of or are not showing up in the recall system. I need assistance as soon as possible and would like to know my options, especially after getting a notice in the mail a few days ago from Toyota about my car possibly being affected. My fuel gauge is also empty at around 3 bars or sometimes 2 bars instead of going all the way down to empty, costing me more money on gas having to fill it up more often. Thank you for your time and help.
NHTSA complaint #11477501 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact had received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V537000 (Steering) and the vehicle was repaired under recall. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the steering wheel started to shake with the traction control warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed and the contact was informed that the recall repair had failed. The contact made an appointment with the dealer. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and suggested that the vehicle be diagnosed by an authorized Toyota dealer. The failure mileage was 119,000.
NHTSA complaint #11474078 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Lost steering on car while driving. Shop noted right control arm completely corroded through and broken axle. Entire undercarriage rusted and corroded. Available for inspection. Sudden loss of steering is a risk factor for serious injury or death. Problem has been looked at by two independent service centers who have agreed on problem. Has not been inspected by manufacturer, whom I have contacted over 8 times regarding this issue, or by any other party. There were no warning signs or symptoms prior to failure.
NHTSA complaint #11473058 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2004 Toyota Prius. The contact stated while driving 51 MPH, the vehicle experienced phantom braking and a loss of power steering assist with the engine overheating message displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 154,079.
NHTSA complaint #11468633 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2012 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the vehicle lost brakes and power steering functionality. The traction control, ABS, and braking system warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer and was diagnosed with brake booster failure. The vehicle remained at the dealer and was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V235000 (Service Brakes). The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.
NHTSA complaint #11463354 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
After feeling looseness from the front end all the way up to the steering wheel when going over any bumps I brought the car to the local dealer. After inspection I was told four things that are very disturbing: The steering shaft needs replacement; The cost will be more than $1100; There is no warranty or recall or cost coverage; The car is not reliable and should not be driven any more than essential until fixed (and they don’t know when the parts will be available). Although the car is out of warranty based on age, this car has only 66,525 miles after almost 9 years, and my wife and I have been the only drivers and not on any dirt roads. I have been told by an independent repair shop this is a known problem with Prius and should be a recall item since it is dangerous to keep driving. This is especially troubling since the dealer could not fix it when I was there because they have to order parts and they don't know when the parts will be in.
NHTSA complaint #11439743 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.