2009 TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID Complaints

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID. AFTER THE VEHICLE WAS STARTED, THE BRAKE PEDAL HAD TO BE DEPRESSED WITH FORCE AND ALL OF THE WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE TECHNICIAN DIAGNOSED THAT THE BRAKE RESERVOIR AND ABS ACTUATOR WERE FAULTY AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 92,500.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID. WHILE DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH, THE LIGHTS ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL ILLUMINATED AND THE BRAKES FAILED WHEN THE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE BRAKE CODE C1247 STROKE SENSOR NEEDED TO BE RECALIBRATED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 57,000.

MY DAUGHTER DETECTED BURNING PLASTIC SMELL INSIDE THE CAR WHILE DRIVING ON A LOCAL STREET, STOPPED THE CAR AND SAW BLACK SMOKE COMING OUT FROM THE SIDE OF THE WINDOW MASTER SWITCH AND THE BOTTOM OF THE DRIVER SIDE DOOR. I REMEMBERED THERE WAS A RECALL REGARDING THE FIRE HAZARD OF THE MASTER SWITCH AND TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP ON APRIL 15. THEY INFORMED ME THAT MY CAR WAS NOT ON THE RECALL LIST AND IT WILL BE MY RESPONSIBILITY TO REPAIR IT. I CALLED AND OPEN A CASE (# [XXX]) WITH THEIR CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP DEPARTMENT WHILE I WAS WAITING AT THE DEALERSHIP FOR REGULAR MAINTENANCE, REPORTING THAT THE PROBLEM MY CAR IS EXPERIENCING PROVES THAT THE RECALL COVERAGE WAS TOO NARROW AND IT IS ENDANGERING ALL THE OWNERS THAT WERE NOT COVERED. THE REP. ([XXX]) PROMISED TO PROVIDE ME AN ANSWER IN 2 BUSINESS DAYS BUT THE CALL BACK NEVER HAPPENED. AS YOU ARE THE GOVERNMENT WATCHDOG ON VEHICLE SAFETY ISSUE, I AM REPORTING TO YOU THE POTENTIAL LIFE THREATENING HAZARD OF THIS PARTICULAR VEHICLE MODEL AND LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR ASSISTANCE TO HAVE THIS HAZARD RESOLVED BY TOYOTA OF USA. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

I AM DRIVING OUR 2009 TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID WHICH MY HUSBAND AND I PURCHASED NEW. I WAS APPROACHING THE CITY OF ANACORTES WA. I HAD BEEN DRIVING ON SR 20 WHICH GOES FROM 55MPH TO 35 MPH AND FROM TWO LANES TO ONE.I AM APPROACHING A LIGHT I HAVE MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE WHEN SUDDENLY MY CAR ACCELERATED AS IF I HAD FLOORED IT, HITTING A PICKUP TRUCK IN FRONT OF ME. UPON IMPACT IT MOVED FORWARD AND THEN WITH MY FOOT STILL ON THE BRAKE I HIT IT AGAIN. I HAVE NO IDEA HOW FAST I WAS GOING BUT FOR THAT BRIEF TIME I FELT AS IF I WAS IN A ROCKET. I PUT THE CAR IN NEUTRAL AND AT THIS POINT REGAINED CONTROL AND WAS ABLE TO PULL TO SIDE OF ROAD. NO DAMAGE TO THE TRUCK. MY FRONT BUMPER NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AS WELL AS BENT LICENSE PLATE. AIR BAG DID NOT DEPLOY. THE CAR WAS PUT ON A FLATBED AND BROUGHT BACK TO OUR RESIDENCE SOME 50 MILES AWAY. NEITHER OF US ARE THRILLED ABOUT GETTING BEHIND THE WHEEL OF THIS CAR AGAIN AND SO IT SITS IN OUR GARAGE.OUR PLANS ARE TO GET RID OF THIS CAR EVEN THOUGH WE LOVED IT UP UNTIL THIS POINT. MY HUSBAND CALLED THE DEALERSHIP YESTERDAY ( 3/30/15) AND THEY REFERRED HIM TO TOYOTA USA. HE SPOKE WITH SOMEONE THERE AND WAS GIVEN A CASE NUMBER HE WAS TOLD HE WOULD RECEIVE A CALL WITHIN TWENTY FOUR HOURS. WELL THAT CAME AND WENT AND WHEN HE CALLED BACK TODAY HE WAS TOLD THE PERSON WHO WAS HANDLING THIS WAS GONE FOR THE DAY HE WAS TOLD SHE ATTEMPTED TO REACH US TWICE. STRANGE SHE NEVER LEFT A MESSAGE. WE ARE AT THIS TIME WAITING FOR RESPONSE. *TR

THIS WAS A MULTI CAR PILEUP ON A ROAD WITH 40MPH SPEED LIMIT WHICH RESULTED FROM A VEHICLE AHEAD MAKING AN ABRUPT STOP. THIS RESULTED IN ABOUT 4 CARS BEHIND IT HAVING TO COME TO STOP RESULTING IN A CHAIN REACTION. MY CAR, 2009 TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID, COULD NOT COME TO A STOP IN TIME WHEN FULL BREAKING WAS APPLIED AND ENDED UP COLLIDING WITH THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME. MINE WAS THE LAST VEHICLE IN THE PILEUP. THIS INCIDENT RESULTED IN FRONT END DAMAGE TO MY CAR AND REAR END DAMAGE TO THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME, AND TO TWO OTHER CARS IN FRONT OF THAT CAR. MY CAR COULD NOT COME TO A COMPLETE STOP IN TIME BECAUSE I BELIEVE THE BREAKS DID NOT FUNCTION PROPERLY. I WASN'T AWARE OF ANY BREAK ISSUES AT THAT TIME AND IT WAS ONLY ABOUT TWO YEARS LATER I WAS INFORMED BY THE DEALER SERVICE DEPARTMENT THAT THERE IS A RECALL ON THIS VEHICLE THAT INVOLVED BREAK FLUID RESERVOIR ASSEMBLY. I AM REASONABLY CERTAIN THAT THE ACCIDENT ON 3-8-2012 WAS THE RESULT OF BREAKS NOT FUNCTIONING PROPERLY AND THAT MY CAR COULD NOT STOP IN TIME TO AVOID A FRONTAL COLLISION WHILE TRAVELING AT A RELATIVELY SLOW SPEED OF 40MPH. *TR

I STARTED THE CAR AND EVERYTHING SEEMED NORMAL. I STARTED ACCELERATING DOWN THE STREET AND THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS UP WITH ALL KINDS OF WARNING LIGHTS. MILEAGE WAS BETWEEN 69000-69450. THE TRACTION CONTROL, BRAKE, MASTER WARNING LIGHT, ABS AND THE CENTER DISPLAY SAID "CHECK VSC SYSTEM". I CONTINUED TO COAST UNTIL A NEARBY STOP SIGN AND WHEN APPLYING PRESSURE TO BRAKE, TO MY HORROR THE BRAKES HAD AN ALMOST COMPLETE FAILURE. I IMMEDIATELY WENT HOME, LESS THAN A MILE AWAY AND THE BRAKES CONTINUED TO MALFUNCTION THE WHOLE WAY. I WAS ABLE TO STOP BUT ONLY WITH SEVERE PRESSURE TO THE BRAKE PEDDLE WHICH ONLY PRODUCED SLIGHT BRAKING. THERE WAS NO ACCIDENT. COMING BACK TO THE CAR THE NEXT DAY THE WARNING DASH LIGHTS WERE OFF AND VEHICLE WAS WORKING NORMAL AGAIN. HOWEVER, THIS ALSO HAPPENED THE FOLLOWING DAY HALFWAY THROUGH A SHORT TRIP ACROSS TOWN. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER AND THEY REPLACED A RECALL PART, THE BRAKE FLUID RESERVOIR. THEY CHECKED THE COMPUTER FOR CODES AND THESE CODES DID NOT SHOW UP IN THE CODE HISTORY DESPITE IT BEING 2 DAYS BEFORE. THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN INTERMITTENT AND DID NOT HAPPEN THE DAY I TOOK IT IN TO THE DEALERSHIP. I EXPLAINED TO THEM THE PROBLEMS, SENT THEM PICTURES OF THE DASH LIGHTS I TOOK FROM MY PHONE, AND PRINTED OUT AND GAVE THEM ARTICLES SUCH AS THIS: HTTP://WWW.CONSUMERAFFAIRS.COM/NEWS/FEDS-INVESTIGATE-BRAKING-PROBLEMS-IN-TOYOTA-CAMRY-HYBRID-012814.HTML BUT BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM THEY ASSURED ME THE VEHICLE WAS WORKING PROPERLY. THEY DID FIX THE BRAKE RESERVOIR AND I PICKED THE CAR UP TODAY. ONLY TIME WILL TELL IF THE SAFETY OF THE VEHICLE REMAINS. THANKS FOR LISTENING. *TR UPDATED 3/17/16 *JS

DASHBOARD IS GETTING STICKY AND APPEARS TO BE MELTING. I AM CONCERNED THAT THIS COULD BECOME A SAFETY ISSUE CAUSING GLARE ON THE WINDSHIELD. *TR

THE WARNING PANEL INDICATED "CHECK VSC SYSTEM," ALONG WITH A LOUD BEEPING NOISE. MY BRAKES WENT OUT COMPLETELY AND AS I PUMPED THE BRAKES THE WENT DOWN TO THE FLOOR. THE CAR SLOWED BUT DID NOT COME TOA COMPLETE STOP. IN ORDER TO AVOID HITTING AN 18 WHEELER IN FRONT OF ME, I HAD TO PULL OVER TO THE SIDE AND GRAZED MY CAR AGAINST THE METAL PART OF A RAILING. WHEN I BROUGHT IT TO TOYOTA, THEY SAID IT WAS A BRAKE ACTUATOR AND QUOTED ME $3500 TO FIX THE PROBLEM. *TR

I HAVE 2 COMPLAINTS. 1) I WAS DRIVING IN LOCAL TRAFFIC WHEN 5 WARNING LIGHTS APPEARED: MASTER WARNING LIGHT, BRAKE WARNING LIGHT, ELECTRONICALLY CONTROLLED BRAKE WARNING, ABS, SLIP INDICATOR. I WAS SURPRISED BUT MY BRAKES CONTINUED TO WORK ON THE DRIVE HOME & TO THE DEALERSHIP THE NEXT DAY. THE LIGHTS NEVER WENT OFF (SOME OTHER OWNERS HAVE REPORTED THE LIGHTS GO ON & OFF). I DO NOT HAVE COLD WEATHER CONDITIONS (50S IN DEC). THE DEALERSHIP INVESTIGATED & FOUND IT WAS CONSISTENT WITH THE PROBLEM COVERED BY THE WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM (POL14-04 OR NHTSA 14001) FOR THE BRAKE ACTUATOR ASSEMBLY & SKID CONTROL ECU/BRAKE PEDAL STROKE SENSOR, & ALSO AN OPEN RECALL ON MY CAR FOR A SEPARATE ITEM WITH MY BRAKES. MY CAR SYMPTOMS WERE: WHEN STOPPED AT A LIGHT, THE CAR WOULD ROLL FORWARD BY INCHES UNLESS I HAD MY FOOT FIRMLY DEPRESSED (KNEE LOCKED); NOISES WHICH SOUNDED LIKE AIR MOVING THROUGH TUBING WHILE BRAKING; NOISES THAT SOUNDED LIKE A "PUMP" ACTIVATING AFTER MY CAR HAD BEEN TURNED OFF (UP TO 15 MINUTES). 2) TOYOTA HAS AN OPEN EXTENDED WARRANTY (CSC 10046281-9238) ON THE SUN VISOR ASSEMBLY & SUN VISOR BRACKET INCLUDING THE 2009 CAMRY HYBRID. MY CAR HAS HAD THIS SAME PROBLEM FOR ~4 YEARS: THE DRIVER'S SIDE SUN VISOR WILL NOT FULLY GO UP & REMAIN THERE. MOST OF THE TIME IT RESTS HALFWAY DOWN BUT FROM TIME TO TIME IT WILL COME DOWN WITH NO WARNING. THIS BLOCKS THE DRIVER'S FIELD OF VISION. WHAT IS FRUSTRATING IS THAT I SPOKE TO BOTH THE DEALERSHIP & THE TOYOTA CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTER WHO BOTH AGREE MY PROBLEM SOUNDS EXACTLY LIKE THE PROBLEM DESCRIBED IN THIS EXTENDED WARRANTY. HOWEVER, THE PART NUMBER FOR MY CAR (74320-33C11-B0) IS NOT LISTED AMONG THE ACCEPTED PARTS NUMBER, AND MY VIN DOESN'T MATCH THE LISTED VINS. I HOPE CORPORATE TOYOTA WILL LOOK INTO THIS AND EXTEND ME THE COURTESY OF REPAIRING MY SUN VISOR! (DEALER COST ~$250). *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID. WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, A CHIME ACTIVATED AND THE BRAKES WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED AND THE BRAKES FAILED TO ENGAGE. THE FAILURE RECURRED AND THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER. THE TECHNICIAN WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 106,000.