2004 TOYOTA PRIUS Complaints

I HAVE A 2004 TOYOTA PRIUS WITH HID HEADLIGHTS. A FEW MONTHS AGO I WAS DRIVING AT NIGHT AND THE HEADLIGHTS CUT OFF COMPLETELY. IT WAS 11:30PM ON A FOGGY, DRIZZLY NIGHT, AND SUDDENLY I WAS DRIVING 70 MPH IN PITCH DARKNESS. I WAS ABLE TO GET THEM TO COME BACK ON AND DRIVE HOME SLOWLY. I TOOK THE CAR TO THE TOYOTA DEALER, WHERE THEY REPLACED THE HEADLIGHTS FOR $990. A FEW WEEKS LATER THE SAME THING HAPPENED, HEADLIGHTS CUT OUT AT NIGHT. I TOOK THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALER, WHERE THEY KEPT IT FOR SEVERAL DAYS. THEY THEN RETURNED THE CAR, ASSURING ME THAT THE PROBLEM WAS SOLVED. SINCE THAT TIME THE DRIVER'S SIDE HEADLIGHT HAS GONE OUT SEVERAL TIMES.

REPEATED BRAKING AT SLOW SPEEDS RESULTED IN BOTH ABS AND BRAKE ON SIGNALS, OWNER'S MANUAL SAYS STOP DRIVING AND CONTACT DEALER IMMEDIATELY. DROVE SLOWLY TO DEALER WHO RAN DIAGNOSTICS.($98)TOLD TO REPLACE COMPUTER ($2000) NOT IN STOCK. TOLD OK TO DRIVE UNTIL REPLACEMENT. ADJUSTED SOMETHING. WARNING LIGHTS OPERATED AS EXPECTED. SITUATION RECURRED TWICE. OWNER'S MANUAL INDICATED KNOWLEDGE OF POSSIBLE FAILURE. ALSO "PARKING BRAKE ABNORMAL STATUS HAS APPEARED TWICE. NO EXPLANATION IN MANUAL *TW

ODD BRAKING BEHAVIOR IN 2004 TOYOTA PRIUS. WHEN CAR IS IN ITS FIRST FEW MINUTES OF OPERATION AFTER SITTING OVERNIGHT, THIS ODD BEHAVIOR OCCURS: THE FIRST OR SECOND TIME I APPLY THE BRAKES, THEY GRAB AS THOUGH THE PEDAL HAS BEEN PRESSED VERY HARD. THE CAR LURCHES TO A STOP. I RELEASE THE BRAKE PEDAL TO GO FORWARD AGAIN, APPLYING PRESSURE TO THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL. THEN I APPLY PRESSURE TO THE BRAKE PEDAL AND THE GRABBING HAPPENS AGAIN. USUALLY BY THE THIRD BRAKING ACTION THE 'GRABBY' BEHAVIOR STOPS. THIS HAS NOT HAPPENED AT HIGH SPEEDS, PRESUMABLY BECAUSE THE CAR GETS IT 'OUT OF ITS SYSTEM' BY THE TIME IT IS WARMED UP. I USED TO BE A MECHANIC AND THIS IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING I HAVE NEVER FELT BEFORE, SUCH AS CONDENSATION ON THE DISC ROTORS. THIS HAS BEEN HAPPENING SINCE THE CAR WA NEW IN 2004. I WORKED AROUND IT. BUT NOW WITH THE NEWS ABOUT BRAKING PROBLEMS ON NEW PRIUSES, I THOUGHT I SHOULD REPORT IT. *TR

2004 TOYOTA PRIUS COST $449 (INCLUDES LABOR) TO REPLACE PASSENGER SIDE HEAD LIGHT. *TR

ON THE 2004 TOYOTA PRIUS WHEN DRIVING FROM A STOP ACROSS A ROUGH ROAD OR POT HOLES THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKES/ANTI-SKID SYSTEM ENGAGES AND MAKES THE CAR SKID ON WET SURFACES. IN WINTER ON ICY ROADS THE (PROPER - NON-PUMPING) APPLICATION OF THE BRAKES ON MODERATELY ICY OR WET ROAD SURFACES CAUSES THE BRAKES TO LOCK UP AND THE CAR SKIDS UNCONTROLLABLY. THE LATER OCCURRED TODAY WHILE THE SECOND ISSUE HAS BEEN GOING ON SINCE I PURCHASED THE PRIUS BUT I NEVER THOUGHT THAT IT MIGHT BE A DEFECT. *TR

HID HEADLAMPS REPEATEDLY FLICKER, THEN GO OUT. SWITCHING OFF LIGHTS AND SWITCHING BACK ON BRINGS THEM BACK ON FOR AN INTERMITTENT PERIOD OF TIME, THEN THEY GO OUT AGAIN. I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE BOTH FRONT HEADLAMPS AT CONSIDERABLE EXPENSE. THE MOST RECENT COST $436 FOR THE LAMP ALONE AND $137 IN LABOR. *TR

MY 2004 PRIUS HAS THE SAME BRAKING PROBLEM THAT HAS BEEN REPORTED FOR THE 2010 PRIUS, THAT IS, WHEN I AM SLOWING DOWN AND HIT A BUMP OR HOLE, THERE IS A MOMENTARY ACCELERATION. I REPORTED THIS TO TOYOTA IN 2004 AND REGIONAL TOYOTA REP CAME OUT AND LOOKED AT THE CAR AND SAID IT WAS NORMAL. SO...THIS PROBLEM IS NOT LIMITED TO 2010 PRIUS. *TR

PROBLEM WITH ANTI-LOCK BRAKES NOT WORKING WHEN HITTING ROUGH SURFACES SUCH AS POTHOLES. *TR

I HAVE A 2004 PRIUS WHICH I BOUGHT USED ABOUT A YEAR AGO AND WHEN I READ THE LINE THAT I CUT AND PASTED RIGHT FROM YOUR NEWS RELEASE, I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT BECAUSE IT DESCRIBES EXACTLY WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO ME NUMEROUS TIMES. "ALLEGATIONS OF MOMENTARY LOSS OF BRAKING CAPABILITY WHILE TRAVELING OVER AN UNEVEN ROAD SURFACE, POTHOLE OR BUMP," BUT THIS PROBLEM WHICH HAS HAPPENED REPEATEDLY (USUALLY ON THE SAME POTHOLE ON THE SAME STREET) HAS NEVER CAUSED ME TO LOOSE CONTROL OF THE CAR FOR MORE THAN A SPLIT SECOND. SO UNTIL I READ THIS PASSAGE I THOUGHT I MIGHT JUST BE IMAGINING THIS PROBLEM. IF IT HAPPENED FOR EVEN MORE THAN A SPLIT SECOND I COULD SEE HOW IT WOULD CAUSE ME TO LOSE CONTROL AND POSSIBLY GET IN AN ACCIDENT. BUT THAT HASN'T HAPPENED YET. *TR

MY 2004 TOYOTA PRIUS DOES HAVE AN ACCELERATION ISSUE. JUST WANTED TO BRING TO NOTICE THAT THE ACCELERATION ISSUE DOES NOT ONLY EFFECT THE 2010 MODEL. WHEN EVER TRAVELING AROUND 40 MPH AND YOU BRAKE -- THERE IS A SUDDEN ACCELERATION FOR LEST THAN 30 SECONDS -- THIS IS VERY MUCH INTERMITTENT. THIS STARTED HAPPENING IN DEC 15TH 2008. THE CAR ALWAYS STOP WITH NO OTHER ISSUES. I HAVE LEARNED TO BE CAUTIOUS AND SLOW DOWN WELL AHEAD. *TR