2004 TOYOTA PRIUS Complaints

ON 4/7/05 I WAS TRAVELING ON THE NJ PARKWAY AND ALL OF A SUDDEN FOR NO REASON MY 2004 PRIUS ENGINE STALLED NO GAS TO ENGINE ONLY ELECTRIC POWER THEN THE ELECTRIC POWER SLOWLY IN ABOUT LEST THAN 2 MINUTES WENT TO ZERO AND THEN I HAD TO COAST TO A SAFE SPOT TO PULL OVER ON THE SHOULDER. LUCKILY I WAS ALREADY TRAVELING IN THE SLOW RIGHT LANE, ALTHOUGH AT 5 PM RUSH HOUR ITS STILL GOING 65+ MPH, I COASTED DOWN TO 40 MPH UNTIL I FINALLY CAME TO A SHOULDER IN THE RIGHT LANE. I CHECKED FOR ANYTHING LEAKING NOTHING, AND ABOUT 10 MINUTES LATER IT STARTED UP. NOW ALL WARNING LIGHTS WENT ON THE ENGINE WARNING FAILURE LIGHT WHICH SAID TO BRING TO DEALER RIGHT AWAY WAS ON. I BROUGHT TO DEALER THE NEXT DAY A WAS STILL ABLE TO DRIVE IT. THEY EVENTUALLY FIXED THE PROBLEM THEY SAID IT WAS A COMPUTER SOFTWARE PROBLEM. THEY HAD IT FROM 4/8 TO 4/13. IT WAS A VERY SCARY SITUATION LUCKLY I WAS NOT IN THE FAST LANE WERE I WOULD HAVE BEEN STUCK IN THE MIDDLE OF FAST DRIVING TRAFFIC. I JUST WANTED TO SUBMIT THIS TO PUT ON RECORD JUST INCASE THERE IS A BIGGER PROBLEM WITH OTHER VEHICLES. THE CAR HAS RUN FINE SINCE AND NO PROBLEMS SO FAR. I READ THE STORY FROM VERIZON ONLINE.

1. I WAS DRIVING AROUND 30 TO 40 MPH AND THE GAS ENGINE FAILED SUDDENLY DURING THE COURSE OF NORMAL DRIVING, LEAVING ONLY THE ELECTRICAL ENGINE RUNNING. AT THE SAME TIME THE ENGINE FAILED, MANY LIGHTS TURNED ON ON THE DASHBOARD. 2. I WAS ON A CANYON ROAD IN THE LOS ANGELES MOUNTAINS WHEN IT FAILED, WHICH WAS A SINGLE LANE ROAD EACH WAY WITH NOWHERE TO PULL OFF. LUCKILY, I HAD JUST REACHED ON OF THE CRESTS IN THE CANYON WHEN THE ENGINE FAILED, SO WITH THE ELECTRICAL ENGINE I WAS ABLE TO COAST TO A SIDE STREET. ONCE ON THE SIDE STREET, THE ELECTRICAL ENGINE DIED QUICKLY, PROBABLY BECAUSE OF THE STEEP SLOPE UPWARDS OF THE STREET. 3. I TRIED TO TURN OFF THE CAR AND IT WOULDN'T TURN OFF, SO I POPPED THE HOOD AND GOT OUT TO SEE IF THERE WAS AN OBVIOUS PROBLEM. FINDING NO PROBLEM I COULD SEE I WENT BACK INSIDE THE CAR AND HELD DOWN THE POWER BUTTON UNTIL THE VEHICLE TURNED OFF FINALLY. WHEN THE VEHICLE TURNED BACK ON, THE ENGINE SEMPT TO WORK NORMALLY, AND I IMMEDIATELY WENT TO THE NEAREST TOYOTA DEALER. THEY SAID THEY HAD HEARD OF THE PROBLEM ONCE OR TWICE BEFORE AND IT REQUIRES A SOFTWARE UPDATE TO THE CAR. I WAS WEARY OF THEIR PROPOSED SOLUTION SINCE IT IS SUCH A DANGEROUS PROBLEM, BUT THAT'S ALL THEY SAID THEY COULD DO, SO I TOLD THEM TO GO AHEAD.

SUMMARY: INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE DIED WHILE DRIVING. LOTS OF INDICATOR LIGHTS ON DASH, AND MESSAGE APPEARED ON MULTIFUNCTION DISPLAY. WAS ABLE TO GET TO A SAFE LOCATION ON BATTERY-ONLY POWER. DETAILS: DRIVING HOME FROM TOWN (ABOUT 10 MILES). CAR WAS BEHAVING NORMALLY, AND HAD BEEN DRIVEN APPROX 30 MILES EARLIER TODAY WITH NO ISSUES. JUST BEFORE WE GOT HOME, THE FOLLOWING LIGHTS CAME ON (I RECORDED THEM EXACTLY): (1) RED TRIANGLE (MASTER WARNING LIGHT), (2) ENGINE CHECK (AMBER), (3) BRAKE SYSTEM WARNING (AMBER EXCLAMATION POINT IN PARENTHESES), (4) VSC, (5) HYBRID SYSTEM WARNING LIGHT (THIS WAS ALSO INDICATED ON THE LCD SCREEN). LCD HAD A MESSAGE ON IT WHICH I DID NOT RECORD EXACTLY (IT WAS SOMETHING GENERIC LIKE "THERE IS A PROBLEM"). THE INFO SCREEN WAS INDICATING THAT WE WERE RUNNING ON BATTERY ONLY, AND THE CAR HAD VERY LITTLE "PICKUP", BUT WE WERE ON OUR HOME STREET, WHICH IS QUITE STEEP. THE CAR HAS ABOUT 11000 MILES, AND DID SOMETHING SIMILAR WHEN WE FIRST GOT IT. AFTER TURNING THE CAR ON AND OFF A FEW TIMES, THE INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE SEEMS TO WORK AGAIN, AND MOST OF THE INDICATORS HAVE NOW GONE OFF. (AMBER "ENGINE CHECK" IS STILL ON). AFTER ALL THIS HAPPENED, I GOT ONTO THE INTERNET TO SEE IF OTHERS HAD SEEN SIMILAR PROBLEMS, AND IT LOOKS LIKE THERE MAY BE A CLASS PROBLEM (I NOTE THERE HAVE BEEN A LARGE NUMBER OF THESE IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS - COULD IT BE TEMPERATURE-RELATED?) CAR WAS NOT OUT OF GAS (JUST REFILLED YESTERDAY) - GAS GUAGE SHOWING NEARLY FULL. VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED AUGUST 2004 (AFTER THE TSBS CAME OUT THAT IMPLICATED COMPUTER PROBLEMS), SO I'M SUSPECTING THIS MAY BE A DIFFERENT ISSUE THAN WAS DEALT WITH THERE. [XXX]. WILL NOTIFY TOYOTA TOMORROW AND REQUEST INSTRUCTIONS AS TO HOW TO PROCEED. *JS INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME THAT I HAVE HAD THIS PROBLEM, BUT I JUST LEARNED THIS IS THE VENUE TO STATE MY COMPLAINTS(I HAVE ANOTHER COMPLAINT ON THIS BOARD. I BOUGHT THIS CAR TO SAVE GAS,MONEY AND THE ENVIRONMENT,BUT NOW THIS CAR IS DOING NONE OF THESE FOR ME IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC. WHILE I'M STUCK IN TRAFFIC IN DC(I395N), THE BATTERY TAKES OVER. THE PROBLEM IS THE GAS DOESN'T KICK IN WHEN THE BATTERY IS LOW. I FIND THE BATTERY DOESN'T STAY CHARGED FOR OVER 28MINUTES WHILE MOVING IN TRAFFIC ABOUT 3 FEET EVERY 5 OR 10 MINUTES. I HAVE FIGURED OUT IN ORDER TO NOT GET STALLED (WHICH HAS HAPPENED TO ME, 2 TIMES ALREADY,BESIDES TODAY.) I HAVE TO HOLD THE BRAKE PEDAL DOWN WITH ONE FOOT AND REV THE GAS PEDAL WITH THE RIGHT FOOT IN ORDER TO CHARGE THE BATTERY AND NOT GET SLAMMED INTO FROM A VEHICLE BEHIND ME! MY WIFE REFUSES TO DRIVE THE CAR NOW FOR FEAR THAT SHE'LL STALL. I'M FILLING MY TANK MORE OFTEN NOW THAN WHEN I FIRST GOT THIS VEHICLE. DUE TO THE REVING OF THE VEHICLE WHICH WASTES MY GAS(SORTA DEFEATS THE PURPOSE OF BUYING A HYBRID FOR THE MOST PART!), ALSO THIS CAN'T BE GOOD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT EITHER! OH AND LETS NOT FORGET THE SAFETY FACTOR. I HAVE PEOPLE YELLING AT ME AND SAYING THEY WANT TO BUST MY A**! AND EVEN AN ELDERLY WOMAN WITH HANDICAP PLATES GAVE ME THE FINGER RIGHT AFTER SHE ALMOST SLAMMED INTO MY STALLED CAR. I'M EMBARRASSED AND SCARED TO DRIVE OVER 65 BECAUSE THE WAY THE CAR DIED ON ME 2 TIMES BEFORE.

OMG, OMG ITS SO FRESH IN MY MIND!. I WAS TERRIFIED. MY DAUGHTER(OLDEST) WAS IN A TERRIBLE CAR ACCIDENT AND WAS TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL(MARY WASHINGTON IN VA.) I WAS AT WORK AND GOT THE HORRIFIC CALL ABOUT 1745HRS (RUSH HOUR). I JUMPED IN MY CAR(2004-PRIUS) I I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW I FELT. AS I ENTERED THE HOV LANES FROM DC TO VA, MY CAR STARTED PAUSING..I'VE FELT THIS BEFORE, SO I HIT THE INFO BUTTON AND SEE MY BATTERY TOOK OVER AND IS ON 4 LINES! I THEN SEE THE ALERT LIGHTS ILLUMINATE ON MY DASH! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING?, NOT NOW!..I IMMEDIATELY HIT MY HORN AND AVOID GETTING SLAMMED INTO BY VEHICLES BEHIND ME. I SLOWLY CREEP ON MY LAST BATTERY LINE ONTO THE RIGHTHAND SHOULDER. MY PRIUS DIED. I CALLED TOYOTAS' (RAP>ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM) AND A TOW TRUCK WAS SENT. I BROKE DOWN IN DC AND (TOYOTAS' RAP) ONLY TAKES ME 50MILES FROM THE BREAKDOWN. I LIVE 62 MILES AWAY! THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE! I WAS TOWED TO SPRINGFIELD TOYOTAN AND IT WAS CLOSED! (IT IS NOW 2130HRS! AND I'M STILL NOT AT THE HOSPITAL AND I'M IN TEARS!) THE TOW TRUCK DRIVER WAS NICE ENOUGH TO TELL ME TO CALL MY INSURANCE CO. I DID AND THEY SENT ANOTHER TOW TRUCK TO PICK ME UP. IT IS NOW 2230HRS! I STILL DON'T KNOW THE STATUS OF MY DAUGHTER! THE TOW TRUCK BRINGS ME TO FREDERICKSBURG BUT TO A NISSAN DEALERSHIP, IT SEEMS THE ADDRESS WAS WRONG. WE FIGURED OUT THAT TOYOTA POHANKA WAS DOWN THE STREET AND THE TOW TRUCK DRIVER WAS CONSIDERATE ENOUGH TO BRING ME THERE. I HAD TO DROP OFF THE VEHICLE AND LUCKY I HAD SOMEONE PICK ME UP TO BRING ME HOME. TOYOTA POHANKA OF FREDERICKSBURG CALLED ME THE NEXT DAY AND SAID THEY FOUND ERROR CODE P3191 REFERRED TO THE TSB AND REPROGRAMMED THE ENGINE ECM PER INSTRUCTIONS.

PURCHASED A 2004 TOYOTA PRIUS ON MARCH 2, 2004. ON MAY 24, 2004 THE CAR STOPPED WHILE I WAS DRIVING IT. I COULD NOT RESTART IT FOR APPROXIMATELY 15 MINUTES. I SAT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET DURING THAT TIME. THE DEALER SAID THEY HAD NEVER HEARD OF THIS HAPPENING. OM JUNE 16, 2004 THE CAR STOPPED RUNNING WHILE I WAS AT AN INTERSECTION. I HAD TO WAIT APPROXIMATELY 15 MINUTES BEFORE IT WOULD START. THE DEALER SAID THEY DIDN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THIS. ON JUNE 21, 2004 THE CAR COMPUTERS WERE TESTED ON A RECALL AND FOUND TO BE OUT OF SYNC. THEY WERE ADJUSTED AND I WAS TOLD THAT WOULD TAKE CARE OF MY PROBLEM. IN CONTINUED TO HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THE CAR NOT STARTING. ON OCT. 6, 2004 I WAS GIVEN A NEW CAR REMOTE CONTROL TO FIX THE PROBLEM. I CONTINUED TO HAVE PROBLEMS. ON DECEMBER 6, 2004 THE CAR COMPLETELY FAILED. I WAS UNABLE TO START OR TURN OFF THE CAR. AFTER 20 MINUTES IT STARTED AND I WAS ABLE TO LEAVE IT WITH THE DEALER. THE MULTI DISPLAY UNIT WAS REPLACED. THE CAR CONTINUED TO STOP INTERMITTENTLY;. ON JANUARY 19, 2005 THE CAR FAILED TO START. A NEW SMALL BATTERY WAS INSTALLED. ON MARCH 29, 2005 THE BRAKES LOCKED UP. THE ABS ACTUATOR WAS REPLACED. ON MAY 21, 2005 THE CAR FAILED TO START. IT IS PRESENTLY AT THE DEALER.

A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO WHILE DRIVING MY 2004 TOYOTA PRIUS IT LOST POWER AND ALL SORTS OF WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON. I TOOK IT STRAIGHT TO THE DEALER. AT THAT TIME THEY TOLD ME IT LOSS IT'S COMPUTER PROGRAM AND WENT INTO THE "LIMP HOME" MODE. THEY REPROGAMED IT AND IT RAN FINE. ON 5/8/05 AFTER A SHORT DRIVE I STOPED AND WHEN I TRIED TO RESTART IT, IT WOULD NOT START. ALL I COULD GET WAS A LOT OF WARNING LIGHTS AND A WIRLING SOUND. I CALLED AAA TO HAVE IT TOWED TO THE DEALER. JUST AS THE TOW TRUCH ARRIVED I TRIED TO START IT AGAIN AND IT STARTED LIKE NORMAL. I DROVE IT TO THE DEAL AND EXPLAINED THE PROBLEM TO THEM. THEY COULD NOT FIND ANY TROUBLE CODES OR PROBLEM WITH THE CAR. IT HAS RAN FINE SENCE THEN. BUT I NOW WORRY WHEN IT WILL ACT UP AGAIN.

WHILE DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH THE VEHICLE COMPLETELY SHUT DOWN. THE VEHICLE WAS HYBRID. THE OWNER HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO THE DEALER, AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE BATTERY WAS CHARGED, AND THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. *AK THERE WERE A SERIES OF THESE EVENTS. THE VEHICLE ALSO STALLED WHILE IN MOTION. THE CONSUMER WAS INFORMED THAT THE CHARGING SYSTEM WAS TESTED AND NOTHING WAS WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. *SC *JB

DRIVING MY 04 PRIUS AT NORMAL SPEED - ALL OF A SUDDEN LOST ALL POWER. MADE IT TO DEALER FEW BLOCKS AWAY AFTER SITTING AWHILE. DEALER TOOK 48 HOURS - SAID WRONG PROGRAM WAS IN COMPUTER. REPROGRAMED.

MY WIFE'S 2004 TOYOTA PRIUS LOST POWER 100 MILES AWAY FROM HOME. SHE WAS WITH OUR 3 MONTH OLD BABY AND FORTUNATELY WAS NOT REAR ENDED OR INVOLOVED IN AN ACCIDENT.