2006 TOYOTA PRIUS Complaints

2006 PRIUS HID HEADLIGHTS GO OUT INTERMITTENTLY. THERE DOESN'T SEEM TO BE A FIX THAT TOYOTA CAN PROVIDE. THIS IS VERY UPSETTING, EVEN MORE SO IF YOU DRIVE AT NIGHT A LOT. TOYOTA DOESN'T ADMIT THERE IS A PROBLEM AND STATES THE ONLY COURSE OF ACTION IS TO REPLACE THE HEADLIGHT. WHY AM I TO PAY AN EXTREME AMOUNT OF MONEY TO REPLACE A HEADLIGHT WHEN THE HEADLIGHT WORKS? IT'S JUST FAULTY AND INTERMITTENT (BE IT WIRING, A COMPUTER GLITCH, OR SOMETHING ELSE). THIS PROBLEM WITH THE HID HEADLIGHTS OCCURS MULTIPLE TIMES EACH TIME I DRIVE THE CAR. FURTHERMORE, IT IS HARD TO DETERMINE WHEN THE HEADLIGHTS ARE WORKING PROPERLY. I HAVE TAKEN MY PRIUS TO A TOYOTA DEALERSHIP AND THEY REFUSE THAT THE LIGHTS ARE FAULTY AND ASK THAT YOU REPLACE THEM. IT IS SCARY TO DRIVE MY PRIUS AT NIGHT AND IT IS NO FUN EXPLAINING THIS STRANGE SITUATION TO A POLICE OFFICER WHO DOESN'T CARE AND STILL GIVES YOU A CITATION. I JUST WANT TOYOTA TO ACKNOWLEDGE AND FIX THE PROBLEM. *TR

WHEN I GO OVER A ROUGH PATCH ON THE PAVEMENT WHILE BRAKING IN MY 2006 PRIUS, THE SKID LIGHT COMES ON BRIEFLY ON THE DASH AND THE CAR LURCHES FORWARD EVEN THOUGH MY FOOT IS ON THE BRAKE. IT FEELS LIKE THE COMPUTER IS PERCEIVING THE POSSIBILITY OF A SKID AND IS COMPENSATING BY ACCELERATING UNTIL THE PAVEMENT IS SMOOTH. FORTUNATELY NO ONE HAS BEEN IN FRONT OF ME WHEN THIS HAPPENS AND I HAVEN'T HIT ANYONE. BUT IT HAS HAPPENED REPEATEDLY AND IT TAKES A TIME BEFORE THE CAR RESPONDS TO MY OWN HANDLING AND BRAKES AGAIN. THIS IS MORE THAN JUST WHAT YOU MIGHT EXPECT AND WANT FROM ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL. *TR

I OWN A 2006 TOYOTA PRIUS. I HAVE HAD A PROBLEM WITH MY PASSENGER HEADLIGHT WORKING INTERMITTENTLY. I THOUGHT THE LIGHT WAS FAILING UNTIL ONE NIGHT I WAS DRIVING HOME AND ALL THE LIGHTS TURNED OFF AND IT WAS PURE DARKNESS. I QUICKLY CORRECTED THE IMMEDIATE DANGER BY TURNING THE LIGHT SWITCH OFF THEN ON AND THEY CAME BACK ON. THIS HAS HAPPENED TWO OTHER TIMES. I RECEIVED WHAT I THOUGHT WAS A RECALL NOTICE ON THE HID LIGHTS. WHEN I TOOK THE NOTICE TO MY LOCAL DEALER, THEY INFORMED ME THAT THE RECALL WAS ON THE PRICE OF THE HID BULBS AND NOT ON THE ACTUAL BULBS. THEY HAD REDUCED THE PRICE FROM $300 TO $150. NOW, AFTER LOOKING INTO IT FURTHER, IT SEEMS THAT I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE EXPERIENCING THIS SAME PROBLEM. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 TOYOTA PRIUS. WHILE TRAVELING AT SPEEDS OF 70 MPH WITH THE CRUISE CONTROL ACTIVATED, THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO ABNORMALLY ACCELERATE. THE VEHICLE THEN DECREASED SPEEDS FAR BELOW THE SPEED IN WHICH THE CRUISE CONTROL WAS SET, WITHOUT DRIVER INTENT. THE CRUISE CONTROL WAS SHUT OFF AND RESET. THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO EXHIBIT THE EXACT SAME FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 47,000 AND THE CURRENT WAS 48,000.

2006 TOYOTA PRIUS WITH THE HID HEADLIGHTS. THE HEADLIGHTS RANDOMLY TURN OFF. AT FIRST I THOUGHT I WAS SEEING OTHER THINGS, LIKE NEIGHBORING CARS SWITCHING IN AND OUT OF LANES, CAUSING THE AMOUNT OF LIGHT TO DIMINISH. SO FAR, IT IS EITHER ONE OR THE OTHER HEADLIGHT, NOT BOTH SIMULTANEOUSLY. THROUGH THE RANDOM PROCESS, WHICH WOULD BE INITIATED EACH TIME THE LIGHTS ARE TURNED ON, IT IS ONLY A MATTER OF "TIME" BEFORE BOTH LIGHTS EXTINGUISH AT THE WRONG TIME, AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. *TR

SUDDEN ACCELERATION WHILE DRIVING AROUND A CURVE ON INTERSTATE 40 - STOPPED DRIVING ON INTERSTATE TO AVOID PROBLEM. *TR

2006 TOYOTA PRIUS - MY HID HEADLIGHTS HAVE BEEN RANDOMLY, UNPREDICTABLY FLICKERED ON AND OFF, SOMETIMES THE LEFT, SOMETIMES THE RIGHT AND SOMETIMES BOTH COMPLETELY UNEXPECTEDLY. THE LIGHT SWITCH MUST BE FLICKED ON AND OFF MULTIPLE TIMES TO BRING THEM BACK. WITHIN MINUTES - OR EVEN SECONDS - THEY MAY FAIL AGAIN REPEATEDLY. I DO NOT DRIVE AT NIGHT VERY OFTEN BUT OTHERS WHO DO ARE AT GREAT RISK. CAN YOU IMAGINE THE REACTION OF THE CARS IN FRONT OF ME WHILE I A FLICKING MY HEADLIGHTS AT THEM REPEATEDLY! POTENTIALLY VOLATILE. THE REPAIR IS REPLACEMENT OF HID LIGHTS AT ALMOST $600.00 AND IS NOT COVERED BY THEIR WARRANTY, WHICH IS WRONG! THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR A COUPLE YEARS AND MECHANICS HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO TRACE ISSUE OTHER THAN FAULTY HEADLIGHTS OR FAULTY COMPUTER CONTROLS. THERE ARE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF PRIUS OWNERS AFFECTED. CHECK THE ONLINE BLOGS LIKE PRIUSCHAT AND YOU WILL SEE. THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT SAFETY ISSUE WHICH WHILE I HAVE HAD NOT ACCIDENTS I HAVE HAD NUMEROUS INCIDENTS OF CONCERN AND NEED FOR QUICK SUDDEN EVASIVE ACTION WHEN THE LIGHTS WOULD FAIL UNEXPECTEDLY. WE WHO HAVE BEEN FORCED TO SPEND HUNDREDS FOR REPAIR SHOULD BE REIMBURSED AND A FULL SCALE RECALL MUST BE INSTIGATED FOR THE SAFETY OF PRIUS DRIVERS AND OUR COMPANIONS IN OTHER VEHICLES ON THE ROAD. *TR

I DRIVE A 2006 TOYOTA PRIUS. ON NOVEMBER 13, 2009, FOR ABOUT 10 DAYS, THE DASHBOARD WOULD NOT LIGHT UP ON A COLD START IN THE MORNING. IT WOULD LIGHT UP AFTER I HIT A POTHOLE OR BUMP. THE PROBLEM INEXPLICABLY STOPPED. MY TOYOTA DEALERSHIP SAID THEY HAD RECEIVED NO COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS AND COULD NOT DIAGNOSE/FIX THE PROBLEM SINCE IT NO LONGER OCCURRED. *TR

2006 PRIUS. WITHIN FIRST 18 MONTHS OF OWNING THE CAR (I AM ORIGINAL OWNER - TOOK POSSESSION OF CAR IN MARCH OF 2006) EXPERIENCED HEADLIGHTS GOING OFF BY THEMSELVES. TOOK THE CAR IN FOR SERVICE THINKING HEADLIGHT NEEDED REPLACEMENT. WAS TOLD BY SERVICE REP (AT GREENTREE TOYOTA IN DANBURY, CT) THAT IT WAS NOT THE HEADLIGHT BUT A PROBLEM WITH CONNECTION THAT TOYOTA RECOGNIZED BUT WAS NOT SURE HOW THEY WOULD ADDRESS. I WAITED FOR SOLUTION. AS TIME GOES ON, MORE FREQUENT INCIDENCE OF HEADLIGHT SPONTANEOUSLY TURNING OFF. I RECEIVED A NOTICE FROM TOYOTA COMPANY APPROX. 4 MONTHS AGO STATING THE PROBLEM WAS A DEFECT/CONNECTION PROBLEM. MY TOYOTA DEALERSHIP/SERVICE DEPT. TOLD ME IT WAS NOT AND REFUSED TO FIX THE CONNECTION PROBLEM. BOTH HEADLIGHTS WILL GO OUT AT EXACTLY THE SAME TIME, LEAVING ME IN COMPLETE DARKNESS. IF I QUICKLY SWITCH THE HEADLIGHTS OFF THEN BACK ON AGAIN THEY WILL ILLUMINATE. THE HEADLIGHTS GOING OFF AT THE SAME TIME HAPPENS AT LEAST ONCE EVERY 20 MINUTES. *TR

2006 TOYOTA PRIUS ELECTRICAL SYSTEM*CW THE CONSUMER STATED WHEN SHE TURNED ON HER VEHICLE ALL OF THE ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS ON THE ENTIRE DASHBOARD WERE OUT. NO DISPLAYS, NO NAVIGATION AND NO CAMERA. WHEN SHE ARRIVED HOME, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT TURN OFF. THE CONSUMER CONTACTED THE TOYOTA HOTLINE AND WAS ADVISED THE ONLY WAY TO SHUT OFF THE VEHICLE, WAS TO DISCONNECT THE BATTERY. ABOUT AN HOUR LATER, THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF. THE NEXT DAY, THE CONSUMER TOOK IT THE DEALER WHERE THEY KEPT IT ALL DAY, BUT WAS UNABLE TO FIND ANYTHING WRONG. THE CONSUMER NOTICED THAT SHE WAS FILLING THE GAS TANK MORE OFTEN THAN USUAL. SHE DISCOVERED THERE WAS ANOTHER ELECTRICAL MALFUNCTION; THE BARS ON THE FUEL GAUGE WERE NOT MATCHING THE AMOUNT OF GAS THAT WAS BEING PUN INTO THE VEHICLE. *JB UPDATED 03/30/10.*JB