2018 Toyota Camry Hybrid

VEHICLE IN MOTION GETTING ONTO FREEWAY. PRESSING GAS PEDAL TO ACCELERATE CAR NOT ACCELERATING BEYOND 40MPH AND FELT LIKE IT WAS BEING FORCED TO ACCELERATE LIKE THERE WAS DRAG AND PULL. CAR JERKED FORWARD A FEW TIMES AS IF IT WAS BEING CHOKED ON GAS. THE HYBRID DIAL WAS BOUNCING ERRATICALLY AS IF IT WAS CONFUSED AND CAR WAS NOT ACCELERATING BEYOND 40 MPH. TOOK IT TO DEALER 1X THEY COULD NOT REPLICATE ISSUE, CALLED TOYOTA CARE AND WAS TOLD ERROR NEEDED DUPLICATING TO BE ADDRESSED. BOTH INCIDENCES HAVE OCCURED WHILE GETTING ONTO A FREEWAY AND PRESSING GAS PEDAL TO MERGE ONTO THE FREEWAY. THE TEMPERATURE OUTSIDE BOTH TIMES WAS ABOVE 90 DEGREES AND THE CAR HAD BEEN AT REST FOR AT LEAST AN HOUR. I TURNED OFF THE A/C TO REDUCE AMOUNT OF POWER CAR WAS USING UP IN ORDER TO HELP WITH ACCELERATION. THE FIRST TIME THIS HAPPENED IN SEPTEMBER OF 2019. I WAS ABLE TO GET THE CAR TO 50 MPH AFTER ABOUT 15-20 MINUTES AND WAS DRIVING WITH HAZARDS ALL THE WAY TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE SECOND TIME WHEN GETTING ON THE FREEWAY IT WAS NOT BUSY AND WAS TRYING TO ACCELERATE TO 65 MPH, GOT IT UP TO 40 MPH FOR ABOUT 20 MINUTES THEN HIT TRAFFIC AND WAS GOING ABOUT 17 MPH THEN EXITED THE FREEWAY AND TOOK THE STREETS.

WHEN I COME TO A FULL STOP AND ATTEMPT TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE SORT OF "STALLS" THEN EVENTUALLY THE GEARS CATCH AND IT STARTS TO DRIVE. THIS CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS WHEN TRYING TO PICK UP SPEED IN A HIGHWAY OR SOMETHING. THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPENED I WAS AT A STOP SIGN. UPON DEPRESSING THE BRAKE, THE VEHICLE DID NOT PICK UP SPEED, IT SLOWLY ROLLED FORWARD. AFTER ABOUT 5-10 SECONDS, THE VEHICLE THEN SEEMED TO "CATCH GEARS" AND PICKED UP SPEED. I ALSO NOTICED THE HYBRID BATTERY WASN'T CHARGING VERY WELL AND SEEMED TO BE HOT AS THE BATTERY FANS WERE CONSTANTLY ON.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID. WHILE DRIVING AT LOWER SPEEDS IN BOTH DRIVE AND REVERSE, THE VEHICLE WOULD HESITATE AND JERK. THE CONTACT INDICATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS MORE SEVERE WHILE DRIVING IN VERY COLD WEATHER TEMPERATURES AND WHEN THE ENGINE WAS NOT WARMED UP. IN ADDITION, THE BRAKING DISTANCE WAS EXTENDED WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE LOCAL DEALER (CRESTMONT TOYOTA, 730 NJ-23, POMPTON PLAINS, NEW JERSEY) WHERE THE FAILURE WAS ABLE TO BE DUPLICATED, BUT INDICATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS OPERATING AS DESIGNED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS ALSO NOTIFIED AND THE CONTACT WAS REFERRED BACK TO THE DEALER. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 1,000.