NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Electrical System complaints
23 reportsClear category filterMileage unknown · Aug 28, 2026
Electrical SystemPower TrainVehicle Speed Control
While I was driving on the freeway the dash lit up with multiple lights. Simultaneously, I lost power to the car and could not accelerate and only break. The steering was tight and I could not steer correctly. Then a message that said, CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM STOP THE VEHICLE IN A SAFE PLACE IMMEDIATELY. The was slowing down and I h…
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While I was driving on the freeway the dash lit up with multiple lights. Simultaneously, I lost power to the car and could not accelerate and only break. The steering was tight and I could not steer correctly. Then a message that said, CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM STOP THE VEHICLE IN A SAFE PLACE IMMEDIATELY. The was slowing down and I had to pull over on the side of the freeway. There were no fluids leaking from the car.The car did not power back on nor run for over 10 minutes. The incident put my safety and other safety at risk by turning off while driving highway speeds. I was afraid for my life. There is an open recall which has not yet been resolved Major Safety Recalls for the 2013 Prius •The Hybrid Inverter Module (Critical Recall): Excessive voltage inside the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) can cause the hybrid system to overheat, shut down completely, or put the car into "limp home" mode while you are driving.
NHTSA ODI #11760483
Mileage unknown · Jan 23, 2026
Electrical SystemService Brakes
Brake master cylinder failure.
NHTSA ODI #11713042
Mileage unknown · Oct 1, 2025
Electrical SystemUnknown Or Other
My 2013 Toyota Prius has a failed inverter/converter assembly, including the Intelligent Power Module (IPM). This component is critical for vehicle operation and designed to last the life of the car. Premature IPM shorting and inverter failure is a known defect acknowledged by Toyota through multiple recalls and service campaign…
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My 2013 Toyota Prius has a failed inverter/converter assembly, including the Intelligent Power Module (IPM). This component is critical for vehicle operation and designed to last the life of the car. Premature IPM shorting and inverter failure is a known defect acknowledged by Toyota through multiple recalls and service campaigns for other VINs with the same part number. My vehicle is giving codes P0A94 and P0A1A which are also listed in the recalls for other Prius models of similar age. My vehicle experiences the same failure, yet Toyota has denied goodwill coverage, claiming “insufficient service history.” Routine maintenance like oil changes and brake inspections does not affect this component, making the denial unreasonable. There is nothing to service on the inverter. This defect poses a serious safety risk, sudden inverter failure caused total loss of power while driving and loss of power steering, it was difficult to pull my car off the road. This poses a danger to drivers, passengers, and others on the road. Toyota’s exclusion of my VIN from coverage leaves me financially responsible for a known safety defect. I request NHTSA to investigate Toyota’s handling of inverter/IPM failures, the denial of goodwill assistance for affected VINs, and ensure that Toyota addresses this life-threatening defect consistently across all affected vehicles instead of narrowing the scope on who gets coverage when this is a dangerous electrical malfunction.
NHTSA ODI #11690862
Mileage unknown · Jul 29, 2025
Electrical SystemEngine
failure of the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) within the inverter assembly
NHTSA ODI #11677091
Mileage unknown · Sep 14, 2024
Electrical SystemService BrakesSteeringCrash
Immobilized failure due to combination of brake hose failure preventing hybrid control/shift actuator. Hybrid steering lock became disengaged and could not communicate with the certification ecu due constant power being disabled due to complete main body failure. Hybrid system cannot go back into park however ecm side did. Ecm w…
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Immobilized failure due to combination of brake hose failure preventing hybrid control/shift actuator. Hybrid steering lock became disengaged and could not communicate with the certification ecu due constant power being disabled due to complete main body failure. Hybrid system cannot go back into park however ecm side did. Ecm was not receiving power as dealer coded main body as a plug in hybrid effectively disabling fuel systems (including emissions/fuel safety) causing full misclassification in the smart key certification process. Car starts, goes into ready and disables LIN comms alongside cutting main relay due to tailgate and fuel constant powers being cut while driving.
NHTSA ODI #11614548
Mileage unknown · May 5, 2023
Electrical SystemEngine
My vehicle has under 150,000 miles. I was driving on the highway and my Prius lost power and left me on the side of the road. I took it to Toyota to run a diagnostic in Elk Grove Ca. I was told the ipm inverter, control computer had to be replaced and it would cost me $5,200.00. This is a real disappointment because I don’t ha…
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My vehicle has under 150,000 miles. I was driving on the highway and my Prius lost power and left me on the side of the road. I took it to Toyota to run a diagnostic in Elk Grove Ca. I was told the ipm inverter, control computer had to be replaced and it would cost me $5,200.00. This is a real disappointment because I don’t have this money to fix the vehicle.
NHTSA ODI #11520646
Mileage unknown · Jan 9, 2023
Electrical SystemPower Train
According to Toyota Dealership, "WILL NEED TO REPLACE (MG1) HV TRANSAXLE UNIT AS 1ST STEP IN ORDER TO TO BE ABLE TO PROCEED WITH DIAGNOSE AND CHECKED FOR ANY OTHER SHORTED COMPONENTS". Vehicle is available for inspection. Vehicle was being driven on a city street towards a red light when the vehicle experienced a jolt and lost c…
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According to Toyota Dealership, "WILL NEED TO REPLACE (MG1) HV TRANSAXLE UNIT AS 1ST STEP IN ORDER TO TO BE ABLE TO PROCEED WITH DIAGNOSE AND CHECKED FOR ANY OTHER SHORTED COMPONENTS". Vehicle is available for inspection. Vehicle was being driven on a city street towards a red light when the vehicle experienced a jolt and lost complete acceleration power and a "Check Hybrid System" was displayed on the dashboard. Luckily all vehicles behind were already coming to a stop for the red light, otherwise, the safety of my family and myself may have been put in more serious harm. Vehicle able to crawl to a nearby gas station. Attempted to use remaining battery power to drive back to residence nearby, but lost all battery power/function and puled into a bus lane where vehicle was towed from. There were no warning lights or messages displayed prior to the incident. Toyota Dealership performed DTC verification 3 times and found to verify P0A94 detail code 172 is the persistent DTC when memory is cleared. They also inspected the vehicle for concern and were able to verify Check Engine Light is ON, vehicle is on "Limp Mode" and does not "Ready ON". The vehicle has not been inspected by anyone else other than the Toyota Dealership.
NHTSA ODI #11500797
66,000 miles · Jun 30, 2022
Electrical SystemHybrid Propulsion System
The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Prius C. The contact stated that while driving at slow speeds, the vehicle stalled as a system failure warning message appeared on the instrument panel. The vehicle inadvertently turned. The vehicle was restarted but shifted into limp mode with the message displayed. The contact was able to restart…
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The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Prius C. The contact stated that while driving at slow speeds, the vehicle stalled as a system failure warning message appeared on the instrument panel. The vehicle inadvertently turned. The vehicle was restarted but shifted into limp mode with the message displayed. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and then drove the vehicle to the residence. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V369000 (Hybrid Propulsion System) and 14V053000 (Hybrid Propulsion System, Electrical System) which she linked to the failure. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 66,000.
NHTSA ODI #11471817
Mileage unknown · Dec 17, 2021
Electrical SystemEngineFuel/propulsion System
Without warning my 2013 prius C stalled on the freeway with a hybrid battery warning. When the car was shut off it had intermittent problems with starting. After jumping the car battery , it ran normally again for some time before the stalling problem persisted. The hybrid battery stopped running and I received a warning light. …
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Without warning my 2013 prius C stalled on the freeway with a hybrid battery warning. When the car was shut off it had intermittent problems with starting. After jumping the car battery , it ran normally again for some time before the stalling problem persisted. The hybrid battery stopped running and I received a warning light. Diagnostics at my repair shop said it was an inverter issue.I see that toyota has recalled several models for similar issues with the inverter. When the car is jumped it seems to work for a short time before stalling out again. Has created a real safety issue for me and there is a real lack of information on behalf of toyota on whether or not it will be covered under existing models. It seems like every model toyota from this year was recalled for an inverter issue. The car does run normally on occasion, charges the battery, and will run on EV, but mostly remains in a stalled out low power mode after it has these stalling episodes.e Diagnostics have stated to me that the car batteries are healthy and I relplaced the 12V and several fuses etc throughout this process with similar results.
NHTSA ODI #11444160
80,000 miles · Sep 8, 2021
Electrical SystemEngine
The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Prius C. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle shut-off without warning. The contact pulled over and was unable to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic but was diagnosed nor repaired. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights were …
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The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Prius C. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle shut-off without warning. The contact pulled over and was unable to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic but was diagnosed nor repaired. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and the contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.
NHTSA ODI #11432155
NHTSA investigations
1DP22005 · Pedestrian Alert Sounds
Opened Jan 27, 2023 · Closed Aug 7, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Electrical System:propulsion System
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.