NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Service Brakes complaints
229 reportsClear category filter116,000 miles · Nov 3, 2021
Service Brakes
The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that when he started the vehicle and depressed the brake pedal, the vehicle made abnormal whirring sounds. There were no warning lights illuminated. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and advised the contact that they w…
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The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that when he started the vehicle and depressed the brake pedal, the vehicle made abnormal whirring sounds. There were no warning lights illuminated. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and advised the contact that they would not cover the repair of the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 116,000.
NHTSA ODI #11439214
Mileage unknown · Nov 2, 2021
Service BrakesCrash
Failure of the ABS accumulator caused an accident that could have easily killed my family. The issue makes all ABS and stability control inoperable. While applying the brakes to avoid a deer at highway speeds, the wheels locked up while sending the car in an uncontrollable sideways slide across the highway and into a culvert. My…
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Failure of the ABS accumulator caused an accident that could have easily killed my family. The issue makes all ABS and stability control inoperable. While applying the brakes to avoid a deer at highway speeds, the wheels locked up while sending the car in an uncontrollable sideways slide across the highway and into a culvert. My wife was driving at the time and she had our 2 small children with her. I learned about the problem from the Toyota dealer and the service advisor told me that Toyota knows about this problem. The advisor informed me that it’s simply just a TSB. This is highly dangerous and Toyota should be responsible for this faulty system.
NHTSA ODI #11439073
160,000 miles · Oct 29, 2021
Service BrakesCrash
Brakes were applied in order to avoid a collision with a deer, but the brakes locked up, sending my family out of control across the oncoming lane and into an embankment. They were lucky they weren’t killed. Toyota knows this is an issue and have failed to address it. The ABS accumulator no longer works, causing a dangerous situ…
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Brakes were applied in order to avoid a collision with a deer, but the brakes locked up, sending my family out of control across the oncoming lane and into an embankment. They were lucky they weren’t killed. Toyota knows this is an issue and have failed to address it. The ABS accumulator no longer works, causing a dangerous situation. A local Toyota dealer alerted me to this issue.
NHTSA ODI #11438708
Mileage unknown · Sep 29, 2021
Service Brakes
While driving vehicle the parking brake light, abs light and traction control lights all suddenly came on. I was driving on smooth roadway with no bumps. I pulled to side to investigate to found that I had to press really hard to get brakes to function and stop the vehicle. Luckíly there were no other vehicles around.
NHTSA ODI #11434813
Mileage unknown · Sep 1, 2021
Service Brakes
For about a week, I heard intermittent strange noises when I would be stopped in traffic with the brake pedal depressed. On 08/31/21, lights on the dashboard came on - the "brake" light, "Brake system warning light", ABS light, and the "Slip indicator" light. All of these remain on. Braking was feeling sluggish and the brake pe…
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For about a week, I heard intermittent strange noises when I would be stopped in traffic with the brake pedal depressed. On 08/31/21, lights on the dashboard came on - the "brake" light, "Brake system warning light", ABS light, and the "Slip indicator" light. All of these remain on. Braking was feeling sluggish and the brake pedal would decompress to the floor when starting the car. When starting the car on 09/01/21, the car lurched forward although in "park" mode. I drove the car to the lube specialist to have them check the fluid levels, and they said that everything was o.k, nothing to make all the warning lights light up. Then I was referred to a mechanic who works on Pruis cars. His diagnostic tool was indicating that my brake accumulator was bad. This has led me to check for recalls on this model and year and it seems there have been problems submitted on this very issue.
NHTSA ODI #11431389
108,000 miles · Jul 16, 2021
Service Brakes
The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would shake and vibrate while depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, while depressing the brake pedal, the vehicle would not immediately stop, causing the braking distance to become extended. The vehicle was taken to the…
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The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would shake and vibrate while depressing the brake pedal. Additionally, while depressing the brake pedal, the vehicle would not immediately stop, causing the braking distance to become extended. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who replaced the brake pads, but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 108,000.
NHTSA ODI #11425123
95,000 miles · Apr 26, 2021
Service BrakesCrash
I CANNOT STOP MY CAR IN TIME, IT FEELS LIKE I AM FRED FLINSTONE TRYING TO USE MY FEET TO STOP. I HAVE REAR-ENDED ANOTHER CAR. I HAVE NO CAR TO DRIVE AS IT IS NOT SAFE. KENDALL WEST TOYOTA GAVE ME CAR BACK AND SAID PART OF RECALLS COMPLETED BUT UNABLE TO COMPLETE OTHER RECALLS. THEY SAID ABS FIXED BUT IT IS NOT AS STILL MAKES …
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I CANNOT STOP MY CAR IN TIME, IT FEELS LIKE I AM FRED FLINSTONE TRYING TO USE MY FEET TO STOP. I HAVE REAR-ENDED ANOTHER CAR. I HAVE NO CAR TO DRIVE AS IT IS NOT SAFE. KENDALL WEST TOYOTA GAVE ME CAR BACK AND SAID PART OF RECALLS COMPLETED BUT UNABLE TO COMPLETE OTHER RECALLS. THEY SAID ABS FIXED BUT IT IS NOT AS STILL MAKES THE SAME WHINING SOUND AND I CANNOT BRAKE. I HAVE TO USE ALL MY STRENGTH TO PUSH AS HARD AS HUMANLY POSSIBLE. I HAVE TO PAY FOR RENTAL CAR. KENDALL TOYOTA COULD NOT PROVIDE A TIME FRAME OF WHEN MY CAR WOULD BE FIXED.
NHTSA ODI #11413928
Mileage unknown · Jan 14, 2021
Forward Collision AvoidanceService BrakesUnknown Or Other
MY 2013 PRIUS IS HAVING ISSUES WITH THE INTERFACE AND IT HAS BEEN RECALLED AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO FROM HERE.
NHTSA ODI #11388159
117,000 miles · Nov 27, 2020
Service Brakes
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 TOYOTA PRIUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, THERE WAS AN CLICKING SOUND COMING FROM THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE CLICKING SOUND WAS MORE EVIDENT WHILE THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED. ADDITIONALLY, WITH THE BRAKE PEDAL DEPRESSED, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO STOP SLOW OR …
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 TOYOTA PRIUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, THERE WAS AN CLICKING SOUND COMING FROM THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE CLICKING SOUND WAS MORE EVIDENT WHILE THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED. ADDITIONALLY, WITH THE BRAKE PEDAL DEPRESSED, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO STOP SLOW OR STOP AS DESIGNED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO COBB COUNTY TOYOTA (2111 BARRETT LAKES BLVD, KENNESAW, GA 30144) WHERE THE MECHANIC DIAGNOSED THE VEHICLE WITH A DEFECTIVE RELAY INSIDE OF THE BRAKE BOOSTER. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT BE SERVICED UNDER WARRANTY UNTIL A CHECK ENGINE OR SERVICE ENGINE WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 117,000.
NHTSA ODI #11376700
Mileage unknown · Jun 20, 2020
Service Brakes
MY BRAKES DON'T WORK LIKE THEY NORMALLY DO. THEY ARE HARD AND THE BRAKE PEDAL IS SPONGY. THE TRACTION CONTROL, ABS, BRAKE AND A ROUND WITH AN EXCLAMATION PINT LIGHT IS ON. IT GOES AWAY AND IT COMES BACK AND ITS VERY DANGEROUS BECAUSE IT HAPPENS WHEN I'M DRIVING AND ONCE I TRY TO STOP THE BRAKE PEDAL IS HARD. FIRST TIME IT HAPPEN…
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MY BRAKES DON'T WORK LIKE THEY NORMALLY DO. THEY ARE HARD AND THE BRAKE PEDAL IS SPONGY. THE TRACTION CONTROL, ABS, BRAKE AND A ROUND WITH AN EXCLAMATION PINT LIGHT IS ON. IT GOES AWAY AND IT COMES BACK AND ITS VERY DANGEROUS BECAUSE IT HAPPENS WHEN I'M DRIVING AND ONCE I TRY TO STOP THE BRAKE PEDAL IS HARD. FIRST TIME IT HAPPENED I ALMOST HIT A CAR INFANT OF ME AT A STOP LIGHT. *TR
NHTSA ODI #11329836
Official recalls
3Jun 24, 2020
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2013-2015 Prius and 2014-2017 Prius V vehicles not included in recall 18V-684. Excessive voltage in the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) within the inverter may cause the hybrid system to shut down, causing the vehicle to stall while being driven.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An unexpected hybrid power system shut down may increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will perform a software update for the hybrid system. If the vehicle has experienced an inverter failure with certain hybrid system faults related to this condition, the inverter assembly will be repaired or replaced, prior to software update. All repairs will be performed free of charge. This recall began July 24, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's number for this recall is 20TB10 / 20TA10.
Oct 4, 2018
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2010-2014 Toyota Prius and 2012-2014 Toyota Prius V vehicles. Excessive voltage in the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) within the inverter may cause the hybrid system to shut down, causing the vehicle to stall while being driven.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the hybrid system shuts down unexpectedly, it can increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will update the software for the motor/generator control electronic control unit (ECU) and the hybrid control ECU as necessary, free of charge. The recall began January 22, 2019. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's number for this recall is J0V. Note: The software updates in this recall are needed even if the vehicle had the software previously updated under recalls 14V-053 or 15V-449.
Feb 12, 2014
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2010 through 2014 Prius vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) inside the inverter module (a component of the hybrid system) contains transistors that may become damaged from high operating temperatures. If this occurs, various warning lamps will be illuminated on the instrument panel and the vehicle will have reduced power allowing it to only drive a short distance.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: The vehicle may enter a fail-safe/limp-home mode that limits the drivability of the vehicle. The hybrid system could also shut down completely resulting in a vehicle stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners and dealers will update the software for both the motor/generator control electronic control unit (ECU) and the hybrid control ECU, free of charge. If an owner experiences a failure of the inverter before the vehicle receives updated software, the dealer will repair or replace the inverter assembly with a new one at no charge. The recall began on March 21, 2014. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Hybrid Propulsion System: Inverter
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2010 through 2014 Prius vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) inside the inverter module (a component of the hybrid system) contains transistors that may become damaged from high operating temperatures. If this occurs, various warning lamps will be illuminated on the instrument panel and the vehicle will have reduced power allowing it to only drive a short distance.
Consequence: The vehicle may enter a fail-safe/limp-home mode that limits the drivability of the vehicle. The hybrid system could also shut down completely resulting in a vehicle stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners and dealers will update the software for both the motor/generator control electronic control unit (ECU) and the hybrid control ECU, free of charge. If an owner experiences a failure of the inverter before the vehicle receives updated software, the dealer will repair or replace the inverter assembly with a new one at no charge. The recall began on March 21, 2014. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Electrical System:software
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2010 through 2014 Prius vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) inside the inverter module (a component of the hybrid system) contains transistors that may become damaged from high operating temperatures. If this occurs, various warning lamps will be illuminated on the instrument panel and the vehicle will have reduced power allowing it to only drive a short distance.
Consequence: The vehicle may enter a fail-safe/limp-home mode that limits the drivability of the vehicle. The hybrid system could also shut down completely resulting in a vehicle stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners and dealers will update the software for both the motor/generator control electronic control unit (ECU) and the hybrid control ECU, free of charge. If an owner experiences a failure of the inverter before the vehicle receives updated software, the dealer will repair or replace the inverter assembly with a new one at no charge. The recall began on March 21, 2014. Owners may contact Toyota at 1-800-331-4331.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
3DP23005 · Brake Actuator Valve Wear
Opened Nov 22, 2023 · No close date supplied
Status: open (inferred from source dates) · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components; Service Brakes, Hydraulic:power Assist
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received a petition dated September 19, 2023 from the owner of a 2012 Toyota Prius V requesting that ODI reevaluate its decision to deny DP19-004. In the letter, the petitioner reported experiencing an unexpected and complete loss of brake power while driving, accompanied by multiple dashboard warning lights. This petition is based on the petitioner's direct experience and assessment that ODI closed DP19-004 because its prompting petition was withdrawn by that petitioner. ODI will review the work conducted during DP19-004 and a review of any additional related complaints and crashes via a new defect petition The petition and related materials can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under the following ODI number:11553736.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received a petition dated September 19, 2023 from the owner of a 2012 Toyota Prius V requesting that ODI reevaluate its decision to deny DP19-004. In the letter, the petitioner reported experiencing an unexpected and complete loss of brake power while driving, accompanied by multiple dashboard warning lights. This petition is based on the petitioner's direct experience and assessment that ODI closed DP19-004 because its prompting petition was withdrawn by that petitioner. ODI will review the work conducted during DP19-004 and a review of any additional related complaints and crashes via a new defect petition The petition and related materials can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under the following ODI number:11553736.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic:power Assist
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received a petition dated September 19, 2023 from the owner of a 2012 Toyota Prius V requesting that ODI reevaluate its decision to deny DP19-004. In the letter, the petitioner reported experiencing an unexpected and complete loss of brake power while driving, accompanied by multiple dashboard warning lights. This petition is based on the petitioner's direct experience and assessment that ODI closed DP19-004 because its prompting petition was withdrawn by that petitioner. ODI will review the work conducted during DP19-004 and a review of any additional related complaints and crashes via a new defect petition The petition and related materials can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under the following ODI number:11553736.
DP22005 · 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.
DP19004 · Brake Actuator Valve Wear
Opened Sep 30, 2019 · Closed Jan 21, 2021
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:power Assist
On September 19, 2019, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a defect petition from Mr. Roger Hogan requesting that the Agency investigate and recall certain Toyota Prius, Prius PHV, Camry Hybrid and Avalon Hybrid vehicles for a brake actuator valve wear condition covered under Toyota Customer Support Programs ZJB and ZKK (subject CSP?s). In support of his request, the petitioner identified 117 NHTSA complaints allegedly related to the subject CSP condition, including 60 reporting crashes. On September 30, 2019, ODI opened Defect Petition DP19-004 to evaluate the petitioner?s request for an investigation. In August 2020, the petitioner notified the Agency that he was withdrawing his petition. Because the petitioner has withdrawn the petition, we are denying the petition as moot and no further analysis of this petition is necessary.NHTSA is authorized to issue an order requiring notification and remedy of a defect if the Agency?s investigation shows a defect in the design, construction, or performance of a motor vehicle that presents an unreasonable risk to safety. 49 U.S.C. ?? 30102(a)(9), 30118. Because the petitioner has with withdrawn the petition, the petition is denied as moot. This action does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist. The Agency notes that it is not required to receive a defect petition prior to opening a defect investigation and will take further action if warranted by future circumstances.
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