A number of times when I brake on uneven roads, the brakes on my 2003 prius feel as if they aren't working. They have always caught almost immediately, so that I haven't thought of reporting the problem until the recent reports on the newest prius model. Incident date is the most recent, even though the problem has been there since I bought the car.
2003 Toyota Prius brakes complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 16 of 16, newest first, as owners wrote them.
I hope you are not limiting your investigation of prius brakes to the 2010 model. I have had the same problem on my 2003 prius since the day I drove it home. When going over uneven surfaces, particularly metal plates or manhole covers, braking momentarily stops and does not resume until the wheels hit the regular road surface. Although I have had no accidents, the sensation of skidding is frightening.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 toyota prius. The contact was driving approximately between 25-35 MPH over uneven pavement when pressure was applied to the brake pedal and the vehicle failed to stop until excessive force was applied to the brake pedal. The vehicle resumed normal operation. The failure continued to occur. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and the technician was unable to duplicate the failure. The VIN was unavailable. The failure mileage was 100.
I have a 2003 toyota prius and also experienced the exact same braking problems as has been reported about the 2010 prius. If I go over a dip in the road while braking, occasionally the brake will not hold (even if it is fully depressed) and I need to release and depress again. I was told by the dealer that this was the antilock braking system and not a real problem with the car. I now suspect that it is the same software glitch as the later prius.
In reading recent media reports regarding braking failures of the 2010 toyota prius, I realized that I have experienced similar lapses in my 2003 prius' braking since the day I bought the car. I wanted to get this on record as it seems the media reports believe this to only be a problem in the 2010 model when this may be an issue that has been going on for a long time. Basically, whether or not the phenomenon occurs during braking depends on several factors and seems to occur more often if the road is wet. If one happens to be rolling over a manhole cover, or hitting a pothole or bump at the moment the brakes are depressed it feels as though, for a brief moment, that the car is skidding forward across the change in roadway surface. This also happens when braking over a thickly painted crosswalk line or the word stop painted on the road. The common factor seems to be braking as the car's tire transitions from a high friction to reduced friction surface. I believe I could reproduce this on demand given the right conditions. Early on I brought it to the attention of my dealership but their was no followup. Fortunately it has never caused an accident, but under the right circumstances it could. I've dealt with the problem by either braking before or after the road surfaces I know to cause the brake slipping effect.
The brake system in my car failed. It was found later that both the computer and pum/engine system for the brakes failed simultaneously. I was charged $2000 for repairs.
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