I drive a 2005 toyota prius and the headlights have started going off intermittently without warning. When I start the car (light switch is always in the on position), sometimes both lights are on, sometimes one, sometimes none. While driving the car, the lights will suddenly go out, usually one or the other, but there have been times where both went out. I have researched the problem and there doesn't appear to be a known solution. I plan to purchase a replacement bulb to see if that solves the problem.
2005 Toyota Prius lights complaints
Page 9 of 13: complaints 221 to 250 of 346, newest first, as owners wrote them.
At about 104k miles the hid headlights, along with the dash dashboard lights, went out while my daughter was driving on a country road at night. The sudden darkness resulted in a collision with a guard rail while braking. After putting the car in park, turning off the power button and restarting the car everything came back on. While we were shaken up, no one was hurt. The car sustained $2k damage to the body, but not to the headlights. The local dealer didn't express any knowledge of headlight failures in priuses, inspected the lighting system and pronounced everything fine. I did have to pay for the inspection as the lights weren't damaged and not covered by the collision claim. Internet research has brought up many similar cases of this occurring with other priuses; with no acknowledgement by toyota. My daughter is now terrified of driving this car. I also own a 2007 prius with hid lights and 55k miles. I'm monitoring it's headlights whenever possible as it is driven mostly during the day with the headlights on.
2005 prius. Lights go off without warning. When lights are turned off and then on again they come back on.
Toyota prius headlight leveling sensor when it fails, headlight can point downward limiting visibility.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 toyota prius. While driving at approximately 10 MPH, the headlight leveling sensor message illuminated on the dashboard twice. The contact also stated that the headlights would intermittently aim downward, providing limited long distance illumination of the roadway. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was awaiting a diagnosis of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 44,000 and the current mileage was 48,000.
Sudden warning light indicating headlight leveling failure. Occurs intermittently under various circumstances. Consequences: headlights either aimed too high blinding oncoming drivers or slanted downward making car impossible to drive at night. Part has not been replaced and car is not driven at night. Old part still available. There was a technical service bulletin in early 2006 indicating that the headlight leveling sensor was not watertight and prone to failure due to water entering the system and corroding the electrical contacts. Toyota improved the integrity of the unit and sold it using the same part number with the added suffix "g". While toyota will cover the replacement cost of the sensor under the 3 yr/36,000 mile warranty there is no coverage for vehicles out of warranty. A recall was never issued. Again, this is only a problem that occurs with the hid headlight system in the earlier generation ii prius (2004 - 2005). Service bulletin:00406 the federal safety agency item number:10019992 my car is out of warranty and I was unaware that there was a problem with the system when it could have been remedied while the car was under warranty. Mileage at failure 72,000. This is a safety issue and a recall should be issued ! Cost of part $370.00 + tax. Labor is another 210.00 + tax.
The passenger front headlight goes out. Toyota has replaced various parts 4 times and it still doesn't work.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 toyota prius. The contact stated the headlights would intermittently flicker on and off and there was limited illumination. The dealer performed a diagnostic on the vehicle and advised that the automatic flashing headlight leveler remained on and caused the headlights to intermittently fail. The contact stated that there was also an unknown light that remained illuminated on the dashboard. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 77,000.
Toyota prius 2005 headlight leveling control sensor fails due to corrosion in the sensor. Result is inadequate night drive due to improperly positioned headlights. Safety issue.
2005 toyota prius. Headlights. The car is equipped with a headlight leveling device. At present my low beams only show about 14 feet in front of the vehicle. When the high beams are on they shine where the normal low beams would shine. I have contacted my dealer, this is a $500.00 dollar fix. The car has 48k miles . This is a safety hazard. I am not safe driving this vehicle at night. This is a serious condition and affects lots of toyota prius as I have found out on the blogs. Appreciate you guys looking into this problem, the device should be replaced by toyota as it has failed through normal use and not from abuse. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
Over the past two months, my 2005 prius has developed an intermittent headlight failure. The headlight in question is on the passenger side of the vehicle. Turning off the headlights and turning them back on resolves the issue, thus the bulb is not the issue. This defect makes the vehicle less safe to operate and holds me civilly responsible for "fix it" damages. The "fix" for this defect is a replacement should not be my responsibility for it is not a failure of obsolescence. I will cheerfully accept the bulb ending life, but for the sensors, switches, and computing behind the headlamp switch to have this level of dependability is not my problem to fix.
2005 prius driver's hid lightbulb failed with less than 80,,000 miles. Cost to replace bulb quoted at $400 plus $300 for labor.
Hid headlamp failure on my 2005 toyota prius. It would work sometimes and then go off as I was driving down the road. Took to dealer 3/26/10; they replaced the headlight bulb for $198.09. It worked for about a month then started flickering off again as I drove down the road. I could turn it off completely then back on and it would work for only a few seconds. Took to dealer again today 6/21/10 and they said it needs a new assembly because it had been "hit". My husband backed into and scraped the headlight cover in 2006 (five years ago), but it worked perfectly until feb. 2010. Interesting that there are multiple complaints of this same problem, with 160 pages of complaints to the federal safety agency alone.
The headlights on my 2005 toyota prius go out intermittently without warning, one at a time. The bulbs will come back on after the first or second time of restarting the car. This may be happening more often than I'm aware. The first time was about 7 months ago when a chp officer pulled me over and gave me a fixit ticket for the headlight being out. It was too late at night to buy another bulb anywhere. I pulled into a lighted parking lot to see if there might be a loose connection. I turned off the car, opened the hood, removed some parts that were in the way of accessing the back of the passenger side headlight, and jiggled the connection to the bulb. I turned the car back on and the light worked. The next time I was at a service appointment at the dealer I asked them if they were aware of any problems with the headlights going out intermittently. The service rep said they do that occasionally, but since they were expensive to repair, to just keep driving until it goes out altogether. About 3 or 4 months ago, my driver side headlight did the same thing that time, I wasn't able to remove the back of the headlight. I was in a remote location late at night about 50 miles along a winding 2-lane road away from my destination. I started the car back up and the driver side headlight was still out. I decided to continue on to my destination with just one headlight, taking a chance the other wouldn't go out. The next day when I started the car, both headlights were working fine. Last night, the passenger side headlight went out for the second time (that I'm aware). I was on a 3-hour drive home after working out of town all week. I stopped for some coffee and when I turned the car back on, both headlights were working fine. After about 10 minutes driving, though, the passenger side headlight went out again and stayed out all the rest of the trip home. Today I googled the problem; several others have had similar problems with prius headlights.
Normal use of high intensity discharge headlamp/bulbs lights are flickering. Wire harness mentioned by dealership, cost to replace is prohibitive. Bulbs should not be 'flickering' if the capsule simply needs to be replaced. This problem is common among this model year prius as well as before and after 2005.
2005 toyota prius with headlights driver's side headlight that goes on and off intermittently. The dealership is charging $350 for this one light bulb, to replace it. There are multiple complaints regarding this problem with the prius, on multiple web sites, all with the same concern. It is obviously a defective part, and the headlights should be recalled by toyota. They go off at very dangerous times, like driving on the interstate.
The hid headlights on my 2005 toyota prius went out several nights ago. The car was taken to toyota, and this problem is common on the 2004-2008 prius, which a simple google search proved. These type of bulbs overheat (since they're halogen). Nevertheless, they charged $1150 for two headlights which cannot be bought anywhere except the toyota dealership. They were only 2 years old. When I called toyota, the person I talked to understood, saying it had happened to him too, but there was nothing he could do since the car had over 136,000 miles on it. Apparently toyota only warranties its parts for one year. Shameful.
I have a 2005 toyota prius and the lights go off while I am driving. If I turn off the lights completely they will come back on. The dealer does not know what to do in fixing it. The lights go off in the middle of driving at night. This is a safety hazard that needs to be addressed. This incident happens day to day. I have been stopped by the police several times not knowing that the lights have gone out. There needs to be a recall to investigate the electrical system.
Tl*the contact owns a 2005 toyota prius. The contact stated she had been having a recurring failure with the headlights where they would intermittently fail while driving at various speeds. The dealer advised that the manufacturer was aware of the failure in his model vehicle but did not offer any assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure continued to recur intermittently. The failure mileage was 110,000 and the current mileage was 120,000.
I had been pulled over on several occassions for faulty tail lights. This has been ongoing since I bought the car. Then my children told me of the front head lights going out for no reason. I did not believe them till the went out on me. After taking it to several toyota dealers and said that there is nothing wrong, on 09/10/2009 I filed a complaint with a "monica" from the federal safety agency in dc. I have yet to hear anything to this date and I am afraid of a serious crash when the lights go out without knowing why. I also have a check light that has been on since before my warranty went out and no one wants to correct the problem. I hate this car, it scares me and there are other issues and I have to date only received one recall and that is on the mats.
While driving my car, a 2005 toyota prius, the headlights will just stop working. It began with the right headlight, sometimes it is both headlights. The headlights will sometimes come back on if they are turned off and then back on, sometimes the car must be turned off and then on again. The dealer has said that it could be fixed by replacing the entire headlight unit (not just the bulb) at over $300 each or possibly the computer control board at over $1000. This is a recurring issue. Because it is now affecting both headlights, the car cannot be driven at night.
2005 toyota prius. There is an electrical problem with my headlights. One or both headlights will go out at least once in an hour of driving. Turning off the headlights and back on restores it to normal operation.
The passenger side headlight burned out on my 2005 toyota prius. I took it to the dealer and they charged $818 for the headlight and the onboard computer that comes with it. I don't yet know what the labor charge will be.
I was driving at night and suddenly realized I couldn't see the road in front of me. When I pulled up to a stop light, I could see the reflection of both headlights on in the back of the car in front of me, but when I started driving again I couldn't see the road again. I put my high beams on and they worked, but the regular lights had become too dim to see anything. I just replaced one of the bulbs two months ago because it was out, but now they are both working but too dim to be useful. The toyota dealer said the bulbs need to be replaced, but one of them is barely two months old. I asked a non-toyota dealer and they said it is not a bulb problem if the bulbs work, but a wiring or battery problem. I don't know what to do because I don't want to pay to fix the wrong problem, since I just replaced a headlamp that can't be the issue.
Driving at night and the head lamps on toyota prius malfunctioned; not aware that they were off. I was on a dark winding road, heavy rain showers. Was alerted by another motorist that my lights were off. Got out of car, tapped the dome, one came on... I was able to drive home. Happened unexpectedly, no warning. Very concern with my safety. They could have been an accident. Checked with other prius owners. Found out, it's a widespread issue with the prius. Toyota is aware of the problem and needs to address it before someone gets seriously hurt or killed. Overall the car is fine but this headlamp issue needs to be addressed from a safety perspective. There are no deaths /injury in my case but prevention is the key. Thank you.
I'm constantly replacing the headlights in my 2005 toyota prius (non-hid bulbs) as they have stopped working 6 times in the last 35k miles. I've replaced them with different manufacturer's bulbs, differing models, and even oem bulbs, but they keep going out. The first time they actually went out with both headlights together at exactly 100,000 miles. I don't know if this is planned obsolence or something else, but both headlights going out while driving at night is far from safe. Given the fact that the dealership wants almost $300 per bulb change, this is getting pretty ridiculous, and I'm not thrilled about the concept of getting tickets due to bulbs burning out every couple of weeks. Aside from the inconvenience and cost, I'm really concerned about the safety aspects of this recurring problem.
1. Noticed that the left headlamp is having intermittent difficulty staying on this past week. 2.once the headlamps are turned on, the left headlamp starts to dim and the light appears to have a pink tint. After a few minutes (3 ' 7) the left headlamp goes completely out. Turning the lights off and then on again starts the cycle all over again. I have been pulled over because the light was out. Having to drive with only 1 functional headlamp is a safety concern. 3.the toyota dealership wants $375.79 for one hid light bulb. Mileage is 67575 I cannot afford the light bulb nor the hundreds of dollars required for the labor costs to replace it.
The front right headlight and rear right taillight randomly turn off. I have seen no pattern as to when it goes out, but it will stay out until the vehicle is turned off and restarted. 95% of the time, this resolves the problem.
I have a 2005 toyota prius with defective hid headlights. These lights are very expensive to replace ($650+/-each) and burn out about every year. My headlights have gone out on several occasions, including on the freeway at 8:30pm in the dark. Everyone I know who owns a prius has had the same problem. Toyota freely admits the headlights are defective, and because of that they are not even an option on the 2010 prius, but denies that the bad headlights are a safety concern. I disagree. Having my headlights suddenly turn off at 65mph on a dark freeway is certainly a safety concern.
1 - my right headlight keeps going on and off while I am driving. I received a ticket that I now have to pay for. The los angeles times mentioned that other cars have this problem. It should be easy for the manufacturer to fix at their expense. 2 - since I purchased my 2005 prius in 2004, when I go over bumps, sometimes the light for the stability comes on and the brakes do not work for a second or two. I had asked when the car was serviced and was told there was nothing wrong. I guess we know better now. 3 - sometimes the two front tires lose traction and make a noise while spinning, before the car moves. 4 - if my car was under the "carpet" recall, why is it that it is not listed under the recall for the gas pedal? 5 - two of my locks are not working. One is the front passenger an one in the back.
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