2006 Toyota Prius: sudden loss of power

Filed Jul 26, 2021 · Engine, Fuel system · 167,000 miles · GA

The contact owns a 2006 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost power and immediately regained power. Approximately 24 hours later the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the hybrid water pump was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The local dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the vehicle was not included in the federal safety agency campaign number 12V536000 (Engine and Engine Cooling, Hybrid Propulsion System). The contact indicated that the vehicle experienced the failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 167,000.

Filed Jun 3, 2014 · Brakes, Steering · 81,689 miles · CA

I am requesting that the federal safety agency investigate expanding/adding-to the recall of toyota prius coolant inverter pump failures* to include coolant storage pump failures blowing a main fuse causing dangerous loss of all power and control. *tr on may 31st, 2014, while traveling at about 60mph, without any warning, the car instantly shut down: no drive power, no power steering, no power brakes, no front panel display. This was a dangerous situation. After diagnosis, the toyota dealer with assistance from toyota corporate concluded that the "coolant storage pump" (not the coolant inverter pump as in the recall) was the cause of this blown "am-2" 15-amp fuse which shut down the hybrid system, power steering, brakes, etc. They indicated that the coolant storage pump fault was a known cause. This car is well-maintained, dealer maintained. It had all the recent recall updates installed. It was a mild day ~75deg. We'd been driving about 10 mins after a 30 minute stop. Vehicle load was not a factor -- two slim adults, no cargo load. No electrical charging loads. I am very concerned with the safety implications of immediately losing all power, power brakes, power steering, without warning, because of a single coolant pump fault. Can you please investigate this. I hope they fixed my vehicle. And I hope if anyone else has this problem its not deadly. Thank you, * recall of inverter coolant pump 12v536000: "...open fuse, creating a stall-like condition of the hybrid system while the vehicle is being driven. This may increase the risk of a vehicle crash." ps I found another complaint that might be related (..shut off in traffic, similar VIN, the federal safety agency id number: 10567158). Though this complaint seems to be focused on the costs replacing additional pumps.

Filed May 17, 2014 · Engine · 114,980 miles · CA

After long drive up mountains, vehicle lost power when going uphill, pressing on the gas pedal resulted in jerky movement of a few feet. Vehicle stopped. Checked battery and it was low but had two blue bars. No warning signs were lit on the dashboard. Managed to turn vehicle around and it coasted downhill with no subsequent problems. The loss of power occurred on a road with a blind curve. Turning back was a potentially dangerous situation. There was no warning of any problems. Dealer was not helpful in solving this potential problem.

Filed Aug 3, 2013 · Lights · 45,000 miles · OR

There is an intermittent power loss to the headlights. This is a safety issue. The problem is random and the dealer has not been able to see the issue. While the car is running, the headlights turn off. If I turn the headlights off and then back on, they come on for a period of time. This happens with both headlights. Sometimes at the same time and sometimes only one will turn off. I have researched several websites for prius owners and this problem seems to be fairly common. As you cannot pass vehicle inspection with defective headlights and you can be pulled over by the police for having lights out, this is a serious safety issue and toyota should be forced to recall this issue. I am the second owner of this vehicle and the previous owner reported to the dealer the same issues.

Filed Sep 14, 2010 · Engine · 60,900 miles · CA

My 4 year old toyota prius lost engine power on the freeway on two separate occasions. Driving in stop and go traffic on freeway I heard one beep as the car lost engine power slowed down and went to battery. A long row of warning symbols, starting with the triangle, lit up. I slowly exited freeway on battery power then turned car off. I restarted car about 15 min. Later and engine started, only warning lights illuminated were red triangle and check engine light. Dealer replaced inverter pump assembly and flushed the inverter system. 5 days after repair, while exiting freeway during normal traffic, beep sounded and engine shut off and the above order of events happened again. This time dealer replaced inverter assy (assembly?).

Filed Feb 5, 2010 · Engine, Transmission · 100 miles · NM

I have a 2006 prius. When going over bumps, I experience a total loss of power for 1 or three seconds -generally. A yellow light also comes on the dash board. It often happens daily. I have only had one or two experiences when the power didn't return so quickly and then I was afraid because I had no brakes and was just skidding. I believe that I have seen this problem discussed by other prius owners of chat sites. It can occur at any mileage speed but I was only able to put a mileage number in the box can it be fixed?

Filed Feb 4, 2010 · Driver assistance · NY

The car indicates a wheel slide warning in best of conditions at random times. Loss of power to car and difficulty in retaining control.

Filed Dec 2, 2008 · Lights · 42,000 miles · PA

Tl*the contact owns a 2006 toyota prius. While driving approximately 40 MPH at night, the contact noticed that the exterior light on the passenger side lost power. The vehicle was driven to the dealer for a diagnostic, but no failures were found. The vehicle was not repaired at that time. A few months later, the exterior light on the driver's side began to lose power. The light began working again once it was turned off and then on again. The failures have occurred intermittently. The manufacturer has not been notified. The current mileage was 47,000 and failure mileage was 42,000. Updated 12/16/08 *cn updated 12/18/08.

Filed Nov 20, 2008 · Lights · 38,000 miles · PA

Tl*the contact owns a 2006 toyota prius. While driving approximately 35 MPH, the exterior lights on the passenger side lost power. As a result, the contact could only drive with the high beams activated. He stated that the exterior lighting on the passenger side has been losing power intermittently for the past year. The vehicle was driven to the dealer on three occasions. The first two times the mechanic stated that the failure could not be duplicated. On the third visit, the dealer stated that the computer that controls the hid headlights was defective and needed to be replaced. The mechanic also stated that the hid headlamp needed to be replaced. The vehicle has been repaired, but the manufacturer has not been notified. The VIN was unavailable. The current mileage was 51,056 and failure mileage was 38,000.

Filed Mar 7, 2008 · Fuel system · 24,001 miles · CA

Tl*the contact owns a 2006 toyota prius. While driving 70 MPH, all of the warning lights illuminated and the vehicle lost power and shut down. On june 25, 2007, the dealer stated that no failure could be identified. On september 26, 2007, the dealer stated that there was a loose wire. On november 13, 2007, the dealer stated that the fuel tank and pump needed to be replaced. The dealer repaired the vehicle. The failure mileage was 24,001 and current mileage was 35,000. Updated 07/10/08.*lj toyota bought the vehicle back from the consumer. Updated

Filed Nov 6, 2007 · Fuel system · 27,290 miles · MO

On september 23, 2007, I was traveling on I-70 returning from bloomington indiana to webster groves missouri. As I was driving the add fuel light came on. Based on my previous experience, I knew I had at least 40 miles. All of a sudden, all of the warning lights came on and the car lost power. Luckily I was able to maneuver to the shoulder. I got the car to go a little further before it died on the ramp of the next exit. The total miles traveled from the time the add fuel light came on until the car completely died was 18 miles. I notified toyota and their response was that I ran out of gas. They told me I should have 50 miles or so from when the add fuel light came on before running out of gas. They could not explain why I only got 18 miles. I told them that I believe there is something wrong with the fuel sensor and that this is a safety issue since my car died while traveling on an interstate. Toyota said it was not a safety issue since they have not had many complaints about this. For what it is worth, it was a very hot day and I had been traveling about 3 hours or so. My guess is that the fuel sensor is not accurate under these conditions. I asked toyota why I only got 18 miles after the add fuel light came on. The representative could offer no explanation. At no time did toyota check the fuel sensor.

Filed Jun 11, 2007 · Electrical · 10,300 miles · CA

I was driving on highway when suddenly I lost all power! I managed to take the nearest exit at 20 MPH. Pulled over to the shoulder. Hope you get the seriousness t s situation. My passenger and I could have died.*ak bf state of car before failure 1> tank full shell vpower ( previous tank 57.8 mpg calculated costco fuel ) 2> mileage 9982 ( just completed 10000 mile service from capitol toyota ca ) 3> A/C on was changing setting ( moved from front vent to front and bottom vent ) just before failure heard a beep and then no power .tried flooring the accelerator sad.gif 4> speed ~70mph 5> both power outlets loaded a> garmin mobile 10x charger b> htc 3125 phone charger 6> phone conected via bluetooth nothing was done by toyota said they could not replicate the problem hence they can not change or fix anything. Http://priuschat.com/index.php?showtopic=33881&st=0