Combination meter often does not turn on when turning the car on. This means you cannot see a speedometer, any warning lights, fuel tank levels, or mileage. Also the trunk gets locked and is unable to open. Sometimes the car will not turn off. This has been happening on and off for over a year but has gotten increasingly worse. There are no warning signs. This can happen any time you turn on the car but might not always happen. It can also prevent you from turning off the car. When searching online, it seems this is a common problem with high mileage Priuses between 2005-2009 and so Toyota extended a warranty on it but did not tell all of the owners, most likely to get out of a recall.
2007 Toyota Prius electrical problems
248 complaints (12% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 67,000. 5 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 248
- of this car's complaints
- 12%
- typical mileage
- 67,000
- crashes
- 5
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Instrument cluster/panel5
- 12v/24v/48v battery5
- Wiring: fuses and circuit breakers1
- Software1
- Propulsion system: traction battery1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Toyota Prius electrical problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 2007 Toyota Prius electrical
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
Pedestrian alert sounds
the federal safety agency 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 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, the federal safety agency 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 the federal safety agency 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 the federal safety agency regarding the subject matter of the petition.
DP22005
What 2007 Toyota Prius owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
When the 12-volt battery in this car dies, there is NO warning light to indicate the battery is dead or is running low. The driver is given no warning or indication prior to the car being disabled. Once the battery dies, the vehicle immediately decelerates, there is no acceleration, the braking system becomes mostly disabled, and the power steering is not functional. The car becomes disabled, while being driven, without warning. When this event happens, there is a high pitched screaching alarm, and the majority of the dash lights turn on. None of which indicate there is an issue with the 12-volt battery. The large red triangle light with the exclamation mark comes on, as well the lights indicating that there is a problem with the brakes. Additional dash lights also turn on during this dangerous event. The rear view monitor screen states that there is an issue with the transmission. The reality that a minor 12- volt battery is responsible for disabling a vehicle is extremely dangerous, especially since it happens when the car is being driven. This is a serious issue. Toyota must include an indicator light that warns the driver the battery is low prior to the car being being disabled. Please investigate this matter, as it seems to be a common problem, based on online research. My safety was in jeopardy due to the fact that I was driving the car on a main road, with moderate traffic, and lost control of the car as it became disabled. To get my car off of the road required the assistance of several good Samaritans who used their bodies to block traffic in order to get the car out of the flow of oncoming traffic. Fourteen days later, after the battery was replaced, and the car serviced/inspected, I drove the car 10 to 15 miles, wherein the car did the same thing. Per the dealership, the issue was not the 12- bolt battery. Thank you for your time and consideration. Kindly, Cynthia Becker 623‑209‑4290 [email protected]
The contact owns a 2007 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while at a stop light, she attempted to drive however, the vehicle failed to exceed 25 MPH. The HC battery, ECU, and check engine warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who informed the contact that the vehicle displayed DTC code: P3190 (Engine Failure). The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the hybrid battery was severely drained, and the mechanic retrieved DTC codes: P3000 and P0A80 for the hybrid battery pack. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was towed to another independent mechanic, who replaced the battery, but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was contacted, but no additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 160,000. The contact stated the vehicle was actually overfilled with oil at the mechanic's shop that performed the oil change, so that is what caused the issues with my vehicle.
Instrument panel cluster failure. Panel goes black while driving and lose power. Vehicle won’t start or shut off. My vehicle was getting serviced at the dealership and they couldn’t start the vehicle. I was told the instrument panel cluster was the problem. I contacted Toyota Customer Service, and was told they were aware of the issue. They had issued an extended warranty and sent out a letter to all owners this warranty has expired in 2016. If you purchased your vehicle after 2016 you would not have received any notice regarding this. While driving you can’t see you speed, your gear selection, fuel level, lights and no warning lights. The warning is that your vehicle won’t start or shut off.
Driver side light intermittently shut off until I turn the lights off and then they come back on for a little while and then I have to repeat the process
I was driving and all of my dashboard lights disappeared, I couldn't see anything. I was suddenly driving blind. I pulled over but the car would not turn off. I tried again and again, but it would just not turn off. I called Toyota corporate they asked how far I was to a Toyota dealer and told me to take it there immediately. They gave me a case number 220322000191. When I got to the dealer, they said I would have to pay $150 for a diagnosis. I left it there and am now reporting this. There should be a recall on these vehicles, this is extremely dangerous.
The Dash display (shows the speedometer, warning lights, etc) won't come on, and the rear back up camera doesn't either. They seem to both stop at the same time on start up. The car seems to run fine otherwise.
After I had auxiliary battery replaced at a Toyota dealer 10/13/21, I started noticing that intermittently, when I turned the car on that the lights on my instrument panel would not be lit (can't see speed, odometer, gas gauge). Then noticed other strange things when the instrument panel was dark, such as the back-up camera would not work, had a hard time turning the car off, and back trunk hatch would not open. Took it back to dealer on 11/12/21, thinking problem was related to the battery replacement. First service advisor said that it was the combination meter...that they see it all of the time with Prius'. While waiting for my car, I googled "combination meter" and saw how ultimately dangerous its malfunction could be over time - e.g. the electrical braking system fails and you have to use your emergency brake to stop the car, which would be exceedingly dangerous at 65 mph. When checking out, my service rep agreed with me that it is a safety and Toyota issue, but there was nothing the dealer could do but replace it (at cost to me of $1100+). I took to a non-dealer who read the code - B1271: "Combination Meter ECU communication stopped. Called Toyota who told me it had not been recalled for safety, but there was a warranty enhancement program to cover the replacement of combination meters, which had expired for my car in 2016. There was nothing they could do except contact the customer relations rep at dealer where I am taking car to get fixed on 11/22/21. They took no responsibility at all. I also know the combo meter had a safety recall for the 2019 Prius' so still an issue.
instrument cluster panel goes completely out and blank, speedometer lost, and dash lights gone and causing other issues such as not being able to turn off vehicle, loss of cruise control, unable to open trunk, navigation screen unable to turn off, backup camera not functioning, front lights going on and off while driving at night.
Under hard braking (over 50% of the pedal) the front passenger wheel applies all the force to stop the car to that one tire causing it to lose traction and skid. Brakes are insufficient to properly stop the vehicle and no warning lights are illuminated on the dash. Actually more than half of the time the whole dash does nothing, no MPH, no gas gauge, nothing but a blacked out information less panel. Then to top it off the car only has one headlight bc it blows what ever headlight I put into the ballast. 3 of the most common failures for a 2007 and my Prius has a grand slam assortment of serious potential life threatening problems that should have been repaired (never should have been assembled with) by Toyota. Minor wreck when attempting to stop the car under not driving conditions. Thankfully no one was hurt and only had to replace the front hood, bumper and radiator and support but have deemed the car as not road worthy and unfit for any driving conditions.
Questions about the 2007 Toyota Prius electrical
Does the 2007 Toyota Prius have electrical problems?
Owners have filed 248 complaints about the electrical of the 2007 Toyota Prius, 12% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 2007 Toyota Prius electrical problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 67,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2007 Toyota Prius electrical?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
What year does the Toyota Prius have the most electrical problems?
The Toyota Prius model years with the most electrical complaints are 2007 (248 complaints), 2008 (235 complaints) and 2010 (192 complaints).
Other 2007 Toyota Prius problems
Lights 1,061Brakes 331Body 184Acceleration 124Driver assistance 72Engine 54Airbags 50Locks 42Transmission 41Steering 34Fuel system 30Visibility 27Seat belts 11Tires 11Suspension 8Wheels 2Seats 1
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