When I tried to slow down and hit the break, it took more time, compare to other car. I tried not to hit the car ahead of me and turn left and hit the left front door to the furniture on the street beside garbage can. I didn't crash to the other car and I didn't get hurt. I thought that is usual for hybrid car and I fixed my car in autoshop. Since then, I hit break very early. And last winter, my car didn't stop on the icy road and since then I didn't drive whenver it snow or icy.
2008 Toyota Prius brakes complaints
Page 11 of 14: complaints 281 to 310 of 391, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Proceeding to get on highway and in gravel driveway vehicle lost traction and brakes failed.(at least 5 or 6 times in 2009 and most rescent 2/03/10)\headlight and relay switch failed\front running light not working all the time\radio switching from fm,fm2and am randomly\car for no reason going dead at a store orbeing parked for an hour or 2and having to be jumped\main batteries losing charge(most of these issues have already been documented at toyota with the response that there is nothing wrong with the car as far back as august and most recent in december '09) also the tires went bald after 20,000 miles\can't put more than 8 gallons of fuel in tank'ever
Driving on a dirt road which turns into a paved road. Started sliding as soon as I hit the paved road. Pumped on the brakes, the ABS didnt work. The car kept sliding off the road into a fence. $4000.00 in damage.
I see in the news that 2010 toyota prius is investigated for braking issue on ice and slippery roads. I experience the same with 2008 prius. I feel a delay when I apply the brake when the roads are wet etc.it is sporatidc experience.
2008 prius, 2006 lexus 400h momentary brake loss. I believe the 2010 prius brake issue goes well beyond 2010 prius models. I think the momentary (split second) delay in braking happens at low speeds, infrequently, perhaps in the b shift position exclusively (not certain on this in the lexus) and usually on slippery surfaces and/or cold weather and usually when going down an incline. The feeling I got in my prius and my wife in her lexus was not an acceleration feeling but a going into neutral feeling. It kind of felt like the car picked up speed but more from the coasting effect than anything to due with an accelerator. I would look at the anti-lock braking as it relates to regenerative braking with a dash of speed thrown in. Good luck. I still feel the cars are safe. Date below not real-just placeholder -today's date.
I own a 2008 prius and I have the same brake problem as many owners have reported. The brake sometimes does not work on a bumpy road edge and when it occurs the orange light that indicates unstable condition turns on. It also occurs when it is raining. Foursome reason, it works well in a heavy rain but doesn't work on a road under "light" raining condition. Whenever it happens, the car slows down but doesn't stop and I feel it's sliding on the road surface. I haven't contacted the dealer regarding this problem.
Last night while driving home in light rain on a smooth,straight road a very loud alarm began to sound and a red "brake" light lit up on the instrument panel and the brakes felt like they were failing. The steering also became very stiff. The alarm did not stop until I had pulled over and used the emergency brake to stop and turned the engine off completely. I took the car to the dealership where I was told that it was driver error for driving with one foot on the gas and one on the brake at the same time, which is absurd. It was also implied that I had "imagined" this frightening emergency due to the recent problems in the news with the 2010 brakes on the prius. That is also completely false. I had never even considered my car might have a brake failure until it happened as nothing had ever happened before this incident. I left the dealership in tears and afraid to drive my car with no hope of an answer because I was not believed. They even said that there was no such loud alarm that could go off on the 08 prius. I was told that the code c1256 revealed,with 100% accuracy, that I had hit the brake and gas simultaneously 38 times! I explained that this could never have happened even once and was told that the computer is never wrong.
I just reported the brake problem for this car, but there's also a problem with the tcs. When trying to accelerate on slick surfaces there is a momentary loss of traction resulting in an overly-long compensated period of seriously reduced acceleration; this has caused safety problems in intersections, where I am unable to quickly accelerate out of the way if conditions are slick or sandy, it is so unsafe that I wish I could turn off the traction control system..
When going over bumps it fells like the brakes stop working. It almost feels like the vehicle accelerates.
My 2008 toyota prius has experienced the same braking problems described in recent media releases. My 2005 prius also had the same problem, but I've since sold it. When driving over a slippery surface (ice, a wet sewer cover or painted crosswalk line) and needing to brake - when I first apply the brake it begins to stop, then the car suddenly speeds up again before continuing to brake. I've learned to keep my distance so I don't hit anyone in the split second the car is no longer braking.
Another 2008 prius owner here attesting to the brake problems. Just one half of a mile from my home I encounter the perfect one two combination that demonstrates the defect. There is a slightly recessed man hole cover very close to a slight ripple in the asphalt near a "t" intersection. While braking, if I allow my right wheels to drop into the man hole cover and the left wheels to cross the ripple immediately thereafter my traction control warning light comes on and the car does not slow. I have to release the brake pedal until the light goes off then re-apply the brakes in order to slow down at the intersection. Obviously, I avoid these bumps now that I know what will happen. This defect can get me into serious trouble in an area I'm not familiar with. I can duplicate this problem in three different places nearby if anyone from the federal safety agency wants a demonstration.
My car has the same problem that the 2010 prius has and I wanted to make sure that toyota looks beyond just the 2010 model year. Whenever I brake as I hit a pothole or bump in the road, the car seems to speed up just a bit before the brakes begin working. This has happened since I have owned the car and I thought it was just part of how the car worked. I haven't had an accident because of this, but there have been a few close calls. There are certain roads where I know it always happens and I am now prepared for it. It happened to me again today as I was exiting a highway, there was a new pothole on the exit ramp and I hit it as I was braking on the curve. An orange light in the dashboard lights up when this happens, signifying slippery or unstable road conditions I guess.
I have a 2008 toyota prius and live in st. Paul, mn. In late december following a snow and then ice storm I was driving on city streets. As I was coming up to an intersection with a stop sign, I applied the brakes and nothing happened. The anti-lock brakes did not engage at all. I pressed harder and nothing happened. I avoided an accident by making a sharp right hand turn and missing the car which I was about to hit broadside. I have taken no action yet regarding this malfunction.
I have a 2008 prius. I took it in because whenever the road is slippery the brakes don't engage properly and the car continues forward for some time. I took it to toyota in downtown la and they told me I needed to buy new tires and a rotation. I did this. Now I see that the same problem I have in my prius still is what the new prius is being recalled for. I am sure I am not the only prius owner prior to 2010 that has this problem. I don't feel safe on the road and want to trade the car in to toyota or get it fixed. Every time it rains, it happens.
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 toyota prius. The contact stated that when driving over a rough or bumpy surface and trying to depress the brake pedal, the pedal would depress further than normal and the brakes failed for a few seconds before the ABS activated. The issue was ongoing and occurred whenever he drove over a particular rough surface in his neighborhood. He also attempted to brake before he drove over the rough surface and coast to avoid the failure. He has not seen or spoken to the dealer or manufacturer to-date. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The current mileage was approximately 40,000. The failure mileage was approximately 10.
This is for a 2008 toyota prius. This problem occurs during normal daily/routine driving, and occurs almost daily. Problem: while braking, if I encounter any non-smooth surfaces (small pot hole, slight gravel, etc) or while braking and turning--the braking pressure/force momentarily releases for about a 1/2 second ,and is immediately followed by a flashing ABS light. When this occurs, the car also momentarily lunges forward due to having no braking force. On 4 occasions I almost ended up into cross traffic at an intersection. This has occurred since I first owned the car back in july 2009 and is not a recent development. This same problem occurred today during my commute to work on wintry mx weather roads, but I did not have any near collisions. No repairs or work has been performed on my car to fix this problem. I assumed this problem was inherent to hybrids, but in light of recent prius braking problems on the news, I felt it was my duty to report that my 2008 prius does have a braking issue.
I have had some problems with my prius, 2008 model. The braking system has acted "weird" on several occasions...even before hearing about the problems with the 2010 model prius! When I brake, sometimes the car doesn't respond initially and then "lurches" before the brakes engage. Also the orange light (ABS?) comes on when this happens and then disappears quickly. I asked the dealer about this when I serviced the car (12000 miles) and they just said that is a "feature" of the braking system. I never have had a car that does that. I don't feel safe nor do I trust the judgment of the dealer.
I am an owner of a 2008 toyota prius. I have also experienced the braking problems that have been associated with the 2010 model. When hitting a bump in the road or an uneven part of the road, the brakes will not take hold and the vehicle seems to accelerate or jerk forward. Also the anti-lock brake light flashes.
Toyota prius 2008. I bought the car as used fleet car in august 2009. The first time I drove over uneven roads, specifically manhole covers on a slight down grade, the slip light came on and the car felt as if it were sliding without gripping the road over the cover. I continued to have that same feeling when trying to stop on uneven road conditions, specifically metal manhole covers. I mentioned this to the dealer over the next couple of months. As long as the road is dry, this is a momentary feeling. However, one day the roads were recently wet from a rain. I went to stop and the car slid at least several feet before the car stopped. I was decelerating from 35 miles an hour to an abrupt stop. This reaction persists. I have taken the car in to be inspected and told there was nothing wrong with the anti-locking mechanism. However, I continue to have no gripping action on wet pavements (I slid completely over an ice patch this week at a stop sign. The patch of ice was at least 10 feet across. I anticipated this problem so approached the spot slowly and still slid clear to the other side, which put me into the cross street traffic. Fortunately, I was the only one on the street.
The brakes fail to work immediately and/or the car speed surges temporarily when braking on a bumpy surface, such as going over a pot hole. This started happening soon after I started driving the car and happens on a regular basis - the most recent being yesterday. At first, the short loss of control of vehicle speed concerned me, but I have come to expect it now when going over rough road at slow speeds. I started to think it was associated with the ABS system and thought maybe it was supposed to work that way. But now, after hearing about the problems with the 2010 prius, I thought you should know the same problem exists in earlier prius models. This is a duplicate of a complaint filed earlier today under speed control. Since then I learned that maybe I should have filed this under brakes.
Toyota prius 2008 seems like it releases brake or the brake doesn't work when driving over a bump, pothole, or wet roads., although brake is applied. Feels like car jumps or slips. A light indicator comes on when this occurs. It is a orange light indicating car is slipping it has occurred several times over the year. Took it to the toyota dealer and explained what happened, but was told it was my driving and could not identify problem unless it happened to them and it never did. Sometimes it continues to occur.
I have a 2008 toyota prius and my problem is with the braking and the anti skid coming on even on dry pavement. I have also a noise that comes from braking when the car is stopped. When you press on the brake it makes a clicking and grinding noise even when the car is not going. I have had it in about 4-5 times for these 2 problems and 3 times they bled the brakes and 2 times they changed the actuator. This problem started about 3-4 months after I purchased my 2008 prius.
I own a 2008 toyota prius. I have experienced the braking issues that have been attributed to the 2010 prius. When going over a bump or other uneven road surface and while braking, the car has a short surge. I have experienced this problem since owning the car.
I never owned a car with anti-lock brakes until I had my prius. I have always noticed that when applying the brakes, if I go over uneven ground like a pothole, the car lurches forward a bit for about a second. I thought it was because of the unique braking system in the prius, but after seeing all of these reports, I thought I should report it since my car is older than the ones mentioned in the news reports.
I have a 2008 prius that has the same problem as that reported with the 2010. Every time I brake on a rippled or bumpy surface, there is a repeated momentary loss of braking. On a certain downhill stretch of road near me, it happened every time I drove it, until it was resurfaced. Another problem is that if the vehicle is on an inclined surface of crushed rock, there is a complete loss of power. The dealer describes this as an "overly sensitive traction control system" that cannot be adjusted. This is also hazardous because on slick surfaces, each momentary loss of traction results in an overly-compensated period of seriously reduced acceleration; we have been sitting ducks in intersections, unable to quickly accelerate out of the way if conditions are slick, not because of the surface itself, but because of the way the vehicle mis-handles the situation.
I own and operate a logistics company in southern maine. Part of our fleet is three 2008 toyota prius'. In reading the description of your 2010 prius brake failure investigation, I can say for absolute sure that this same problem exists in the 2008 model year. In all three of our prius', on several occasions, I have experienced this problem. We aren't known for having the most wonderful roads in the northeast and we also have many railroad tracks. The problem as I see it is that when you hit a large pothole/ railroad track there seems to be a 0.5 - 2 second lag time before the brakes actually respond. We have many different employees drive our cars and in asking them they all, at least on one occasions, have experienced this problem. Please look into years beyond just the 2010. I can assure you that if you sent out a survey there would be a large percentage of people who have had this problem. We drive these cars for a living and we rely on you to make sure that what we drive is safe for us and our employees.
The federal safety agency should widen their formal investigation of the momentary loss of braking capability while traveling over an uneven road surface, pothole or bump in toyota prius hybrids, beyond model year 2010, to at least the 2008 and 2009 models. I have a 2008 toyota prius hybrid and I've been having the same problem since I bought mine in june of 2008. Please widen your investigation to at least the 2008 & 2009 prius models as well, if not even further back than that... Thank you.
Vehicle was hit from rear while stopped at a traffic light. Despite the brakes being applied at the time, the rear impact caused the car to be pushed forward into the car in front of it as if the brakes were not even in use. There was minimal damage to the bumper from the rear impact but more significant damage to the front of the vehicle form the second impact.
2008 prius brake problem. The same problem described with the 2010 prius, is exactly the same issue I am having with my 2008 prius. Please consider extending the evaluation of the prius back to earlier years of the problem.
I am having problems with braking in my 2008 prius that sound identical to the problems being investigated on the 2010 model. When stopping at a stop sign or light, sometimes the brakes disengage and the traction control light comes on the dash and the car lurches forward. This also happens when hitting gravel, pot holes, bumps, wet patches, ice, etc. This has been a problem from the time I bought the vehicle. Just yesterday, I was barely moving(less than 10mph) and coming to a stop sign where it was wet, and when I applied the brakes I continued to advance forward into an intersection. I was fortunate the other vehicles on the road were far enough away to have time to stop before hitting me. Once the brakes re-engaged I proceeded to drive in control. The brakes also have problems when there is any moisture. When applied in these conditions, when they do engage, the vehicle stops too abruptly, causing the driver and passengers to be lurched forward. This sometimes engages the antilock brakes when there is no traction issue causing the vehicle to slide a bit. These things sometimes happen on a daily basis or in dry conditions it may be a few days between incidents.
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