Rear hatchback locking/unlocking button gummy and inability to unlock truck manually and electrically. Unable to access trunk where emergency/safety equipment located.
2008 Toyota Prius electrical complaints
Page 8 of 9: complaints 191 to 220 of 235, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Shortly after I purchased the car new, the audio display unit (touch screen,) which also controls air conditioning failed and was replaced under warranty on january 5, 2008. The same unit failed again on october 30, 2011 . The touch screen is unresponsive, which makes it impossible to use it to control air conditioning, audio and other information functions. The toyota dealer from whom I purchased the car examined the part, confirmed that it is defective and informed me that a replacement will cost over $7,000 (seven thousand) which is about half of the current blue book value of the car. It is therefore not economical to repair it. I was also informed that while the car has a 3 years/30000 warranty, the defective part in question has only one year warranty. This seems deceptive, because according to toyota's tsb el002-05, this is a known problem.
Around or just after 40,000 miles the right headlight on my 2008 toyota prius started turning off while driving. Turning the lights off then on corrects the problem -- but this is annoying and dangerous when driving at night.
After driving for about 500 miles the car was parked in the garage for two days. When I tried to start the car the 12v battery was dead. I used 3 different batteries to try to start the car. The lights came on on the dash but there was a warning message that there was a problem with the transmission and needed to put the car on a level surface which it already was, and the transmission would not come out of park and the motor would not start. The car could not be moved. When a new battery was installed the car resumed working fine. If the dead battery had happened when we were stopped on i81 because of construction, we would have been stuck in the fast lane with no way to move the car out of the travel lane until a tow truck arrived.
I was driving my 2008 prius about 20 to 30 MPH down a straight road, a slight descending grade and coasting, when it accelerated with my foot off the accelerator pedal. This happened for about 4-5 seconds and a speed gain of approximately 5-10 MPH. It startled me, if a car had been in front of me, there would have been a serious problem. A light flashed on the dash but it happened so fast that I could not tell which light. I called toyota of longview and was told if it was not acting up they could not do anything about it. We had bad weather so I parked the car until we could carry it in. Feb 9th, 2011, we had the dealer check it and they found nothing wrong. I would sell it but it what if someone else got in an accident? Something needs to be done.
On 3 separate days, 2 during the summer of 2009 and 1 during the summer of 2010, our prius transmission has automatically and repeatedly shifted from d (drive) to n (neutral) without warning while the car was moving. All incidents happened on extremely hot days (temperatures near 100) in the afternoon after the car had been parked out in the sun and without us having made any accidental contact with the shifter / drive selector while driving. This created dangerous situations several times as the car erratically slowed as we entered intersections or pulled out onto busy streets. Our initial response was to depress the accelerator, but when this had no effect, we discovered the transmission light had moved from d to n. It was especially dangerous when making left hand turns on busy streets with oncoming traffic. We discovered that we could keep the car moving by constantly holding the shifter / drive selector lever in the d position. Turning off the air conditioner did not help the problem. After the first time this happened, we took the car to the dealership to investigate the problem, but the service technicians there were unable to reproduce it. This glitch remains a concern to us because the loss of power and acceleration is unpredictable and therefore dangerous, but at least we know we can keep the car moving by holding the shifter in the d position. Because the car is so computerized, I suspect an electronic component of the drive system may malfunction at high temperatures. The mileage number I gave is an approximation since I didn't record the actual mileage when this first happened, but the dealer who serviced the car shortly thereafter should have that information.
Tl - the contact owns 2008 toyota prius. The contact stated that while trying to turn off the vehicle it would not shut off. The contact mentioned that the failure had occurred several times before, he was not able to turn off the vehicle until it was warm. The vehicle was taken into the dealership and they were not able to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified. The failure and current mileage was 61,000. Pm
Headlight goes on, then goes off. Won't stay on. I was informed the other one could go out at any time, so I should replace both, at great expense. I was told by toyota that the hid headlights were covered under the regular warranty, but not the extended warranty. Bulbs (especailly those costing $300) should not burn out or randomly flicker on a two year old vehicle. To prevent future/additional problems, I had to replace both headlights, including the one that was working. This is a definitlely safety issue...I check bulbs regularly, and all are working when I turn the car on. Obviously, I can't check while I'm in motion - which is when they flash off - and was fortunate that both bulbs didn't burn out at the same time, which could have resulted in a crash, injury or accident (or worse) that I would have been liable for.
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 toyota prius. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 MPH on the freeway the hybrid warning light illuminated on the instrumental panel and the vehicle suddenly stalled. He was able to drift the vehicle onto the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to a dealer. The diagnosis determined that the air flow sensor failed. The VIN was not available. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 56,000.
The instrument panel on a 2008 prius decides not work at varied times. It is a sporadic problem which occurs then goes away. You could be driving down the highway at night then you see that you have no display telling you: 1) how fast you are going, 2) how much gas do you have, or 3) distance traveled. It's too difficult to troubleshoot because the problem would goes away.
Prius starts when the power button is pushed. There is no dashboard lights and since the dash board is digital there is no way to tell what gear the car is in or what speed you are traveling. Car drives without an operational dashboard which the dealer does not recommend. Car is under 2000 mile warranty. Dealer unwilling to repair combination meter which is the cause of the problem because they could not replicate the problem while at the dealership. Problem is well documented on prius chat. Cost $1600.
Hid headlights unexpectedly shut off while driving. When I turn them off, then back on, they work perfectly fine, but I don't know when they'll go out again. This is clearly a safety issue. It does appear that the hid headlight equipped prius has some electrical or design defect.
Hid headlights unexpectedly shut off while driving. This is clearly a safety issue and appears to be a defect with the electrical system or design of the lighting components other than the bulbs because if I turn them off they come back on fine every time like there's nothing wrong with them.
Hid headlights that unexpectedly shut off while driving, but come back on when manually turned off, then on. Appears to be problem with the electrical system, not the lights, or a design defect.
Severe safety concerns with a 2008 prius are the following: the answers and solutions to the following are necessary before anyone could be considered safe driving this 2008 prius: 1.why did our prius have a power failure on april 13th while driving at 60 MPH on a flat stretch of hwy 101 going north at the blithedale exit in mill valley, ca? 2.why while driving up divisidero around 11:30 or 12 noon on april 25, 2010 did the car begin beeping loudly when going up the hill in pacific heights? 3. Why did it then start making two different beeping sounds? We then pulled over and found that the transmission indicated that it had jumped into reverse even though the car was still going forward. We had not touched the shift lever, both hands were on the wheel. It jumped into reverse by itself. 4.why , after we then returned the shift to drive, were we able to go further up the hill and the loud beeping started again while the transmission was still in drive? We stopped the car and kept a foot on the brake pedal until help arrived. Aaa came. Aaa drove the car without beeping to a more level part of the street to load it upon a truck and carried the car to the san francisco geary toyota service center. They have yet [5.20.10] to accurately diagnose and correct these problems so it is safe to drive.
The 2008 toyota prius has a strong smell that resembles a electrical burning smell it makes your eyes water and your cloths smell like it long after you have left the vehicle. The dealer is not sure where it is coming from. There are other reported claims of the same smell on the internet.
2008 toyota prius. Consumer states fault in vehicle *tgw the consumer stated he backed out of a parking space, shifted into drive and the vehicle refused to respond to drive as he pressed the accelerator. It seemed the brake was on. A master fault appeared on the screen. It said batteries will not charge if let in the neutral position. After several tries, it finally responded.
Hello....I just received a notice from toyota entitled customer support program..(no mention of recall). In it, they say that there is a problem with headlights going out...and while they've been charging for them at 300 dollars each, they now realize that it's some kind of electrical issue....that causes the lights to fail...now, in light of everything else, it seems that this is a potentially serious problem and should be a recall...not a "hide the problem" kind of customer support letter......someone should be monitoring this one too....if toyota can hide something that is a recall-warranted problem, what next..? It worries me....
I left my 2008 toyota prius running and had to run back into a home where I'd just left a sales appointment. Eventhough I had the key fob in my pocket, I noticed out of the corner of my eye as I was crossing the street back towards the house that my car was careening into the buick parked across the street. I ran and jumped in and steered it away from t-boning the parked buick, but could not keep it the driver's side of the prius from scraping along the driver's side corner of the buick's rear bumper.
2008 pruis- twice in cold weather the computer dashboard indicators wouldnt show any info including speed of car and the car would not turn off. I called the dealership and they said they had never heard of this before. After about 30 minutes of driving around the dashboard came on and I was able to turn the car off. I looked this up online and others have had this problem in cold weather with the pruis.
Our office owns a toyota prius that I drive occasional to work assignments. I took the car on a trip to see a work project but stopped to pick up another employee before heading to the site. When I pulled up to pick up the employee the prius's entire dashboard display went blank. I pulled the car into a parking space and tried to turn it off. The "key" would not come out of the receiver. I realized the car was still running so I tried repeatedly to turn it off by pressing on the power button. The other employee showed up so we drove the car back to my office (2 blocks) got another vehicle and I drove the prius to the office service garage. The garage staff couldn't turn off the car either. So I left it there. Later the garage called to say the car was ready. I asked them what was wrong with the car. They say it just had to be re-booted by holding down the power button for 10 seconds. After hearing about people getting killed driving toyota products and toyota saying there is nothing wrong with the vehicle computer I thought I should write and tell you it is the computer! If you are interested in hearing more details or picking up the vehicle for inspection you can e-mail me . I can fill in a lot of details when I get back to the office. I used 1/12/2010 to get through this form but I can check the date when I get into the office.
I purchased a 2008 prius with hid bulbs and they both started going out a couple weeks after owning it while I was driving home at night. In just a matter of minutes, I had no lights at all! I was in a urban area, so the street lights were there so that I could see. But if I were in the country, as I usually am about once a week, I would have been in big trouble.
2008 prius regularly thrusts forward after about 30 seconds from starting the car. Then, car looms back into position. It has always scared me and makes me insecure to drive the car. This has been going on since I bought the car in december 2007, so the date of the incident below is inaccurate. I felt I should report this in light of the recent reports of defects, etc. Thank you.
I n a 2008 prius, three incidents turning right and left while on an incline. Two times in the last 3 weeks, loosing power with brake/wheels lights on when slowing to turn left on pine street at taylor...another time, also in san francisco slowing going uphill at post and leavenworth(no turn) but hill and slowing and loosing power. In carmel, about one month ago, turning downhill to the right, from highway #1 to carpenter street(again, brake lights/wheels)loss of power. Told tech's when serviced...told it was normal!
A. Dash lights would just disappear (no display for speed or gear) b. Key "bob" wouldn't release and car wouldn't turn off. - twice c. Car would "rev-up" when engine cool while in gear applying brakes 1. Took to dealer to resolve - couldn't recreate the problems and was told to keep the key in my pocket. 2. Second time was able to take to the dealer while the problem was happening. After 30 minutes came back with the solution of not to insert key bob. The lights and the "key bob" problem happen twice. The engine "rev-up" happen when the car was cold and I would need to make sure to firmly apply the brakes. The last time it happened I wasn't so lucky - going at a speed of 40 I started a turn to go under the freeway when the engine "rev-up" and forced me into a concrete wall... Totaling the car.
2008 toyota prius engine shutting off. Consumer states that the vehicle engine will shut itself off and driver has no control of the vehicle. *kb the consumer stated the incident happened during slippery driving conditions.
I have a 08 prius. Several days ago someone told me that one day-time running light was out. Two nights ago I checked and both lights were working so I thought I was ok. Last night after driving about an hour, both head lights went out. I turned the switch off and on again and the lights came back on. About a minute later the right light went off. After another hour of driving the left light went out and I repeated the turn on cycle and it stayed another coupler hours. (I drove home with the flasher as this would have enabled me to see the road a little is case the light went out again., ) I made it home ok and am contacting my dealer today.
I have a 2008 toyota prius (bought new) & have had several problems with the electrical system. The biggest problem happened when my husband was driving on the highway. Suddenly the radio went off & all lights on the dash went off. He pulled over, turned off the motor & then turned it on again. It was then ok. Another problem has occurred 3 times. The car won't start & I have to keep trying. After a few attempts it does start. I had not reported these problems, & would not have except for the problems that toyotas are now having. I think that maybe many people are experiencing this problem. And although my car should have been in the floormat recall, I have never had any letter or calls from my dealer.
2008 toyota prius (touring model) -- driver side hid headlight began to fail in sept 2009. Became more frequent as time elapsed (would occur 3+ times during 30 minute trip). Turning lights off and back on temporarily resolved issue, but driver bulb would eventually fail again. Resulted in reduced visibility and potential blind spot for driver in front of vehicle. Researched online - suspected ecu. Contacted toyota corporate around december 2009. Was advised that ecu was not the problem - bulb repair suggested. Dealer diagnostic suggested. Did not go to deal to spend $100 to tell me a light bulb should be replaced. Received notice jan 2010 that symptoms matching mine was due to headlight reaching end of life. Ordered and attempted to replace bulbs in jan 2010. Did not bring to toyota as cost to replace bulbs was at least 6x more that "do it yourself". Attempt to replace bulbs resulted in mixed success. Was able to get both hid headlights replaced and functioning (after passenger side or driver side would not remain on consistently). Tested high beams - after high beams were disengaged both headlights went out, but headlight switch remained engaged. Disconnected and reconnected wiring. Only passenger side bulb functioned. Afraid to use high beams and no faith in headlights. Reluctant to spend hundreds of dollars to have dealer change bulbs, same problem occur, and spend hundreds or 1,000+ dollars. Original bulbs retained and I will be putting them back in once weather is warmer. Strong belief that bulbs are not to blame and ecu or other electrical component is at fault. Dozens of similar issues reported online.
I have a 2008 toyota prius. Every now and again for no apparent reason the digital dashboard (LED) will not come on upon engine startup or it goes off while driving. The car runs it just the dashboard is blank. The most recent incident was this past friday. The dealer, arlington toyota, in arlington heights, il has not been able to find the cause of the problem.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2008 Toyota Prius?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history