The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, a strong and unusual odor was detected inside the vehicle with no warning lights illuminated. The contact further stated that the following day, upon entering the vehicle, both the contact and the contact’s spouse experienced headaches, nausea, and cognitive discomfort. Concerned about possible exposure to harmful fumes, the contact inspected the vehicle and determined that the vehicle’s battery appeared to be inoperable. The vehicle was taken to a dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact expressed concern that the failure presents a serious safety hazard due to potential exposure to toxic fumes within the cabin. The contact noted that the situation could have been more severe if a child had been present in the vehicle at the time of the incident. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000.
2010 Toyota Prius electrical problems
192 complaints (7% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 65,000. 5 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 192
- of this car's complaints
- 7%
- typical mileage
- 65,000
- crashes
- 5
- recalls
- 1
Which part fails
- Instrument cluster/panel6
- 12v/24v/48v battery2
- Ignition1
- Horn1
- 12v/24v/48v battery: cables1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Toyota Prius electrical problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 2010 Toyota Prius electrical
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
Electrical system: software
- What is wrong
- Toyota is recalling certain model year 2010 through 2014 Prius vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) inside the inverter module (a component of the hybrid system) contains transistors that may become damaged from high operating temperatures. If this occurs, various warning lamps will be illuminated on the instrument panel and the vehicle will have reduced power allowing it to only drive a short distance.
- Risk
- The vehicle may enter a fail-safe/limp-home mode that limits the drivability of the vehicle. The hybrid system could also shut down completely resulting in a vehicle stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Toyota will notify owners and dealers will update the software for both the motor/generator control electronic control unit (ECU) and the hybrid control ECU, free of charge. If an owner experiences a failure of the inverter before the vehicle receives updated software, the dealer will repair or replace the inverter assembly with a new one at no charge. The recall began on March 21, 2014. Owners may contact Toyota at 1‑800‑331‑4331.
Recall number 14V053000 · Recall details
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 2010 Toyota Prius owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
i have have 2 problems, both was recalls, but this one they say expired in 2021 when i bought the car and toyota dealer didnt tell me had recall so i could fix it before it expired. there is a class action lawsuit in the brake booster, master cyclinder actuator abs pump fialing loosing brakes making grrr noises leaking all brake fluid out continously dangerous to drive can cause bad accident wreck since i drive down the hwy alot and this is the only car i have to drive, i also have dc inverter module /sensor that is killing off 3 batteries now that i installed in 3 months, and toyota dealers wont fix unless it shows error but its a recall so since problen should fix this recall but wont pay for it to fix it even though it a recall right now that is not expired. im upset 3 dealers wont do it unless then charge me to do it. when toyotal mfg take it to any dealer and they will fix free but no one will do it. toyota mfg needs to make these dealers fix these 2 recalls on this car that can kill me and my passengers and anyone on the road that i could hit by not haivng controll brakes or the hybrid system shuttong completely down and could even kill a pedestrian with these 2 recalls that dealers wont fix but mfg said they need to everyone with these cars i see are having these same problems. need make the toyota mfg and dealers fix these free of charge before more people get killed injuried or cause more accidents ,
brake booster that was a recall that toyota said expired in 2020 when i bought the vehicle and the toyotal dealer didnt inform me of the recall to fix it said everything was fine when it was not, i had a dc inverter sensor brake booster issues and now it ills off my 12volt battery every time i put one in lasts about 1 mth, upset dealer never told me this wjhen took in tel me any recalls or probelms, they said none, they lied to me. it kills off my 12volg agm batteries in the last 7 mths been having braking booster issues problems grrr,,, noise all the time when the car is off too, its killing off my hybrid system and my temathetics module is having issues too because of all this and evey battery i put in the car, i want the ntc gov to have toytota recall fix these problems with my car and not expire the recall they had in 2020 cause now i cant fix my car cause of it, i was lied to by the lavista toyota dealer that it has no probblems in 2020 of august when i bought it no recalls and this recall could have been fixed if they would have been honest. unexpire the recall on my brake booster and my dc inverter and sensors probelms killing off my new batteries all the time. call me right away or email me about this, its a urgent matter life or death situation with this car, since the brakes are failing and i have to drive it every day and toyota mfg or dealer wont fix cause says expired recalls cant fix it.
It is a known problem that Priuses manufactured from 2004 to 2015 have issues with the brake master cylinder and brake booster accumulator. When the vehicle computer recognizes an internal leak (ABS C1391) or other issue in the accumulator pump, it completely disables the regenerative braking system, which significantly reduces braking power. In my case, the problem is intermittent, and the vehicle computer will occasionally clear the code and operate normally. A slight whirring sound can still be heard (indicative of an internal leak), leading me to conclude that the part is still damaged, even when the code clears itself. This continues to affect my and my passengers' safety because the problem comes back with no warning while driving. Many times at highway speeds, the regenerative braking system will shut off while decelerating. This has caused scares and near-accidents. Imagine you are approaching stopped traffic while traveling 65 miles per hour. You press the brake to start slowing down, and while decelerating, the dashboard lights up and the brake pedal goes spongey. Now, you must slam the brake all the way into the firewall to engage the disks and pads exclusively. Aside from the imminent terror of hitting the car in front of you, now you are skidding on the brakes, worried the car behind you will crush the rear. Sooner or later this will cause somebody to get into an accident when a split-second decision cannot to be made quickly enough. The issue is well-known, and a warranty recall was issued, but it does not cover any vehicles over a certain age and mileage. It has been reproduced by my local mechanic and inspected by a Prius specialist, who both quote about $3800 to fully replace and recalibrate the failing parts. There were no indicators of this issue before it happened to my wife and I the first time on the highway. While I am grateful that nobody was injured, the situation could be completely different had the problem occurred just seconds later.
Toyota issued a recall with a limited time for Prius brake booster/actuator failures. This issue is known to present brake failures and necessarily place drivers, passengers, and pedestrians at risk in the case of such brake failures. Toyota made no effort to proactively remedy this problem and further neglected customer safety by excluding Priuses with the same manufacturing issue from the recall, under its 10 year 150,000 mile requirement. Whether or not the Priuses have been driven 150,000 miles or 10 years the nature with which the malfunction presents represents a safety for any driver.
The ABS Pump( Accumulator and booster) are regularly failing on all Toyota Prius( 2010-2015). When the ABS pump starts to fail, the warning lights for Traction control, Brake and ABS come on. These lights come on at all speeds and its very hard to bring the vehicle to a complete stop when this happens. The brakes completely stop working and the brakes become rock solid. The brakes become so hard that they can’t be possibly be depressed to stop in time. I nearly missed getting killed from this as I am out of country and Toyota is refusing to fix it since its not a recall and I am in Canada. Toyota is asking $3500 in parts and $1500 in labor to repair. I can not afford it and this issue is on all Prius from 2010-2015. This is a major safety hazard and can cause serious injury and damage. Toyota is refusing to repair it since they believe the cars are out of warranty. However Toyota has been notified about this safety hazard arising on all Prius(2010-2015) but decline to respond or take action. I urge the federal safety agency to take action and get this resolved as the ABS brakes failing on the Prius can be really dangerous and can cause life threatening accidents.
Passenger side low beam headlamp has continued to need to be replaced. I was not made aware of a "customer service protection program" on this and when I contacted Toyota they said it was too late for the repair, electrical harness, to be covered by their extended warranty. I never received information regarding the extended warranty. They stated they sent it to the correct address. But just because you mail something doesn't always mean it is delivered to that address. Also, I had my car serviced many times at Toyota dealerships and they never informed me of this extended warranty. If I had been made aware of the extended warranty I would've had it repaired in a timely manner. I have spoken to two representatives of Toyota and they stated they could not help me. I'm wondering why this is not considered a recall issue as it does affect the safety of driving a vehicle and the lights stop working. This may not be the right place to ask this question but I'm hoping someone in your organization can help me.
see all over the internet that 2010 Prius have a recall for Inverter. I called the dealer they said no recall with my vin. I was told that a new inver is almost $5000 dollars. i NEED HELP i HAVE BOUGHT 3 TOYOTA ALREADY. Please help me with good will or warrenty the inverter like you have so many other people with 2010 Prius. If not I willand my family will never buy a Toyota again. Please call or email me [XXX] [XXX] The Prius died when driving and we almost got in a major accident because it stalled with no warning. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Total malfunction at highway speeds. Very unsafe, the car completely shut off. This may have resulted in a highway fatality due to collision as the vehicle was in the fast lane. NTSA please do your due diligence and investigate the faulty, defective HYBRID system as I believe the faulty inverter recall is much more larger than the original recall
My 2010 Toyota Prius hatchback suddenly had 4 or 5 warning lights appear on the dashboard and my brakes failed to function properly. It felt like the power brakes was turned off ! Although I did get the vehicle stopped, it surely was a dangerous situation. I understand that Toyota knows about this problem, and have read that it was warranted if this happened before 150,000 miles. My Prius has approx 167,000 miles right now and to replace the Brake Actuator, the cost will be $ 3 - 5 thousand dollars…absurd amount in my opinion. Since this critical feature (brakes) has a long known history of being faulty on Toyota vehicles it should be warranted for at least 25 years and at least 300k ! My Prius is “unsafe to drive” and is nothing more than a paperweight…I repeat, Toyota knows, and has known about this defective brake actuator problem for years and years!!! Please lean on Toyota to up the warranty of this faulty brake problem for the MANY, MANY Toyota owners who have purchased the Toyota product and and NOT screwing the public like they are doing now !
Questions about the 2010 Toyota Prius electrical
Does the 2010 Toyota Prius have electrical problems?
Owners have filed 192 complaints about the electrical of the 2010 Toyota Prius, 7% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 2010 Toyota Prius electrical problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 65,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2010 Toyota Prius electrical?
Yes, 1 recall: 14V053000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
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 2010 Toyota Prius problems
Brakes 1,945Acceleration 287Engine 173Lights 150Driver assistance 111Fuel system 99Airbags 84Transmission 79Body 35Steering 30Visibility 21Tires 17Wheels 17Seat belts 16Suspension 9Seats 5
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