2010 Toyota Prius: won't start

Filed Jun 30, 2021 · Acceleration, Electrical · NC · 1 injury

Check hybrid system light ignites, slows down vehicle in middle of high speed highway. First incident November of 2020 then several incidents after. Repair shops don't assure problem according to error codes & they recommend possibilities they cannot assure will resolve the problem. Car was taken into local dealership after receiving recall notice for software and airbags prior to November 2020 when the issue began. Software update took a couple of hours. Restart/reboot temporarily allowed driving again. Most recently the system entirely shut down & the car will not start or run. Abandoned car on side of the road and got heat exhaustion from walking the rest of the way home and had vehicle towed. Error lights come on including "check hybrid system" says "shift to P position when starting" and will not allow start.

Filed Jan 27, 2017 · Transmission · 95,000 miles · WA

My 2010 toyota prius iv has 98,731 miles on it. The engine and power train malfunctioned during a cold start so I had to take it into the toyota dealer. It had to be towed to the dealership on a flat-bed tow truck because the car transaxle/transmission was locked in the drive position, would not go into neutral, and the car engine would not start rev above an idle. When I attempted to start it the engine acted like it was misfiring very badly and rattled very badly. It sounded like the engine was not getting any oil circulation so I didn't attempt any more cold starts. I could not get the engine into neutral or any other gear so I had it towed to the dealership. When the car was at the dealership I went through my records and found a letter titled 'warranty enhancement program notification - zf3' that I had received several years previous. The document extended my primary coverage until 31 march 2017 due to a potential faulty exhaust gas recirculation (egr) valve. 'a faulty egr valve would cause the engine to rough idle/rattle from the transaxle at a cold start due to a sticking egr valve. If this occurs, the vehicle may illuminate the check engine light and set diagnostic trouble code dtc p0401. If the condition is verified the vehicle will be repaired in accordance with the applicable technical service bulletin under the terms of this warranty enhancement program.' the symptoms my car experience during cold starts begin around 92,000 miles but no 'check engine light' or 'diagnostic trouble code' ever illuminated on the instrument panel. After 92,000 miles it only happened occasionally, and always during cold starts. Normally after a few seconds of idling the rattling would go away and the engine and drivetrain would perform as it should. I took my car in for a service and told the dealership what was happening, but they could not diagnose any problem.

Filed Feb 27, 2014 · Brakes, Engine · 58,706 miles · NY

On monday february 24th 2014 my 2010 toyota prius, hybrid inverter failed while I was driving and my car suddenly stopped on the road. I looked on the instrument panel and the check hybrid system was illuminated. The car would not start. I decided to call a toll truck company to take me to the nearest toyota dealer. Once I arrived the service advisor informed me, the 2010 toyota prius has two active safety recalls. I was never notified. The two safety recalls are the hybrid inverter & brake booster pump assembly. Today is thursday february 27th 2014 and the toyota dealer has failed to repair and return my car. The toyota dealer stated this is a safety recall, they need permission from toyota headquarters to approve parts. I pleaded with the toyota dealer to provide me with a vehicle, while I wait, they refused.

Filed Nov 8, 2010 · Brakes, Transmission · 5,600 miles · CA · crash

My 2010 toyota prius would not start after a brief 45 minute lunch with friends. When I released the parking brake and let off the brake pedal I didn't know the car was stuck in neutral. This error was on the dashboard "malfunction when parking, park in a flat place and apply parking brake securely". When I let off the brake the car rolled back into the middle of the parking lot. I had two coworkers in the car with me; they got out and pushed the car out of the way to a flat location. Car still was disabled. I called toyota roadside assistance and waited an hour for a tow truck; after about 45-50 minutes of waiting I was hit by a woman that wasn't paying attention; she backed into the side of my disabled car. I was pressing on the horn and she didn't hear. The impact must have freed some stuck component or something because 2 hours later when the tow truck finally came, the car worked again; no warning lights etc. Toyota looked at the car and says there is nothing wrong. I took a photo to document the warning message (plus have 2 witnesses).

Filed Oct 29, 2010 · Brakes · AZ

2010 toyota prius. S10 appropriate handling- letter from regarding toyota problems *tgw the consumer stated when he went to start his vehicle, the brake pedal went straight down to the floor and the vehicle would not start until pressure was applied to the brake. After trying several things, the brake finally came on. The consumer took the vehicle to the dealer, but they were unable to find anything wrong. On april 27, 2010, the incident happened again with the brakes. A notice appeared on the dash to put the vehicle in park. When he did, the brake came on. *jb updated 12/22/10.

Filed Mar 10, 2010 · Electrical · 1,000 miles · PA

I own a 2010 prius. I have owned the car since oct 2009. Twice I let the car sit in my garage without driving it for 6 days. The battery completely discharge over the 6 days such that the car has to be jumped in order for it to start. Both times I took the car to toyota service center and both times they did not find anything wrong with the car. There solution was to not let the car sit undriven for that long. However, if I took the car to the airport and left it while I was gone for a week, it would not start when I return. This is not acceptable to me since I travel a lot. According to toyota I have no recourse.

Filed Feb 9, 2010 · Body, Brakes · 1,000 miles · PA

Toyota prius 2010 going downhill pushing the brakes to stop before red light in the uneven pavement the car suddenly loses all fours wheels brakes for a fraction of a second . When the wheel that passed the road bump the brakes come back again and stop the car. It happened three time in the last 4 months that I have the car. Same car defect in the fuel system. After leaving in the garage for 5 consecutive days, the car did not started automatically as it should do. It made for several seconds a metal to metal noise before the engine finally started to funtioning as usual. Seams like the engine starved of fuel. Same car excessive vibration on the driver side door panel when the radio or music is on. It stops when I hold with my knee tha panel.

Filed Feb 5, 2010 · Brakes · 1,800 miles · IL

I have had a brief failure of the brakes on my 2010 prius iv. I was driving in town coming back from the school where I teach. I slowed as I came up on another vehicle stopped at a stoplight. Although I had my foot on the brake, it did not start to brake for a couple of seconds. I narrowly avoided an accident.

Filed Feb 4, 2010 · Brakes · 1,050 miles · IL

I was braking my 2010 prius iii when I went over some railroad tracks. The vehicle suddenly accelerated and I had to step off the brake pedal and re-apply the brakes to get the vehicle to begin braking again. The acceleration lasted for more than 1 second and the vehicle didn't start braking again, until I had reapplied the brakes.

Filed Feb 3, 2010 · Brakes · 9,927 miles · IL

I have a 2010 toyota prius iii, purchased in june 2009, and have been experiencing brake problems for the past several months. If while braking I happen to hit a bump in the road my brakes fail for a brief moment causing the car to speed up rather than slow down. In order to stop the sudden acceleration I have to push the brake pedal down even further with more pressure and/or quickly lift my foot and brake again. This failure happens fairly consistently if the conditions are correct. The size of the bump in the road does not seem to matter as the brake "failure" has happened with everything from a small pothole to railroad tracks. The failure seems to last only a matter of seconds, but it's enough to possibly cause an accident especially while in a high traffic situation. I didn't start to notice this problem until close to a month into ownership of the vehicle but have become increasingly aware of it every time it happens. I have called my local toyota dealer and filed a complaint with them during my latest service appointment on 1/19/10 since I experienced the failure while on my way to the dealership, but they said they were unable to replicate the problem.

Filed Feb 3, 2010 · Engine · 5,400 miles · CA

Toyota prius 2010 suddenly stops and stalls at low speeds. After this, it would not start for 20 minutes, despite repeatedly turning the engine on and off.