2014 Toyota Prius: soft or spongy brake pedal

Filed Oct 21, 2026 · Brakes, Driver assistance · FL · crash

The Toyota Prius, models through 2010 - 2015 have a known issue with the Brake Booster (actuator) and ABS Pump where the parts will degrade and break at or around 100,000mi. Toyota issued a bulletin and had a replacement program that covered the part that has since elapsed but has not corrected the issue with existing stock and inventory so the problem remains. When I purchased my car I was the 2nd owner, the car was purchased with roughly 160,000mi. The previous owner had informed me that he already replaced the actuator and ABS pump so I wouldn't have to worry about that repair. All told he said he spent $4000+ on the repair. When the car was driving I heard a high pitched whine. I took it to garages after my OBD tools could not identify the issue, no one had a fix and speculated that it was a power inverter and it was normal. Some weeks later, I was involved in an accident where the car did not stop in time, the brake went spongy and locked up, ABS failed to activate with no warnings or indicators. This is what first led me to suspect something wrong with the ABS. later the persistent whine was loud enough that I could identify that it was hydraulic in nature, pointing to the brakes. Within weeks the whine had stopped and my brake, ABS, and TCS lights came on, on the cluster. My OBD indicated that the ABS pump and Brake actuator were giving codes to the ECM. I replace it, and at about 240,000mi it went out again. Due to the extremely expensive nature of the part I purchased a used part which is now also bad. Toyota informed me that they have no intention of passing a recall notice or fixing the defective part. I would imagine that if the NHSTA looked into crashes involving this model and year group they would see an unusually high trend of these getting into an accident around 100,000mi increments. I believe that a recall should be issued due to the serious safety implications of potential defective cars on the road that may not be able to brake in time.

Filed Mar 4, 2026 · Brakes · CA

Vehicle: 2014 Toyota Prius v Hybrid Mileage: 79,000 miles The vehicle experienced sudden failure of the brake booster / brake accumulator system. Multiple warning lights appeared including ABS, traction control, and the red brake warning light. Diagnostic code C1391 was retrieved. The brake pedal became soft/spongy and the electric brake pump began cycling frequently. Braking performance felt reduced and inconsistent, creating a potential safety risk. This vehicle has very low mileage (79,000 miles) and has been well maintained. The failure appears to be related to a known defect in the Prius braking system. Toyota previously issued Customer Support Program 20TE07 addressing brake booster and pump failures on 2012–2014 Prius v vehicles. Despite this known issue, the repair is not being covered and the cost quoted is several thousand dollars. A failure of the brake booster/accumulator system significantly affects braking performance and should not occur at this mileage. This appears to be a widespread issue affecting Prius vehicles and represents a potential safety defect involving the braking system.

Filed Sep 2, 2024 · Brakes · FL

ABS actuator failed in April of 2023 after more than a year of constant whirling, which my mechanic didn't diagnose until after my dashboard lit up with errors. The issue was diagnosed by AAA mechanics after the dashboard warning lights lit up, with a $4,000 cost to repair. Brakes are spongy, car is rarely driven at this time. We were told that the brakes would continue to work, but the ABS system would not. Now the vehicle beeps constantly when driving, which appears to mean the brakes could fully fail at any time. Based on subsequent research, Toyota was quietly fixing the ABS acuator issue until last year, but it was not offered when my vehicle was brought in last year during another recall. When it failed the car was under 10 years and 150K.

Filed Aug 8, 2024 · Brakes · 116,000 miles · FL

The contact owns a 2014 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to stop the vehicle, the brake pedal was stiff and would not depress easily, requiring exhaustive effort to depress and bring the vehicle to a complete stop. The brake, traction control, and ABS warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a brake booster and brake pump assembly failure. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 116,000. The VIN was not available.

Filed Feb 5, 2022 · Brakes · RI

BRAKE BOASTER FAILURE. Dashboard lights illuminated: Brake, ABS and Traction. Brakes themselves felt spongy. Car felt very unsafe. I did find out that Toyota has a hidden Customer Support Program ZJB. However, the dealer found my diagnostic code to be c1202 and the Customer Support Program ZJB only supports repairs for codes c1391, c1252, c1256 or c1253. However, the exact same symptoms and safety issues were experienced and all the exact same warning lights also came on. The dealer’s diagnostics resulted in a $2,087 replacement of the brake booster. The dealer did contact the Toyota district manager along the way. He denied coverage based on the diagnostic codes reported BUT again I am arguing that my crazy expensive repair had the EXACT same symptoms, safety issues, and repair (e.g, brake booster replacement). The car clearly could not be driven. Note my Prius only has 92K miles. Attached is a picture of the dashboard warning lights that came on and the dealer invoice for the repair.Â

Filed Oct 19, 2021 · Brakes · FL

Brake being less effective to be spongy and keep losing pressure. The brake actuator constantly making boosting noise. Making driving unsure that the brake working even no warning light on yet.