Problems with 2006 Toyota Prius EXTERIOR LIGHTING

Right passenger headlight went out. was able to get it back on by turning the lights off and on. on the drive to the dealer to get it fixed, left driver side headlight went out. again able to get it back on by turning it off and on. dealer checked over the car and only replaced the right passenger side headlight even though i told them both had been out. they said there was nothing wrong with the left drivers side headlight. drove away from dealer and the left drivers side headlight went out after i drove less than 1 mile. went back to the dealer, but did not turn the lights off and on. he could not believe it, but the light was out. had the left drivers side headlight replaced. is this some kind of electrical problem? this could be very dangerous if both went out while driving! *tr

Driving down a dark road both my headlight went out. i almost wrecked. i then turned them on an off and they came back on. this is the second 2006 toyota prius we have owned with the same issue. there should be a recall....does someone need to die over this common issue? *tr

Passenger headlight goes on and off intermittently. *tr

On july 20,2014, i noticed my passenger side headlight is out. i started the car and put the light on, it came on fine.. while driving on high way at night all the sudden the light went out again passenger side. i pulled it on the side and inspect driver side light was working fine but the passenger side was out. i turn the light off and on again it came back on. at this time i am scratching my head that what is going on. i take my car to the mechanic he tells me the bulb is fuse. it cost me $300. to change the bulb. after few days after the bulb goes out again. i take it back to the mechanic he checks every thing is fine, tell me the bulb went out again. scratching my head again "bulb went out again after few weeks" i went to amazon and bought another bulb.. and it went out again. i was pulled over september 20, 2014 buy cops to fix my headlight. headlight are still going out and i have to keep buying the headlight bulb. *tr

As i was driving my 2006 toyota prius at night, i noticed the road seemed "dim" on the right side. i turned the lights off then back on and it was brighter. later i noticed the same thing and pulled off the road to find the right headlight was not on, but it came back on after turning the switch off and on again. this has happened several times over the past couple of months, sometimes affecting the left headlight as well. once, last month, as i was driving down the highway, both headlights turned off! fortunately i was able to quickly flip the headlight switch off and on to remedy the situation. the headlight bulbs have been checked and do not seem to be the problem. help! *tr

My 2006 toyota prius headlight goes out when driving. somrtimes, one light goes off and sometimes both goes off. when i turn the light off and turn it back on they re-light. *tr

While traveling in the dark at 6:00am on i64e my headlights went completely out. i had to move off the highway, turn my vehicle off and restart the vehicle. when i restarted it, the lights turned back on. *tr

Headlights, go on and off on their own. sometimes only one will go off, sometimes both. happens with high beams as well. lights come back on if i switch them completely off and then on again. may stay on for 30 minutes, may only stay on for a couple minutes. very dangerous as the lights have gone off at night time causing loss of visibility. *tr

When driving at night, the dashboard displays some of the dashboard on the front windshield, which causes you to avoid that area of your windshield. this is a defect in all 2006-2009 toyota prius cars. what happens is that you start looking at this reflection and it creates a safety concern. you also do not have a clear view through the reflection. it is extremely distracting. when you are on a country rode late at night, where there may not be any street lights, it is even worse. this problem was fixed in the 2010 models and beyond with a longer edge on the dashboard at the top. i have talked to toyota about this, but have gotten nowhere. i feel this is a big safety concern that must be addressed and i am turning to you for help. i could have gotten lawyers involved in a class action lawsuit, but i wanted to try and resolve this professionally. i am not looking to get rich or make money off this problem. i just want my car and everyone else's prius fixed. this issue has always been around. i have noticed it more lately with cloud cover and driving on back country roads at night. it is scary. *tr

Tl* the contact owns 2006 toyota prius. the contact stated that the headlights would sporadically fail. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, who stated that the bolts would need to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was alerted of the failure. the failure mileage was 219,600.

Both of my hid headlights went out (turned off) during normal highway driving. since then, the lights have continued to turn off randomly during normal driving. when i turn the switch off and then back on, the lights operate fine for a while, then go back off. this is a very dangerous issue and i see it is a common issue. *tr

Both hid headlights go on and off randomly. the dealer wants more than $1000. to repair each one. *tr

I have the problem with hid headlight 1.5 year ago and replaced it based on the dealer's suggesting. laterally, it went out so often but not complete out because i can turn off/on headlight switch. i do not know when it will be out or where it will be out. on the highway or in the remote country road. i am worry about my own safety as well as other safety. *tr

I bought my 2006 prius in october of 2012 and ever since buying it i've noticed that the headlight on the driver's side goes out by itself. i actually went into the dealer within a week and told them my headlight was out but when i got there and i turned them on it was working. i was baffled. they didn't say a thing to me that this was a commonly reported problem that toyota wasn't going to be addressing. anyway, i left and the headlight problem has been happening ever since. i decided to just live with it because when i turn the lights off and back on, the headlight comes back on - at least for a while. i'm very worried that the same thing might happen to the other headlight at the same time. i've read online about the cost of replacing the bulb ($330) which is ridiculous since this is obviously a mfg flaw that toyota just doesn't want to pay for. please issue a recall on this before someone gets killed!! *tr

I notice occasionally the driver's side headlight will go out requiring me to turn the lights off then on again. most recently both headlights will go out. i can get them on again by turning them off then back on but it is unnerving and occurs every day now whenever i use the lights. i checked for a loose wire and found nothing. these are the original hid headlights.i can reproduce the problem every time i drive the car. *tr

The headlights of the 2006 prius intermittently fail suddenly. this will affect either headlight, although, on occasion, both headlights unexpectedly failed while the car is in motion. the problem is temporarily fixed by turning the headlight off then on again. several prius owners describe this exact problem. they also describe that replacing the headlights themselves does not fix the problem. *tr

This is my second prius and both have been excellent except for the headlights on this one. it is a 2006 with hid lights. the driver's side headlight always comes on in the morning when i leave for work, but it started going off after several miles (maybe 20-30, or so). this first started happening about october, 2013. it has progressively gotten worse until the headlight now goes off in only a few miles (5 - 10). interestingly, the headlight seemed to stay on longer during the colder weather (around zero degrees) this winter. other than checking for a loose connection, i have not tried to have the headlight repaired or replaced. it certainly needs to be because driving in the winter darkness is a safety concern. thank you.

I was driving at night. there happened to be a little fog in the air. my speed was 45 mph on a dark country road. my passenger side hid headlight went out, followed by the driver side headlight within 20 seconds. i was able to turn the light control off then back on. i did this as i was slowing down and keeping straight. i managed to stay on the road and did not have any further problems that night. all in all it was a pretty scary experience. *tr

i have hid headlights. my headlights go on and off intermittently. sometime one head light goes out; sometimes both go out. if they go out, i can usually get them to go back on by turning them off and then turning them back on. i have to constantly check my car's reflection in the back of other cars to make sure both lights are on. my mechanic made me aware that this problem has been a constant complaint for this model and replacing the headlight will not help. accordingly, the problem is caused by a defective module that ceases to work when it heats up. my research indicates that the fhtsa has had several complaints about this exact problem, and that toyota settled a class action suit (for which i was never notified) regarding the exact problem. toyota now refuses to repair the problem for cars out of warranty. this is potentially a very dangerous problem effecting thousands of cars. i have not had an accident yet, but if you don't make toyota do a recall, i expect there will be several accidents across the country due to this defect. *tr

Purchased 2006 toyota prius used on aug 17, 2013 (61,500 miles). within a month i was pulled over by police for passenger side headlight out while driving at night, but when headlamps are turned off and on again the headlight came back on, and the police officer thought he was crazy so he just issued a warning. the headlight continued to go out intermittently and i replaced the bulbs myself in november 2013 (philips hid headlight bulbs $95). the headlight still went out intermittently and i finally replaced both headlight assemblies in july 2016 by an independent mechanic (approximately $1000 at 143,000 miles). passenger side headlight still goes out intermittently. nhtsa launched a probe in april 2009, but then dropped the investigation after toyota said it would initiate a "consumer service campaign" to address the issue. then there was a class action settlement in 2011, all of which the previous car owner missed. toyota uses "campaigns" to avoid recalls. toyota's website (https://www.toyota.com/recall) does not list previous "campaigns" related to the vin so buying the car used i had no way of knowing of previous "campaigns" that still needed to be addressed. upon purchasing in august 2013 i took the car to a toyota dealership in san marcos, tx for a steering wheel recall but was not alerted to any other recalls or "campaigns" at that time.

I was driving down a dark unlit road when both headlights went out without warning. luckily there were no cars behind me as i braked as fast as i could without being able to see anything. it was the same as if i had all of a sudden just closed my eyes and tried to navigate to a safe stop somewhere on the side of the road without hitting something. i would say that this was the scariest moment i have had driving in 30 years of driving. the lights came back on after turning the light switch off and back on again, so this is definitely a control problem of some sort. i love my prius, but this is just an unacceptable design problem. of course i would much rather just have standard light bulbs that were not at risk of failing rather than this supposed upgrade. *tr

On multiple occasions now, while driving my prius both headlights spontaneously go out. i notice it when i'm driving at night. it is not safe. there is nothing wrong with either bulb - they just don't work. i have to turn the lights off and then on again for both lights to work again. sometimes it happens again within minutes of it happening a first time. *tr

Sudden extinguishing of one headlight, then the other. *tr

Ever since i bought this car the headlights have been problematic. i have had either light go out intermittently and flicking them off/on fixes them until the next day. i have even had both lights go out at the same time. replacing the bulbs fixes the problem for about a year but the problem returns. i am now preparing to replace my 5th bulb for what is sure to be a temporary fix. toyota's offer to replace the bulbs several years ago was not an actual fix for the problem. *tr

My 16 year old daughter was driving at approximately 10:00 on a steep, curvy country road when both headlights went out! it is a miracle she's alive. took the car to the local dealership today and was told it would cost nearly $500 to replace the bulbs. after doing research, it has come to my attention that this is a common problem with this vehicle yet there has been no recall. this is a serious safety issue and should be investigated (again) immediately! *tr

Our 2006 toyota prius has a head light that goes off and on at random intervals which we consider to be a safety hazard. *tr

Customer states while driving at night, with low-beams, left light went out. customer switched to hi-beams and all the headlights went out. customer reports this is the second time the car has done this. *tr on first inspection unable to verify complaint, all lights functioning as they should. inspected fuses and wiring and all good. while inspecting lights, lights failed after being on only 10 minutes, and turned off. this was a double light failure with both hi & low beam failure, on both left & right lights! located a technical service bulletin related to this condition. performed all tests outlined in technical service bulletin and located both front headlamps defective with swollen center fogged over causing lights to overheat and ecm for headlights going into fail safe mode and shutting headlights off. replaced both front headlight bulbs and verified repairs. after repairs, ran headlights for 30 minutes with no furhter failure. returned vehicle to customer.

Both the right and the left headlights keep turning off during driving. the right one is more common than the left. i noticed this problem almost 1 year ago and thought that this is a temporary glitch, but the frequency of this increased over time. i constantly need to turn off the light and turn them on, but again in few more minutes one or both of them gets out. this is a serious problem. especially in the city, when there are street lights on or during dawn or dusk, you are never sure if the lights are working or not. on top of risking an accident, there is always a worry that a cop might pull you over for non working head light, while in fact your lights appear to have been working when you started, but turns off some time later and it is difficult to notice in low light situations. toyota charges huge amount of money to fix this problem. i hope that toyota will take care of the problem sooner than later. i know that my car is more than 5 years old but that shouldn't be a matter for them to fix it. because this light situation is a problem because of defective parts to begin with. *tr

I can no longer drive my prius at night. sometimes one headlight will go out, sometimes the other, sometimes both. the bulbs themselves are not bad. i have to turn the lights off then back on to reset them approximately every 25 seconds. when i took it to the dealer they said "we can not re-create the problem". i left, in the rain and had to reset them 6 times before i was a mile down the road. toyota knows about this problem, they need to fix this problem. our extended family owns 4 prius vehicles, we will never own another since toyota is not standing up to fix this problem. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2006 toyota prius. the contact stated that while driving approximately 1 mph, the headlights stopped illuminating. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. the technician stated the headlight would have to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was not available. the approximate failure mileage was 100,000. *tr

This is 2nd time for the hid head lamps intermittently flickering/failing on my 2006 toyota prius. the 1st was in aug 2009 at about 86k miles. thankfully the local koons toyota dealership in westminster md replaced both bulbs at no expense thanks to the koons toyota dealership in annapolis md where i had originally purchased the car arranging approval through the regional office. now about another 3 years and 145k miles, the same problem. toyota u.s.a. acknowledged the problem and that in some cases the hid headlight control ecu may have been replaced but was unnecessary, needing only bulb replacement and reducing the pricing to $150/bulb. while most vehicles today operate with headlights on automatically, i've only used my daytime running lights to preserve headlight life but these bulbs are still a problem. headlights are absolutely critical vehicle equipment and must be reliable. headlamps that fail every 3 years do not meet the reliability test in my view. please look into this ongoing issue. i'm asking toyota to work with me on replacement cost and the type of hid bulb they're using. i'm told by maintenance technicians that visual inspection will show a small bubble somewhere in the base that indicates it's going bad. that tells me that something about the bulb is not right and therefore not reliable/safe. thank you. *tr

Just purchased this vehicle. when driving, for no apparent reason the left headlight has intermittently turned off about 8 times. when i turn the headlight switch off and on, the left headlight works again. it has been occurring more frequently over the last two weeks. more recently (twice this week), both headlights suddenly went off for no reason while driving at night. when i turn the headlight switch off and on, the headlights work again. *tr

Driving along a country road at night and the headlights went out. very scary. went off the road a bit and the car got scratched. restarted car and headlights went on for a short time, then dim, then off. this a huge safety problem that nhtsa has failed to do its duty with. toyota says thought luck, you are past the extended warranty. light suddenly going out while driving at night is clearly a safety issue. is nhtsa simply going to wait until there are enough fatalities to take meaningful action. toyota clearly doesn't want to take any responsibility for their clearly defective and dangerous product. *tr

I pulled into my garage after picking up the car from the dealer after purchase to find that the left front headlight was out. i turned the lights off and on again and both lights lit. the left front headlight continued intermittently to be non-operative over the next four weeks. i took it back to the dealer on 1/23/13 and they found that the left front headlamp ecu needed to be replaced. i later found out that a class action lawsuit had been brought against toyota for this same issue, however due to the age and mileage on my vehicle, i was not entitled to compensation under the settlement. this is a serious safety problem and a known common problem on hid equipped prius models, yet i was forced to pay $288.81 to have the problem repaired. i have filed a case with toyota customer experience center, #1301220397. headlights that shut off while driving is clearly a safety issue. it appears that hid headlight equipped prius models contain a design defect. it is for this reason i am reporting to the nhtsa in order to force toyota to conduct a recall on all such equipped models. *tr

The headlights on my toyota prius 2006 intermittently go off while driving. it seems to affect only one of the headlights right now. i do not see any issues with the bulbs as such since they do come back on. but this happens very often while driving and while coming to a stop sometimes. *tr

The passenger side headlight would intermittently go off. if i turned the lights off and then on again the lights would both come on but while driving the passenger side headlight would go off again. i drive 20 miles to work. when i would first start the car when leaving work to go home, both headlights would be on but by the time i would get home the passenger side would be out again. i brought the car to the dealer and they said it was the ballast that caused the problem and charged almost 1000.00 to fix the problem. fortunately i did not have to pay the full amount due to the fact i had and extended warranty. however, just 2 days after having this fixed the same thing is happening to the driver?s side headlight. i will be bringing the car to the dealer again. i have read online that this is happening to quite a few prius owners, particularly with the 2006 model. it also seems from my research that it happens to 2005,2007 and 2008 models also. this seems to be a manufacturer defect and i find it a bit ridiculous that replacing headlights should cost so much money. it cost me 227.00 to fix one headlight and 2 taillights due to ballast issues and it is more than likely going to cost another 200.00. so all in all to repair headlights will cost me over 425.00 and without the extended warranty would have cost near 2000.00. if this is happening to so may cars there is obviously an issue which consumers should not have to pay for. my year prius has had several recalls and obviously has its fair share of manufacturer problems. the affected parts involved were/are the ballast , headlights and tail lights thank you *tr

Hid headlights on this vehicle and taillights go out on there own sometimes just one or sometimes all lights go out. problem is fixed when you turn the lights all the way off and all the way back on and they stay on for the duration of my drive or go out a few minutes later. have been pulled over by police multiple times for having lights out. have seen many toyota prius complaints about this same exact problem. *tr

The first time i noticed the problem, my car was parked in the driveway after returning from shopping, still running, when my son noticed the right headlight was out. for some reason, i reached in and turned the light switch off, and then back on, and the light was fine. i figured it was an anomaly. from then, one or the other headlight would disappear every couple of months or so, but always reappear with a toggle of the light switched. i was severely underemployed, and simply could/can not afford the $500 parts & labor the toyota dealer wanted to replace both headlights. i just kept toggling and hoping for the best. i recently returned to full-time work, but with a commute of 1.25 hours each way. it was fine during daylight savings time, but now, i am toggling constantly, and both headlights are going out at the same time. i am traveling dark, country, roads, from fresno, ca to coalinga, ca to work at the pleasant valley state prison. i don't want to become a highway fatality statistic simply because nhtsa doesn't have the "[xxx]" to force toyota to recall these dangerous headlights. i was unemployed or underemployed for 4 years following a lay off in the summer of 2009. i simply cannot afford to pay the $500 out of pocket, and i really don't have any credit left. your inaction, nhtsa and toyota, puts my life on the line twice a day. you both will probably have my blood on your hands. [xxx] you! information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

My wife and i purchased a used 2006 toyota prius. after about 6 months one headlight would go out. we could cycle the switch and the headlight would work again. after replacing the bulb with a original bulb. both headlight have gone out. i took the vehicle to our local toyota dealership. they quoted a repair of $3800. i began looking for a lees expensive shop to do the repairs, when the owner of a shop[ informed me that toyota had settled a class action lawsuit concerning the hid ( high intensity display) units. that settlement has now passed the date to submit a claim. all claims had to be submitted by may 30th 2011. we had not purchased our vehicle at that time. why has there not been a recall done on these vehicles? obviously toyota is aware that there is a problem with in the system or they would not of settled the class action suit. we now have a vehicle that we paid $15000 for that can not be driven at night or when it is raining out, because the faulty headlight installed by the manufacture. how can the government allow a major vehicle manufacture to allow these cars to stay on the road, and risk serious injury? *tr

The passenger side headlight went out. next time i drove it the light was back on. maybe a week later the driver's side headlight went out. again, next time i used the lights they were both on. this went on for awhile. the escalation was when both low beams shut off leaving just the running lights on. high beams seemed to be unaffected so i drove home with high beams on. currently, any of the lights can go out at any time. turning them off and on again brings them back. on a half hour ride home tonight, to keep both lights on i had to shut them off and turn them on 7 times. i googled this and was very disappointed to find this problem has been reported, reviewed and dismissed as not a safety issue. it does not feel very safe to be driving at night and discover oneself suddenly in the dark. it seems this will be a recurring problem for me as replacing the headlights is likely to fix the problem for a short time (3 m seems to be common) before i will have to replace them again. sounds like a recall should be in place. *tr

The headlights flicker and then go completely out. the beam can usually be restored briefly by turning it on and off again but the lamp will then stay illuminated for an unpredictable length of time (seconds to minutes). this is a recurring problem and both headlights have been "repaired" at the dealership multiple times. before the repairs, there was an occasion where both headlights went out simultaneously while driving on an interstate tollway. after the repairs, the problem has recurred in only one light (so far). these are toyota's hid lights. *tr

One of headlights (passenger side) suddenly shuts off. then i completely turn them all the way off, then it works again for a few minutes. so far we have changed: headlight assembly, lights computer controller, and numerous lights bulbs. so far this issue has cost us over $3000 but toyota does not take any responsibility for this issue. this is apparently an issue with everyone that owns a 2006 prius from what it looks like on line with other users. *tr

The driver side hid headlamp went out while driving. this was out for about a day then turned back on while driving again. i have now noticed this happens every few days and only while in motion. *tr

The right headlight went out and then went on. the problem has recurred. now the left headlight went out and then went on. we read that this is a common problem with the 2006 toyota. will there be a recall? *tr

The right hid headlight randomly turns on and off. *tr

Both exterior lights and all interior lights went out late at night while driving on an old country road. very scary and dangerous! by turning the light switch completely off and back on we got our lights back. we had already spent over $250 for headlamps before this so it was not the bulbs. it's continuing to have a problem however we usually get some flickering of the lights just before one or both lights go out so we drive with one hand on the light switch to be ready to turn off and on the lights. we have been told by toyota that we have to bring it while it is having a problem which is a problem since the shop is not open at night and while happening fairly frequently now is not predictable enough to show the repairman. please recall this vehicle. we are not alone and still love our prius. *tr

2006 toyota prius with hid headlights with 55,000 miles is used as a taxi cab. on july 11th, 2012 and progressing, the passenger side hid headlight would flicker and then turn off completely after 5-15 minutes of operation. headlights must be turned off and then on to resume normal service. hid bulb replacement did not resolve the issue. toyota dealership only offered to replace the headlight without any explanation to what might be causing the issue. *tr

The headlights will shut off randomly while i am driving, the solution i have found is to flip the switch on and off again and they turn back on, but this only works temporarily and they soon shut off again. this can be very dangerous especially when driving on a dark road at night along a curve. the toyota specialists recommended that i replace the bulbs but that did not fix the problem. *tr

I was driving home on suburban surface streets at dusk, following a friend to my home. my cell phone rang, and i answered using the bluetooth feature of the vehicle. it was my friend, calling to let me know that my left headlight was out. it had been flickering and having issues over the past few weeks, and we thought the bulb might be loose. we took the car to our mechanic on june 19th, 2012 to have the serpentine belt replaced and the headlight looked at. he indicated it was the bulb, and that it would cost $350 to replace. coincidentally, a relative saw a news story the other day about many similar complaints made to your organization and to the toyota company, so i did some online research. i was very disheartened to read an investigation made by kctv5 out of kansas city which explained your failure thus far to demand a recall, despite ample evidence that the system flaw has been corrected in the 2010 and newer prius models. please demand a recall before someone is injured or killed! as the daughter of a retired highway patrol officer, i understand the need for on-the-road safety. at this point, i am afraid to drive my vehicle at night, and it is my family's only vehicle. please do something! *tr

Driver headlamp turned off. after realizing something was wrong. i pulled over to the shoulder of the road, and turned the vehicle and headlamps off. i turned the vehicle back on and the headlamps as well. both headlamps worked again. the driver headlamp continued with this behavior and the passenger headlamp started to exhibit the same behavior about a month later. i found out that this type of behavior is common among my model and the 2006-2009 years with the hid headlamp package. many others have also experienced this same occurrence with the headlamps ballast. it is not the hid bulbs themselves, but a design flaw in the vehicles electrical system. i have been in some situations where both of the headlamps have turned off by themselves at night and almost was involved in an accident due to the flaw of this known problem. if i can not see when driving at night and other drivers can not see me, the vehicle is not safe. *tr