Problems with 2007 Toyota Prius SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC

I have a 2007 prius. the car was involved in an accident on august 30, 2013 because "no brake". it was in a stop and go situation traveling at about 20 miles per hour. the car in front stopped, i slammed on the brake and total brake failure. my 16 years old son sitting in the car observed the "no brake" scenario. there was a 25 pound of rice in the truck did not even move. no skip mark... nothing. took my car to longo toyota and found nothing with the brake system, other than the front pad was thin, tires were marginal etc. none of the findings explained the no brake scenario. for some reason i cannot make this no brake to appear again. i want people to aware of this and gather information. it appears to me the prius cannot response to a quick stop at slow speed. somehow, the car takes more than a second for the braking to kick in - the reaction does not appear to be instantaneous. and if you are too close, that extra one second wait will cause a collision.

I was driving in the right lane of a 4-lane boulevard. the vehicle ahead in the lane to my left slowed for a car in front waiting to make a left turn, then suddenly veered into my lane. i hit the brakes as hard as i could, but for the first 2-3 seconds, my car didn't slow down. it also didn't make any sounds i would have expected from urgent braking - no screeching tires, etc. i continued to push the brake pedal hard. after 2-3 seconds, the brakes finally grabbed and my car pulled to the right. i considered myself lucky that i had enough room to avoid hitting the vehicle in front of me.

Tl*the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. while driving approximately 40 mph, the vehicle failed to stop as the contact approached a traffic light. the contact crashed into the rear of another vehicle. the police were called to the scene. there were no injuries reported. the vehicle was declared a total loss. the failure mileage was 25,432. updated 02/17/11*lj updated 05/02/11

Dashboard red lights when vehicle starts with: brake failure , abs warning and stability warning. first time it was immediately taken to dealer who could find no problem and reset codes. four days later same warning lights came on and was taken to dealer again. were told hydraulic brake system was ok but brake actuator needed replacement at $2600. could be driven but without abs and stability capability. have not corrected this due to high price. shopping around at salvage yards. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. while driving approximately 45 mph, the vehicle began abnormally sliding toward the left. the contact attempted to steer the vehicle toward the right but the vehicle would not change direction. the contact then attempted to brake but the vehicle would not stop. the contact was unable to maintain control of the vehicle which resulted in a single vehicle rollover crash. the air bags did not deploy. the police appeared on the scene and speculated that the front passenger side tire blew prior to the crash. a police report was available. an ambulance also appeared on the scene as the contact sustained minor injuries. the vehicle was destroyed and towed to an insurance company lot. the vehicle was not examined for the cause of failure. the failure and current mileage was 43,000.

When i apply the brakes they seem to start to brake and then the car actually goes faster for a couple seconds and then it brakes again. it has always done this and has been disconcerting to me. it just feels like the brakes are failing but then they kick back in. i guess as i understand it, its when the abs kicks in, but it seems like an unnecessarily long time from any other car i have driven. *tr

When car goes over a bump in the process of braking, the brakes momentarily disengage. this has been an ongoing problem since the car was purchased. the date stated below simply is that of its latest manifestation. *tr

When going over a speed bump or a bumpy road, the brakes seem to fail momentarily, or the brakes fail to respond. *tr

2007 prius seems to lose braking momentarily going over bumps. *tr

2008 prius-brakes release when rolling over rough surfaces. this has happened dozens of times. i have learned to start the braking early if i see rough pavement, but this could be very dangerous at night. *tr

While driving my 2007 prius in a congested area, the brakes did not respond when depressed quickly contributing or causing a low-speed collision with the vehicle in front of me. i found this article on cnet reviews that accurately matches my issue. "toyota redesigned the braking systems for the 2010 prius. that appears to be toyota's response to the fact that the u.s. generation 2 prius (2004-2009) has had low-speed brake failures reported to the national highway traffic safety administration (nhtsa) at 31 times the rate of such failures reported for the 2004-2009 corolla, which of course has traditional brakes. many of the prius low speed brake failures were in low-speed city traffic, resulting in rear-end collisions without injury. it appears that the several computers that control the complex braking systems were too busy calculating the most efficient way to apply the brakes, and did not get around to actually applying them, until it was too late." *tr

Anti lock brakes take a second or two to grab when traveling on bumpy, uneven, bad road surfaces. this has occurred since day one that i received the car and i have allowed extra space to stop because of it. i did ask my dealership 2 years ago about this problem and they could find nothing wrong with the brakes. the most recent incident happened on 4/29/2010 and i slid through a red light. thank god no one was ahead of me. *tr

My 2007 prius has the same braking safety issues involving momentary loss of braking power described for the 2010 prius. it is especially troublesome when going over a bump or a slick spot in the road. *tr

2007 prius, on approximately four occasions when coming to a stop it felt like the brakes slipped or disengaged momentarily. *tr

On monday, april 12, 2010, in the morning, on a rainy day in sacramento, california, i was driving about 15 mph when the traffic in front of me slowed. i was driving over railroad tracks with steel plates between the tracks in my 2007 toyota prius. i braked but the car did not stop. i had time to actually look down at my feet to confirm that it was definitely the brakes that i was applying major pressure to. i also noticed that the light was on indicating that the car did not have traction. i hit the car in front of me. the first words out of my mouth were, "i had no brakes, i'm so sorry, but i had no brakes." the initial estimate for my car is over $6,000, i have not heard what the estimate is for the other car. i did everything i could have done, the car failed me. *tr

1. wife is leary of driving our 2007 toyota prius because of problem brakes. we need a better description of what happens when we try to turn off the engine going 100 mph. 2. lights are poor. we cannot see very far ahead in this deer infested environment. i have better lights on my 1997 hyundai 3. one or the other headlight flickers and goes out for no understandable reason. we turn the lights off and turn them on again and it works ok. this could be a safety hazard. what is being done to fix it. 4. seating. my first encounter with the toyota complaint system cam about as i was trying to get the driver seat moved back because i have long legs. the dealer said they have no way of fixing this but that i should go to the after market. i asked if toyota would accept an aftermarket solution. the dealer said that they will evaluate it after it is installed to tell us if it meets safety specifications no aftermarket supplier will try to fix this because they have not assurance that it will be accepted by toyota. yet toyota gives no technical information about what is acceptable. i complained formally to the dealer and got nowhere. i then sent a formal complaint to national toyota. they passed the complaint back to the dealer for response. for me this is a major flaw in the toyota complaint handling system. they have a closed loop when it comes to complaints. 5. i like the car and it gets the mileage i expected. i am not sure i will ever get another toyota if there are reasonable alternative that get good mileage. *tr

Car seems to lose brake power for a fraction of a second when driving over potholes, on bumpy pavement, or on wet slippery dirt roads. occurs each time when braking under said conditions. *tr

While turning into a parking spot, i experienced a total loss of braking while the vehicle began accelerating without gas pedal pressure. after jumping a curb, the brake pedal became active and the car was stopped. *tr

2007 toyota prius. consumer states delayed brake reaction. must press firmly for brake to stop the vehicle. *tgw the consumer stated she noticed the problem with the brakes when she first drove down a hill. when she applied the brakes, it took a long time for it to hold instead of holding at the first pressing of the brake pedal. the vehicle continued to roll down the hill until the pedal was applied harder. *jb

2007 toyota prius with tire failure and brakes grabbing. *kb the battery and headlights failed. the consumer stated toyota has since removed this particular type of bulb and assembly from production. when the vehicle was 1 year old the consumer was stopped by the police and given a warning for the headlight being out. however, when the consumer and her husband exited the vehicle, they along with the police officer found both headlights were working and he let them go without a citation. the consumer has since discovered that one headlight or the other will just go out on occasion during every drive. the brightness of the headlights began to dim when the vehicle was only a year old. toyota recommended using the headlights less and they further recommended not using the highly touted feature that allows the lights to automatically turn off after the vehicle has been turned off. last month, the consumer received a letter from toyota regarding information about a problem with the hid headlights. the letter stated the customer support program would reimburse for some cost relative to the defective headlights. however the local dealer did not agree and the cost far exceeded anything mentioned in the letter. the dealer informed the consumer the cost of installation for new bulbs would be $245 in labor for each headlight replacement, that was in addition to the exorbitant cost of the bulbs themselves. *jb

When attempting to use the brakes on my 2007 toyota prius when driving over a bumpy surface, pothole, etc., it takes a short distance or 1-2 seconds for the brakes to take hold and slow/stop the car. it feels as though the car lurches forward a bit before braking and the "slip indicator" warning light on the dash flashes. this has happened approximately 10 times since buying the car in april of 2007. i have notified the original dealer (toyota of north hollywood), but was informed that there is no way to correct the problem on my car's particular model. *tr

Abs, vsc, brake failure. *tr

Car did not stop and seemed to accelerate when brakes hit during turn into driveway. hit curb. lost steering control and car had to be towed because of significant damages to wheel and also possibly steering. snowy road. i was already driving very slowly. no reason why this much damage to my car or this level of impact unless car suddenly accelerated beyond my current speed while i braked. car seems to accelerate on slippery, uneven surfaces and evs light comes on, even when brakes applied. acceleration is beyond that seen with normal slippage. it is not simply slippage but actual brief acceleration. *tr

I have a 2007 toyota prius and have experienced the same braking issue that is being reported about the 2010 prius. i have noticed that when i am driving or braking while going over pot-holes, railroad tracks, or very bumping roads i can feel a sudden and momentary loss of braking and/or acceleration. i also noticed that the traction control indicator light on the dash always turns on when this happens. i took the dealer just after i purchased the vehicle and was told that everything was normal. this has been happening for the last 2 and a half years. it has happened 3 or 4 times this week alone. i have gotten used to this happening but have also been very concerned that it will cause a rearend collision, or something even worse. this needs attention asap. thank you *tr

When i hit a bump, while applying my brakes, they will stop working for a short period of time. this happens frequently. *cn

My 2007 prius touring can/does experience braking issues when slowing/braking downhill and coming in contact with a manhole cover, pothole, or other "even" road surface. thought it was the tires, so replaced the original bridgestones for nokians, but the issue still occurs. the "sensation" is you feel like you've lost control of the car momentarily. as a result, i've changed my commute route home and drive much slower (was already driving slower since prius mileage is dependent on mph). on occasions, the speed (on a straight away) set with cruise control will increase by itself ... by a couple mph .... w/o me doing anything or touching anything. so i'm forced to tap brake ........ occurred this weekend with passengers - they said they felt the surge .....

2007 toyota prius with same brake problem as the 2010 prius. i could not describe the problem better than what is being said now by toyota about their 2010 model. this problem they are having goes back to previous prius model years. *tr

On seven separate occasions since 2007 (the year of the prius being reported ) a slight skid occurs, which also results in the skid light coming on, when brake pedal is pressed. has been increasing in frequency -- three times in last week--and usually occurs within the first mile of car use that day. i reported the last incident below. however, this was first noticed sometime in 2007 after july purchase date. *cn

I have a 2007 prius. my complaint regards the braking system. my issue happens under low speed conditions while braking. while braking and hitting a minor bump or pothole, the brake will completely disengage for a split second and reengage. the stability control light will turn on when this happens as well. this was mentioned to the dealer and their response was "i've heard that before. it's because it has a light front end." seemed like an uninformed answer to me. this issue occurs frequently and has occurred since day one of ownership. *tr

My 2007 toyota prius sporadically lurches forward if i hit a bump or pothole during braking. it has done this since it was new and the dealer has always told me since they cannot duplicate the problem there is nothing they can do about it. could this be related to the current issues being claimed on the 2010 model. *tr

The complaint involves a 2007 toyota prius. since new this vehicle exhibits a momentary loss in braking when suddenly encountering bumpy or slippery surfaces. the events are typically accompanied by a flashing warning light indicating a slippery surface. these events result in a slight but noticeable decrease in braking force. both my wife and i can detect when this occurs. no parts have been replaced and we have not visited the dealer. we thought that this was normal operation for our car until recent toyota news releases. *tr

Please probe 2007 toyota prius brakes too. my brakes have felt weak for some time now. i brought it to the repair shop in december 2009 and they said they were fine and were at 50% worn. the repair shop thought i was nuts. they still grind, squeak and feel weak. *tr

I own a prius 2007 and have been experiencing the brake problems reported in the news since buying the car used in 12/08. sometimes when applying the brakes on uneven surfaces, a dashboard slip indicator light comes on as the brakes release/stop working and the car feels like it is skidding forward for about a second. then they reengage and the car can be stopped. i have not been in a accident yet. my dealership had told me that it is a normal function of the prius. this happen again on 2/2/10 as i was turning into a parking lot and went over the lip of the entrance. *tr

The braking issues that i have experienced for the 2007 prius within months of buying the vehicle are the same issues that are currently being reported for the 2010 prius. i have a prius with traction control. there are two things with the traction control that happen on a regular basis living in st. george, utah. one is when i come out of a parking lot that has the steep dip for water control the traction control system misfires on dry, clean surfaces and in many cases leaves me dead on the road for a few seconds in which the car will not move at all. this also happens when i drive on roads where there is a drainage lid in the middle of the road, and i am actually not attempting to brake. the second is when i brake. if there is any rough or uneven surfaces, bumps, or dirt roads, i have to anticipate that the braking system will fail and/or i will have to quickly pump the brakes and leave extra braking room. i have not taken the vehicle to toyota because having had a 1999 tacoma whose brakes would fail on a regular basis to the point, for which they continually replaced sensors, i sold it after i had it less then one year, i don't expect toyota to do anything about it. i just drive differently. the speeding out of control, for me, only occurs when i have cruise control on. many times when i press on the brake the car actually speeds up with a jerk or i will look down at my speed and cruise control will have increased it by 10 or 15 mph. *jb *tr

I have a 2007 prius the following has occurred any time driving over rough patches of road or over rr tracks: the car loses traction and power for a sort time until smooth pavement returns. the vsc lamp on the dash shows up when this happens. i shudder to think what would occur on a rough mountain road or in wet weather. this type of event sounds very much like what's being reported by the drivers of the 2010 prius. in 47 years of driving i've never had a car react in this way. i've compensated by driving cautiously and wait for traction to return but it doesn't feel quite right when it happens. *jb

I have a 2007 toyota prius and periodically the brakes slip on dry surfaces. the 'slip' indicator on the dashboard lights up and i feel the slippage. it only lasts a second or two. i brought it to the attention of the toyota dealer a year ago, but they didn't have anything to say about it, and did nothing about it. i have not had any accidents as a result of this, but it is disconcerting. it happens about once a week. *tr

I own a 2007 toyota prius which i bought new. if i apply pressure to the brakes and then hit a bump in the road, the brakes seem to release until i get over the bump. i believe this is a known problem in the 2010 prius, but i want to report that i have the same thing happen in my 2007 prius. *tr

My 2007 prius seems to have a brake issue. if i am on bumpy ground or hit a pothole while braking, it feels like the brakes fail for a brief time. on a couple of occasions when vehicles are in front of me, i have been concerned that i might cause an accident. this just happened again, and has happened more times than i can count. i just found out today about this method of reporting a complaint, otherwise i would have reported it a long time ago. *tr

My 2007 prius has the brake problem identified on the 2010 models -- when i go over a pot-hole or bump the brakes "slip." this probably happens once a month and has happened since i purchased the car in the fall of 2007. the brakes grab again as soon as i hit solid road. *jb

Obviously there has been a lot of media coverage over the past day or so over the third generation prius and brake issues. while i have a 2007 prius (second generation), i can say that my car also suffers from the same issue while braking on an uneven road, going over a bump, etc. (this has happened on dozens of occasions). with my foot on the brake pedal, my cars feels as if it momentarily lurches forward before the brakes once again react. my traction-control light momentarily flashes on my dashboard when this happens. this comment from a poster on your website exactly describes my problem: "when braking, if a pothole or bump in the road is hit, the car seemingly jerks forward/accelerates for a split second." since my car is not a third generation prius, i find it interesting that it is suffering from the same problem that apparently only involves the newest model. *tr

When+driving+over+bumps+or+potholes+the+vehicle+will+sometimes+lose+total+braking+control+as+the+traction+control+system+takes+over.++the+brake+will+be+non-responsive+and+the+traction+control+system+dashboard+light+will+illuminate. this+has+happened+at+least+twice+a+week+for+the+past+2.5+years+on+my+2007+toyota+prius.++when+i+had+inquired+about+it+at+the+dealer+in+the+past%2c+i+was+informed+that+this+was+how+the+traction+control+system+operated+under+normal+conditions *cn

I own a 2007 toyota prius and have experienced occasional momentary loss of braking (my foot firmly on the brake pedal) while driving over a bumpy surface. while braking over small pot holes, railroad tracks, rough patches, etc., the car seems to lunge forward apparently as the brakes release for a split second (approximately 1/4 to 1/2 second). the road conditions can be wet or dry. at the same time, my traction control light will flash on and off until the road smoothes out. that split second is enough to cause an accident with the car in front of me if i don't give myself extra room or slow down prior to the bumpy condition (1/2 second at 20 mph = 15 feet of unwanted travel). i drive over the same railroad tracks just prior to a traffic light every day and i have had to adjust my driving habits to keep this dangerous, additional stopping distance from recurring. this has occurred approximately 15 to 20 times in various bumpy conditions since i bought the car over 3 years ago. i have had some close calls, but no accident yet. i have not complained to toyota, but due to all the complaints i have read about online, i assumed they would do something eventually. *tr

This involves a 2007 toyota prius. i have the same experience with the brakes of this vehicle as described with the 2010 toyota prius model. when braking somewhat forcefully and driving over a suddenly uneven surface, the braking ceases for a brief moment. i have reported this several times to the toyota dealer/service center. that dealership/service center is toyota of braintree, braintree, ma. each time, i was told that they (the dealership/service center) and the wider toyota organization had no knowledge and that it was probably operator related. the last time i brought this up was saturday, january 30, 2010. i mention this date date below as the incident date although i reported these occurrences before. *cn

Loss of control of prius briefly when braking on icy or uneven conditions. every time i go over a particular bridge here in the suburbs of philadelphia the problem occurs. most recently brakes shuddered for about 10 seconds on icy conditions, not like in abs way but in a way in which i wasn't sure if they were going to engage or not. *tr

2007 prius brakes applied for yellow light on good roadbed, brakes stopped working approximately 1 second and a few feet later, an additional failure of approximately 1 second. car stopped but braking distance greatly extended. this car has always had issues with stopping on rough surfaces. this is the first experience on good road.

The incident i'm reporting took place while driving my prius home during a freezing rain and had two other passengers in the car. we were going about 15mph on suburban roads due to the treacherous conditions. since a t intersection lay ahead (maybe 100 ft) i very slowly and cautiously started to try to engage the brakes well in advance in order to avoid any skidding. however, *my brakes did not respond at all* and neither the abs system or the skid-warning light went on as the car refused to stop. rather, the car simply kept driving. since i had given myself ample time prior to the stop i was able to assess the situation and am very sure that this is what happened and told my husband, who was a passenger, that my brakes were not responding at all. when we reached the intersection i was able to turn the car to the right on top of gravel and dirt, when the brakes engaged and we came to a halt. the conditions remained icy and we tested the brakes a number of times on our drive home to see if we could replicate what had happened but were unable to reproduce the problem. although icy, the brakes worked as well as one might expect under the circumstances. also, abs and the skid-warning light went on normally thereafter. i called out dealership who urged us to bring in the vehicle for inspection and i plan to do so this week. i have also reported the problem to toyota. *tr

Brake lockup while driving less than 20 mph on normal flat road (rain). *jb

I own a 2007 toyota prius and i have noticed that if i am braking and hit a bump or a pothole, that the braking seems to pause and i have to brake harder. also the abs warning light will sometimes flicker. this has happened on numerous occasions over the past 3 years. fortunately, i was never in a position to endanger myself or another, but in other circumstances it could have been a problem. *tr

During turns at times my 2007 pruis will bog down and have no power. i have reported the problem to the dealer and they believe it my be a sensor problem where the abs senses to much spin and cuts power to the transmission. it takes about 5 to 10 seconds to get the power back to the transmission. during this time the car cannot move. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. while driving approximately 6 mph in the snow the brakes failed to stop the vehicle. as she depressed the brake pedal, the vehicle continued to slide forward. the check engine illuminated intermittently prior and after the failure occurred. the dealer was unable to duplicate or diagnose the failure. the failure mileage was 82,000. updated 04/14/10