July 16th our son was driving his 2008 prius when the brakes failed and there was acceleration with the car. he rearended an suv at a stop light. we took the vehicle to the toyota dealership where we purchased the car. they were going to check it out, but due to the fact of an accident, they had our son call toyota to give them a report of what happened. toyota said they would send a rep. to examine the car, which they would not be there for 2 weeks. we waited and they finally arrived around august 4th or 5th. the dealership called and said we could come and get the car, which i was concerned not knowing if there was defect or not. the toyota dealership told us toyota takes all responsibility out of their hands. i felt that was ridiculous since they sell toyota vehicles. on august 12th our son called toyota and they said that there would be a letter coming in about 35 days. we are still waiting and feel the dealership and toyota has done nothing but pass the buck. we also purchased another prius at the same time. by the way they both told my son in the beginning that there had been a recall. after everything that happened our son realized that there were several other incidents that took place with the car and thought it was him, until this accident happened. we feel that there is also an electrical issue with this car because there has 2 new batteries installed in the car since purchased in 2008. we just want answers!!!!! there was $1800 dollars damage sustained with this accident. it seems to me that no one here wants to take responsibility with some answers. *tr
I have a 2008 toyota prius, and repeatedly experience the "brake drop-out" problem that has been discussed on numerous prius-related websites. (see, for example, http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-technical-discussion/80218-traction-control-disabling-brakes-over-bumps.html, or http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-hybrid-news/75647-toyotas-next-page-ranking-nightmare-prius-brakes-4.html, among others). i also understand that this problem has been raised with nhtsa numerous times. the problem i experience is that when i drive over a bump or pothole, particularly at a low speed, while braking, a warning light flashes on and the car momentarily lurches forward. several times i have felt close to getting into an accident as a result. i understand from the extensive online discussions of this problem that it has to do with a transition from the regenerative braking system to the traditional friction braking system, but that only explains the problem, and does not solve it. i understand that toyota has addressed this problem in the gen iii prius, but has done nothing about the gen ii prius. also, this has nothing to do with the floor mat recall for this car. *tr
I was driving a rented toyota prius 2008 hybrid electric on april 8th in mississauga ontario and met with three vehicles collision. on a solid green signal, a min van coming from east, opposite direction cut off the oncoming traffic from west. first car slammed the brakes and did not hit the wrongful mini van. second car hit the first car. i rear ended second car. i was in safe distance and applied brakes. this car did not stop and kept moving and hit the second car. it was a rainy day. normal cars would stop without hitting. no one injured. i think toyota has to advice all year models to fix the brake problems. contacted toyota scarborough. it says this car is not in re-call list. how recalling list prepared, i do not know. after incidents? i will never drive prius again. *tr
When hitting small bumps travelling at speeds of 25-50mph (such as bumps before bridges) the abs will activate and the pedals go loose. it seems the car can not be controlled for about 3/4 of a second once this occurs. luckily i have never been rounding a turn or approaching stopped traffic when this occurs or i would not have been able to stop. i had one close call where the brakes seemed to lag before kicking in, then jolting hard after the delay causing me to almost lose control of the vehicle.
I have a 2008 toyota prius that we purchased new in april of 08. on march 19th i was driving in heavy stop and go traffic on a street with construction panels on parts of surface. i was leaving a car length in front of me. when the car ahead stopped, i applied the brakes and nothing happened. the car kept going and crashed into the rear end of the car ahead. no one hurt but damage to bumper and hood of my car. took the car to the dealership next morning. toyota rep looked over it, ran diagonstic codes and said nothing was wrong with the car. i know the brakes failed. we have lost confidence in the car and toyota service.
When braking on slippery surface-the abs kicks in- it feels as though the brakes disengage and the car speeds up slightly. *tr
2008 toyota prius increases speed for 1 sec when starting to brake. this issue has occurred a few times per calendar year since i bought the car brand new in july of 2008. *tr
I am experiencing a feeling that the brakes on my 2008 prius seem to disengage when i go over a bump and sometimes when i am braking somewhat abruptly. the uncomfortable feeling that the car is not going to stop and actually feels as if it is accelerating only lasts momentarily- but it is a scary feeling. the car was checked by the toyota dealership from whom it was purchased. they assured me that it was a common occurrence with the abs system found in the model. i am however, not at all comfortable with the insecure feeling that the car is not going to stop. *tr
I own a 2008 toyota prius. when we drive over a bump/pothole it feels as if the brakes fail for approx. a second and a half or so. and the vehicle lurches forward. it is a very unsettling feeling. it has happened several times. *tr
I own a 2008 toyota prius and since i received the car. i noticed that the anti skid system is set way to sensitive. driving over rough road or loose road and applying brakes to stop the anti skid usually kicks in and the car just continues to go forward. this is the only car i have ever drove that acts this way. my brother has the same make, year , and model and has the same problem. i do think toyota has a problem with older prius to not just 2010 models. from what i understand the braking system on the 2010 and 2008 prius's are the same so if 2010's are recalled 2008's should be to. luckily this problem has not caused me to be involved in a accident as of yet. *tr
Most recent failure was a few days ago but this has been a problem since i purchased the 2008 prius in march of 08--- i thought it was a quirk in the car --- something that just naturally happened when i would go over a pot hole or bumps in the road --- the car would lurch forward --- i had no control over the car --- no brakes --- i didn't realize that this was not a "natural" response until i heard the description on a news broadcast a couple weeks ago. model years prior to 2010 should be included in the investigation. i am going to make an appointment with my dealer. thank you *tr
When i am slowing down and applying the brake on my toyota prius and there is a bump or defect in the road i get a feeling of being on ice. a feeling of a lack of control. i was always aware of this but i never mentioned it when having my vehicle serviced. *cn
My 2008 prius, may have had a braking problem similar to what i have read about. i have not seen a 2008 included in the news, but my experience sounds very similar to what others have been reporting. while driving to work on snow packed roads i was making a turn into the business park where i work. the corner was going normally until i hit the drainage dip in the intersection. at this time i feel that i lost all braking with the vehicle. the street was covered with packed fresh snow, but no ice. i had been driving in similar conditions on the 20 mile drive into work with no issues or traction problems at any intersection or corner. when i realized something was wrong and that i was not slowing i quickly tried to let off the brakes and then reapply them but nothing seemed to happen at all regardless if i was pressing the brakes or not. no pumping sound from antilock brakes, no traction warning light, no slowing of the car - nothing at all. it felt like the brakes were not responding to my push of the pedal in any way. luckily i was not going fast at all (i would estimate well under 10mph), so this happened over a very short distance. i did strike a curb that was part of an island and cracked a rim but no damage to the steering that an alignment did not resolve. i had to replace all of the rims since the local dealer had to order them in and i needed my car to get to work. i was very lucky that there was an island and that i did not crash into another car in the other lane or worse a pedestrian. i realize that i was on packed snow at the time and am not asking for anything for the damages to the wheel from toyota - but just wanted you to know that the braking issue may be more than the current model year. i have never had such a loss of control in a car before in any road conditions ever. it was a loss of any ability to brake or even slow the car. i hope this information ...
I own a 2008 toyota prius. i've noticed that when i run over a bump or a pothole on the road, the car seems to accelerate or jolt forward. it happens while i brake to a stop sign and run over a bump or pothole. it has also happened while letting go of the gas pedal but not stepping on the brake. usually when this occurs the light for the traction control engages as if it detects a skid, even though there is no skid. i have to press the brake very hard in order to stop or slow down the car. i tend to leave extra room in front of me just in case the car accelerates unexpectedly, but there is definitely a problem with unexplained acceleration. *cn
My car has the same problem that the 2010 prius has and i wanted to make sure that toyota looks beyond just the 2010 model year. whenever i brake as i hit a pothole or bump in the road, the car seems to speed up just a bit before the brakes begin working. this has happened since i have owned the car and i thought it was just part of how the car worked. i haven't had an accident because of this, but there have been a few close calls. there are certain roads where i know it always happens and i am now prepared for it. it happened to me again today as i was exiting a highway, there was a new pothole on the exit ramp and i hit it as i was braking on the curve. an orange light in the dashboard lights up when this happens, signifying slippery or unstable road conditions i guess. *tr
Another 2008 prius owner here attesting to the brake problems. just one half of a mile from my home i encounter the perfect one two combination that demonstrates the defect. there is a slightly recessed man hole cover very close to a slight ripple in the asphalt near a "t" intersection. while braking, if i allow my right wheels to drop into the man hole cover and the left wheels to cross the ripple immediately thereafter my traction control warning light comes on and the car does not slow. i have to release the brake pedal until the light goes off then re-apply the brakes in order to slow down at the intersection. obviously, i avoid these bumps now that i know what will happen. this defect can get me into serious trouble in an area i'm not familiar with. i can duplicate this problem in three different places nearby if anyone from nhtsa wants a demonstration. *tr
The issue that has been reported on toyota prius brakes failing to work on bumpy roads extends beyond the 2010 model year. i own a 2008 prius and know another person as well who have experienced the exact same problem with our cars when braking on bumpy roads. the toyota complaint line does not answer anymore due to the volume of calls (says the message), so i am reporting it here.
Last night while driving home in light rain on a smooth,straight road a very loud alarm began to sound and a red "brake" light lit up on the instrument panel and the brakes felt like they were failing. the steering also became very stiff. the alarm did not stop until i had pulled over and used the emergency brake to stop and turned the engine off completely. i took the car to the dealership where i was told that it was driver error for driving with one foot on the gas and one on the brake at the same time, which is absurd. it was also implied that i had "imagined" this frightening emergency due to the recent problems in the news with the 2010 brakes on the prius. that is also completely false. i had never even considered my car might have a brake failure until it happened as nothing had ever happened before this incident. i left the dealership in tears and afraid to drive my car with no hope of an answer because i was not believed. they even said that there was no such loud alarm that could go off on the 08 prius. i was told that the code c1256 revealed,with 100% accuracy, that i had hit the brake and gas simultaneously 38 times! i explained that this could never have happened even once and was told that the computer is never wrong. *tr
I own a 2008 toyota prius which surges ahead when i am braking under certain conditions: wet, uneven surfaces, and bumpy roads. it is scary because i nearly hit someone at a stop sign and i feel out of control when it does this. on average, happens 1-2x week. it happens when my foot is off the gas pedal and i am under 20 mph. it seems like a computer error and not accelerator related. *tr
I own a 2008 toyota prius. i have experienced the braking issues that have been attributed to the 2010 prius. when going over a bump or other uneven road surface and while braking, the car has a short surge. i have experienced this problem since owning the car. *tr
The brakes fail to work immediately and/or the car speed surges temporarily when braking on a bumpy surface, such as going over a pot hole. this started happening soon after i started driving the car and happens on a regular basis - the most recent being yesterday. at first, the short loss of control of vehicle speed concerned me, but i have come to expect it now when going over rough road at slow speeds. i started to think it was associated with the abs system and thought maybe it was supposed to work that way. but now, after hearing about the problems with the 2010 prius, i thought you should know the same problem exists in earlier prius models. this is a duplicate of a complaint filed earlier today under speed control. since then i learned that maybe i should have filed this under brakes. *tr
The brakes of my toyota prius seem to have intermittent "grabbing and delaying" problems. the most frequent problem is that the braking system seems to apply extra pressure when slowing at low speeds causing the car to jerk slightly. less frequently the brakes can seem to "go out" for a short time after hitting a bump or pot hole. if the road is wet this seems to make the problem worse. approximate incident date is various. *tr
My 2008 prius, which i bought brand new with only 4 miles on it from longo toyota in california, has been experiencing the following brake issue: everyday while driving on pacific coast highway near manhattan beach, i will hit a pothole while braking, noticing my yellow traction control light flash on my dash board three times, and then my car will surge forward. this happens in the same general area everytime, and although i have not hit anybody in front of me, i am shocked each and everytime it does occur. i am almost guaranteed to experience this when driving in the slow lane in the location described above once a day. i love my 2008 prius, but this issue is very alarming. i have noticed this from november 20th, 2007 until today, february 4th, 2010. *tr
I own a 2008 toyota prius. there have been numerous occasions that the brakes on my car have not worked properly. the last time was on pavement that was wet, trying to stop for a red light on a downhill road. luckily the car in front of me went through the red light or i would have hit it. the other times have been near my home, i live on a dirt road, many of the roads are unpaved and uneven dirt roads in my neighborhood where i am extremely cautious when braking because many times the brakes do not work well. the light does come on to indicate uneven road, while braking. i have noticed this problem since i purchased the vehicle. i hope something can be done about the braking system. this occurs daily because i live on a dirt road. *tr
Toyota prius 2008: when driving at slow speed and braking, if i hit a small bump (like manhole cover), my vehicle skid warning light comes on and it feels like the car temporarily stops braking for about a second and then brake re-engages. this has happened off and on for over a year. i reported it to the dealer when i first experienced it and they checked computer and could find no evidence of a problem.
Brakes fail if the car is driven over even a very small bump in the road. brake failure is very sporadic. *tr
2008 prius brake slippage- not the 2009 prius, but 2008. recurrent slippage when it feels as though the car is not responding to the brake pedal, usually after hitting a pebble or a slick area (even just water)...occurs approx once/month. news stories today only referencing the latest model, and it is clearly a problem in my 2008 car. no accidents yet, but always a bit alarming. otherwise love my prius. *tr
I never owned a car with anti-lock brakes until i had my prius. i have always noticed that when applying the brakes, if i go over uneven ground like a pothole, the car lurches forward a bit for about a second. i thought it was because of the unique braking system in the prius, but after seeing all of these reports, i thought i should report it since my car is older than the ones mentioned in the news reports. *jb
My car is a 2008 prius. the incident is that my car didn't stop and skidded into a concrete curb, damaging the right front power steering rack. it was snowing, about 1-2" accumulated. driving into my office parking lot, there is a street with a steep but short hill - maybe 50feet or less - (it was not plowed or sanded). at the foot of the hill, there is a left turn into a level parking lot or a right turn under a highway overpass, or straight ahead into shrubs and the river. i slowed down before going down the hill and as i went down the hill i lightly pumped brakes. tried to come to a complete stop at foot of the hill but car didn't stop completely, but was going slow. so, i made the left turn into the parking lot. the body of the car turned into the lot, but was not in control. with the brakes on, and the wheel turned to the left, the car went into a slide sideways to the right. the right front wheel slammed into a concrete curb and the car stopped. it felt as if i had no brakes - coming down the hill they couldn't stop me and there was no skid control coming on at any time. the failure: given the weather conditions i don't know how to prove a failure but i suspect something with the brakes. i have owned this car for one year (purchased it used) and during that time the one thing that bugs me in the car is the brakes and the skid control. they just feel strange, i go over a depressed manhole in the road and the dsc comes on and it feels like i skid - it should just feel like a bump. repairs: this is the list -entire power steering rack on right front to be replaced- tie rod, lower control arm, wheel, rim-all bent. front cover and lower ball joint damaged-to be replaced. over $3000 in repairs; they will be done this week (8 feb). if you want the old parts i can ask for dealer to save them. car is @ toyota dealer. mileage & speed are my best guess; components i guessed - your terms were not familiar to me. *tw
I purchased 2008 toyota prius from anapolis toyota. the brakes failed on three occasions since purchasing car on january 18, 2010. car was taken in during the first 7 days after purchasing it. service departmdnt and used car sales management claimed nothing was wrong. problem occurs when i hit a bump in the road. brakes competely fail. very dangerous. it is not just the 2010 model that should be questioned. all prius' should be recalled until this is solved.
I have a 2008 toyota prius and have experienced several instances where the brakes appear to stop working over the last 2 years. this has happened while braking while hitting a pot hole in the road. it lasts for only a split second. *tr
Toyota prius 2008 driving over potholes or wet pavement, it's harder to steer or brake than i've ever experienced in another car. this has happened approximately 15 times since i bought the car in july 2008. *tr
My 2008 prius experiences the braking problem being investigated with the 2010 prius. *cn
Brake failure on my toyota prius is something that happens every so often, so far about 20-30 times since i have owned the car (june 08). i will begin braking with the car and all of a sudden the brakes will lose pressure and it does not brake, only to regain the braking ability about 2 seconds later. this mostly occurs in wet weather and i have narrowly avoided a few crashes because of the failure. it is not a function of sliding on the wet pavement but the brake failing momentarily. i contacted toyota who told me that they had not heard of my problem but that i could take them for a drive and hope that the failure happened while they were in the car. i did not pursue this since it does not happen regularly and they told me there were no other fixes. *tr
I see in the news that 2010 toyota prius is investigated for braking issue on ice and slippery roads. i experience the same with 2008 prius. i feel a delay when i apply the brake when the roads are wet etc.it is sporatidc experience. *cn
Not a smooth braking system when braking over bumps / holes, railroad tracks. *tr
I have a 2008 prius. i took it in because whenever the road is slippery the brakes don't engage properly and the car continues forward for some time. i took it to toyota in downtown la and they told me i needed to buy new tires and a rotation. i did this. now i see that the same problem i have in my prius still is what the new prius is being recalled for. i am sure i am not the only prius owner prior to 2010 that has this problem. i don't feel safe on the road and want to trade the car in to toyota or get it fixed. every time it rains, it happens. *tr
I was driving a 2008 toyota prius on the highway at around 50 mph when traffic came to a stop, and when i depressed on the brake pedal, the car kept going, and it wasn't until i jammed on the brake pedal all the way to the floor that the brakes seem to engage, but by that time, i had already collided with the car in front of me. on a separate instance, one year ago, the car failed to stop when i pressed on the brake and instead accelerated into my parking space, over the concrete block in front of my parking space and into the wall. *tr
I have a 2008 prius and have noticed that the car regularly loses braking ability and surges forward after hitting potholes. this has been occurring since i bought the car. i didn't realize until reading the news that other people were experiencing the same problem. *tr
2008 touring prius with blizzack tires. driving at 10-15 mph in parking lot coated with ice, both smooth and bumpy. applied brakes to slow for a turn out of the lot and the brakes locked, the abs did not engage, and the car did not slow down, hitting an icy snowbank and cracking the front right fender. this incident was 1/1/10. on 2/1/10 on the freeway, at about 30-40 mph, on snow that was slick and icy, i applied the brakes, the car was sliding, the abs did not engage and the car was not slowing down; this time, though, i let up on the brakes and pumped them and then the car did slow down and i did not hit the car in front of me. in 45 years of driving, i have never had an accident. there may have been other times the abs did not engage, because i have had a number of times in which i have had to pump the brakes after it feels like there is no braking action. the two incidents above, though, are the two i specifically remember. *tr
2008 toytoa prius brakes disengaging when going over bumps, potholes, railway tracks. no injuries yet but some close calls.
I have a 2008 prius. i was in bumper to bumper traffic and stopped. when the car in front of me moved up (i was about 2 or 3 car links behind them) i took my foot off the brake and my car surged forward , i pressed as hard as i could on the brake with both feet and the car crashed into the car in front of me. it was like in slow motion, but the car would not stop. i put the car in park then turned it off after the crash. my airbag did not deploy, but it caused the rear bumper of the car in front of me to almost fall off in the street. i had the car towed to the nearest dealership. i was not given a ticket by the police. i told all this to the dealership and ins. company and we requested an inspection of the brakes. after the body repair on my car iwas completed, the dealership did a visual inspection of the brakes, test drove it and said it met with their specs. and that the pads were still within the proper thickness on the brakes. they couldn't find any problem. *tr
I have a 2008 toyota prius and on december 4, 2009, i rear-ended another vehicle after my brakes failed. i applied the brakes as i was coming upon the car, and the car just kept going. fortunately, i was going at a slow speed. i immediately reported the accident to my insurance company and i did tell the representative that i hit the brakes but the car kept going. *tr
I have a 2008 prius, but i have that same braking issue that the 2010 prius has. at least 3 or 4 times in the past, i have hit a bump while braking, usually when approaching an intersection, and the car feels like it surges forward off the bump, requiring pushing the brake harder. it's a strange enough sensation that it would make me say "whoa, that felt weird" every single time, but i just thought i didn't brake hard enough. until i heard and read about the 2010 prius braking complaints, and then realized that is exactly what has been happening with my 2008 model. it was always when braking and hitting a bump at the same time. so far, there's never been a car close enough in front of me to hit when it surges forward. i don't have specific dates for the incidents, as i hadn't been keeping track of the episodes up until now. but your form requires a date, so i'm just using 12/1/09, although it has happened sporadically throughout the year. i sent an e-mail about it to nhtsa on 2/9/10. you replied back on 2/18/10 that it was received -- case number 232390 & nhtsa id: 194611. i have a service appt. at the dealership on 2/20/10 for some other warranty items, and i also mentioned this braking issue to them, although i don't know what they will be able to do with the information at this time, since the focus is only on the problem with the 2010 model at the present time. but it would appear that it involves earlier models, too. *tr
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 toyota prius. whenever the contact drives her vehicle at any speed and attempst to brake over a rough terrain the contact noticed that the vehicles brakes will disengage for a short period and then correct itself. the vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealership and there were no prior warnings. the current and failure mileages were 50000.
When i brake for a bump or pothole, my 2008 toyota prius, accelerates on its own when the front tires hits the bump or pothole. i must hit the brakes harder in order to slow. this occurs very frequently, i notice this especially at low speeds. this acceleration on a bump recently occurred when there was a car immediately in front of me, i barely missed hitting the car. this has nothing to do with floor mat. the floor mat is properly secure, moreover it only happens in this situation (i.e., the floor mat does not invisibly get in the way when i hit a bump and magically go back into place all the other time.) *tr
Headlights on toyota prius 2008 started dimming and going out intermittently at 50,000 miles. lights will go back on when turned off and then back on again. i have been stopped 3 times by the police for a headlight out and been let go with a warning. in addition, the abs system activates for no reason on dry roads and brakes are slow to engage. *tr
I have had some problems with my prius, 2008 model. the braking system has acted "weird" on several occasions...even before hearing about the problems with the 2010 model prius! when i brake, sometimes the car doesn't respond initially and then "lurches" before the brakes engage. also the orange light (abs?) comes on when this happens and then disappears quickly. i asked the dealer about this when i serviced the car (12000 miles) and they just said that is a "feature" of the braking system. i never have had a car that does that. i don't feel safe nor do i trust the judgment of the dealer. *tr
2008 toyota prius brakes did not work upon starting vehicle one day. no warning, just no brakes. vehicle was towed to nearest dealer (50 miles) and the "linear solenoid valve" was "reinitialized". *tr
Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). 2008 toyota prius [xxx] when applying brakes, if i drive over a bump, ie railroad track, the brakes disengage for a couple of seconds and then reengage. it feels like you hit a patch of black ice. i have had no accidents as a result, only a few scares. this problem has been recognized by toyota as a problem with the 2010 prius, but not the 2008 prius. the same problem exists on my 2008 prius. *tr