Problems with 2008 Toyota Prius EQUIPMENT

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 toyota prius. the contact stated that the navigation system control and the heating and cooling unit failed. the contact mentioned that the navigation system shut off causing the heating and cooling unit to fail. the failure recurred several times. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the navigation system needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 90,000.

The plastic part on the rear latch for the toyota prius is now like gum. after internet research this is a common problem for all toyota latches and it costs about $280.00 to fix. i have a 2008 toyota prius and this is a known defective part and should be recalled and the consumer should not be charged. *tr

Toyota prius (2008) hatch release rubber cover piece detached and tore apart. note that my rx300 selection of make/part number is bogus, as i have no way of knowing who made this rubber component. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 toyota prius. the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start unless a particular warning light was cleared by disconnecting and reconnecting the battery. the contact was unsure of what light illuminated. in addition, the vehicle stalled when speeds exceeded 50 mph. the contact also stated that the failure may be due to the engine plug-in battery add-on kit that he personally installed. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was informed that there was a low battery indicator problem that caused the failure. the technician informed the contact that once the add-on was removed, the failure ceased. the failure mileage was 60,000 and the current mileage was 70,000. updated 02/12/13*lj the consumer stated his complaint was against the makers and distributors of the phev conversion kit, he had installed in his vehicle. the battery kit was used to provide additional electrical battery power to the built in battery of the hybrid. the consumer stated occasionally, the phev kit would cause the engine to shut down while driving on the highway at speeds of 45 -65 mph. when the incident occurred, there was a warning beep and the general warning triangle would appear on the dashboard. once it happened, the consumer was unable to re-start the vehicle, until the general warning triangle was cleared. he had to clear it, by disconnecting the 12 volt battery for a minute and the re-connecting the 12 volt battery. the consumer stated after the engine shut down for a third time, he removed the phev battery kit. updated 02/13/13

We bought our 2008 toyota prius in nov 2007. after about 3 years use, the rubber cover on the hatch release handle (the exterior handle of the rear hatch) melted into a sticky tarry black rubbery gooey mess. to open the hatch, you have to touch this black goo each time, which makes it difficult to operate the hatch release. we believe this melting process started at about the 2 yr. mark, but has been a serious issue for the past year. we can barely open the rear hatchback now. i have seen on the internet that this has happened to several car owners, particularly in florida. we live in virginia though. toyota knows about this, and is selling the entire wiring harness for $96 plus repair costs, and has done nothing about recalling this. from a safety perspective, we experience extreme difficulty opening the rear hatch (a life safety access point), and will get sticky black tar on our hands from the melted down rubber cover of the exterior hatch release handle. to me, this is both a serious life safety issue and a serious quality defect that toyota is opting to ignore and only fixing on vehicles with extended warranties, since the failure appears to occur at around the 3 year mark. i am aware of the outstanding work done by nhtsa on other safety issues, so i am asking for your agency to take a look at these instances and also to inquire from toyota why they are not recalling these handles that are melting in the sun!!! it's outrageous. i think a door handle or hatch handle should be made to last more than 3 years. please review these forum comments of other incidents: *tr

Toyota 2008 prius trunk hatch release rubber piece melted. 2008 model was only 2.5 years old when this happened. dealer says $197.00 for this part. *tr

2008 toyota prius. left headlight goes out, turn off then on lite comes on for a few minutes. now right headlight is going out, with both lights going off @ night i have a serious safety problem. these are the hid headlights which are very expensive to replace,($300 to $500). checking on line it seems that this is becoming a major safety problem.. *tr

2008 prius hid headlights failing. starting at around 48,000 miles. can't they make a headlight for about $20 instead of even the $150 that they want just for the bulb. toyota should at least offer free labor to replace the bulb. can't believe they can't make a cheaper bulb that should last about the lifetime of the car. *tw

I have a 2008 toyota prius. the hid bulbs did not last over a year. *tw

This pertains to any hybrid vehicle. while walking past one in a mall parking lot, the driver started to back out. since the engine does not engage at this speed, there is no audible warning to pedestrians and if the driver is not paying enough attention, the pedestrian could be injured. *tr

The prius has a mark on dash by center screen and is poor sign. *tr

After having driven my prius nearly 15,000 miles in all types of weather (except snow) and on residential roads as well as interstate highways with no steering problems, on a single day on residential streets at 20 to 25 mph and gentle rain, it hydroplaned twice with damages each time to the car and to a fire hydrant once. each event was while going around a gentle left curve at reasonable speed. the first time, i was able to correct and spin out 360 degrees with the left quarter-panel hitting a roadside garbage container. the second time, the car did not respond to any steering maneuvers nor the brakes when applied. the car stopped only after colliding with the fire hydrant. significant damage was sustained in each collision. i have traveled this street several times daily, often on rainy days, and never before had any steering problems. it was as though something had changed in the steering control on this day. i was sober and unimpaired. *tr