I own a 2010 toyota prius. at least 10 times, when passing over a bump or pothole in the road, the car accelerates without my applying any pressure to the gas pedal. that is, it accelerates without warning sometimes when i pass over a bump or pothole. then, when i try to slow it down from this unwanted acceleration, the brakes do not seem to function properly. that is, the brakes do not seem to properly and instantly "catch" to slow the car. rather, there is a pulsating sensation for an estimated 2-5 seconds until the brakes finally and completely "catch" to slow the car from the unwanted and unintended acceleration. i noticed this shortly after buying the car on august 11, 2009. further, i have never experienced this phenomenon with any other automobile that i have driven in the last 30 years. it is not some phenomenon or problem that has developed over time. rather, it was a phenomenon that occurred when the car was almost completely new with far less than 1,000 miles on the odometer. i am making this complaint after reading in an internet news article that others are experiencing similar problems with the 2010 toyota prius as well as the other recalled toyota automobiles. i believe this is a potentially dangerous problem, and swift u.s. government action is both warranted and needed for public safety. *tr
Three times, twice with me and once with my wife, the automobile accelerated during braking. the acceleration (or loss of brakes, it's hard to tell) lasted for only a second, but enough where i had to press the brakes with force to come to my intended stop. i could have easily ended up in the middle of the intersection. *tr
While turning off four lane road onto frontage road with foot on brake pedal my car suddenly started accelerating. i applied more pressure on the pedal quickly and got a sort of clunking sound and the car returned to normal driving speed? *tr
2010 prius. this has happened about 10 times now. sometimes when i brake, i experience a sudden acceleration. it ranges from slight to a lurch. when it first happened, i thought it was something on the road and ignored it. when it was more pronounced and happened a couple of more times, i brought it to the dealer. they said they had no other reports and could not replicate it. the service manager took me on a test drive and the car was fine. i knew this would happen as the acceleration is only occasional. i was advised to call toyota national, which i did, and was told that since this could not be replicated that there was nothing they could do and no recourse i had as the complaint could not be replicated. it has happened several times since, so i have paid close attention, as my heart has been racing, to the conditions. it has happened when i am braking while going over manholes, speed strips, cracks in the pavement. it feels like the tire is getting hung up slightly, doesn't get any traction.the brake malfunction light comes on. also, on the multi-information display, the indicator has just moved from eco to chg.the other day, it was 34 degrees and i was braking as i came up to a light and the car slid and vibrated. i was going about 5 miles an hour. there may have been some black ice or frost on the ground, but the shaking was intense and i had difficulty controlling the car for a few seconds until i stopped. *tr
On at least two occasions, i have had uneven, jerky acceleration from my 2010 toyota prius. acceleration was from a stand still and was at low rates of speed. both instances have occurred when the vehicle was cold, but the ambient air temperature was probably above 30 degrees. *tr
There have been several instances since i purchased my 2010 prius in october 2009 that i have gone over a bump in the road and my 2010 prius has felt like it's speeding up and i had to push hard on the brakes to feel like i had control of my car. *tr
Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius hybrid. he stated that when the gasoline engine was engaged in any gear, including the park position, the vehicle would surge. he also stated that upon turning the gasoline engine off, the vehicle would momentarily roll backwards. this would often occur while any electrical component of the vehicle was utilized, to include the heater, defrost and radio. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where they could not duplicate the failure. the dealer stated that the vehicle was operating as it was designed. there were no repairs made to the vehicle to date. the failure mileage was 200 and the current mileage was 1,398.
There have been several times when the brakes of my 2010 toyota prius have released, often when i hit a bump or am going over a hill. the car feels as if it's suddenly accelerating even though i am pushing down on the brakes. this has happened at least 4 - 5 times per week since i bought my car in july 2009. today, i was unable to stop as i approach an intersection despite pushing down on the brakes. the car hesitated and finally the brakes engaged. luckily no one was coming through the intersection for if there had been, i surely would have hit them. *tr
When driving my 2010 toyota prius the car has a tendency to accelerate forward as i am hitting the brakes. i have noticed this is usually around potholes or any other bumps in the road. it happens pretty regularly and it scares the pants off me; to say the least. i have found no response from toyota concerning fixing this problem and am worried that when something bad happens i'll be held responsible for their mistake. *tr
I purchased my 2010 toyota prius in december 2010. twice in the last two weeks my car has unexpectedly lurched forward as i went over a speed bump at a relatively low speed. since it was the same speed bump both times, i reason that it must have something to do with the height of the bump and/or my angle of approach. i was able to regain control of the vehicle both times. i am reporting this because i have read the news articles about others having similar problems with 2010 prius' and thought that you would want to know. i have not taken any action because i wasn't sure the problem was with the vehicle or the road surface. *tr
Tl * the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. the first time she experienced sudden acceleration was on january 15, 2010. while stopped at the red light with her foot on the brake the vehicle suddenly accelerated. she put the gear in neutral and the vehicle stopped, as soon she took the gear out of neutral the vehicle accelerated again. she experienced the failure five times. she took the vehicle to the dealer february 13 2010 the dealer replaced accelerator pedal and reset the accelerator computerized system. and on march 18, 2010 she experienced the failure again while stopped at the red light the vehicle continued to accelerate. the contact stated she will take the vehicle back to the dealer. the current failure mileage was 2,000 and the current mileage was 4,200.
I own a 2010 prius, and have experienced an acceleration issue on about 3-4 occasions since purchasing the vehicle in august of 2009. the issue i had was perfectly described in a recent on-line article from money.cnn.com on feb 3. here is the quote - "the complaints received via our dealers center around when drivers are on a bumpy road or frozen surface," a toyota motor corp. spokesman in japan, said. "the driver steps on the brake and they do not get as full of a braking feel as expected." this is exactly what i've experienced, and it also seems to possibly be related to the shift from gas to electric which occurs when slowing down. after braking, there is a sudden, brief surge of acceleration. i have not brought this into the dealer, but plan to soon. *tr
My toyota prius 2010 (5000 miles) few times already has an "accelerator that goes wild", but luckily for me, i can hit the brakes. it happened only when i drive back from my garage. *jb
I own a 2010 prius purchased around sept. 2009. a few weeks after we got the vehicle, my wife and i independently both experienced a sudden acceleration when the car went over a bump. this has occurred about a total of 4 times. my foot was not on the accelerator at the time this occurred. stepping on the brake did slow the vehicle down. the last time i experienced this was 2-3 weeks ago. i did ask the dealer shortly after the initial incident if he had heard of this problem and he said no. i have not since brought the car back to the dealer. we have noticed this only when the car goes over a bump.*tr
Sudden surge when hitting a bump at medium speeds. my prius is now six months old with about 6,000 miles on it and i experience a surge in acceleration when i hit a bump at about 20 mph. i used to be an auto mechanic (20 years ago), so i may be a little more attuned to narrowing the problem than most people. i have noticed that when this surge happens i am lightly on the brakes (totally off the accelerator). this seems to particularly happen when the bump (like a pothole in the road) is under the right front wheel. even more frustrating is that this does not happen every time nor on every bump. i can tell you the floor mat has nothing to do with it and i do not think the outside temperature has anything to do with it either. my shadetreemechanic's diagnosis is that this is a software glitch that gets activated when the braking solenoid is bumped. *tr
I have a 2010 prius. on at least three occasions, in the last six months, the following has occurred. when i am traveling and i apply brake pressure the vehicle begins to accelerate. no matter how hard i press on the brake pedal it does not slow down or stop the vehicle. it actually begins to speeds up while my foot is pressing down on the brake pedal. the acceleration has only lasted approximately 5-6 seconds. however, it is very frightening when you are traveling at a high rate of speed and trying to slow down especially off a freeway off ramp. the last thing you want to do at that time is accelerate even if it is momentarily. this has occurred in various places. it has happened while i am getting off of the freeway and on city streets. there was nothing i did in particular that corrected the failure. the prius just stopped accelerating on it's own. *tr
when the car goes over an uneven or bumpy [surface,] or down an incline, the car accelerates or lurches forward. this has occurred several times and is unnerving to the point i have switched cars with my husband. also, when coming out of my garage most each day, the car rolls back on battery power, but the brakes are stiff, just liked you would pump them when the car is off (real hard) until the cars motor turns on. but by then, you have rolled 15 or so feet backward with little to no break control. they feel like they won't stop the car. *tr
When driving and braking, if you hit a bump or pot hole, the brakes release and the car doesn't slow down. this has happened a number of time since i bought the car in august 2009. *tr
Today at around 220- prius jumped or .. lurched forward as i was braking - i think on buena vista - front of st joes - i had come from partners credit union - was going to freeway 134 - i was going slow maybe 20 mph - cars were coming to stop at stoplight before freeway on ramp - as i braked gently i hit a metal cover on ground - but instead of stopping the car lurched forward - fortunately - there was ample room in front of me- i was going slow and braked early - otherwise i might have hit the stopped car in front - more than just slipping - like when braking on ice.. the car actually jerked forward - earlier in week - i was backing out of driveway at house - and as i was backing up and braking the brakes were real jerky - hard - over - responsive - then when i hit the road - going forward - brakes went back to normal. *tr
2010 toyota prius seems to accelerate when i apply brakes to slow down and car goes into shallow pothole. this event is repeatable and happens every time i slow down at a particular stop sign with a pothole in front of it. fortunately there has never been a car in front of me and i now know to avoid this spot. car behaves normally once it has cleared the pothole. this occurs at slow speeds ( 20mph down to 0 ) has not happened anywhere else, but happens everytime at this location. *tr
The cruise control on my 2010 toyota prius does not always cancel while braking. this has resulted in unintended acceleration after braking while the cruise control has been set. a driver expects that the cruise control will automatically cancel while applying the brakes but this does not happen under light braking. this is even more pronounced while driving up a steep hill. on january 11th, 2010, i was in a situation where i actually applied the brakes to reduce my speed while traveling up a steep hill and felt the car "fighting" against me to maintain a steady speed. after i had slowed my prius to match the speed of the car in front of me, the cruise control unexpectedly caused the car to accelerate again, placing me at a less than safe distance to the car in front of me as we crested the hill. *tr
My 2010 toyota prius loses braking ability and lunges forward while braking on any uneven surface i.e. pothole, manhole cover, bump metal plate or strip, etc... this has lead to several near miss collisions and due to the amount of time i spend in the car happens an average of 3 times per day. because i fear for my own safety i do not allow passengers in my car and i will not let anyone else drive my car. i've had to adjust my driving to try and compensate for no braking ability at any given time. i have now reported this problem to my dealer toyota of merrillville in person 3 times and over the phone on several occasions and each time i was told they were unable to duplicate the problem and therefore there was no fix they could offer. they also tell me that i am the only customer reporting this type of concern but i have been able to connect with many prius owners experiencing this loss of braking while over uneven pavement. i believe toyota is downplaying this problem at the risk of public safety. *tr
I have a 2010 prius. everyone in the media is talking about brake issues but the real problem is that the car accelerates after it hits bumps in the road. it feels like an electronic problem. the brakes aren't the issue.*tr
Car did not brake properly and slightly surged forward on many occasions when i drove over a manhole cover and speed bumps at lower speeds. in one occasion, i rear ended a car and cracked my license plate frame but since there was no further damage on any of the cars involved, we agreed to drive away. *tr
Sudden acceleration when passing over rough spots(has happened with manhole cover). braking stops the acceleration. *cn
Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius hybrid. while driving approximately 20- 25 mph on a slightly snow covered road surface there was pressure applied to the brake pedal, followed by an unintended acceleration. the driver continuously applied pressure to the brake pedal; however, the vehicle failed to slow down while proceeding through an intersection. an opposing vehicle crashed into the front passenger side and there were no injuries. the police was called to the scene. the vehicle was completely destroyed and towed to a collision center. the vin was unavailable. the cause of the failure has not been determined at this time. the failure mileage was 7,700. updated 03/12/10. *lj the consumer stated when he approached a stop sign with adequate distance to stop, pressure was applied to the brake pedal. when the vehicle would not stop, he had to press harder to get the vehicle to stop. updated 07/13/10.*jb
Tl*the contact owned a 2010 toyota prius. while driving approximately 5 mph the contact applied pressure to the brake pedal but the brakes did not respond. the vehicle lunged forward and crashed into another vehicle. the vehicle was towed to dealer where the vehicle was repaired. a police report was filed. the contact sustained injuries to her head and a torn meniscus to her knee. the treatment for her related injuries had been on-going since the crash occurred. the contact no longer owns the vehicle. the dealer assumed ownership of the vehicle. the approximate failure mileage was 5,000.
Toyota 2010 prius - problem with car accelerating when i brake on bumpy surface. has occurred repeatedly as on my drive to work i drive over a potholed section of road and need to brake to slow down for a right hand turn -if i go very slowly and do not brake on the bumpy part it does not occur - when i drive at a normal speed and brake for the turn it does occur - i feel a major acceleration that lasts for only a second or two. *tr
I have a 2010 prius. occasionally when i go over a bump (pothole, train track, rough road) my car feels like it jolts forward for a few seconds. this happens when i am not hitting the brakes so i don't think it is covered by the anti-lock braking recall. it is difficult to replicate this and i haven't reported it to the dealer because of this, but it happens about 1-2/week. it could be a problem in a traffic situation where cars are following closely. *tr
I first reported this to toyota prior to the initial 2010 recall, the car was less than 1 month old and i have reported it on numerous occasions via the toyota website. on the few occasions i lent the car to friends they have had the same experience. description: when traveling at relatively slow speeds and an unexpected bump comes up and the brakes are engaged early, once going over the bump the car losses brake power for a few seconds and jolts forward. it is very disconcerting b/c in those split seconds if one is not prepared the car hurls forward and could if all odds are against me, the car could kill someone if they are walking in front of the car. i reported it to my dealer, my dealer's inspector went out on test drive with me, we were able to recreate the incident when he was driving as there are a few spots in my neighborhood that it happens every time. he put the computer on the car but it did not read there was a problem. he called the national technical office, who eventually came out, i left the car at the dealership. they recreated the problem and according to the local technician they put a camera in the wheel to film the situation. i was later told by my local technician that it was determined that there was not a problem with the car and that the situation is normal where the tire catches an uneven surface and goes into overdrive. i have had dreams that i would kill someone in this car. noone is allowed to use this car for the same reason. i fear for my life and the life of anyone walking in front of me on a street i do not know. it happens almost every 2 weeks. it is scary! please help! this is the first new car i bought in 25 years and i am unable to get rid of it b/c i had to pay so much for it. when i inquired what my options were, toyota said none, that there is no problem with the car. *tr
Using cruise control feature,when i hit the brake for split second the car speeds up before disengaging cruise control this happen all the time not on just the date below. *tr
When the road surface is slippery and/or uneven (i.e, pothole is beginning to form), my 2010 toyota prius has "surged" or accelerated suddenly at low speeds under 30 mph, for no apparent reason other than coming into contact with the bumpy/slick road surface. this sudden acceleration responds to braking and has occurred approximately 5-8 times, with more frequency since the rainy weather began. this is frightening for a few brief seconds, especially in heavy traffic. as a consequence, i try to avoid uneven road surfaces but in heavy rain conditions when the road is covered with water, pot holes and brakes in the blacktop are not as easily visible and once i swerved to miss it by moving into the next lane a little bit and a big truck was merging into the same lane at the same time and blew his horn so hard it scared me even more so that i swerved back into my lane, nearly causing an accident. i plan to contact my dealer today about this acceleration defect. *tr
2010 toyota prius has a defect the toyota has acknowledged. the problem is when the car hits a large bump the car accelerates. the dash traction warning light also comes on and toyota is saying they believe this is a software problem. *tr
We own a 2010 prius. my daughter usually drives it. i had it for the month of january. during that time, i experienced brief surges or swerves when i hit potholes or rough spots in the road at a slow speed. this occurred 3 or 4 times out of approximately two dozen short trips around town. *tr
Tl* contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. the contact stated he took his vehicle in recently for the recall repair and the failure continues to happen, and it is worse than it was before the repair was done. the contact stated when the road is wet he lightly depresses the brake and it feels as if his vehicle accelerates instead of stopping. the failure happens when driving approximately 20mph. the contact called the dealer and he left a message. the failure mileage was 3,000 and the current is a 5,200. updated 11/16/10. *lj
Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. he stated when driving over uneven road surfaces or speed bumps in the road the vehicle would momentarily lose braking power. also, when depressing the brake pedal over any type of uneven road surface the vehicle would surge momentarily. the dealer was contacted and informed the contact that there was nothing wrong with the vehicle. the failure persisted and the dealer was contacted a second time where the contact was informed that they were aware of the issue, however did not have an explanation or a remedy for the failure. the failure persisted and the dealership was contacted a third time where the contact was advised there was an open recall on the vehicle nhtsa recall number: 10v039000:service brakes, air:antilock:control unit/module) and to bring the vehicle in to perform the recall service. after recall repairs were performed on the vehicle, the contact experienced the exact same failure. the failure mileage was approximately 1,000 and the current is 7600.
While accelerating to make a right hand turn signal (speed appx 30mph) i depressed the brakes to slow the vehicle down to a reasonable speed to safely make the turn, the car slowed, i began the turn but mid- turn with my foot still depressing the brake pedal the car made a 1 ' 2 second acceleration. *tr
1. i was driving in san francisco, ca on city roads. in both events, i was braking to minimize the impact of driving over potholes or uneven pavement (holes that were recently filled with asphalt) seen ahead. 2. when the brakes were applied, there was a brief, momentary surge in power followed by normal braking. on one occasion, a passenger riding in the front passenger seat also noticed the surge and commented on it. 3. no corrective action has been taken so far. awaiting news on a possible recall and instructions from car marker on corrective actions to be taken. *tw
I have a 2010 prius which i bought in august 2009. on several occasions, approximately 8-10 times, i have been braking at slower speeds when coming to an intersection. when i put my foot on the brake and the car happens to hit a bump or hole in the road and the car noticeably surges. my foot is not on the accelerator and this has nothing to do with the floor mats because my floor mat is pinned to the floor of the car. the most recent time this happened was 12/28/2009. *tr
I have experienced a sudden acceleration type problem when driving over rough pavement and potholes, etc. the acceleration is for a split second and i suspect it may be related to the lack of traction from the tires. it does not appear to have anything to do with loose floor mats or a sticking pedal. no repairs have been made. dealer said they never heard of the problem when i went in last week. i was offered to have it brought into service depart. it does not happen on command so i am going to wait for nhtsa investigation. *tr
I have a 2010 toyota prius, when i am trying to stop and hit a pothole, or manhole cover or the streets are wet, the car's brakes will disengage temporarily. it is scary and i've almost had a few accidents. please look into this. *tr
In reverse car speeds and brake stiffens and unable to slow reverse speed. also, two times while accelerating at 25 miles per hour the car seemed to lift up then settle down. very frightening. *tr updated 02/02/10 *bf the consumer stated when the vehicle was in reverse, the brakes froze. the day after the vehicle was at the dealer, the consumer parked on a small incline, the front facing up. when she started the vehicle, she pushed the start button, put the vehicle in reverse, disengaged the emergency brake, and immediately the brakes froze and the consumer started to go backwards without control of the backing up the car. the consumer was unable to control the backwards movement so she immediately shut down the power. she then started the vehicle again, put it reverse, disengaged the emergency brake and everything was normal. updated 03/01/10 updated 05/05/10.*jb
2010 prius, less than 5000 miles. on the i-5 (ca) going to san francisco on 12-24-09. on a slight/moderate downgrade with cruise set at 70 mph, the car was braking hard and was over 100 mph before i realized what the noise was - and immediately took it out of cruise and braked. it came under control. on or about 12-31-09 i was unable to engage cruise on the freeway but the following day it engaged normally. *tw
In my 2010 prius, the vehicle randomly accelerates when the cruise control is disengaged. this happens every 10th or 15th time of disengagement. when the brakes are applied harder the vehicle slows properly. the unexpected acceleration is very dangerous in traffic. the vehicle has been checked by the dealer and i was told that nothing is wrong. i called for a second time and was told the problem is not on the recall list. i will take it in anyway next week. *tr
My 2010 prius was delivered on december 17, i took it on two long road trips and used my cruise control on both trips. on both trips with cruise control on there was a surge of acceleration. nothing stuck and when i applied the brakes the cruise control cut off and the car slowed. i have experienced this one other time and again it was interstate driving with cruise control on. *tr
I have a new toyota prius 2010 and have experienced the loss of braking combined with a simultaneous acceleration about 4 times now. it is incredibly scary. i have never had this happen on any other car that i've driven. it happens when i hit a bump in the rear. i now see that many people are experiencing this as i saw an article on msnbc.msn.com. i now see that others are experiencing the same problem. this has to be investigated. the last time it happened i was facing a cliff and had the car not stopped, my daughter and i would have gone off the cliff and probably would have perished. this is asking for accidents to happen and something must be done to fix this problem. there are way too many of these cars on the road. i do not have the win number on hand, but will add it tomorrow. this has occurred approx 4 times and the car accelerates at the same time i lose braking capabilities. *tr
Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. the contact was stopped the vehicle and then noticed that the engine would suddenly surge without warning until the vehicle was turned off. the vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealership and there were no prior warnings. the current and failure mileages were 4700.
I have a 2010 toyota prius that i bought in december, 2009. six or seven times, i have noticed that the car lurches forward (like someone is flooring the gas pedal) every time i hit a pot hole. i thought it might be just me, but i saw in the paper today that others have noticed similar problems with their prius. *tr
To the nhtsa: i am an owner of a 2010 toyota prius that i purchased in june 2009. since owning the vehicle, i have had about a half-dozen to a dozen occurrences of the same problem. at low speeds, when the rear wheel hits a bump, for a split-second the car feels like there is a burst of acceleration and is out of control. this lasts only a split-second. i saw another consumer in a news article about the prius brake issue describe it the exact same way. i actually mentioned this to my dealer (bernardi toyota, framingham, ma) when i brought the car in for the 5,000 mile service a month or so ago. the service dept told me that the behavior is normal for the hybrid vehicles, and known by toyota -- no fix or adjustment recommended. this seemed like an odd response, but because they told me there was no safety issue, i left it at that. i am providing my experience to aid the nhtsa apply pressure on toyota to fix this problem in the prius. *tr
We have experienced engine surges/lack of braking with our 2010 toyota prius on 5 different occasions during aug 2009 - feb 2010: -1: hit pothole with right front tire and experienced surge. -2: hit exact same pothole on another day and same result (surge). -3: while driving on paved road hit some ice and experienced surge. -4: while approaching stop light, applied brakes, when front right side of car hit gravel, experienced surge. -5: while preparing for left hand turn on busy street, when car went over a large drainage grate in the turn lane, experienced surge. *tr