Problems with 2010 Toyota Prius SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC

The car has hyper-sensitive brakes whenever i am backing up from a parked spot (e.g. backing up from a parking space at a store.) when backing out of a space (using just idle speed and tapping lightly on the brakes to control the speed) tapping lightly results in the car brakes forcefully engaging and slamming the car to a stop. this happens only after the car has been warmed up; parked (like going to the store to shop) and then you re-enter it to leave. the hyper sensitive breaks continue for a short period of time while i am positioning the car to get out of a parking space and onto the road. after the first occurrence of the forceful braking, putting the car in park, pumping on the brakes several times usually corrects the problem. since it happens randomly, you never know when it will occur. toyota says there is nothing wrong with the brakes when i brought it to their attention. they said it is common with priuses. this is not true. i own a 2007 prius and never had this problem. this problem has been mentioned several times by other 2010 prius owners on the priuschat.com website. *tr

Purchase 2010 prius in nov 2009. on smooth highway ( ny lie ) traveling 70mph to pass a car. gently applied brake to slow down but the prius lurched forward for 2-3 seconds ( 200 - 300 feet ). almost hit car in front of me. *tr

When braking at lower speeds and traveling over a transition (manhole cover, pavement break), the car will act as though the brakes lose grip for a second, then regain stopping power. i haven't hit anything, but it's been unsettling. *tr

I drive a 2010 toyota prius. on multiple occasions while attempting to slow down on rough surfaces, the brakes temporarily stopped working for 1-2 seconds even though the brake pedal was depressed. the most recent incident occurred while exiting the highway and attempting to slow down quickly on rough pavement. luckily, there were no other cars in front of me or there would have been a collision. if a car had been in front of me on any of the occasions then there would have likely been a collision. *jb

2010 toyota prius braking problems. not always consistent braking pressure or braking force. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. while driving approximately 45 mph and applying the brake pedal, the vehicle would not respond. she felt the vehicle accelerating while attempting to brake. on one occasion, while depressing the brake pedal on a hill, the vehicle accelerated down the hill. this occurred on several occasions. the dealer was contacted and advised bringing the vehicle in for a diagnostic test. no repairs were made to date. the current and failure mileages were under 67,000. updated 04/01/10 *bf the consumer stated when she applied the brake, it didn't engage and the vehicle momentarily surged forward before the brake finally engaged. updated 07/06/10.*jb

2010 toyota prius - owned car for 8 months. five times car has accelerated while i am pressing on the brake. happens when i am slowing down and hit a pot hole or bump. very scary! have a teen who is learning to drive and she is not allowed to use the prius. mechanics at dealership looked at me like i was crazy. said they would have to exactly re-create problem to investigate. *tr

I purchased a 2010 toyota prius about 6 weeks ago and have experienced a brake surge problem at least three times. in each instance i was traveling about 20 mph and had applied the brakes. when the car hit a bump in the pavement it surged forward for about 0.5 second before the brakes grabbed again. the road surface was dry on each occasion and my impression at the time was that the brakes just let go. *tr

During braking, my 2010 toyota prius would "lunge" forward as though the brakes did not work for a few seconds when "hitting" small bumps in the road. this happened twice. *tr

2010 toyota prius - sometimes when braking the car has a power surge and you start moving faster. *tr

I have a new gen iii 2010 prius ii and have noticed that when braking the car seems to surge forward before decelerating when i hit a series of bumps or a pothole. it is un-nerving in that even at slow speeds like when coming to a stop at a stop light, the car wants to continue forward with an uncontrolled burst. i have changed my driving slightly to give my self move stopping room, but sometimes there is a series of bumps in the road and it just happens. i have 10,000 miles on the vehicle and this has happened about 8 to ten times to me, usually when i'm not expecting anything to happen but a slow braking stop. as an incident date is requested, i am putting in just one of the dates that this occurred, i have not kept a record of the days, travel conditions, or times that the incidents occurred. this happens everytime my wife drives over a particular set of train tracks near where we live. also this of course has happened over time and the mileage given is actually from the day we got it till now, this is an on going event. *tr

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

Applied brakes at a stop light. the prius (purchased in july of 2009) ran over a bump, and it seemed like the brake disengaged. i removed my foot from the brake pedal and reapplied the brakes. the brakes seemed to engage and came to a stop. *jb

my 2010 prius hesitated to brake properly/caused a delay at 10mph on the freeway, as a result my left fender made contact with the vehicle in front of me. as result, my insurance increased, i had to pay $500 deductible to repair my bumper. also the back brakes have squeaked going in reverse since purchase in november 2009. *tr

Multiple times when braking in my 2010 toyota prius, the car has suddenly lurched forward instead of stopping. in all these incidents, the road was either slightly wet or the car had just moved over a bump or pothole. *jb

My vehicle has gone into a slide when braking...feels like the brakes are locked although i have antilock brakes. i have slid into an intersection twice and i would say there was sand left over from snow melt. this is a brand new car and i definitely can feel a difference that has caused alarm possibly 4 or 5 times in 4 months. *tr

When driving at moderate speeds on city/surface streets in my 2010 prius, a braking problem occurs. if i hit a bump in the road while braking, the vehicle lurches forward as if the brakes have disengaged, even though i am still pressing the brake. i push the brakes down harder and nothing happens. a few seconds later, the brakes come back into play and the car slows down again. this has happened several times, and i have narrowly avoided accidents caused by this several times. *tr

I have on at least 4 occasions experienced the braking issue (that is being investigated) on my 2010 prius. it happens when i go over railroad tracks, or hit a pothole. please add my complaint to the others that report similar problems.

There appears to be a problem with the brakes on my 2010 prius. there is a sudden loss of braking force if i apply the brakes while rolling over uneven pavement. when it first occurred, it was on snow. once i sailed into the intersection. the second time, i almost rear ended the car in front of me. i went home and then drove my wife's acura in the same snowy conditions at the same intersections and didn't experience any problems. i know the problem wasn't due to weather conditions. i have since then been able to reproduce it in dry conditions. the common condition is braking over uneven surfaces. some people have said that it feels like sudden surge of acceleration. the gasoline engine isn't (usually) on while the car is braking. the surge isn't due to the electric motor malfunctioning because on smooth surfaces, it behaves as expected. i believe what they feel is a loss of braking power which makes the car feel like it is accelerating. some people have been told that this is normal abs behavior. i've owned several cars with abs and this is not the same nor what i would consider 'normal' behavior. it could be a combination of the uneven surface with abs, regenerative brakes, friction brakes, suspension spring rate and tires. while normal abs will exhibit less braking force and longer distances to stop when it is engaged, it isn't the same as this condition. or at least it shouldn't be this touchy to engage. when it happens, it is rather alarming. i really like this car. i think it is a great piece of automotive technology. however this needs to be addressed. i can't accept it being a normal quirk of the car. i travel with my wife and young kids in this car. if i can't be made to feel safe in the car, i will be trading it in sooner than expected. *tr

My daughter was driving the 2010 toyota prius into a shopping center's parking lot. she noticed some black ice on the ground and step on the brake. the car didn't stop and slip on the ice and then hit the curb. the repair costs over $7300, and it's the toyota dealer did the repair work. back in late october and early november time frame, when i was driving the car over a speed bump with speed around 15m/h, the brake didn't work, the car just surge forward, eventually slow down after 1 second or so. *tr

I like many others have had skidding and non-responsiveness when i hit the brakes on the 2010 prius. *tr

I own a 2010 toyota prius. i have noted that there is a frequent occurrence of the brakes not working properly especially going over rough road (ie railroad tracks). the car appears to skid but the anti locks brake light does not come on like it does when the anti lock brakes are working. this is an anxious situation as it feels like the brakes are not going to be able to stop the vehicle. it creates anxiety and a need to apply more foot pressure to control the car. *tr

I own a 2010 toyota prius and noticed problems with braking while crossing the train tracks and hitting potholes. it seemed that the brakes does not work because the vehicle accelerates. you have this feeling of panic that the vehicle won't stop and you will hit the bumper of the vehicle in front of you. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. while driving approximately 5 mph into a parking space with the brake pedal engaged, the vehicle failed to slow down and crashed into a sidewalk. the front fender was damaged; however, the contact was able to drive the vehicle to his residence. the contact also complained to the dealer regarding the brake failure and was told that nothing was wrong with the brakes. the insurance company advised the contact to call the toyota manufacturer and file a claim for which she is currently waiting for a response. the failure mileage was 3,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. she stated that while applying the brakes at any speed more than 5 mph and over a pothole the vehicle responded as if the brakes had failed and it attempted to accelerate. within seconds, the brakes would reset and function normally. the manufacturer nor the dealer were notified. there were no related recalls. the failure and current mileages were 8,400.

I was coming up to an intersection with a stoplight. the light turned red. i was going over a manhole as i hit the brakes. my brakes did not work and in fact, my car lurched forward. i stepped hard on the brake and eventually stopped. luckily, the car ahead of me was far enough away or i would have rear-ended it. another incident happened a few days after a snowfall. the end of my street had some hard, packed snow that the plow left behind. as i came up to the stop sign, my brakes did not work and i ended up in the cross street. i was only going about 10-15 mph at the time that i braked. this incident happened in december 2009, the other in january 2010. nothing has been done to correct or repair the car. *tr

Low speed brake failure on 2010 toyota prius. this describes just one of multiple times i have had what seems like a short, but total loss of brakes on this vehicle. each time, i was easy to medium braking and hit a bump or was on rough surface. the brakes just appear to fail. natural reaction is to press harder on brake pedal. usually by this reaction time the brakes are back and you stop abruptly or skid to a stop. it has something to do with rough roads or bumps that happen at a given point during braking. very scary situation. this has happened on both dry pavement and snow packed roads. again, the common factor is the "bump" during braking. each time i was the only person in the vehicle and the vehicle had no additional rear weight. speed was under 25-30 mph. *tr

My toyota 2010 prius (purchased in massachusetts in august, 2009), has issues with the brakes. going over bumpy or snowy/icy roads, the brakes when applied don't seem to grab properly - they are slow and uneven in response to brake pedal pressure . . . i notified my dealer and was told there was nothing wrong. now i am hearing about design flaws with brakes in this model, and i am concerned. what do i do? *tr

2 weeks after purchasing a 2010 prius (december 2009) i was slowing down to make a turn and while braking i hit a small pothole in the road my car lunged forward. at first i thought i had been rear-ended but looked and saw that the nearest car was a good 20 feet behind me. the same thing happened to me again last week (week of february 1). this time i was braking for a stoplight when the car hit a bump in the road and again lunged forward. the lunging is quick but very noticeable. i have changed my driving habits in the hopes that i won't rear-end someone. i have not called in to the dealership about this but did fill out a satisfaction survey from toyota yesterday that i got due to the purchase of the car and included these problems in that survey. *tr

My vehicle surged forward or temporarily lost braking after driving over a pothole or other uneven surface, and this is a recurring problem. *tr

2010 toyota prius loss of brakes - this has happened four times in the seven months that i have owned this vehicle. all four times were when the vehicle was on ice or hard packed snow. details; when coming to a stop at relatively low speed (approx. 10mph) on either ice or hard packed snow the vehicle will lose all braking for about 5 to 10 feet. the first several times this happen i thought that i hit a patch of black ice but didn't understand why the anti-lock brakes did not chatter. *tr

While braking and coming to a stop at an intersection, and if there is a bump on the road, the auto continues to move forward, even if you depress the brake completely, the auto continues to move forward, about another 10 to 15 feet. this has happen numerous of times and dealer says they have no answer to the problem. *tr

I have noticed the brakes in our 2010 prius are not as effective as slowing the car as they were in our 2004 prius. on january 3 i was exiting the highway. as i was about to leave the highway while braking i encountered a slight bump in the pavement. i noticed that when this occurred the braking effectiveness dropped substantially, to the point where the car felt as though there were no brakes being applied. as soon as the bump was gone the braking effectiveness returned. *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

While braking on a downhill road and approaching a signal light, i hit a pothole and the momentarily lost braking power and the vehicle lurched forward. i continued to apply the brakes and they engaged again. fortunately, i was decelerating and there were no other vehicles in front of me. i concerned that this could occur again with other consequences. *tr

2010 prius brake surge when hitting bump in road when brake is engage. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. while engaging the brake pedal driving approximately 20 mph over a pothole, the brakes temporarily failed to function. the failure occurred whenever he drove over rough road surfaces. the dealer stated that when a fix becomes available they would notify him. the manufacturer was not notified. the current mileage was approximately 4,000. the failure mileage was approximately 2,500.

Our 2010 prius suddenly accelerates when we press the brakes and hit a hump on the road. this is an ongoing problem. *tr

Toyota prius antilock brakes stop braking after a disturbance such as a slippery spot, or pothole. this occurs quite frequently and is likely to cause an accident. *cn

This problem seems to occur when i am just beginning to brake or in the middle of braking, if i go over any uneven terrain (i.e. pothole, dips, etc.), the braking system feels like it is giving. it generally only lasts for a second or so, but it is unnerving. i do feel the car lunge forward at this point, and feel that i have no control over my car. i drive in the city on a daily basis, and that was one of the main reasons for me purchasing this car. it is not a comfortable feeling, and it is terrifying to my passengers. when i contacted toyota, they were very condescending. made it seem like it is just because the automobile is so advanced and technical, and that is supposed to happen. however, my 2 brothers both have older priuses, and neither have experienced this. *tr

I was driving down a hill that has a slightly uneven surface and was a bit icy and when applying the brake in my prius, my car sped up slightly when it hit the uneven surface and seemingly jumped faster before the brakes kicked in and brought my car to a stop. this has happened twice on different roads, both of the road surfaces being slightly uneven. nothing has been done to correct this problem, when i called toyota they told me that there was nothing they could do.

Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. he stated that while depressing the brake pedal at speeds of 10-15 mph and going over a rock or a speed hump, the brakes would loose traction momentarily. the dealer was contacted and advised that was a normal function of the abs braking system. no repairs were made to date. there were no recalls. the failure and current mileages were under 5100.

Brakes dropped out completely on several occasions while driving over a wet metal road plate, and while going over very bumpy terrain. *tr

This is regarding the 2010 toyota prius. i just traded in my 2008 prius for the 2010 in december 2009. i have experienced temporary loss of brakes 3-4 times when hitting small pot holes. this only lasts for a couple of seconds, but it appears to happen randomly with no warning. i have contacted the dealership where i purchased the prius, but they cannot act until they hear from toyota. so, i must just drive as safely as possible, and stay alert. *jb

My 2010 prius loses braking for a split second when going over a pot hole. i've noticed this a couple of times. *tr

Toyota prius 2010: i have experienced momentary loss of braking capability while traveling down the hill and made a right turn. this has happened twice. *tr

I have a 2010 toyota prius (purchased june 2009). the brake system routinely fails for 1-2 seconds if i am braking as i hit a pothole or bump in the road. it feels as if braking starts, then totally disappears for 1-2 seconds, then i feel the abs system kick in after that. this has probably occurred on the average of once per week since i have owned my car. it occurs in routine city driving. *tr

2010 toyota prius brakes jerking in fanning on rough roads. i have call dealership but have not heard back.c all my ins. company in was told not to dive the car. now i have a car that keep be used. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. while approaching a driveway at speeds under 10 mph and making a left turn, the brakes failed momentarily. within seconds the brakes became to function normally. the dealer was notified and the contact is awaiting repairs. the failure and current mileages were under 200.

Toyota prius accelerates after hitting potholes. cannot slow vehicle as brakes don't work immediately. this problems is random and does not occur on a regular basis. *tr