This is an occasional and intermittent issue. at 35 to 45 mph, traveling straight, on city avenues and boulevards. when braking in an urgent fshion (not panick and not easy) the brake peddal is soft and travels significantly further than usual before the cars breaking system takes effect. this was on dry roads and above freezing temperatures. we have not experienced any accidents due to this but there have been moments of near panick prior to the brakes working as expected. as a separate brake issue, on two occasions when panick braking from apeeds over 50 mph, traveling straight, on freeways the brakes have locked and the car has skidded. this was on dry roads during daylight hours, dry roads and above freezing temperatures. this vehicle has antilock braking system. the local toyota dealer was advised of this locking issue and reported they found no issue. we have our brakes inspected by a local toyota dealre at manufacturer recommended intervals and have been given a 'green' rating for pad thickness. the above events started late in the first year of ownership and we are the first owners of this vehicle. i ama retired engineer with a fair background with performance driving on closed circuits. i have a solid understanding of proper brake performance. i fond the above experiences disconcerting and of concern. the below date of occurrence is for the latest slow brake response, not the locking up.
Tl* the contact owned a 2015 toyota prius v hybrid. while the vehicle was stationary, the contact shifted into reverse and the vehicle accelerated rapidly between 5-10 mph. the speed increased to 20 mph and the vehicle crashed into a fence. the contact applied significant pressure to the brake pedal during the failure, but the vehicle did not stop. the air bags did not deploy. a police report was filed. the contact sustained minor soreness from the impact of the crash, which did not require medical attention. the vehicle was towed to a repair shop and deemed destroyed. steve landers toyota (10825 colonel glenn road, little rock, arkansas 72204) was made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not diagnosed. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was approxiately 59,100. the vin was not available.
2015 toyota prius v: this car has a brake system accumulator that activates after the car has sat for a sufficiently long time (overnight, during the workday, etc). when you open the driver side door, the accumulator activates and pressurizes the brake system. however, when using the brakes while driving for the first time after the accumulator activates, the brakes are way too soft/spongy - so soft that it feels like the car will not stop and the stopping distance is lengthened, sometimes more than doubled. my local dealer claims they have to be able to reproduce the problem to fix it. i have had other model priuses where they have said the same thing, yet the problem turned out to be a systemic issue in a certain prius model. i fear that this is another pervasive brake issue that toyota is trying to hide.