2012 Toyota PRIUS

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Avoid This Year

Quick Summary

The 2012 Toyota PRIUS has 537 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 6.7x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is brakes problems (36% of all complaints), specifically: sunday dec. 11th: pulling out of chicago garage, car makes odd rotational noise. the sound seems to go away after about a block or so of driving. the dealership is closed and i am booked up with clients, so i continue to test and see if temperature or environment effect the noise. the noise appears. ⚠️ 3 fire reports filed.

3 fire reports 51 crash reports 35 injuries

537

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

6.7x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

BRAKES

195 complaints

36%

• SUNDAY DEC. 11TH: PULLING OUT OF CHICAGO GARAGE, CAR MAKES ODD ROTATIONAL NOISE. THE SOUND SEEMS TO GO AWAY AFTER ABOUT A BLOCK OR SO OF DRIVING. THE DEALERSHIP IS CLOSED AND I AM BOOKED UP WITH CLIENTS, SO I CONTINUE TO TEST AND SEE IF TEMPERATURE OR ENVIRONMENT EFFECT THE NOISE. THE NOISE APPEARS
• AS I WAS APPROACHING A TURN I BEGAN TO BRAKE AND THE BRAKES FAILED. I TRIED PRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL HARDER AND MAKING SURE THAT I HAD PROPER FOOT PLACEMENT AND IT FELT LIKE THE CAR ACCELERATED AT THAT POINT. SINCE THE CAR WAS NOT SLOWING DOWN I WAS UNABLE TO MAKE THE TURN AND ENDED UP CROSSING THE
• TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL, THE BRAKES LOCKED UP. THE CONTACT CONTINUED TO DEPRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL AND SHUT THE VEHICLE ON AND OFF BY PUSHING THE START BUTTON. THE FAILURE OCCURS INTERMITTENTLY. THE CONTACT ALSO NOTICED THE BRA

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 15 crashes

“SUNDAY DEC. 11TH: PULLING OUT OF CHICAGO GARAGE, CAR MAKES ODD ROTATIONAL NOISE. THE SOUND SEEMS TO GO AWAY AFTER ABOUT A BLOCK OR SO OF DRIVING. THE DEALERSHIP IS CLOSED AND I AM BOOKED UP WITH CLIENTS, SO I CONTINUE TO TEST AND SEE IF TEMPERATURE OR ENVIRONMENT EFFECT THE NOISE. THE NOISE APPEARS”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRICAL

52 complaints

10%

• TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS EQUIPPED WITH A HANDS-FREE PHONE SYSTEM. THE CONTACT EXPRESSED CONCERNS THAT HE HAD TO ACTIVATE TOO MANY BUTTONS IN ORDER TO OPERATE THE PHONE SYSTEM. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT FELT THAT THE SYSTEM COULD CREATE A SAFETY
• NEW PRIUS DOES NOT WORK BLUETOOTH WISE WITH EXISTING PHONE. PRIUS I JUST TRADED IN DID. NO RESOLUTION FROM DEALER (TOYOTA WORLD O NEWARK DELAWARE) AND NO RESOLUTION FROM TOYOTA CORPORATE. I WAS TOLD THEY COULD DO NOTHING AND THAT I WOULD HAVE TO PURCHASE NEW PHONES. WE ARE DRIVING VEHICLE WITHOUT BL
• CAR BECOMES IMMOBILE - WILL NOT SHIFT INTO REVERSE OR DRIVE. COMPUTER KEEPS SENDING THE MESSAGE TO PUT IT IN PARK AND DEPRESS BRAKE, BUT ONCE THAT IS DONE, ANY ATTEMPT TO SHIFT INTO REVERSE OR DRIVE TRIGGERS THE MESSAGE, ENDLESSLY. THE PROBLEM IS APPARENTLY INTERMITTENT. OCCURRED FOR TWO HOURS YE

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 2 fire reports💥 1 crashes

“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS EQUIPPED WITH A HANDS-FREE PHONE SYSTEM. THE CONTACT EXPRESSED CONCERNS THAT HE HAD TO ACTIVATE TOO MANY BUTTONS IN ORDER TO OPERATE THE PHONE SYSTEM. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT FELT THAT THE SYSTEM COULD CREATE A SAFETY”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

37 complaints

• NAVAGATION SCREEN, WHEN SUN HITS THE SCREEN FROM RIGHT DIRECTION THE SCREEN CAN ACT LIKE A VERY BRIGHT MIRROR AND BLIND DRIVER WITHOUT WARNING. *TR
• UPON STARTING THE ENGINE AND ENGAGING THE AIR CONDITIONING OF MY 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS WITH 10,000 MILES, A STRONG FOUL SMELLING AIR COMES FROM THE A/C VENTS. AT THE 10,000 MILE SERVICING, THE TOYOTA SERVICE MANAGER STATED THIS SMELL IS TYPICAL TO SOME TOYOTAS. A TOYOTA TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE WAS PERFOR
• WHEN GOING FROM PARK TO DRIVE FORWARD, THE CAR SLIPS INTO REVERSE!!! I'VE TAKEN IT TO TOYOTA MULTIPLE TIMES AND THEY SAY THEY FIND NOTHING WRONG! I HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL TO BE SURE THE CAR IS ACTUALLY IN DRIVE BEFORE MOVING IT OR I COULD BACK INTO SOMETHING OR SOMEONE BY MISTAKE. *TR

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 3 crashes

“NAVAGATION SCREEN, WHEN SUN HITS THE SCREEN FROM RIGHT DIRECTION THE SCREEN CAN ACT LIKE A VERY BRIGHT MIRROR AND BLIND DRIVER WITHOUT WARNING. *TR”

— NHTSA complaint filing

LIGHTING

36 complaints

• WHILE DRIVING AT NIGHT, ALL LIGHTS, ESPECIALLY RED IN COLOR, WHICH ARE VIEWED FROM FRONT WINDSHIELD, APPEAR AS THREE DISTINCT IMAGES. THE SOURCE LIGHT, THEN A DISTINCT SHADOWED LIGHT ABOVE AND BELOW THE SOURCE. THIS SAFETY ISSUE IS EXTREMELY COMPOUNDED WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT IN HIGH TRAFFIC SITUATI
• WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT I HAVE AN ISSUE WHERE THE LIGHT SOURCE FROM HEADLIGHTS HAVE A RAINBOW AFFECT. ALSO TAIL LIGHTS ARE SEEN THREE TIMES FOR EVERY ONE LIGHT. IE. CENTER BRAKE LIGHT IS ILLUMINATED ON VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME, THERE IS A REPLICATED LIGHT ABOVE AND BELOW THE ACTUAL LIGHT. THIS IS ALSO A
• THERE IS A TRIPLING OF LIGHT SOURCES THROUGH THE FRONT WINDSHIELD FROM THINGS SUCH AS ONCOMING VEHICLES HEADLIGHTS, VEHICLE TAILLIGHTS, EMERGENCY VEHICLE LIGHTS, STREET LIGHTS, INTERSECTION STOP/YIELD LIGHTS AND ANY OTHER STRONG LIGHT SOURCE. THE ISSUE IS APPARENT AT ALL TIMES HOWEVER THE ISSUE IS

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 1 crashes

“WHILE DRIVING AT NIGHT, ALL LIGHTS, ESPECIALLY RED IN COLOR, WHICH ARE VIEWED FROM FRONT WINDSHIELD, APPEAR AS THREE DISTINCT IMAGES. THE SOURCE LIGHT, THEN A DISTINCT SHADOWED LIGHT ABOVE AND BELOW THE SOURCE. THIS SAFETY ISSUE IS EXTREMELY COMPOUNDED WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT IN HIGH TRAFFIC SITUATI”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ENGINE

31 complaints

• HYBRID ENGINE SUDDENLY SHUT DOWN WITHOUT WARNING WHILE VEHICLE WAS TRAVELING 65 MPH ON A BUSY FREEWAY, CAUSING VEHICLE TO COME AN UNSAFE STOP. DEPRESSING ACCELERATOR HAD NO EFFECT. ONBOARD COMPUTER GAVE ERROR MESSAGE "CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM. STOP THE VEHICLE IN A SAFE PLACE." RESTARTING VEHICLE PRO
• DRIVING 70 MPH CAR BEGAN TO GO INTO HIGH RPM, THEN ACCELERATED TO 74 FROM 70 MPH. I TRIED TO DECREASE SPEED THEN VEHICLE SHUT OFF GOT A LONG BEEP AND MESSAGE ON DISPLAY "CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM, PULL OVER IMMEDIATELY" ALL LIGHTS ON DASH WERE INDICATING FAILURES. COASTED TO SAFETY WITH 5 PASSENGERS IN VE
• 1. WHEN VEHICLE TRANSITIONED FROM BATTERY TO MOTOR, SIGNIFICANT IMPACT RESULTED 2. BRAKE PEDAL TRAVELED TO FLOOR, DASH WARNING LIGHT CAME ON [VEHICLE TOWED] 3. ATTEMPTING TO LEAVE DEALERS LOT, BRAKE PEDAL TRAVELED TO FLOOR. TECHNICIAN WITNESSED. *TR UPDATED 01/15/13

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports

“HYBRID ENGINE SUDDENLY SHUT DOWN WITHOUT WARNING WHILE VEHICLE WAS TRAVELING 65 MPH ON A BUSY FREEWAY, CAUSING VEHICLE TO COME AN UNSAFE STOP. DEPRESSING ACCELERATOR HAD NO EFFECT. ONBOARD COMPUTER GAVE ERROR MESSAGE "CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM. STOP THE VEHICLE IN A SAFE PLACE." RESTARTING VEHICLE PRO”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

BRAKES(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

LIGHTING(~50K mi)

$500

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 537 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
BRAKES: SUNDAY DEC. 11TH: PULLING OUT OF CHICAGO GARAGE, CAR MAKES ODD ROTATIONAL NOISE. THE SOUND SEEMS TO GO AWAY AFTER ABOUT A BLOCK OR SO OF DRIVING. THE DEALERSHIP IS CLOSED AND I AM BOOKED UP WITH CLIENTS, SO I CONTINUE TO TEST AND SEE IF TEMPERATURE OR ENVIRONMENT EFFECT THE NOISE. THE NOISE APPEARS
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRICAL: TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS EQUIPPED WITH A HANDS-FREE PHONE SYSTEM. THE CONTACT EXPRESSED CONCERNS THAT HE HAD TO ACTIVATE TOO MANY BUTTONS IN ORDER TO OPERATE THE PHONE SYSTEM. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT FELT THAT THE SYSTEM COULD CREATE A SAFETY
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: NAVAGATION SCREEN, WHEN SUN HITS THE SCREEN FROM RIGHT DIRECTION THE SCREEN CAN ACT LIKE A VERY BRIGHT MIRROR AND BLIND DRIVER WITHOUT WARNING. *TR
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
LIGHTING: WHILE DRIVING AT NIGHT, ALL LIGHTS, ESPECIALLY RED IN COLOR, WHICH ARE VIEWED FROM FRONT WINDSHIELD, APPEAR AS THREE DISTINCT IMAGES. THE SOURCE LIGHT, THEN A DISTINCT SHADOWED LIGHT ABOVE AND BELOW THE SOURCE. THIS SAFETY ISSUE IS EXTREMELY COMPOUNDED WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT IN HIGH TRAFFIC SITUATI
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)