Braking problem

They better recall it now during this state of chaos as opposed to wait things get better and break with another bad news later...

 

Indy, you seem to spend a lot of time trying to recruit OTHERS to complain. Strange.....

"I have to say that I had a 2005 Prius for four years and never, I mean never experienced anything like what has been described. My 2010 on the other hand has had the dreaded lack of braking problem on more than one occasion. "

Also strange. I've driven an 05 for years and an 2010 for a few months. I notice it's the same reaction to the same situation (the regen (low brake force) skips when it hits a bump).

Once again, if you are using the regen braking (low force) and the skip causes an accidedent....you are following TOO close. There is no problem with hard braking at all. which is how you stop if you are close to something.

 

I don't want to get into the discussion of whether this is a problem with this post. I'll call this a braking characteristic.

My question is: do I get this braking characteristic on any other hybrids? How about a camry hybrid, highlander, lexus 450H, Lexus IS250, Ford escape, Nissan . . . and so on. My model number may be wrong but you get the idea.

Is this characteristic a purely 2010 Prius characteristic? Anyone knows? I don't have much experience in this area.

 

No, absolutely NOT. Many reports on here, as well as in the press about similar, or identical sensations from G2 owners. My neighbor has a camry hybrid, and he said, and I quote, "old news"...he's felt it.

 

Previous posters have noted it on the Highlander hybrid and I believe someone said they have experienced it on the Altima hybrid.

What I would really like to know is if the Fusion hybrid does it. Will the Volt, if it is ever sold to the public, do it?

 

The GenII braking cannot be compared to the problem associated with the GenIII. None of us that I know of experience anything like what the GenIII owners complain about. You will find posts on the subject but they are from one time posters then you never hear from then again which reeks of troll IMO.

The small lose of braking over large bumps happens in most ABS equipped cars and was very evident in all 3 of my GM trucks, Trans Am and Corvette.

 

I have a 2010 Prius that I bought in December of 2009. I have a 1000 miles. I always drive in ecomode. I have had the similar braking / acceleration scare 5-6 times. The Prius accelerates for 1 second when I hit a set of potholes in my neighborhood. It happens when I am going downhill about 25 MPH. I have to hit the brakes on the potholes/bumps in order to make a left turn; the Prius feels like it accelerates when I cross the bumps and apply the brakes. This is a serious issue because it causes an uneasy sensation with the driver that could lead to erratic command of the car. I called my Toyota dealer today and will pursue a resolution.

 

It will be years and years (if ever) before you see the Volt with enough numbers to get any stats. Toyota sold over 130K Prii this past year. As far as the Fusion - for the time being, I see a LOT of fusions on the road, but not my hybrid Fusions, so again, it may be a while before there are enough numbers to get any stats. That said, if Ford is using a similar system to the hybris, no doubt they are (also) scambling to make sure this issue does not happen with them.

Maybe a better comparison to look at would be the new Honda Insite? I'm sure, also being Japanese, they have many componets/parts suppliers in common to the Prius?

 

The 'curve' changes the reported parameters. It does not seem to fit the earlier descriptions.

This one I'm interested in because it involves straight line and down hill. Can you provide a Google Map or Google Earth link to where this occurred?

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

 

Simply NOT true. Several very recent posts have been from people with many posts on this site. Furthermore, more than one have been from people that have had both G2's and G3's. So not sure what threads you've been reading, but your dead wrong.

 

Re: Toyota warns of possible brake problems in 2010 Prius

Can you post the Google or Google Street View of the location?

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

 

Yes, I do complaint a lot about my Prius, but I'm not the only one who complained about the rattles, the uncomfortable seats and poor cabin configurations for long trips, the huge MPG drop in the winter, the current poor resale value, and finally the break problems. I can be the most persistent one, true, but definitively not the only one.

Quite frankly, the Prius was a pathetic choice of mine. My fault, I admit it and I'm afraid I’m stuck with it until I break my limits for trading a car (100K miles), in my case, just 2 years away.

Nevertheless, the Prius takes me from A to B in a efficient way (46.5 lifetime MPG). I have saved so far exactly $966.41 with gas since I traded it for my CR-V back in July. I spent only 2K switching cars, so that extra cost will pay off by the end of summer or before. After that... it's just real savings $$$.

So, am I happy with my Prius? I wasn’t before… can’t you imagine now after all the safety issues? I'm happy financially speaking and that was the reason why I brought it in the first place, period. It has been delivering what I want as a mean of transportation, not as a real car. I can't wait to reach my trade-in limit for financial responsibility and say bye bye to it. Never coming back...

After this, I want a car, a real one... reliable or not... I don’t care… sometimes paying an extra premium for something you really want is needed… and I want the feeling of a real car again.

Now, let's go back to discuss the break problems please...

 

A post from Craig Gander on Consumer Reports web site. By the way, the date of his post was April 7, 2009...or long before all this hype and hysteria hit the press. Is what he is describing identical to the G3 issue? Not for me to say, as I've never driven a G2. BUT, some G2 owners, who now own G3's say they have felt the same loss of brake feeling/sensation in both generations, which suggests the problem was never completely solved? :


"I read that they redesigned the braking systems for the 2010 Prius. That appears to be Toyota's response to the fact that the U.S. Generation 2 Prius (2004-2009) has had low-speed brake failures reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at 31 times the rate of such failures reported for the 2004-2009 Corolla, which of course has traditional brakes. Many of the Prius low speed brake failures were in low-speed city traffic, resulting in rear-end collisions without injury. It appears that the several computers that control the complex braking systems were too busy calculating the most efficient way to apply the brakes, and did not get around to actually applying them, until it was too late. Toyota never took responsibility for the problem, but the 2010 redesign indicates they were aware of it. Unfortunately, the NHTSA never initiated an investigation despite the extremely high rate of failures. The detailed failure reports ("complaints") are available to the public on the NHTSA website. The details are these: Through March 2009, 2004-2009 Prius has received 44 complaints of low speed brake failure. 2004-2009 Corolla has received 7 complaints of such failures. Given that about five times more Corollas than Prius were sold during 2004-2009, 44/(7/5) = 31 times the rate of brake failure for the Generation 2 Prius. Let's hope the 2010's brakes work!"

 

On google maps, right at the green arrow... The small road parallel to University Bay Dr is the jogging trail...

43.083705,-89.434869

 

Comparing to one other model does not indicate an extremely high rate of failures. Unfortunately the NHTSA site is swamped right now, so I can't look at data for other models.

 

Another cut and paste poster.
"I called my Toyota dealer today and will pursue a resolution."
I've seen this exact line multiple times.

 

Than why are you here at a Prius fan sight, dedicating so much time to complaining as well as trying to recruit others to complain?

"Never coming back... "
Please stick to this, we'll all be happier.

BTW, it's a Brake problem...

 

As perhaps you do, I believe there's an organized smear campaign going on. But regardless, I say, report it. I have no issues with that (if they are, in fact, genuine). Let the investigation begin. Please, let it begin. I would welcome some sanity to all this hype.

But those of you expecting a big finding by the NHTSA may be in for disappointments, if prior history is any indication:

(1) Six (6) separate investigations were conducted by the NHTSA on the acceleration issues on other (non-Prius) Toyota cars. No, nada, zippo, nothing was ever found to indicate there was an electric/software problem with any of these vehicles.

(2) Going back to 2004, the NHTSA has been made aware of braking issues on the G2 prius. Not speculation, but cold hard facts. Numerous documented complaints were filed with the NHTSA on the G2 from 2004-2009, regarding braking issues/temporary loss of braking sensation. This issue, or characteristic with Prii has been around for quite some time. Nothing new here, folks. There has NEVER been an investigation on the Priis regarding it's barking system. None. Why?? But hey, I say go for it...lets have an investigation. Maybe it will help put some people's mind at easy? Bring it!

 

If Prius fans would not care about complaints, they would not be responding to mine… some responses are easy to ignore, like from hockeydad, but others not so much because they add value to the discussion... it’s sometimes a learning experience too, believe or not.

Anyway, back to the brake problem... I insist…

 

For those of you in the UK, Toyota is claiming there's no braking problem reports there:

BBC News - Toyota says no reports of brake problems on Prius in UK

I've seen at least one UK posting here. Either Toyota is lying or those UK drivers experiencing the braking anomaly aren't registering the problem with Toyota.