2011 Prius - Windshield triples light source images

I just want to weigh in with this:
I got a new 2011 Prius 3 about a month ago, and started to notice the "ghosting" about two weeks later. I wasn't looking for it when I first started to see it, even though I was already aware that others had seen it. One night it just became alarmingly apparent. It's pretty distracting, and I would certainly prefer that it not be there. I also will report it to the dealer and Toyota. I feel there should be some effort put in to designing a windshield that does not do this.
Investigating on the Web, I found at least one incidence where Toyota bought back a 4Runner due to something similar:
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/problems-warranty-issues/27062-2006-windshield-double-vision.html
I really like the Prius--this is the only thing I don't like. It's close to being a safety issue.

 

I just want to weigh in with this:
I got a new 2011 Prius 3 about a month ago, and started to notice the "ghosting" about two weeks later. I wasn't looking for it when I first started to see it, even though I was already aware that others had seen it. One night it just became alarmingly apparent. It's pretty distracting, and I would certainly prefer that it not be there. I also will report it to the dealer and Toyota. I feel there should be some effort put in to designing a windshield that does not do this.
Investigating on the Web, I found at least one incidence where Toyota bought back a 4Runner due to something similar:
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/problems-warranty-issues/27062-2006-windshield-double-vision.html
I really like the Prius--this is the only thing I don't like. It's close to being a safety issue.

 

I just bought a new 2011 Prius this weekend and the first night I drove the car I immediately noticed the "ghosting" effect. This problem lead me to this forum because I wanted to see if anyone else experience the issue or if it was my eyesight. It is very distracting and I can see where this can be a major safety issue. I am surprised there has not been a fix or even a concern from Toyota regarding this. There are times when i will actually see 3 images of the vehicle in front of me. I love the car think it is amazing technology but disappointed about the windshield. Not sure what to do at this point. I guess just wait for a fix but some acknowledgement from Toyota would be nice. Anything anyone can contribute to this would be helpful; solutions?

 

report to nhtsa. and start at the dealer and go up the toyota ladder. there should be phone numbers in the manual. i wouldn't drive the car.

 

I feel that the problem is due to internal reflections in the Glass. This happens in all windscreens but is affected by the thickness of the glass, the angle of the windscreen and also more noticable in laminated windscreens because they are made of multiple layers of glass. Coatings can help but on a car windscreen the effect of abrasion on the outer surface would soon negate the effect.


Mike

 

My 2010 did not originally do this. I had it in for a cold soak knock which tripped the cel. They somehow managed to crack my windscreen. They replaced it with an oem, but thats the first thing I noticed. Especially cars with LED tail lights. Hopefully they dont break mine again. While in for the long list of major faults today. Im just not meant to own a prius problem free I suppose.

 

I bought a 2012 Prius III about 2 weeks ago. By the end of the first week I started noticing the ghosting or tripling of light issue. Since I mostly noticed this during night times, I initially thought I was just tired and my eyes were tired. But then this became a regular issue and I started wondering what could be wrong and started searching for any other instances of this being reported. Then I noticed this forum.

With the information in this forum, I contacted the dealership. The dealership service manager set me up with an appointment with a Toyota Rep. That meeting happened this morning (not sure what the point was, especially since the issue is much easily noticeable at night) and the rep was right off the bat defensive and would not even consider the description of the issue. He said he would examine the glass with a magnification glass and he did (the guy wears bifocal and he did the examination without his glasses and I wonder what his visual verification is worth) and declared there is no separation of layers and the glass was fine. I had the dealer park a car with its lights on at a distance and I could clearly see the ghosting. The Rep brushed it off saying that headlights will always difuse up and down and that is normal. I don't get how he could say that; afterall the windshield should allow the driver to see things on the road as they are not in an altered form. Further he examined the glass using a high powered light source (not red light) and declared the glass was just fine. I had to leave the dealership with the issue unresolved.
This evening on the way back from work, the ghosting or triplication was so obvious and it hurts my eyes really bad as my eyes end up trying hard to focus on a blurry light source. The issue is so much more pronounced with red lights, which is essentially what one see when in commuter traffic. The farther the car is the greater the spread of the light is and at times the light is taller than the car itself. I am not sure what I can do next. Driving this way will essentially make my eyesight go for a toss. Any tips?

 

My son noticed it right off the first time he rode in the car. It doesn't bother me much, but I'm wondering if, when you have a windshield replaced through your insurance company, since I'm sure they don't use OEM glass, if the problem goes away?

I live in the PNW and they sand the roads in the winter, but instead of sand, they use 3/4 minus gravel. 50% of the windshields have serious chips or cracks in them. My truck usually get a new windshield every two years. It's just a matter of time before the Prius gets one.

 

I bought a 2011 Prius 4 two weeks back. After reading comments here, yesterday night I noticed this.

On the stop light I can see 3 images of the red light. In the middle the real one, and two ghost images below and above it (little dim).

I can see the same thing on all the vehicles headlights too. Instead of one headlight, you will will see 3 light in a row (top, middle, bottom) .

I will drive my other car ( Toyota Sieana 2006) and verify .

But it is very strange and distracting.

 

On a related note, my 2004 Prius had problems that required the dashboard being removed for the fix--two or three times, and after the last time, developed a problem where the light source from one of the dashboard lights threw a light on the windshield, both day and night right at eye height. I took it in three times and it was never able to be fixed (one of the fixes they did was placing black tape over a portion of the dashboard). It was definitely a safety hazard and drove me nuts until I realized it would never be fixed and I could either learn to live with it or not. So I learned to live with it. I love the Prius and this problem was one of the many niggling problems that car had that finally made me turn it in for a newer model.

I do find that I don't really like driving at night anymore and never considered there may be a reason for it because of the windscreen.

 

Did any of you that had noticed this issue with the windshield, have any luck in getting the issue resolved? If yes, what did you have to do? Any details would be much appreciated.

 

Changing the law of physics may not be easy. My guess is that since you can't change the windshield angle, there won't be much you can do. In the absence of a film on the glass in the car's interior (which is one possible cause), Toyota would have to find safety glass with different refractive properties -- not likely. The laminate is the problem, along with the acute angle.

 

Talking about physics, does anyone know if the Prius employs a layer on its windshield to be able to project the information that the HUD (heads up display) projects? For information to be projected on a surface, it would need to be opaque to a certain extent or at least to a specific frequency. Would that be interfering with light coming in from outside the car and causing some of the ghosting issues that some of us referring to? My car does not have the HUD, but I believe it was something that could have been had as an option. So I am wondering if there are differences between a Prius iii windshield and say a Prius i 's windshield? I may be grasping for straws here, but it totally baffles me as to how such an obvious issue is overlooked.

 

2011 Gen III, it does the same thing. I noticed it one night and thought it was my eyes then viewed the same car through the side window, no prysm effect.

 

I had this problem and headlight flare until finally, after many really difficult cleanings of the interior windshield, it has gone away. Seems to have been a release agent on the inside of the windshield which I did not see until the first cleaning which showed a few clear areas. Getting it all clean was very difficult.

 

I am having this issue on my 2012 Prius PHV (never had anything like this on my 2010) - Its extremely obvious at night and is giving me headaches. I am taking the thing to the dealer on Saturday AM to see what is going on. I have read from others that it is a defect in the windshield construction (the laminate between the sheets of glass). In some cases, the vehicle was returned under lemon law as it is a safety issue and Toyota could not correct it within three attempts. Guess we'll see where this goes. I'm pretty freakin pissed right now that a car could be delivered like this.​

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How did you clean it?

 

Just bought a Prius 4 in June. Same issue. Dealer denies any warranty coverage and says the problem was caused by the environment. I smell a rat. Did you get a resolution to your concern?

 

Have the same issue with a 2012 4 bought in June. Did you get any satisfaction?