Runaway Prius C !!!!!

I apologize but what does the DTC mean? If this means the defective component I plan on asking for it but have not as of yet.

 

Also thank you for your feedback. The average for the current tank was a little over 50 MPG and for the trip it was over 53 MPG. About the links to the government sites, I did not look close enough to see if they were same model as mine and have come to realize not evry Prius model is created equal. Had I known that before I would not have provided the link, thanks for pointing that out though. I know the warranty will replace parts but the experience overall really put me in a bad place with them and caused me to dig into the situation. As far as pursuing lemon law and arbitration, I hope it will not go that far assuming they do the right thing and fix the car and convince me they did their due dilligence to find the cause of the problem. I dont expect them to duplicate it but I am giving them the benefit of the doubt to try.

Thanks again

 

Good afternoon to all, I wanted to give you all an update on the latest feedback from the dealer. For starters the replacement sending unit came in yesterday but no mechanics to put it in, how odd. But I did get a call to tell me that. I got another call today to tell me the part was installed and that Toyota is doing a product report on that part since they have had many failures and would not be able to give me back my part because a special division from Toyota is picking it up personally. The dealer also said Toyota will be sending out a service bulletin to the dealers and Prius C owners about this. They said it was standard for them to not return my defective part and not to expect it. I was also told the tank was bone dry when they dropped it though the dealer told me they put in 2 gallons on tuesdaythe 4th when I dropped it off. The tank was removed on Friday the 7th. I asked why the discrepancy on the story and they did not know why it was empty, i told him it mysteriously disappeared like my vehicle mysteriously accelerated and he laughed it off like I did and I reminded him I was serious, he stopped laughing. Either way they drove my car 30 miles and could not duplicate and said they wiped my vehicle computer of any info so I guess I can not argue my mileage any more and I have to suck it up. Either way, I love my Prius, the mileage and ride and hate the dealer for being so slimy on the way they handled it. I will monitor my Prius closely and note any problems if any. I had a conversation with an attorney who suggested I wait for 30 days worth of problems before I could go after them. I want and need the car and like the car and hope this is a one time deal that I had this issue. I hope there are no further acceleration concerns either. On a side note, the Corolla 2012 cost me nearly $80 more in fuel.

As for now, I will pickup the Prius C on Friday, I am getting headrest monitors built in for the kids and a backup camera put in. Time to personalize the car. I really hope everything works out.

 

Good afternoon to all. I once again thank all of you have provided feedback and have been following this thread since I posted it.

I finally got the Prius back. I got reimbursed for my rental but not the double of the cost of fuel to run it, I expected that. I was asked to sign the usual paperwork and asked for the part though I was told I could not have it back before, and I did not get it back. The paperwork said that I was receiving several pages of DTC reports that were not there and I asked for them. They gave me several pages of DTC reports and quite ohonestly more than they were supposed to I believe since many of the papers I got out of the file were handwritten notes from the techs. Overall, the vehicle is running great except for one major problem. My dash info is now erased and ,y meileage tracking as well. They were not able to duplicate the speed jump ftom 70-74 and assumed it was a power surge when they claimed I ran out of fuel. I can not argue with that since I have not tried to duplicate it and they were not able to. They did say the vehicle is safe to drive and to bring it back if it happens again.

I have had the Prius back two days and am averaging 36 MPG. This is horrible!! I usually get above 50 MPG per trip and at least 50 MPG on the tank. I'm going to drive it again today and keep an eye on it. I assume if this does not get better over the next few days I may have to go back to the dealer. Buy the way I don't feel so bad any more about getting stranded at the dealer. I thought it was something against me but they stranded another customer while I was there who lived blocks away from me. It turns out they just suck at customer service. I spoke to that customer and explained my being stranded there last week and he made a big deal out of it and got a ride home, or else I would have given him one. I confornted the manager about that and it seems they will be making some changes soon.

I also got a call from Toyota, not the dealer. They wanted to know if I was satisfied with the Toyota dealer and service and the vehicle. I told him I hated the dealer, the service, and was still unsure about the Prius being fixed properly. Reason for this was they did not duplicate the problem, though they were able to explain why it happened. Makes no sense, they could have driven the vehicle at 70, disengaged the fuel pump and tried to duplicate a little better. But I am not a Toyota engineer, so my suggestion does not count. I told them I l0ved the Prius overall but need closure on the situation I experienced and would have preferred an explanation that they found the problem, they duplicated it and fixed it. That would have been great piece of mind. They did offer me a $100 American Express Card to cheer me up and shut me up. I told them I had $100 bucks in my pocket already and if they really wanted to cheer me up and shut me up they would have to get to the root of the problem and fix it or replace the vehicle. There is no other way to make me happy or fix the situation. But I guess this may drag on for a while.

Other than the problems with the dealer and the repair I am absolutely in love with my Prius. I noticed how much more room I had in it than the 2012 Corolla loaner and that the leg room in the Prius is by far better since i can lean my right leg to the right and it does not bump into the console. This is a big plus for me!! Less road noise and better overall electronics and the seats are much more comfortable.

 

Hello to all once again, I wanted to address some of the latest posts. Initially I did experience a runaway Prius when the problem came up where the vehicle did accelerate and shake and skip to 74 mph from 70, but since it is my word against theirs and their attorneys and their money and their engineers and mechanics and their service department I am chewing on some dry, bitter, crow roadkill at this point. Regardless of their findings, they did not find the problem I had and therefore did not fix that problem, so I can not cahnge the name of the thread until they prove otherwise. I have not asked the other passengers in the vehicle to chime in since I am seeking a sloution and not a scandal with another "false claim" against toyota like some may have done in the past. I don't exactly recall what the outcome was of some of the other situations and would not wish any harm upon anyone who may have experienced something similar.

I still continue to enjoy my Prius and am slowly seeing the mpg average creep back up to the high 40's and low 50's like I am used to. Today I remembered watching an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm where Larry David honked and waived at every fellow Prius owner he was on the road and got a laugh out of it because I counted over 30 in the 215 miles I drove today at an average of 49 mpg.

I do regret not taking the $100 since I could have spent it on getting the oil changed independently since I want nothing free from toyota, but then realized i was getting the $100 for free and changed my mind. I was not asked to sign a waiver since all they do is call me and refuse to meet with me in person, but they did ask if $100 would make me happy for all of the troubles, I guess I am bitter and it won't make me happy. Good thing is I still have $100 of my own money in my pocket that I earned from working and not from Toyota aggravation. I am still waiting for the Toyota customer satisfaction survey just in case they did not get the point on how I feel about them, I love the car, not the service or the way toyota dealt with me.

Keep an eye out for a recall on the fuel pump/sending units per the service manager. I'll post it once I see it.