2021 Prius Prime Parking Brake

Just drove home a 2021 Prime LE from the dealership and the parking brake pedal depresses but it doesn't engage even if you press it to the floor. There is no "ratchet" sound either like normal. Is there any DIY fix that doesn't involve 4 hours at the dealership less than 12 hours after purchase?

Thanks.

 

Thanks guys. I'm just trying to avoid the dealer because that's 4 - 6 hours out of my day. I can't even take it to the selling dealer because I had to drive pretty far for the deal.

 

The cable's connected. Pressing the brake stops the car from rolling, there's just nothing engaging to hold it. It's acting like a regular brake pedal.

 

I don't even know where to look. I wish there was someone who could press the brake while I looked to see what's moving. Does anyone know where the mechanism is located?

 

The dealer I bought it from was very cooperative and offered to bump me to the front of the service line and service it immediately, but they're a two-hour drive each way in traffic.

 

Are there more than two brake pedals? All I've ever seen is the regular brake and the parking brake.

 

I still have it, but not for long. I learned the hard way that Nissan is a brand to be avoided at all costs. Every single thing in that car is half-assed, if you'll excuse my French. The BEV part I loved, and I could even beat V8 Mustangs up the freeway onramps, leaving them a little surprised. However, there are so many bizarre quirks and random intermittent malfunctions that it was really causing a lot of stress while driving. It came to the point that I decided I valued my sanity more than the money I'm losing. I can make a quick short list here just to paint a picture:

1. The radio turns on when you start the car, even if it was off when you turned the car off. Worse, it doesn't turn on until about 10 seconds after you start. That meant that it would come on while I was in reverse going out of the garage and down the driveway. You can't turn the stereo off while in reverse. So if it blasts you because the kids had it loud at some point you can't stop getting blasted until you're done reversing.
   
   
2. The reverse camera is so blurry that you can't tell if that dark spot on the ground is a shadow or a dog. This picture illustrates how bad it is. The top is a picture of the reverse camera and the bottom is a picture of the actual scene.
   
   
   The dealer inspected and reported this was normal operation. Nissan North America said they don't second-guess dealerships, so if they say it's normal Nissan North America is not going to take any steps to elevate the issue.
   
   
3. Some of the body panels were pretty misaligned. For example, the gap between the hood and fender on the passenger side was twice as big as the gap on the driver's side. It was noticeable even from a distance. It reminded my of how shantytown construction looks ... a loose patchwork of ill-fitting panels.
   
   
4. The windows would get stuck to the rubber seals and the motor couldn't pull the window down for a moment, then the tension would be released with a loud pop. I tried some silicone on the rubber, but it didn't help.
   
   
5. The feature that Toyota calls Lane Sway alert was so bad that it was fooled by shadows and lines in the pavement more often than it detected actual lane drift. When tested it almost never detected actual drifting across lines, even double yellows.
   
   
6. I experienced a warning light indicating that the collision avoidance system was malfunctioning, but only intermittently.
   
   
7. Sometimes I'd get into the car and the clock would randomly be 40 minutes ahead (for example).
   
   
8. The backup camera display is so dim that you can't see it even on overcast days with brightness set to 100%.
   
   
9. You can't reliably control the HVAC system. For example, depressing the recirculation button will usually switch to that mode and illuminate the light on the button, but then sometimes the button will light up but it won't switch modes. It's fun when you end up sucking a car full of black diesel exhaust because you couldn't make the car switch to recirculate.
   
   
10. When in manual mode and you set a temperature on the climate controls, it has no effect on the temperature of the output. You can have a 75° cabin temp, set the system to A/C with the temperature set to 75°F and it still blows air at 50°F. The only way to regulate temperature output is to switch to AUTO, which makes you lose control of fan speed and recirculation. Adjusting the temperature setting in the Prius changes the temperature of the output.

As crazy as it sounds, this is just a shortened summary. I know for some people these things aren't a big deal, but for me every day I was wondering what problem or frustration I was going to experience. I had my annoyances with the Prius, but I wasn't overwhelmed with a long list of them that made me think about my car even when I wasn't driving it.

 

I suppose it comes down to personality type. If you would even remotely classify yourself as "detail-oriented," OCD, or any related style, I don't think you would like it. If you're more the type to not notice or sweat the small stuff it might not bother you that much.

Rent one for a couple of weeks beforehand if you can.

The ONE thing where Nissan excelled over every Toyota I've ever owned is rattles. That car did not have a single rattle or squeak the entire time I had it. All 6 Toyotas I've owned in the past developed rattles in the first 2,000 miles and eventually end up sounding like the cans dragged behind a newly-wed's car.

 

I found the parking brake problem. Whoever installed the dealer's aftermarket tracking device got the ODB2 port wires bound up in the mechanism. I want to disconnect it, but I'm having trouble reaching in there to do it. Is there a way to remove that kick panel easily?