2008 Toyota Prius Exterior lighting Problems

Hello. My 2008 Toyota Prius had a malfunction with the "combination meter" which caused the vehicle dashboard to turn off completely, and we could not turn off the engine at times when stopped and parked. The dealer fixed the problem at a cost of $1580, and both the dealer and Toyota corporate through their brand engagement advocate acknowledged a long term problem with the combination meter. They had extended the warranty coverage for owners for this specific problem for about 10 years but not for owners like me with a vehicle 15 years old. I believe Toyota should cover and reimburse owners for this problem, which is potentially dangerous, no matter the age of the vehicle, especially for long term, loyal owners. There are many of these vehicles still on the road. Thank you. [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] . INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11566820

Incident

Dec 30, 2023

On June 1st yesterday this issue happened again but it was the taillights. The uploaded document is from the most recent repair shop bill for the front headlight (under warranty since it stopped working so close to the previous repair) Intermittently without cause the front right head light goes out (seems like every 3-6 months). And every 12-18 months the tail lights go out (the brake lights still work). The mechanics can't tel if it's a circuit board issue (possible lack of cooling/fan), loos connections and or just poor design. No matter what it is dangerous as I I unexpectedly had to drive on hwys in the dark not knowing my lights all of a sudden aren't working. Thank you very much.

NHTSA ID

11525005

Incident

Jun 1, 2023

I am currently having this issue with Combination Meter, which means the Prius dash board will not show any speed, fuel, P, R, D label and many more important information is not shown on display. I had complained to Toyota, CASE[XXX] on 19Dec2022, I have spoken to Danial N and manager Alex S from Toyota. They both have denied solving this issue from Toyota as the Warranty Extension ZTV has expired. Even I had provided them proof that Toyota knew about this problem, please see [XXX] from Toyota regarding this. My Prius has 258000 miles, and it is 2008, It is high mileage as per their documents this will accrue in high mileage Prius with cold weather. I live in NJ, and it is getting cold and my car as high miles. Toyota refuse to take care of the problem and I as a consumer will have to pay over $1200 to get it fix as this is only done at Toyota dealership. Currently I am thinking of getting it fix at Paul Miller Toyota of West Caldwell, 1155 Bloomfield Ave, West Caldwell, NJ 07006, 973-287-4050. What's sad is Toyota used to rank at the top of best customer service. I'm guessing most of the problems are just after the 9 years, calculated to guarantee fixing the problem to as few people as possible. THERE'S NO EXTENSION AND TOYOTA WON'T HELP. I TRIED AND WAS TOLD ALL DEALS EXPIRED AND TO HELP ONE WOULD MEAN THEY'D HAVE TO HELP ALL. WE'RE ON OUR OWN. Hoping that Toyota has released a solution to the dangerous and consumer related problem related to the failing Combination Meter. The previous ext. Warranty was only good for 9 years from date of first use which did not help many drivers. Super negligent and ripe situation for class action lawsuits not to mention many potentially fatal accidents on the roads. Toyota has denied fixing this problem even Toyota knows this is on going problem. As a government official please try to help me resolve this issue as this is a major concern for many millions of drivers which Toyota need to resolve this. Please INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (

NHTSA ID

11498203

Incident

Dec 19, 2022

Headlights go out randomly. Have to turn them off and back on to resume normal operation.

NHTSA ID

11467396

Incident

Apr 16, 2021

I had purchased this 2008 Prius touring model used on 4/8/22. The first time I drove it at night I was on the freeway traveling at 55 mph and suddenly had almost no visibility due to loss of headlights. It was terrifying and pure luck that I made it off and home. The headlights turn off one at a time. I took the car to Atomic Auto in Portland, Oregon and they said the type of bulbs in the car often do this when they are failing and need to be replaced. This shop put new bulbs in yesterday, May 12th. It was raining heavily when I left the shop and I turned the headlights on. They failed again in the same way. I had no idea there was a problem like this with any car. I have searched online and now know that this has been a problem with Toyota Prius.

NHTSA ID

11464451

Incident

Apr 25, 2022

DASHBOARD SPEEDOMETER, FUEL GAUGE, HEADLIGHT INDICATORS, TRANSMISSION STATUS, CRUISE CONTROL DO NOT SHOW, ARE NOT LIT UP. BACKUP CAMERA DOES NOT WORK NOR DO THE BACK-UP LIGHTS. THIS OCCURED AFTER THE AUXILIARY BATTERY WAS REPLACED AND THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS AND BACKUP CAMERA WILL OCCASSIONALLY SPONTANEOUSLY RETURN WHEN THE CAR HAS NOT BEEN DRIVEN FOR A WEEK OR LONGER BUT THEN WILL GO OUT NEXT TIME THE CAR IS TURNED OFF. THERE ARE PROBLEMS WITH THE CAR TURNING OFF CONSISTENTLY AND AT TIMES THE START BUTTON NEEDS TO BE MANUALLY DEPRESSED FOR 5+ SECONDS TO SHUT DOWN.

NHTSA ID

11457816

Incident

Feb 9, 2022

This model car is equipped with HID headlights. The car has had numerous problems with the bulb not lighting on one side. The light could be cycled off/on and this would allow the lamp to stay lit for an unpredictable amount of time. Sometimes this cycling would allow the lamp to stay on for an entire trip and sometimes the headlights would have to be cycled off/on again. Replaced the lamps today with brand new bulbs. Both lit during the initial testing. Later in the day the left lamp does not light even when cycled off then on. The headlights on this car are unreliable. The trouble in changing the lights would have been fixed with traditional halogen lights but now further troubleshooting is required or replacement of the igniter or bulbs. Headlights on cars in the 21st century should be completely reliable especially after replacing both lamps with brand new bulbs. This is a safety concern while driving at night.

NHTSA ID

11432486

Incident

Sep 10, 2021

RIGHT SIDE HEADLIGHT GOES OUT INTERMITTENTLY WITHOUT A TRACEABLE CAUSE. PEOPLE HAVE NOTICED THE LIGHT OUT WHILE AT MOTION ON A RESIDENTIAL STREET AT LOW SPEED, ON A HIGHWAY AT 50 MPH AND AT REST.

NHTSA ID

11403917

Incident

Feb 12, 2021

Mileage

198,000 mi

PRIMARY HEADLIGHTS RANDOMLY GO OUT WHILE BOTH PARKED AND DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD. SOMETIMES BOTH AT THE SAME TIME. TURNING THEM OFF AND ON AGAIN MANUALLY RESETS THEM TO WORK AGAIN. THIS SEEMS LIKE A HUGE DESIGN FLAW AND MAJOR SAFETY HAZARD, SINCE IT LEADS TO DRIVING IN THE DARK WITHOUT HEADLIGHTS. REPAIR SHOPS WANT $100S PER BULB TO REPLACE HID BULBS THAT SEEM TO NOT ACTUALLY BE BURNED OUT. THE DESIGN CHOICE FOR HID BULBS THAT EXHIBIT THIS TEMPORARY FAILURE MODE SEEMS TO BE A FUNDAMENTALLY FLAWED ENGINEERING CHOICE COMPARED TO OTHER, MORE RELIABLE TECHNOLOGY SUCH AS LEDS. NO EXISTING RECALLS WERE FOUND WHEN SEARCHING THE DOT.GOV WEBSITE FOR THIS ISSUE.

NHTSA ID

11395642

Incident

Feb 2, 2021

Mileage

190,000 mi

THE DRIVER'S SIDE HEADLIGHT ON MY 2008 PRIUS GOES OUT PERIODICALLY WHEN DRIVING BUT, TO DATE, NOT WHEN STATIONARY. I RECENTLY DROVE TO TEXAS AND BACK AND THIS DIDN'T OCCUR ON THE HIGHWAY OR COUNTRY ROADS. IT SEEMS TO ONLY HAPPEN IN CITY STOP-AND-GO DRIVING, BUT I CAN'T BE SURE. IF NOTICED, BY TURNING THE LIGHTS OFF AND ON IT COMES BACK ON BUT IT'S NOT ALWAYS NOTICEABLE. INFORMATION ONLINE INDICATES THAT COSTLY HID BULB AND BALLAST REPLACEMENTS, AND/OR OTHER COSTLY REPAIRS, DO NOT SOLVE THE PROBLEM. THIS POSES A POTENTIALLY SERIOUS SAFETY RISK AND HAS GOTTEN ME PULLED OVER BY THE POLICE. THE PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE COMMON WITH 2006-2009 PRIUS'S WHICH WOULD INDICATE A DESIGN/MANUFACTURING FLAW THAT TOYOTA SHOULD ADDRESS AND CORRECT. PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS MATTER AND ADVISE ME ON HOW TO PROCEED TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM. THANK-YOU, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

NHTSA ID

11364830

Incident

Oct 9, 2020

Mileage

261,000 mi

08 PRIUS HEADLIGHTS INTERMITTENTLY AND WITHOUT WARNING GO OUT FOR UP TO ABOUT 1/2 HOUR AT A TIME. EITHER ONE WILL DO IT ALMOST EVERY TIME THEY ARE USED AND SO FAR, ONLY ONE AT A TIME. UNTRUSTWORTHY AND VERY DANGEROUS.

NHTSA ID

11339400

Incident

Jul 12, 2020

Mileage

65,700 mi

HEADLIGHTS ARE DEFECTIVE. I HAVE CHANGED THE RELAY SWITCH, COMPUTER HID AND HEADLIGHTS AND THEY STILL ARE NOT WORKING. I'VE ALSO HAD TO PAY A TICKET AS A RESULT.

NHTSA ID

11315711

Incident

Jan 18, 2020

Mileage

170,000 mi

THE PASSENGER SIDE HEADLIGHT TURNS OFF UNPREDICTABLY, USUALLY WITHIN 10 MINUTES OF DRIVING TIME. TURNING THE LIGHTS OFF AND BACK ON SOMETIMES GETS THE HEADLIGHT TO TURN BACK ON, BUT NOT ALWAYS. THEN WITHIN 10 MINUTES IT WILL TURN OFF AGAIN. NOT ONLY IS THIS A SAFETY ISSUE AND DRIVING VIOLATION, I ALSO CANNOT SELL THE CAR WITH NON-FUNCTIONING HEADLIGHTS.

NHTSA ID

11280770

Incident

Mar 1, 2019

Mileage

70,000 mi

MY WIFE AND I OWN 2 PRIUS 2ND GENERATION MODELS SINCE 2014. THE ISSUE IS WITH THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER RANDOMLY MALFUNCTIONING AND NOT DISPLAYING WHEN THE VEHICLE IS ON AND SOMETIMES NOT BEING ABLE TO TURN THE VEHICLE OFF. IT HAPPENS WHILE DRIVING, STATIONARY, RAINING, JUST RANDOMLY. THIS HAS HAPPENED MORE THAN 10 TIMES ON MY CAR ALONE, AND MY WIFE CAN CONTESTS TO HERS AS WELL. WHAT WE BOTH ARE EXPERIENCING IS ONE OF MANY SITUATIONS. WHILE DRIVING THE DASH LIGHTS AND INTERIOR LIGHTS WILL JUST NOT WORK: I'M UNABLE TO SEE DRIVING SPEED, IF MY HEADLIGHTS ARE ON. EVEN WHILE STATIONARY WE EXPERIENCE THE SAME THING. THE MAIN REASONS FOR REPORTING THIS IS BECAUSE COINCIDENTALLY IT HAPPENS TO BOTH OF US AT RANDOM TIMES IN 2 DIFFERENT VEHICLES SAME MODEL AND YEAR. FROM MY OWN RESEARCH THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR A WHILE WITH OTHER OWNERS WITH THE SAME MODELS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT CONSTITUTES AS A SAFETY CONCERN FOR RECALLS, BUT I FEEL THIS IS ONE. I'M FORTUNATE TO NOT HAVE ANY ACCIDENTS SO FAR. BUT FOR OTHERS WHO ARE EXPERIENCING THIS CAN ACCIDENTALLY START SPEEDING, OR BECOME STARTLED BECAUSE OF THE SUDDEN LOSS OF DASH VISUALS, AND RESULT IN HARM OF OTHER'S OR PROPERTY. THIS JUST HAPPENED AGAIN TODAY AND I JUST HAD TO SAY SOMETHING SINCE THIS HAS BEEN A PERSISTENT ISSUE FOR MY WIFE AND I. THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ THIS AND PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS.

NHTSA ID

11270351

Incident

Oct 22, 2019

Mileage

175,000 mi

MY WIFE AND I OWN 2 PRIUS 2ND GENERATION MODELS SINCE 2014. THE ISSUE IS WITH THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER RANDOMLY MALFUNCTIONING AND NOT DISPLAYING WHEN THE VEHICLE IS ON AND SOMETIMES NOT BEING ABLE TO TURN THE VEHICLE OFF. IT HAPPENS WHILE DRIVING, STATIONARY, RAINING, JUST RANDOMLY. THIS HAS HAPPENED MORE THAN 10 TIMES ON MY CAR ALONE, AND MY WIFE CAN CONTESTS TO HERS AS WELL. WHAT WE BOTH ARE EXPERIENCING IS ONE OF MANY SITUATIONS. WHILE DRIVING THE DASH LIGHTS AND INTERIOR LIGHTS WILL JUST NOT WORK: I'M UNABLE TO SEE DRIVING SPEED, IF MY HEADLIGHTS ARE ON. EVEN WHILE STATIONARY WE EXPERIENCE THE SAME THING. THE MAIN REASONS FOR REPORTING THIS IS BECAUSE COINCIDENTALLY IT HAPPENS TO BOTH OF US AT RANDOM TIMES IN 2 DIFFERENT VEHICLES SAME MODEL AND YEAR. FROM MY OWN RESEARCH THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR A WHILE WITH OTHER OWNERS WITH THE SAME MODELS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT CONSTITUTES AS A SAFETY CONCERN FOR RECALLS, BUT I FEEL THIS IS ONE. I'M FORTUNATE TO NOT HAVE ANY ACCIDENTS SO FAR. BUT FOR OTHERS WHO ARE EXPERIENCING THIS CAN ACCIDENTALLY START SPEEDING, OR BECOME STARTLED BECAUSE OF THE SUDDEN LOSS OF DASH VISUALS, AND RESULT IN HARM OF OTHER'S OR PROPERTY. THIS JUST HAPPENED AGAIN TODAY AND I JUST HAD TO SAY SOMETHING SINCE THIS HAS BEEN A PERSISTENT ISSUE FOR MY WIFE AND I. THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ THIS AND PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS.

NHTSA ID

11270350

Incident

Oct 23, 2019

Mileage

98,000 mi

RIGHT HID HEADLIGHT KEEPS GOING OUT DURING SHORT OR LONG TRIPS. IT IT'S NOW OCTOBER 2019. THIS SAME LIGHT WAS REPLACED FOR SAME PROBLEM IN JULY 2018 AND I WAS TOLD BY MY MECHANIC THAT MY BALLAST AND ELECTRICAL CONNECTION IS FINE. IT SHOULD NOT BE BURNED OUT BY NOW. I ONLY USE THE LIGHTS AT NIGHT OR DURING RAIN. I HAVE READ ON SEVERAL ONLINE FORUMS WITH SIMILAR COMPLAINTS FROM PRIUS OWNERS. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE.

NHTSA ID

11267516

Incident

Oct 9, 2019

Mileage

90,000 mi

THE 2008 PRIUS HAS A DIGITAL DISPLAY. SOMETIMES WHEN THE VEHICLE STARTS UP THERE IS NO INFORMATION DISPLAYED ON THE SCREEN. NOTHING SHOWS WHAT GEAR (REVERSE, NEUTRAL, FORWARD) IT IS IN. THERE IS NO SPEEDOMETER DISPLAY. NO ODOMETER DISPLAY. NO FUEL LEVEL DISPLAY. AT THE SAME TIME THAT THE DASH DOES NOT LIGHT UP, I HAVE NOTICED THERE IS NO BACKUP CAMERA OR BACKUP LIGHTS WHEN THE VEHICLE IS IN REVERSE. IN ADDITION TO THE ABOVE, THE START BUTTON WILL NOT FULLY SHUT DOWN THE CAR. IT WILL CYCLE BETWEEN ACCESSORY MODE AND FULL START WHEN THE BUTTON IS PRESSED. I HAVE NOTICED THAT WHEN THE PROBLEM IS HAPPENING THE VEHICLE IS ALSO NOT KEEPING TRACK OF THE MILES DRIVEN WHILE THE DASH IS NOT DISPLAYING - SO WHEN THE DASH DOES START WORKING AGAIN, THE ODOMETER IS NOT SHOWING TRUE MILEAGE. AFTER GETTING THE VEHICLE TO FINALLY SHUT DOWN, I HAVE SOMETIMES HAD THE ISSUE NOT PRESENT THE NEXT DAY AT STARTUP. OTHER TIMES IT WILL LAST THROUGH SEVERAL STARTS AND STOPS. I HAVE READ ONLINE THAT THIS PROBLEM IS CONSISTENT WITH A FAULTY COMBINATION METER. AND I FEEL IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE.

NHTSA ID

11265944

Incident

Sep 21, 2019

Mileage

196,050 mi

WAS PARKED IN LINE TO PICK UP CHILD FROM SCHOOL. TURNED CAR ON AND PUT IT ON DRIVE, MOVED SLOWLY WHEN PARKING BRAKE LIGHT, ABS WARNING LIGHT, TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT ALL CAME ON AND THEN MY BRAKES WENT LIMP. HAD TO PUSH ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR AND STOPPING WAS STILL HARD TO DO. ALMOST HIT THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME WHEN SUDDENLY ALL LIGHTS WENT OFF AND BRAKES JERKED TO A SUDDEN STOP. I'M TERRIFIED TO DRIVE MY CAR AT FASTER SPEED KNOWING MY BRAKES BASICALLY WENT OUT. PRETTY SURE IT'S FAILING BRAKE ACTUATOR AND TOYOTA KNOWS ABOUT THIS PROBABLY BUT DIDN'T DO A RECALL ONLY EXTENDED WARRANTIES... I DIDN'T OWN THE CAR WHEN THOSE WARRANTIES WE'RE GOING ON IN 2016. HEADLIGHTS ALSO WILL RANDOMLY TURN OFF AND I HAVE TO TURN THEM OFF AND BACK ON CONSTANTLY DRIVING AT NIGHT.

NHTSA ID

11257443

Incident

Sep 20, 2019

Mileage

179,000 mi

WHILE DRIVING DURING THE DAY OR NIGHT, THROUGHOUT THE YEAR (NON-SEASONAL), BOTH HEADLIGHTS (HID) FLICKER, AND THE PASSENGER SIDE HEADLIGHT GOES OFF COMPLETELY AND INTERMITTENTLY. SOMETIMES IT COMES BACK ON IF I TURN THE LIGHTS OFF AND ON AGAIN, BUT MOST OF THE TIME IT DOESN'T. WE HAVE BEEN PULLED OVER TWICE FOR THIS AND RECEIVED TWO TICKETS FROM POLICE. IT DOESN'T WORK TO EXCHANGE OR REPLACE BULBS. I KNOW I'M NOT THE ONLY 2008 PRIUS OWNER WITH THIS PROBLEM AND I BELIEVE TOYOTA NEEDS TO PAY TO HAVE IT REPAIRED.

NHTSA ID

11256985

Incident

Sep 20, 2019

Mileage

108,000 mi

THE DIM HEADLIGHT ONLY, NOT THE BRIGHT, ONLY ON THE DRIVERS SIDE FRONT GOES OUT 4 OR 5 TIMES A YEAR. THE FRONT BRIGHTS ARE NOT AFFECTED AND HAVE NEVER GONE OUT NOR HAS THE DIM HEADLIGHT ON THE PASSENGER SIDE FRONT EVER GONE OUT. THE CAR IS DRIVEN DAILY USUALLY AND ON CITY STREETS ONLY.

NHTSA ID

11230458

Incident

Jun 15, 2019

Mileage

192,000 mi

FOR THE THIRD TIME I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE MY BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH, THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AS IT AFFECT HOW THE BRAKE LIGHTS WORK. THE BREAK LIGHT SWITCH, WHEN MALFUNCTIONING PREVENT OR INHIBITS THE VEHICLE FROM STARTING PROPERLY. IF THE SWITCH FAILS WHILE DRIVING, IT CAN CAUSE PROBLEM WITH THE BATTERY REGENERATION, THIS IS IN ADDITION TO CAUSING A DRIVING HAZARD WHILE DRIVING.

NHTSA ID

11222270

Incident

Jun 21, 2019

Mileage

100,000 mi

WHILE DRIVING AT NIGHT, LEFT HEADLIGHT GOES OUT INTERMITTENTLY (ABOUT EVERY 3 MINUTES). I HAVE TO TURN LIGHTS COMPLETELY OFF THEN ON AGAIN TO RESET. THIS IS ONGOING AND APPEARS TO BE HAPPENING MORE FREQUENTLY WITH TIME.

NHTSA ID

11221501

Incident

Apr 6, 2019

HEADLIGHTS TURN OFF OR FLICKER WHILE DRIVING. IT HAPPENS INTERMITTENTLY. IT IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT AS IT NEARLY CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. USING THE HIGH BEAMS HELPS FOR A SHORT PERIOD BUT THE HEADLIGHTS STILL TURN OFF ON THEIR OWN. TURNING THEM OFF AND ON BRINGS THEM BACK ON MOST OF THE TIME BUT ONLY FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.

NHTSA ID

11221231

Incident

Jun 1, 2019

Mileage

213,529 mi

THE HEADLIGHTS WILL SUDDENLY FAIL, EITHER ONE AT A TIME, OR MORE RECENTLY BOTH AT THE SAME TIME WHEN NIGHT DRIVING. I AM ABLE TO FLIP THE SWITCH TO TURN ONE BACK ON BUT NOW THE PASSENGER LIGHT WILL NOT COME BACK ON AT ALL. I AM DRIVING AT NIGHT WHEN I NOTICE THIS HAPPENING BUT IT PROBABLY ALSO HAPPENS IN DAY LIGHT.

NHTSA ID

11207004

Incident

May 6, 2019

HEADLIGHTS SHUT OFF WHILE DRIVING AT NIGHT. I RECEIVED TWO WARNING TICKETS FROM HIGHWAY PATROL AS I WAS DRIVING BACK FROM FT. WORTH TO NACOGDOCHES, BUT WHEN I STOPPED, BOTH HEADLIGHTS WERE WORKING. THEN AS I WAS DRIVING, BOTH HEADLIGHTS (WITH BRIGHT LIGHTS ON) TURNED OFF. HAD TO PULL OVER AND THEN THEY STARTED WORKING AGAIN.

NHTSA ID

11192354

Incident

Mar 28, 2019

Mileage

156,000 mi