Owner-reported complaints naming the exterior lighting system, filed with NHTSA
Data refreshed
Reports naming headlights, tail lights, turn signals and other exterior lighting. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2012 Toyota Prius submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 36 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
The 25 most recent of 36, in the owner's own words
Brake master control system failure with constant issues over 80k miles. Forward running lights control housing has not held a light fixture since day one and dealership wants to charge for light replacement. It’s a faulty part and burnt through the housing. Olathe Toyota refused to repair under warranty saying it was a customer issue but is clearly a safety problem. Irresponsible dealer management.
The contact owns a 2012 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that the passenger's side low-beam headlight failed to provide adequate illumination while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who informed the contact that no issues were found; however, the dealer replaced the headlight bulb. The contact stated that the headlight bulb was replaced several times; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
Headlamp Lens Issue Vehicle Manufacturers Must Correct ISSUE 1. The increase in pedestrian-vehicular accidents and fatalities is, at times, related to the driver not seeing the person in time to stop. Not seeing a person in time may be related to poor street lighting or a decrease in front visibility caused by fogged headlamp lenses. Current nighttime traffic has a variety of vehicles operating with varying front light visibility. 2. For certain vehicles, the lens alone is replaceable. With other vehicle models, the entire front lamp must be replaced. The exorbitant cost of replacing the front lamp is causing some people to opt to drive with densely fogged front headlight lenses risking pedestrian safety. 3. Some car dealership offer a "defogging" cleaning service for greater visibility but does not guarantee to restore the car's front illumination to minimum required safety standards. Recommendation Require vehicle manufacturers to make front headlights with detachable lenses, or make the lenses fog proof. A replaceable lens is cost effective for all income individuals. Making lens replacement affordable may decrease the number of pedestrian-vehicular accidents and fatalities. Discussion The headlight lens of my car became increasingly fogged, overtime, decreasing night visibility ahead. The Toyota dealership offered a $300 cleaning service for both lenses or replacing the headlamp at about $300 each; $600. I opted for the cleaning. When completed, the headlight lens of my vehicle looking much less fogged. When I asked, the dealership told me that their cleaning service does not guarantee compliance with minimum front safety illumination for night driving. I was told that my car does not come with removable lenses. To ensure minimum safety front night visibility, I purchase new headlamps total costing about $300 each; I spent $900 because the $300 cleaning service was completed and not deductible. I contacted Toyota management and went up the chain of command
Purchased 2012 Prius used. Replaced low beams and high beam headlights shortly after. Passenger side low beam is no longer working (bulb was replaced 3 months ago). Upon googling causes saw 2010-2011 Prius had a recall for recurrent headlight issues, the wiring harness was replaced in them. It seem the 2012 is having the same issue in the 8 pages of complaints on exterior lightning that I saw. Toyota should extend the fix to include 2012 Prius.
The headlights are not functioning properly as a result of severe discoloration of the lens material. This creates unsafe driving conditions at night since the road is not properly illuminated, especially in areas with inadequate street lighting.
on the pasenger side front low beam light if the headlight does not sit correctly it melts the headlight housing and or the headlight is dimmer my damage wiring harness in past dealership blames owner feel like this is a part defect the heat from a bulb should not melt or damage housing assemblies damage was found during a new headlight install
On 12/25/2021, I was driving in the country side under darkness and under heavy rain and I had a hard time seeing the road. There were no road lights so I could not make out where the divider, curve of the road or side of the road was. It was quite a safety hazards because cars were coming from the front, or a few inches off the road would be dirt field. I discovered that the headlamps of my 2012 Prius are full of water bubbles and the water bubbles are blocking and distorting the headlights. I have pictures and videos of the headlights. It is six days already and the water bubbles are still there, and it is not safe to drive out to the field at night or where there is no road lights, with such minimal and distorted lights. I found on the web that a few people experienced water bubbles in their headlamps over the years, but don't know if they reported to NHTSA. My car has no accident and no modification on the front of the car. Toyota representative and dealers said my car is out of warranty. There were no indications or symptoms of water bubbles in advance, until rain leaks into the headlamps. I did not notice if this happened in previous raining seasons, as I didn't drive out much at night.
I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE HEADLIGHT BULBS MULTIPLE TIMES IN THE PAST TWO YEARS. READING REPORTS, IT IS THE EXACT SAME ISSUE AS THE 2010 AND 2011 PRIUS OWNERS HAD. I AM NOW HAVING TO HAVE MY HEADLIGHT COVERS RESURFACED BECAUSE MY PASSENGER SIDE HEADLIGHT IS NOT AT ALL VISIBLE AT NIGHT. THE DEALERSHIP IS RECOMMENDING REPLACING THE COMPARTMENT WHERE THE BULB GOES.
BOTH DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS FAIL FREQUENTLY (EVERY 3-6 MONTHS) MAKING DRIVING IN THE EARLY MORNINGS AND NIGHTTIME VERY DANGEROUS, AS THEY FAIL UNEXPECTEDLY. THE MOST DANGEROUS SITUATION FOR US WITH THE HEADLIGHT FAILURE IS WHEN WE WERE DRIVING AT NIGHT IN THE MOUNTAINS AND BOTH LOW BEAMS FAILED AT THE SAME TIME. THANKFULLY THE HIGH BEAMS WERE FUNCTIONING. THE FACT THAT THERE IS A RECALL FOR 2010 AND 2011 MODELS BUT THE 2012 MODEL PRIUS IS EXCLUDED US VERY CONCERNING CONSIDERING THE ISSUE IS THE SAME ACROSS YEARS.
TAKATA RECALL I AM WRITING BECAUSE MY VEHICLE'S HALOGEN LOW BEAM HEADLAMP BULB LIFETIME IS SHORTER THAN EXPECTED AND TOYOTA SEEMS UNWILLING TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE WITH ME. AFTER SEARCHING THE INTERNET, I FOUND THAT THE SHORT BULB LIFESPAN IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH 2010- 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS VEHICLES. I AM NOW CHANGING THE BULBS EVERY COUPLE OF MONTHS.TOYOTA OFFICIALLY STATES IN THEIR 'CUSTOMER SUPPORT PROGRAM ZHB CERTAIN 2010- 2012 MODEL YEAR PRIUS COVERAGE FOR HALOGEN LOW BEAM HEADLAMP BULBS' THAT THIS PROBLEM IS COVERED UNDER THEIR WARRANTY: IF THE OWNER EXPERIENCES THE CONDITION DESCRIBED ABOVE, HE/SHE SHOULD CONTACT A LOCAL AUTHORIZED TOYOTA DEALERSHIP FOR DIAGNOSIS. IF THE CONDITION IS VERIFIED, THE DEALER WILL INSTALL VOLTAGE ADJUSTMENT WIRE HARNESSES AND REPLACE THE HALOGEN LOW BEAM HEADLAMP BULBS WITH NEW ONES AT NO CHARGE TO THE CUSTOMER.' WHEN I TOOK MY CAR INTO A TOYOTA AUTO NATION IN HAYWARD FOR SERVICE ON SATURDAY 3/9/19. I WAS TOLD THIS WARRANTY EXPIRED ON FEBRUARY 2019, AND IF I WANTED TO FIX THIS PROBLEM IT WOULD COST BETWEEN $500- $600. I EXPLAINED THAT I HAD A DOCUMENT FROM TOYOTA HEADQUARTERS THAT HAS A DIFFERENT DATE OF OCTOBER 31, 2019. THE SERVICE PERSON SAID, HE WOULD CHECK THE DATE AND EMAIL ME BACK. HE EMAILED ME BACK ON WITH THIS REPLY: 'UNFORTUNATELY AS PER TOYOTA YOUR VIN DOESN'T NOT SUPPORT THAT TSB AND BECAUSE YOUR VIN DOES NOT APPLY TO THE TSB OUR PARTS DEPARTMENT CANNOT ORDER PARTS TO SUPPORT THE REMEDY FOR YOUR VIN AS THEY ARE UNAVAILABLE.' I FEEL THAT TOYOTA DOES NOT WANT TO REPAIR THIS KNOWN SAFETY HAZARD, UNLESS I PAY OUT OF POCKET FOR THE PARTS AND LABOR. THE LINK ALSO INDICATES THAT THERE ARE 'APPROXIMATELY 390,000 VEHICLES COVERED BY THIS CUSTOMER SUPPORT PROGRAM' AND THAT 'THIS COVERAGE WILL BE OFFERED UNTIL OCTOBER 31, 2019, REGARDLESS OF MILEAGE.' .
MY 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS; THE VEHICLE REPEATEDLY BLOWS THE FRONT HEAD LIGHTS. MY VEHICLE IS LESS THAN 6 YEARS OLD AND I HAVE HAD 10 FRONT LIGHTS REPLACED. THE LIGHTS JUST GO OUT WHILE IN MOTION. HERE IS THE NUMBER OF TIMES TOYOTA HAVE REPLACED THE LIGHTS THUS FAR; 01.14.18 - HEADLIGHT SCHEDULED FOR REPAIR ON 01/15/19 12.21.18 - FRONT MARKER 4.6.18 - FRONT MARKER & TAG LIGHTS 11.1.17 - FRONT MARKER 4.4.16 - FRONT MARKER 1.29.16 - P/S FRONT MARKER 12.21.15 - D/S HEADLIGHT BULB 10.23.15 - D/S HEADLIGHT BULB 7.31.15 - D/S RUNNING LIGHT 2.14.15 - D/S FRONT MARKER & P/S FRONT MARKER I HAVE HAD TOYOTA REVIEW THIS ISSUE TWICE NOW - NO "MECHANICAL/ELECTRICAL" SOLUTION OFFERED. TOYOTA INCIDENT 160129-000305 (OPENED ON JAN 2016) TOYOTA INCIDENT: 181221-000076 (OPENED ON DEC 2018) LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED MY TOYOTA REPAIR/SERVICE RECORDS.
IN THE PAST YEAR WE HAVE REPLACED MULTIPLE LOW BEAM HALOGEN HEADLIGHTS. ONE WEEK AGO, BOTH BURNED OUT CAUSING A NIGHTTIME SAFETY ISSUE. I RESEARCHED THE LIGHTING ISSUE AND LEARNED THERE IS TSB T-SB-0204-12 FOR HEADLAMP DURABILITY ENHANCEMENT AND A CUSTOMER SUPPORT PROGRAM "ZHB" FOR THIS IDENTICAL PROBLEM. IN THE ZHB PROGRAM, TOYOTA WILL MAKE THE NECESSARY REPAIRS FREE FOR ONLY 2010-2011 PRIUS'. SINCE THE ZHB PROGRAM ONLY SUPPORTS 2010-2011 PRIUS' I CALLED TOYOTA TO REQUEST THIS REPAIR UNDER THAT PROGRAM. AFTER SPEAKING TO A LOCAL TOYOTA DEALER (DARCARS IN FREDERICK MD.) AND THE TOYOTA HQ'S SATISFACTION REP, OUR 2012 IS NOT SUPPORTED BY THE ZHB PROGRAM EVEN THOUGH ITS THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM. LINK 1: HTTPS://ATTACHMENTS.PRIUSCHAT.COM/ATTACHMENT-FILES/2015/10/96257_T-SB-0204-12.PDF LINK 2: HTTPS://WWW.TOYOHEADQUARTERS.COM/THREADS/2010-2012-TOYOTA-PRIUS-HEADLIGHT-DURABILITY-ENHANCEMENT.1074/ THE PROBLEM IS THE HYBRID BATTERY IS CAUSING THE BULBS TO BURN OUR PREMATURELY. A WIRING HARNESS REPLACEMENT FOR BOTH SIDES IS THE REQUIRED CORRECTIVE ACTION.
PASSENGER SIDE LOW BEAM HEADLIGHT WILL NOT WORK. I REPLACED THE BULB, AND CHECKED THE FUSES, AND IT STILL WILL NOT LIGHT. THIS HAS BEEN AN ONGOING PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR.
LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS KEEP GOING OUT. WE HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THEM SEVERAL TIMES OVER THIS LAST YEAR.
MY 2012 PRIUS HAD BOTH HEADLIGHTS GO OUT WHILE DRIVING ON AN INTERSTATE. LUCKILY NO DAMAGE WAS DONE. MY DEALER RAN MY VIN TO SEE IF TOYOTA HAD A WARRANTY EXTENSION AS IT IS A WELL DOCUMENTED VOLTAGE PROBLEM FOR THE CAR. I WAS TOLD THAT THE 2010 AND 2011 PRIUS DO HAVE SUCH COVERAGE BUT THE 2012 DOES NOT. SEEMS VERY SHORTSIGHTED ON TOYOTA'S PART. IT CLEARLY FORESEEABLE THAT SOMEONE COULD BE HARMED OR KILLED AND THAT THIS ISSUE SHOULD BE ADDRESSED.
THE HEADLIGHTS BURN OUT ALL THE TIME, MAKING DRIVING DANGEROUS.
HEAD LIGHTS KEEP FAILING BROUGHT USED 7MONTHS REPLACED HEADLIGHTS 4 TIMES SEEMS OTHER OWNERS ARE HAVING SAME ACCORDING TO THE HITS ON INFO
BOTH HEADLIGHTS LOW BEAMS BLOW OUT AT THE SAME TIME. TODAY I WILL BE REPLACING THE 4TH SET IN 12 MONTHS.
BOTH HEADLIGHTS WENT OFF AT SAME TIME WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY DURING NIGHT TIME. AS A RESULT THE CAR DRIVING IN NEXT LANE COULDN'T SEE MY CAR IN HIS SIDEVIEW MIRROR AND ALMOST HIT MY CAR WHEN TRIED TO CHANGE LANE. I ESCAPED THE MAJOR ACCIDENT BY AUTO REFLEXES TO MOVE MY CAR TO SHOULDER LANE IMMEDIATELY WHICH OTHERWISE COULD HAVE BEEN FATAL.
HEADLIGHTS KEEP BLOWING OUT. SINCE PURCHASING THE CAR NEW, HAVE HAD TO REPLACE HEADLIGHTS FIVE TIME. ONE HEADLIGHT IS OUT AS WE SPEAK.
LOW BEAM HEADLAMPS CONTINUALLY FAIL, AND ARE VERY DIM EVEN AFTER INSTALLING NEW BULBS. I'VE HAD TO REPLACE BULBS NO LESS THAT 4 TIMES SINCE 2012! NOT ONLY IS THIS AN EXPENSE, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, POSES A SIGNIFICANT HAZARD. THERE IS NO WARNING OR SPECIFIC MILEAGE. I'VE NEVER HAD TO REPLACE HEADLIGHT BULBS IN ANY OTHER CAR I'VE OWNED. SOMETHING MUST BE WRONG WITH THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM FOR THIS TO CONTINUALLY BE HAPPENING.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, BOTH THE FRONT DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS FAILED TO ILLUMINATE WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE OCCURRED TWICE IN THE PAST. THE VEHICLE WAS SCHEDULED TO BE TAKEN TO THE DEALER AND HAD NOT BEEN DIAGNOSED. THE MANUFACTURER ADVISED THE CONTACT TO HAVE THE VEHICLE DIAGNOSED AND STATED THAT HE WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY REPAIRS UNDER CASE NUMBER: 170517007. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 107,000.
MY HEADLIGHTS HAVE BURNED OUT SO MANY TIMES I'VE LOST COUNT. SPENT CLOSE TO $600.00 ON BULBS. WHY IS TOYOTA NOT BEING HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS ISSUE? THIS HAS HAPPENED WHILE JUST STARTING THE CAR FROM PARKED POSITION TO DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY. *TR
THE LOW BEAMS HAVE BEEN INTERMITTENT AND THEN GO OUT ALL TOGETHER. THIS HAS HAPPENED TWICE IN THE PAST FOUR MONTHS EACH TIME BULBS LAST ABOUT TWO MONTHS BEFORE THEY BLOW. IT HAS HAPPENED WHILE DRIVING AS WELL AS AFTER GOING SOMEWHERE AND THEN GETTING BACK IN CAR AND TRYING TO RETURN HOME NO LIGHTS. *TR
THE HEADLIGHTS TURN OFF INTERMITTENTLY. SOMETIMES THEY DO NOT ILLUMINATE WHEN THE CAR IS FIRST STARTED, OTHER TIMES THEY GO OFF AFTER HAVING BEEN ILLUMINATED.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
Data on this page last refreshed .