Major Problems with Toyota Prius v Derived from Complaints & Recalls

Learn about the common problems with a used Toyota Prius v to avoid purchasing a bad year of the model.

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Best and Worst Years for Toyota Prius v

Explore the chart showing how many complaints have been filed for each year of Toyota Prius v.

Model Year	Complaints
2017 Prius v	8
2016 Prius v	6
2015 Prius v	9
2014 Prius v	26
2013 Prius v	51
2012 Prius v	101

Worst 3 Toyota Prius v complaints

2012 Toyota Prius v SERVICE BRAKES Victims: 2

2013 Toyota Prius v SERVICE BRAKES Victims: 2 Mileage: 36198 miles

2013 Toyota Prius v SERVICE BRAKES Victims: 2 Mileage: 1200 miles

Browse Toyota Prius v complaints by category

Problems with SERVICE BRAKES, ENGINE and ELECTRICAL SYSTEM are the most frequent issues recorded by the NHTSA from Toyota Prius v owners.

Problem Category	Number of Problems
SERVICE BRAKES we were in stop and go traffic on the highway for just over a half hour with my two young...	65 ~ 40317 miles
ENGINE after parked for 20 minutes the car is dead had to jump start. battery was replaced by the dealer but...	33 ~ 68293 miles
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM after parked for 20 minutes the car is dead had to jump start. battery was replaced by the dealer but...	31 ~ 64858 miles
UNKNOWN OR OTHER i experienced sudden but momentary braking when traveling at high speed (> 50 mph) while either entering ro exiting hwy....	27 ~ 51835 miles
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL was driving at approx 20mph on a side road when the car completely lost power and went dead. all the...	26 ~ 40956 miles
POWER TRAIN after parked for 20 minutes the car is dead had to jump start. battery was replaced by the dealer but...	15 ~ 38003 miles
AIR BAGS was going down hill at 40mph the light turned red i tried to stop i pumped the brakes twice then...	12 ~ 31083 miles
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM toyota issued safety recalls e0e and f0r for the failure of the hybrid inverter. if the inverter had not failed...	11 ~ 56884 miles
STEERING was driving at approx 20mph on a side road when the car completely lost power and went dead. all the...	11 ~ 69460 miles
EXTERIOR LIGHTING headlight turns itself off. replaced bulb multiple times. headlight works for a few hours then turns off again....	7 ~ 60000 miles
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL although our vehicle is not identified for a recall the symptoms are exactly the same description as the nhtsa campaign...	7 ~ 64500 miles
BODY > STRUCTURE tl* the contact owns a 2013 toyota pruis v hybrid. the contact stated that a large rodent entered the vehicle...	6 ~ 16725 miles
VISIBILITY/WIPER 2012 prius has serious defect in the windshield lamination. bright light sources are tripled at night. a ghost image appears...	5 ~ 7090 miles
HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM tl* the contact owns a 2014 toyota prius v. while driving at an unknown speed the vehicle made abnormal noises...	4 ~ 138250 miles
WHEELS tread tire separation on all four oem toyo tires. required tire replacement....	4 ~ 37063 miles
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING after about 6 months a/c and cabin fan system smelled moldy mildewy and very musty. toyota service dept said all...	3 ~ 31100 miles
SEAT BELTS tl* the contact owns a 2013 toyota prius v. while driving at approximately 60 mph the brakes activated independently and...	2 ~ 46000 miles
INVERTER > HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM tl* the contact owns a 2013 toyota prius v. the contact stated that while stopped the vehicle stalled without warning....	2 ~ 31817 miles
INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL > ELECTRICAL SYSTEM tl* the contact owns a 2013 toyota prius v. the contact stated that the vehicle experienced mold growing inside the...	2 ~ 6500 miles
TREAD/BELT > TIRES yokohama avid envigor 215/50/r17 tread separation: rear driver side tire developed a crack on the inside of the tire. tires...	1 ~ 93000 miles
HEADLIGHTS > EXTERIOR LIGHTING front head lights went out within a few weeks of each other. replaced both bulbs. then they went out again...	1 ~ 107000 miles
CALIPER > DISC > FOUNDATION COMPONENTS 2014 toyota prius. consumer writes in regards to defective caliper replacement. ld tr...	1
SEATS looks like the metal piece that attaches the seat to the floor of the car is resting. i took it...	1 ~ 88000 miles
NAVIGATIONAL SYSTEM(GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM) > ELECTRICAL > EQUIPMENT gps navigator is misleading for 50 usa states. the dashboard is not working correct sometime maybe the software has a	1
HEAD RESTRAINT > FRONT ASSEMBLY > SEATS tl* the contact owns a 2012 toyota prius v. while driving at an unknown speed the position of the driver...	1 ~ 31000 miles
SUSPENSION a groaning noise at all temperatures so far. it begins and then goes away after i drive for a block....	1 ~ 3300 miles
STRUCTURE i am filing a claim to notify other consumers about an ongoing issue i've experienced with my 2012 toyota prius...	1 ~ 12287 miles

FAQ

What year Toyota Prius v is the most reliable?

Speaking of the models produced in the last 6 years, Toyota Prius v models of 2016, 2017, 2015 year of manufacture have had the least number of complaints.

What year was a bad year for Toyota Prius v?

Toyota Prius v models of 2012 and 2013 are probably the years to be avoided like the plague due to a higher than an average number of issues reported.

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