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Hybrid Vehicles Hybrid Vehicles - Archived Discussions Toyota Prius Software Problems 
752 messages, Last post on Sep 10, 2006 at 5:54 PM
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Replying to: manassascrow (Apr 01, 2005 5:12 am) Welcome to the Forum. Please do keep us posted if this happens again. There are those here that are in denial that the Prius has serious problems. If you report this to the NHTSA it will help get Toyota to research and fix their firmware. http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/ |
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Replying to: sganarelle (Mar 31, 2005 7:44 pm) You have made two assumptions there, without any evidence that either is true; 1. that there is a software problem 2. that if there is, Toyota is not doing anything to fix it." I'm not going to bother responding to most of your comments, since they prove my own statements about how critical software is when it controls more and more of the vehicle. 1. It is a software problem because the fix was not mechanical - the fix was to put the same software back into the Prius. Then the vehicle worked again. I don't know what triggered the problem, it may have been a combination of mechanical inputs or electric current levels or whatever. But it caused the software to stop working and the car died. 2. I didn't mean that Toyota wasn't fixing it; I said that if they are not getting data then it is unlikely they can find the error. If the dealers are just putting the same code back in the car and not downloading specific debug data, then Toyota has very little idea where the problem lies. Software engineers are always interested in fixing their code. But one has to know where the problem is before it can be fixed.
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Replying to: manassascrow (Apr 01, 2005 5:12 am) It is almost certainly NOT a software problem because there are somewhere around 70,000 2004 and 2005 Prii on the road, all, presumably running the same software. If it were a software problem there would be massive numbers of cars failing. You almost certainly have a hardware problem in your control module and an intelligent dealer would have replaced it. I personally know 6 other people with 2004 or 2005 Prii with a combined mileage approaching 100,000 miles. None have ever experienced a problem of any sort. I know someone with a first generation (2001) Prius approaching 120,000 miles with no problems of any kind except for tires (a known problem with the first generation Prius). David
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Replying to: sganarelle (Apr 01, 2005 7:40 pm) There is the answer. The Toyota dealer service is rated way below average. You should read through the trouble encountered with the Prius II. I have not seen a vehicle that gets towed to the dealership more than a Prius. Try to find a new car that has a worse record here on Edmund's over the last year. You will see several people that were interested in the Prius including myself that would not buy one with all the troubles. They all seem to be control/computer related. bonster, "Toyota Prius Owners: Problems & Solutions" #79, 14 Oct 2004 10:16 am
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Replying to: stevedebi (Apr 01, 2005 4:59 pm) It is not listed on 2005 models (5 TSBs all for Oct.2004 and earlier). Make : TOYOTA Model : PRIUS Year : 2004 Manufacturer : TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC. Service Bulletin Num : 04009 Date of Bulletin: MAY 13, 2004 NHTSA Item Number: 10007672 Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM Summary: SPECIAL SERVICE CAMPAIGN 40D TO REPROGRAM THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNITS (ECU). *TT |
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Anybody who has read the prius boards for more than two weeks knows that you are on a holy crusade to prove that hybrids are a bad idea You are obviously a newcomer to the Forum so, welcome. If you followed the hybrid threads since 2000 as I have you would know that I was an early proponent for the Prius and hybrid technologies. I still consider the Insight the best commuter car available in this country. The HCH has a better overall reliability record if people posting are letting us know any problems they are having. The Prius has had many problems whether you have had any or not. There are people trying to invoke the lemon law in CA on the Prius. You can pick any car from any country and go to the appropriate thread. I dare say you will not find a vehicle that has gotten towed to the dealerships in the last year as much as the Prius. They do die for no apparent reason and the dealers are just doing a reset on the control computer and hoping the trouble will not return. There is a reason that Toyota ranks so poorly on the customer service ratings at JD Powers. They are poor at taking care of customer problems. All cars have problems from time to time. It is how it is handled by the dealers that leaves a lasting image in your mind.
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Replying to: gagrice (Apr 02, 2005 3:59 pm)
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Replying to: falconone (Apr 02, 2005 7:01 pm) How do you explain the posters that have had their new Prius towed when it just quits? I doubt you will find another car on Edmund's with as many DOA failures as the Prius. I'm sure you have read all the cases of the car just quitting. Is that to be expected? I have read every post on the hybrid boards and the Prius is not the jewel in Toyota's crown. Even some of the real diehard Prius fans admit that there are issues with the car. My complaint is not as much with the Prius as with Toyota not accepting the problems. I have never heard of so many cases where the dealer was clueless about a problem with a car. PS There are 5 cases on this thread that is less than a month old. If I was researching a car and that many all-out failures occured in one month that car would be scratched off my list. You can go back a year on the VW TDI boards and not find that many total failures, where the car was towed to the dealer.
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Replying to: gagrice (Apr 02, 2005 10:35 pm)
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