- #56 of 82
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Re: 2008 brakes [whitey9]
by whardy
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May 19, 2009 (2:19 pm)
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Replying to: whitey9 (May 18, 2009 7:54 pm)
Talked to the guy at the dealership. Will go to Tahoe City and down 89 instead tomorrow morning to have it checked out.
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- #57 of 82
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Re: 2004-2009 Prius Brake Failure Rate is High [ganderc]
by hal_cat
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Jun 08, 2009 (7:48 am)
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Replying to: ganderc (Apr 07, 2009 10:42 am)
You can bump the number of complaints up by one. I've finally submitted mine for my 2007 Prius with 37,020 miles.
Like others, I was traveling at a low speed, about 15mph. I had to do a quick stop because of a car stopped in my lane. There were parked cars on one side and opposing traffic on the other so I had no avoidance options. When I jammed on the brake, absolutely nothing happened before I hit the Imperial in front of me. The time from hitting the brakes and hitting the car was long enough for my wife to realize that we weren't stopping, shout "stop the car" and for me to reply "I'm trying to, but nothing is happening."
The dealership checked the car, and of course nothing mechanical was at fault. Toyota sent a regional rep to investigate, and a couple of days ago we got a letter from Toyota legal saying that obviously I did not step on the brakes until it was too late. Now we are getting the car repaired (we have insurance, and the cost is estimated at $4000 to $5000), but we are unsure what we will do with it when we are done. We don't like the idea of driving it - the though of cruising slowly into an intersection of fast moving cars doesn't appeal to us, nor the though of driving down a mountain without guard rails which we have done in other cars. If we sold it to someone ourselves and something happened we would feel like we had blood on our hands. Our best option is probably to sell it to a Toyota dealer so at least they would have the responsibility for future lawsuits.
What I would really like is for Toyota to fix the brake problem for my car. I really enjoyed it for the first two years. I don't expect to see a fix though, the recall would be too expensive for them, and stonewalling will probably see them through.
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- #58 of 82
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Re: 2004-2009 Prius Brake Failure Rate is High [hal_cat]
by jpeters1970
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Jun 26, 2009 (6:23 pm)
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Replying to: hal_cat (Jun 08, 2009 7:48 am)
A lot of people don't realize that the Prius brakes differently than other cars. When you initially press the brake moderately and you're going 45MPH, the Disc/Drums are NOT engaging, but what is happening is that the generator is applied and converting energy for the battery, Yes the car is slowing down, but without the aid of the conventional braking system. If you slow down faster i.e. press harder, you will eventually engage the disc/drum brakes which will augment the braking power of the vehicle. I have 66,000 trouble free miles in my 2004 Prius and I've driven in snow, rain, dry weather and heavy stop and go city driving. I have never,ever had any incident with respect to the brakes not doing what they're supposed to. I did have one instance which scared the crap out of me and that was unintended acceleration. I had the car cleaned the day before and they put the mats back incorrectly. I took my foot off the accelerator and the car kept going faster!!! I immediately knew what the problem was, pulled over and remounted the mat on the holding pins. Based on the submissions to the NTSB site and also based on other sources (CR, Prius enthusiast sites) there is nothing wrong with the braking system of the Prius.
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- #59 of 82
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Re: 2004-2009 Prius Brake Failure Rate is High [jpeters1970]
by jacquesc
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Jun 27, 2009 (1:58 pm)
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Replying to: jpeters1970 (Jun 26, 2009 6:23 pm)
There is something wrong with the break system. Occasionally a delay occurs between abrupt low speed brake pedal application and brake engagement. It hasn't happened to you - but it exists. And it is a design flaw. And has cost Prius owners thousands in deductibles and raised insurance rates.
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- #60 of 82
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Re: 2004-2009 Prius Brake Failure Rate is High [jpeters1970]
by hal_cat
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Jun 27, 2009 (7:44 pm)
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Replying to: jpeters1970 (Jun 26, 2009 6:23 pm)
You are fortunate, as are almost a million other Prius drivers, who have never encountered the brake problem. I had driven 32K miles with no brake problems what-so-ever. I believe that the problem has to do with the interactions of the energy management software, the brake system software, and the brake hardware. I believe that the problem is the result of some very specific set of conditions which do not happen very often, given that hundreds of thousands of Priuses with the same equipment and software that I have are not crashing daily, or even monthly. I have 14 years experience in writing software for engines and transmissions. I understand how difficult it is to develop a fail-safe system, and how a very simple detail, like comparing two values incorrectly, can make the difference between something working correctly all the time or working correctly almost all the time, and with brakes, almost all the time is not good enough. I also believe that if it were happening all the time, the software and hardware engineers in Japan would have found the problem and corrected it. I do know that I slammed down the brakes hard when I wanted to stop, and that I got absolutely no observable response at all. (I don't know if it was charging my battery prior to slamming me into the car in front of me.) I sincerely hope that you don't have a brake failure like I had, but I know I won't, because I am dumping a two year old Prius which my wife refuses to ride in.
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- #61 of 82
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Re: 2004-2009 Prius Brake Failure Rate is High [hal_cat]
by jpeters1970
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Jun 27, 2009 (8:06 pm)
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Replying to: hal_cat (Jun 27, 2009 7:44 pm)
It must be an extraordinary set of circumstances to replicate this from happening. There are over a million Prius out there and I happen to participate in numerous chats on other boards. I have not read anything about a brake issue other than a few on edmunds. Contrary to what another poster mentioned, my insurance rates have gone DOWN since I got my Prius. I haven't even heard/read anything in the media about it either. You know how stories like that tend to get everyone's attention. Like I said, with all the millions and millions of miles being accumulated daily you would think that this alleged problem would manifest itself more frequently. Oh FYI.... brake: stop break: broken. 
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- #62 of 82
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Re: 2004-2009 Prius Brake Failure Rate is High [jpeters1970]
by nanster630
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Jul 04, 2009 (6:57 am)
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Replying to: jpeters1970 (Jun 27, 2009 8:06 pm)
I just bought a certified used 2005 three weeks ago, and since then I have had this happen TWICE, which is why I'm on the Internet searching for information about it. Fortunately, so far, the break has eventually engaged just in the nick of time but it has made this usually very confident driver more than a little squeamish about driving in Chicago area traffic. I love every other aspect of this car. Are you telling me that Toyota refuses to acknowledge the problem, and there is no way to correct it? HELP!! 
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- #63 of 82
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Re: Prius brake failure [minervinha]
by nanster630
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Jul 04, 2009 (7:09 am)
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Replying to: minervinha (Apr 01, 2009 4:18 pm)
Minerva...I'm with you. I've only had my used 2005 for 3 weeks, and it's already almost failed (grabbed at the last minute) twice. Please let me know -- and I'll do the same -- if you hear about a class action suit. UGH!!! 
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- #64 of 82
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Re: Prius brake failure [nanster630]
by hal_cat
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Jul 04, 2009 (8:41 am)
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Replying to: nanster630 (Jul 04, 2009 7:09 am)
In addition to Edmond, check out:
http://www.hybridcars.com/forums/brake-failure-2007-t1013.html
And, there have been 45 reports to the National Highway and Transportation Safety Administration at http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ (mine included)
I vote
I am in the process of trading up to the latest (2010) Prius, in hopes that the brake problems are fixed. I will be driving with my left foot ready to hit the emergency brake, and as I always do, looking for where to swerve it the brakes don't hold.
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- #65 of 82
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Re: Prius brake failure [hal_cat]
by mnwinter
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Sep 12, 2009 (9:07 am)
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Replying to: hal_cat (Jul 04, 2009 8:41 am)
I picked up my 2010 Prius three weeks ago. I am taking it in today because of brake issues experienced in the last 2 weeks. I spend a lot of time on the highway - haven't experienced problems there - just in town. The brakes engage initially - but then feel like they release. The last time it happened I was turning a corner - it was a little unnerving - that was when I decided it was going in!
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