NHTSA Complaint #10307776 — 2007 TOYOTA PRIUS

I OWN A 2007 TOYOTA PRIUS AND HAVE EXPERIENCED OCCASIONAL MOMENTARY LOSS OF BRAKING (MY FOOT FIRMLY ON THE BRAKE PEDAL) WHILE DRIVING OVER A BUMPY SURFACE. WHILE BRAKING OVER SMALL POT HOLES, RAILROAD TRACKS, ROUGH PATCHES, ETC., THE CAR SEEMS TO LUNGE FORWARD APPARENTLY AS THE BRAKES RELEASE FOR A SPLIT SECOND (APPROXIMATELY 1/4 TO 1/2 SECOND). THE ROAD CONDITIONS CAN BE WET OR DRY. AT THE SAME TIME, MY TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT WILL FLASH ON AND OFF UNTIL THE ROAD SMOOTHES OUT. THAT SPLIT SECOND IS ENOUGH TO CAUSE AN ACCIDENT WITH THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME IF I DON'T GIVE MYSELF EXTRA ROOM OR SLOW DOWN PRIOR TO THE BUMPY CONDITION (1/2 SECOND AT 20 MPH = 15 FEET OF UNWANTED TRAVEL). I DRIVE OVER THE SAME RAILROAD TRACKS JUST PRIOR TO A TRAFFIC LIGHT EVERY DAY AND I HAVE HAD TO ADJUST MY DRIVING HABITS TO KEEP THIS DANGEROUS, ADDITIONAL STOPPING DISTANCE FROM RECURRING. THIS HAS OCCURRED APPROXIMATELY 15 TO 20 TIMES IN VARIOUS BUMPY CONDITIONS SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR OVER 3 YEARS AGO. I HAVE HAD SOME CLOSE CALLS, BUT NO ACCIDENT YET. I HAVE NOT COMPLAINED TO TOYOTA, BUT DUE TO ALL THE COMPLAINTS I HAVE READ ABOUT ONLINE, I ASSUMED THEY WOULD DO SOMETHING EVENTUALLY. *TR