NHTSA Complaint #10352036 — 2010 TOYOTA PRIUS

BRAKE FAILURE. 2010 TOYOTA PRIUS IV -- THE VEHICLE'S BRAKES LOSE PRESSURE AND THE BRAKE PEDAL LOSES PRESSURE (REGARDLESS OF HOW HARD I PRESS ON THE BRAKES AS THIS IS HAPPENING). THE BRAKES ARE TEMPORARILY DISABLED AND THE VEHICLE UNEXPECTEDLY ACCELERATES AS A RESULT OF ITS MOMENTUM PRIOR TO INITIALIZING THE BRAKES. THE FAILURE OCCURS WHEN THE VEHICLE PASSES OVER A DRAMATIC CHANGE IN THE TEXTURE/FRICTION OF THE ROAD SURFACE. I HAVE EXPERIENCED THE FAILURE DOZENS OF TIMES, WHEN DRIVING OVER METAL SURFACES (MANHOLE COVERS, POTHOLE COVERS, TEMPORARY CONSTRUCTION COVERS, METAL EXPANSION INSERTS IN BRIDGES, ETC), AS WELL AS SMALL PATCHES OF CONDENSATION (SUCH AS SMALL PUDDLES UNDER A BRIDGE WHEN THE SURROUNDING ROAD IS DRY). THE FAILURE IS NOT RELATED TO HYDROPLANING, AND HAS OCCURRED AT SPEEDS AS LOW AS 15 MPH. THE FAILURE CAUSES THE VEHICLE TO ACCELERATE UNTIL A FEW SECONDS AFTER IT HAS PASSED OVER THE SLICK SURFACE. AFTER RETURNING TO THE REGULAR ROAD SURFACE, THE BRAKES SLOWLY REGAIN TRACTION AND RESUME THEIR FUNCTION OF SLOWING THE VEHICLE DOWN. THIS FAILURE OCCURS EVERY TIME THESE CRITERIA ARE MET -- REGARDLESS OF WHETHER ROAD CONDITIONS ARE WET OR DRY. SO FAR NO ACCIDENTS HAVE RESULTED FROM THIS FAILURE ON MY VEHICLE, BUT I HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO CONTROL THE PROBLEM OR DECREASE ITS EFFECTS. AGAIN, THIS PROBLEM OCCURS EVEN AT LOW SPEEDS, SUCH AS IN CITY TRAFFIC WHILE BRAKING TO STOP AT AN INTERSECTION. MANY TIMES IT HAS CAUSED ME TO NEARLY HIT THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF MINE. SO I HAVE BEEN FORCED TO LEAVE AN EXTRA 40 FEET BETWEEN MY VEHICLE AND ANYTHING IN FRONT OF ME, WHICH IS NOT ALWAYS FEASIBLE BECAUSE I LIVE IN AN URBAN AREA. I HAVE ALREADY TAKEN THIS VEHICLE INTO THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP AS PART OF THEIR RECALL TO FIX THE SOFTWARE WHICH CONTROLS THE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN THE HYBRID BRAKES AND THE NORMAL DISK BRAKES. LOCAL DEALERSHIPS HAVE CONSISTENTLY DENIED THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE VEHICLE AND THE TOYOTA COMPANY WILL NOT RETURN MY PHONE CALLS. *TR