NHTSA Complaint #10378892 — 2008 TOYOTA PRIUS

ON 3 SEPARATE DAYS, 2 DURING THE SUMMER OF 2009 AND 1 DURING THE SUMMER OF 2010, OUR PRIUS TRANSMISSION HAS AUTOMATICALLY AND REPEATEDLY SHIFTED FROM D (DRIVE) TO N (NEUTRAL) WITHOUT WARNING WHILE THE CAR WAS MOVING. ALL INCIDENTS HAPPENED ON EXTREMELY HOT DAYS (TEMPERATURES NEAR 100) IN THE AFTERNOON AFTER THE CAR HAD BEEN PARKED OUT IN THE SUN AND WITHOUT US HAVING MADE ANY ACCIDENTAL CONTACT WITH THE SHIFTER / DRIVE SELECTOR WHILE DRIVING. THIS CREATED DANGEROUS SITUATIONS SEVERAL TIMES AS THE CAR ERRATICALLY SLOWED AS WE ENTERED INTERSECTIONS OR PULLED OUT ONTO BUSY STREETS. OUR INITIAL RESPONSE WAS TO DEPRESS THE ACCELERATOR, BUT WHEN THIS HAD NO EFFECT, WE DISCOVERED THE TRANSMISSION LIGHT HAD MOVED FROM D TO N. IT WAS ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS WHEN MAKING LEFT HAND TURNS ON BUSY STREETS WITH ONCOMING TRAFFIC. WE DISCOVERED THAT WE COULD KEEP THE CAR MOVING BY CONSTANTLY HOLDING THE SHIFTER / DRIVE SELECTOR LEVER IN THE D POSITION. TURNING OFF THE AIR CONDITIONER DID NOT HELP THE PROBLEM. AFTER THE FIRST TIME THIS HAPPENED, WE TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP TO INVESTIGATE THE PROBLEM, BUT THE SERVICE TECHNICIANS THERE WERE UNABLE TO REPRODUCE IT. THIS GLITCH REMAINS A CONCERN TO US BECAUSE THE LOSS OF POWER AND ACCELERATION IS UNPREDICTABLE AND THEREFORE DANGEROUS, BUT AT LEAST WE KNOW WE CAN KEEP THE CAR MOVING BY HOLDING THE SHIFTER IN THE D POSITION. BECAUSE THE CAR IS SO COMPUTERIZED, I SUSPECT AN ELECTRONIC COMPONENT OF THE DRIVE SYSTEM MAY MALFUNCTION AT HIGH TEMPERATURES. THE MILEAGE NUMBER I GAVE IS AN APPROXIMATION SINCE I DIDN'T RECORD THE ACTUAL MILEAGE WHEN THIS FIRST HAPPENED, BUT THE DEALER WHO SERVICED THE CAR SHORTLY THEREAFTER SHOULD HAVE THAT INFORMATION.