What 684 owners told NHTSA about the 2012 Toyota Prius C

RECEIVED A WARNING CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM - IT WAS CODE POA93. ENDED GETTING THE INVERTER PUMP AND RADIATOR REPLACED DO TO THIS CODE. APPEARS TO BE A KNOWN ISSUE WITH TOYOTA WITH THERE PRIUS'S. THE CAR DIED ROLLING INTO A TOYOTA DEALER.

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TOOK MY CAR INTO DEALERSHIP BECAUSE OF A NOISE IT WOULD MAKE WHEN I STARTED TO BRAKE AND WHEN I WAS STOPPED AT A LIGHT. THE CAR WOULD ALSO VIBRATE AND SHAKE. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THE ABS ACTUATOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED WHICH WOULD COST OVER 4 GRAND! I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT. I'M SCARED TO DRIVE THE CAR NOW.

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BRAKE ACTIVATOR UNIT FAILED AFTER 4 MONTHS OF REPORTING THE ISSUE TO TOYOTA. IT FOLLOWS THE CONDITIONS INDICATED ON TOYOTA WEN ZG1. VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION AT HIGHWAY SPEED WHEN BRAKING MALFUNCTION OCCURRED. VEHICLE WAS CONTROLLABLE AND ALLOW FOR SECURE STOP. BRAKE RESPONSE WAS SLUGGISH AND HARD ON THE FOOT.

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PROBLEM WITH THE FUEL BLADDER CAUSING THE GAUGE TO READ INCORRECTLY. THE GAUGE GETS STUCK AT A QUARTER TANK AND BEFORE YOU KNOW IT, YOU'RE OUT OF GAS. ONCE THIS HAPPENED, IT CAUSED THE HYBRID SYSTEM TO FAIL AND LOCKED THE CAR UP EVEN AFTER PUTTING GAS IN IT. HAS TO DO A MASTER RESET OF THE ENTIRE CAR TO GET IT TO START AGAIN.

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I OWN A 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS. ON THE DASHBOARD THE BRAKE LIGHT, THE ABS LIGHT, AND THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT ARE ALL ON. IN ADDITION TO THE WARNING LIGHTS THE BRAKE ACCUMULATOR PUMP IS CONSTANTLY BUZZING WITHOUT EVER STOPPING. I TOOK THE CAR TO OUR LOCAL DEALER AND I WAS TOLD THAT IT IS A LEAKY ACCUMULATOR PUMP DEFECT. I WAS ALSO TOLD THAT THIS IS NOT A WARE AND TEAR ITEM AND THAT IT IS IN FACT A FAULTY ITEM FROM THE MANUFACTURE. I CALLED TOYOTA CORPORATE FOR HELP BUT I WAS TOLD THAT THE CAR IS OUT OF WARRANTY AND THAT THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN HELP ME WITH. MY MAIN CONCERN IS THE SAFETY OF MY FAMILY AND I REALLY HOPE THAT TOYOTA DOES IN FACT DO A RECALL ON THESE FAULTY ITEMS AS IT IS A REAL HAZARD TO SAFETY. ## VIN PASSED ## TOYOTA PRIUS 2012 ##

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MY HUSBAND WAS DRIVING THE CAR PREPARING TO TURN TO ENTER THE FREEWAY WHEN THE PRIUS LOST ALL DRIVING POWER SPONTANEOUSLY AT THE SAME TIME PROMPTED WITH A WARNING ON THE SCREEN 'CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM AND PARK IN A SAFE PLACE'. THE CAR LOST ALL DRIVING POWER INCLUDING POWER STEERING BUT MY HUSBAND WAS ABLE TO GLIDE THE VEHICLE ACROSS SEVERAL LANES TO A PARKED POSITION BEFORE THE FREEWAY ENTRANCE. THE CAR NEVER RESUMED ITS ABILITY TO DRIVE DESPITE TURNING IT OFF AND AN ATTEMPT TO RESTART. THE PRIUS WAS TOWED TO THE HOUSE AND TOWED AGAIN TO THE DEALERSHIP THE FOLLOWING DAY FOR AN ASSESSMENT AND REPAIR. AS A TOYOTA CUSTOMER, WE WERE INFORMED THE VEHICLE HAD EXPERIENCED INVERTER/COMPONENT FAILURE. MY VEHICLE HAD A RECALL YEARS EARLIER TO REFLASH SOFTWARE IN THE PRIUS INVERTER, BUT THIS DID NOT RESOLVE/PREVENT THE SPONTANEOUS INVERTER FAILURE WE EXPERIENCED ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH 28, 2018. IT HAS BEEN BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION THAT TOYOTA CORPORATION IS AWARE OF SEVERAL CUSTOMERS REPORTING SIMILAR OR NEAR IDENTICAL CIRCUMSTANCES, BUT ARE NOT ISSUING A RECALL TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING TO A TOYOTA DRIVER ON THE ROAD. TOYOTA IS AGREEING TO REPLACE PARTS AT NO COST TO ME, WITH NO GUARANTEE THIS WILL CORRECT ANY INVERTER FAILURE. I HAVE REQUESTED THE SYSTEM BE REPLACED BASED ON TOYOTA'S CORRECTIVE ACTION ON THE NEWEST PRIUS MODELS, BUT THEY HAVE DENIED MY REQUEST. IF TOYOTA IS ACKNOWLEDGING COST FOR THIS VEHICLE FAILURE, WHY IS IT NOT A RECALL? IF TOYOTA HAS MADE ATTEMPTS TO CORRECT THIS VEHICLE FAILURE IN NEWER PRIUS MODELS BY INSTALLING IMPROVED INVERTER SYSTEMS, WHY AM I BEING DENIED THE SAFETY OF ALSO HAVING AN IMPROVED AND NEW INVERTER SYSTEM INSTALLED IN MY PRIUS AFTER WHAT WE HAVE EXPERIENCED AND REPORTED TO BOTH THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP AND TOYOTA CORPORATION? PLEASE INVESTIGATE BEFORE INJURY OR FATALITY COMES FROM THIS CORPORATE NEGLECT OF AN IDENTIFIED PROBLEM.

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HEAD LIGHTS KEEP FAILING BROUGHT USED 7MONTHS REPLACED HEADLIGHTS 4 TIMES SEEMS OTHER OWNERS ARE HAVING SAME ACCORDING TO THE HITS ON INFO

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ON MY WAY HOME I SUDDENLY SAW A SIGN ON THE SCREEN "CHECK THE HYBRID SYSTEM. STOP IN A SAFE PLACE". I PULLED OVER, SMELLED SMOKE AND SAW SMOKE IN THE REAR. I OPENED THE TRUNK ANS FRIGHTENED BY FLAME. I PULLED THINGS OUT AND COVERED THE FLAME WITH TWO BIG TOWELS AND SUCCEEDED IN PUTTING IT OUT, ALTHOUGH I GOT BURNED ON MY FINGERS. I CALLED GEICO. THEY SENT A TOWING CAR AND IT TOOK MY CAR TO MY APARTMENT. WHEN GEICO TOOK MY CAR TO A COLLISION CENTER, THEY SAID IT IS TOTAL LOSS AFTER INSPECTING IT. I CLAIMED IT TO TOYOTA. THEY INSPECTED IT, BUT SAID THAT THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE THAT THE CAR HAD ELECTRICAL OR MECHANICAL DEFECT. I DID NOTHING BUT DRIVING THE CAR, BUT IT CAUGHT FIRE. WHOSE RESPONSIBILITY IS THAT? I BELIEVE THE PRODUCER SHOULD TAKE THE RESPONSIBILITY BUT THEY DO NOT. WHERE CAN I BE COMPENSATED FOR THE LOSS?

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WHILE DRIVING AT 45MPH VSC, PARKING BRAKE, AND ABS LIGHTS COMES ON AND STAYS ON AFTER RESEARCH IT SEEMS TO BE A FAIRLY COMMON ISSUE WITH THE 2012 PRIUS. STILL WAITING FOR TOYOTA TO DO SMETHING ABOUT IT

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ON JAN. 3, 2018 WHILE MOVING AT A MINIMUM SPEED (LESS THAN 15 MPH) I APPLIED THE BRAKES AND SEVERAL WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED (BRAKES, ABS, TRACTION CONTROL) ALONG WITH A WARNING SOUND. THIS WAS ON A CITY STREET, DRIVING IN A STRAIGHT LINE. I WAS ABLE TO BRAKE TO A STOP. I THEN ATTEMPTED TO CONTINUE TO DRIVE AT A VERY LOW SPEED BUT SOON LOST ALL ABILITY TO BRAKE THE VEHICLE AND I COASTED TO A STOP. I HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO A LOCAL TOYOTA DEALER. I WAS TOLD THE BRAKE ACTUATOR HAD FAILED AND WAS CHARGED $3288 PLUS TAX FOR THE REPAIR. I RECEIVED THE CAR ON JAN. 9, 2018 FROM THE DEALER. ON JAN. 12, 2018 THE CAR FAILED ONCE AGAIN IN THE EXACT SAME MANNER. THE DEALER KEPT THE CAR UNTIL FEB. 1, 2018 AT WHICH TIME THEY RETURNED THE CAR TO ME AT NO CHARGE, STATING THEY HAD CHANGED THE SAME EXACT PART AS BEFORE. THE CAR HAS 84,000 MILES AND I PURCHASED IT NEW. I UNDERSTAND TOYOTA HAS ISSUED RECALLS FOR THIS ISSUE ON OTHER MODELS BUT NOT ON MY VEHICLE. I HAVE RETAINED MY REPAIR INVOICES BUT AM UNABLE TO UPLOAD THEM AT THIS TIME.

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ON SUNDAY DECEMBER 17, 2017 AT ABOUT 3:00 PM I WAS DRIVING WITH MY FAMILY (WIFE AND TWO KIDS) IN SOUTH FLORIDA ON US HIGHWAY 1. THE WEATHER WAS CLEAR AND I WAS TRAVELING ABOUT 55 MPH. THEN WITHOUT ANY WARNING A NUMBER OF TROUBLE INDICATOR LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE DASH. WHEN THE LIGHTS CAME ON I WAS DRIVING IN A STRAIGHT LINE WITH JUST ENOUGH GAS PEDAL INPUT TO MAINTAIN MY 55 MPH SPEED. STARTLED BY THE LIGHTS I LIFTED MY FOOT OFF THE THROTTLE AND ATTEMPTED TO APPLY THE BRAKES. WHEN I ATTEMPTED TO APPLY THE BRAKE PEDAL I HAD LITTLE TO NO BRAKES AND I HAD TO 'STAND ON THE BRAKE PEDAL' (PRESS IT AS HARD AS I COULD) TO GET THE CAR TO SLOW AND EVENTUALLY STOP WHILE PULLING ONTO THE SHOULDER OF THE ROAD. I WAS SCARED AND SHOCKED AT THE SAME TIME. I TURNED THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON THINKING IT MIGHT FIX THE PROBLEM. IT DID NOT. I WAS ABLE TO GET THE CAR HOME AND THE VERY NEXT MORNING TOOK IT TO SOUTH DADE TOYOTA. I WAS ABLE TO GET IT HOME AND TO THE DEALER BY DRIVING VERY SLOW KEEPING A VERY LARGE SPACE CUSHION AND STANDING ON THE BRAKE PEDAL WHEN I NEEDED TO STOP. WHILE I DID NOT CRASH UNDERSTANDABLY I WAS SCARED BECAUSE YOU SHOULD NOT JUST LOSE BRAKES OUT OF THE BLUE. AT THE DEALER THEY INFORMED ME THAT THE BRAKE ACTUATOR FAILED AND NEEDED REPLACEMENT COSTING $5734.94. I DID RESEARCH AND FOUND THAT TOYOTA ISSUED A WARRANTY EXTENSION ZG1 FOR THIS EXACT PROBLEM BUT WAS TOLD BY THE DEALER THAT MY VIN WAS NOT PART OF THE PROGRAM EVEN THOUGH MY VEHICLE EXPERIENCED THE EXACT PROBLEM. I REACHED OUT TO TOYOTA COOPERATE AND WHILE THEY AGREED THAT YES I HAD THE SAME PROBLEM MY VIN WAS NOT PART OF THE PROGRAM (THEY GAVE ME A CASE # 1712180647). HOWEVER THEY DID OFFER $2207.57 AS A GOOD WILL GESTURE TOWARDS THE REPAIR. I PAID $3527.37. TOYOTA KNOWS OF A LIFE SAFETY PROBLEM AND HAS CHOSEN TO LIMIT THE PROGRAM. MY MILEAGE WAS 106,451 AND UNDER THE PROGRAM WOULD HAVE BEEN COVERED.

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THE ABS, TRACTION CONTROL, AND BRAKE WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON. I TOOK THE VEHICLE TO MY LOCAL TOYOTA DEALERSHIP, WHERE I WAS TOLD THE DIAGNOSTIC HAS ALARM DTC C1391 AND THIS IS A MAJOR BRAKE HAZARD. THE DEALER STATE THE ABS BRAKE SYSTEM NEED TO BE REPLACED AT A COST OF $4,504.63 PLUS TAXES. I EXPLAINED TO THE DEALER THE CAR IS MAKING A SOUND LIKE THE ABS IS KICKING IN WHEN IT COME TO A STOP. THE NOISE PERSIST COMING IN AND OUT EVEN WHEN THE CAR IS PARKED AND OFF. MY 2012 PRIUS HAS ONLY 74K MILES. THE BRAKES PEDALS FEEL WEIRD AND LOOSE. I RED TOYOTA EXTENDED THE WARRANTY FOR THIS ISSUE DUE THE BRAKE ACTUATOR FAILURE DUE MANUFACTORY ISSUES. THE DEALER STATE MY VIN IS NOT THERE. WHAT ARE THEY WAITING TO FIX THIS ISSUE ON THE 2012 PRIUS??? WE NEED TO HAVE TOYOTA FIX THIS PROBLEM FOR ALL CARS BEFORE CATASTROFIC EVENT HAPPEN.

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MY CAR HAS STARTED TO BURN OIL AT AN ALARMING RATE: 2 QUARTS BETWEEN OIL CHANGES AT 5,000 MILES. THIS DOES NOT SEEM NORMAL. THERE DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE A LEAK.

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BOTH HEADLIGHTS LOW BEAMS BLOW OUT AT THE SAME TIME. TODAY I WILL BE REPLACING THE 4TH SET IN 12 MONTHS.

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LOST FRONT BRAKES COMPLETELY DRIVING DOWN ROAD. I WAS ABLE TO SLOW CAR WITH MANUAL BRAKE ON SHIFTER IN CONJUNCTION WITH REAR BRAKES. A SERIOUS ISSUE.

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WHEN BRAKING DURING NORMAL DRIVING CONDITIONS, A MIXTURE OF CITY AND HIGHWAY, THE CAR MAKES A SOUND LIKE THE ABS IS KICKING IN. WHEN COMING TO A STOP, THE NOISE PERSISTS UNTIL RELEASING THE BRAKE PEDAL. SHORTLY AFTER THIS STARTED, THE ABS, TRACTION CONTROL, AND BRAKE WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON. I TOOK THE VEHICLE TO MY LOCAL TOYOTA DEALERSHIP WHERE I WAS TOLD IT WAS THE BRAKE ACTUATOR NEEDED REPLACE AT THE COST OF $3600. MY 2012 PRIUS ONLY HAS 76K MILES ON IT.

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BOTH HEADLIGHTS WENT OFF AT SAME TIME WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY DURING NIGHT TIME. AS A RESULT THE CAR DRIVING IN NEXT LANE COULDN'T SEE MY CAR IN HIS SIDEVIEW MIRROR AND ALMOST HIT MY CAR WHEN TRIED TO CHANGE LANE. I ESCAPED THE MAJOR ACCIDENT BY AUTO REFLEXES TO MOVE MY CAR TO SHOULDER LANE IMMEDIATELY WHICH OTHERWISE COULD HAVE BEEN FATAL.

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NOVEMBER 4, 2017 - CAR WAS PARKED IN OUR DRIVEWAY. PUT THE CAR IN REVERSE TO BACK OUT OF OUR DRIVEWAY. THE BRAKES FAILED. NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS REPEATEDLY PUSHED DOWN, THE CAR JUST WOULD NOT STOP. IT ACTUALLY FELT LIKE THE CAR WAS ACCELERATING! THE CAR RAN OVER OUR MAILBOX AT THE END OF OUR DRIVEWAY. THE MAILBOX GOT DRAGGED UNDER THE CAR AND THE CAR ROLLED OUT ONTO THE STREET. FINALLY, WE PUSHED IN THE POWER BUTTON AND THAT WAS HOW WE WERE ABLE TO GET THE CAR TO STOP. OUR MAILBOX GOT TOTALED AND DAMAGE WAS DONE TO THE UNDERCARRIAGE OF OUR CAR, AS THERE IS TWISTED METAL HANGING DOWN SCRAPING THE GROUND. THE BRAKES STARTED TO WORK AGAIN A FEW MINUTES LATER, AS I WAS ABLE TO PULL IT BACK INTO THE DRIVEWAY OFF OF THE STREET. ON SEPTEMBER 19, 2017 ' CAR WAS PARKED IN A PARKING LOT. WHEN REVERSING OUT OF THE PARKING SPACE, THE BRAKES DID NOT WORK. AFTER REPEATEDLY PUMPING THE BRAKES, THEY FINALLY ENGAGED JUST BEFORE IT HIT A CAR PARKED BEHIND US. WE THOUGHT THIS WAS A FREAK ONE-TYPE EVENT, SO WE DIDN'T REPORT IT.

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SINCE I FIRST BOUGHT THE CAR IN 2012 I NOTICED THAT EVERY NOW AND THEN WHEN I PUSHED DOWN THE BRAKE PEDAL TO SLOW DOWN FOR A STOP, IF THE CAR HIT A SLIGHT BUMP IN THE ROAD, THE CAR WOULD MOMENTARILY ACCELERATE INSTEAD OF BRAKING. IT FELT LIKE I WAS LOSING CONTROL OF THE CAR. (NOTE: SINCE I DID NOT RECORD THE DATES, PLEASE NOTE THAT I HAVE CHOSEN AUGUST 1, 2017 AS A RANDOM DATE JUST SO I COULD CONTINUE ON TO THE NEXT STEP BUT THIS HAS HAPPENED FROM TIME TO TIME SINCE 2012.)

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VEHICLE STABILITY CONTROL, ANTI-LOCK BRAKE, AND TRACTION CONTROL LIGHTS INTERMITTENTLY TURN OFF. A FEW TIMES IT SHUT DOWN THE HYBRID SYSTEM AND TELL ME TO STOP . NOW ALL THOSE LIGHTS ARE ALL ON AND I AM DRIVING WITHOUT VSS, ABS AND TRACTION CONTROL. BRAKING IS GETTING HARDER. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER AND THEY TOLD ME THE COST IS $3500. I DID SOME RESEARCH AND FOUND OUT THAT THIS IS A KNOWN PRIUS PROBLEM PROBLEM

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EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION. WHEN I CHECKED THE OIL LEVEL BEFORE THE NEXT SCHEDULED OIL CHANGE, I FOUND NO OIL ON THE DIPSTICK. ON MY LAST OIL CHANGE, I WAS NOT TOLD I HAD A PROBLEM WITH MY OIL CONSUMPTION. HAD TO BUY OIL IN A HURRY AS I DID NOT WANT TO DRIVE THE CAR WITHOUT OIL.

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NHTSA RECALL NUMBER 15V449 MANUFACTURER RECALL: FOR / HYBRID INVERTER/POWER MODULE (IPM) CRASH INVOLVING PRIUS V (OWNED BY ANOTHER PERSON - MY MOTHER WAS HIT AND KILLED BY PRIUS V) OCCURRED ON SR 105. PRIUS V TRAVELING N ON OUTSIDE LANE CROSSED INSIDE LANE AND 11' GRASS MEDIAN BORDERED BY CONCRETE INTO S BOUND INSIDE LANE AND COLLIDED MY MOTHER DRIVING ONCOMING VEHICLE ON INSIDE S BOUND LANE. WOMAN DRIVING PRIUS V WAS KILLED ON IMPACT, AND MY MOTHER DIED LATER THAT DAY AT UF HOSPITAL JACKSONVILLE. TWO WITNESSES DRIVING BEHIND MY MOTHER SAW CRASH AND SAID THE PRIUS V APPEARED TO BE ACCELERATING ACROSS MEDIAN. CRASH OCCURRED APPROX. 2 MONTHS BEFORE TOYOTA'S RECALL ON JULY 15, 2015 OF 109,000 PRIUS V HYBRIDS. THE PRIUS V THAT KILLED MY MOTHER WAS PART OF THIS RECALL. IN FEB 2014, THERE WAS A RECALL ON THE PRIUS ECU. THE PRUIS V HAD THE SAME ECU, BUT TOYOTA CHOSE NOT TO RECALL THE PRIUS V UNTIL ALMOST A YEAR AND A HALF LATER, 2 AND A HALF MONTHS AFTER MY MOTHER'S FATAL CRASH. IF THEY HAD RECALLED THE PRIUS V IN 2014, WOULD MY MOTHER STILL BE ALIVE?

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EXCESS OIL CONSUMPTION

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MY CAR IS BURNING EXCESSIVE OIL

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 TOYOTA PRIUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT RODENTS CHEWED THROUGH THE AIR FILTER AND WIRING IN THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THIS ISSUE OCCURRED THREE TIMES. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO AN UNKNOWN DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE AIR FILTER AND WIRING NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT IT WAS AN OUTDOOR ISSUE AND PROVIDED NO FURTHER ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.

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