Home · 2019 Toyota Prius Phev · Complaints

What 29 owners told NHTSA about the 2019 Toyota Prius Phev

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (29)Crash / fire / injury (7)Brakes (10)Engine (5)Airbags (4)Driver assistance (4)Electrical system (4)Speed control (4)Tires (2)Transmission & drivetrain (2)Backup camera & sensors (1)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (1)

4 of 29 complaints match · Speed control · clear filters

Oct 16, 2024Speed controlBrakesCrash

* I was pulling into a parking space at a slow speed. When I applied the brake the car accelerated causing the car to scrape the car next to the space. The car then stopped. * The acceleration was out of my control and the brakes did not stop it. Fortunately there was no person in front of me. * The Tow truck operator who came to get the car experienced the same issue when pulling into the bay at the dealer. I do not know about the manufacturer during their inspection as they did not provide me with that information. * Toyota had an inspection performed and that report was submitted to Toyota on August 20. We just received notification from Toyota that they found no problem with the car. * No warning lights noted.

NHTSA ODI 11620209

Jan 30, 2023AirbagsBrakesSpeed controlCrash

The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Prius. The contact stated while at a complete stop, another vehicle crashed into the rear of the vehicle and the vehicle began to accelerate unintendedly. The air bags failed to deploy. The brake pedal was depressed but failed to respond. The contact stated that he was able to prevent a crash by avoiding several vehicles while continuously depressing the brake pedal. The brake pedal responded; however, there was 62-100 ft. stopping distance delay. The contact veered to the side of the road for a moment. The contact stated that as he restarted the vehicle, the vehicle operated as needed. There was no warning light illuminated. There was no police report filed. There was no injury sustained. The contact was able to drive to his workplace. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 78,000.

NHTSA ODI 11504545

Oct 14, 2019Speed controlBrakes

I WAS TURNING TO EXIT A FREEWAY AND ALL OF A SUDDEN MY CAR CAME TO A STOP (ABOUT 55MPH TO 0) IN A MATTER OF SECONDS WITH NO WARNING. IT THEN TOOK A FEW SECONDS BEFORE I WAS ABLE TO GET THE GAS TO WORK AGAIN. NO CARS WERE AROUND ME LUCKILY.

NHTSA ODI 11268309

Sep 23, 2019Speed controlBrakesEngine

BOUGHT A NEW 2019 PRIUS FROM GROSSINGER TOYOTA ON 9/13, WENT BACK TO THE DEALER ON 9/16 TO GET MY OLD CITY STICKER FROM MY OLD CAR (THIS NEW CAR ONLY HAD 61 MILES), THE NEW CAR BROKE WHILE I WAS THERE. THE ENTIRE DASHBOARD WENT OFF (BLINDERS CANNOT BE TURN ON. NO INDICATION OF SPEED, NO INDICATION OF VEHICLE LEVEL, ETC). ANYTHING THAT'S ON THE DASHBOARD WENT BLANK. I TURNED ON AND OFF THE NEW CARD A FEW TIME, BUT THE RESULT WAS THE SAME. TOYOTA TECHNICIAN COULDN'T FIGURE OUT WHAT WENT WRONG THEMSELVES. WHEN THAT HAPPENED, I WAS JUST ABOUT READY TO LEAVE THE DEALER, THEN I QUICKLY WENT BACK TO SHOW THE GROSSINGER DEALER.

NHTSA ODI 11257336

Working with the data? Download all 29 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 20, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2019 Toyota Prius Phev verdict →