2008 Toyota Prius Electrical System

Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a direct purchase from the previous owner on August 3, 2025. The contact made other reports with a personal lawyer, the State Attorney General's Office, and AZ.FraudReport Agency. The contact had not heard back from the other contact regarding the other reports made. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 50,000 miles, and at the time of registration, it was discovered that the mileage was over 200,000.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the instrument panel failed to function as intended. The contact stated that the instrument panel went blank. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent at first but had become a permanent failure. In addition, the front headlights and rear taillights failed to function as intended. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, no cause for the failure was found. The vehicle was not repaired due to the cost. The contact stated that on a separate occasion, while driving at various speeds, the front headlights failed to work as intended. Upon inspection, the contact noticed that the bulbs had melted into the wiring harness. The contact stopped driving the vehicle at night. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

In the cars digital instrument cluster have problem on the same model many of cars because I know many of friends that have same model car and I get problem so I go to the mechanic and the mechanic says it is a manufacturing problem on that same model have same problem I repair it twice and now it again appears it's also a safety concern because the problem is the light is completely go out completely blank so we are not able to see the vehicle speed vehicles fuel gas and vehicles other information that shows on digital cluster so if we drive in this condition we don't know how much speed is on my car right now

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the instrument panel went blank. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent at first but had become a permanent failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was referred to the manufacturer for assistance. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that there were no recalls no warranty coverage on the vehicle. The failure mileage was approximately 72,000.

The vehicle we own is no longer covered by an extended warranty offered to Toyota owners of 2004-2009 Prius. The warranty covered the replacement of the digital combination meter which, when failing, no longer displays anything on the dashboard. The situation is dangerous because you lose the ability to monitor fuel tank capacity, speed, warning lights, reverse lights and backup camera. To get around this malfunction requires that the back storage panels be removed and 12-volt battery be disconnected and reconnected. However, the fix is short term since the problem resets itself once the car is turned off. Even when the display is working, we have just discovered that the fuel gauge is inaccurate, causing a serious overflow of fuel due to the display showing 1 bar, when the tank was actually 50% full. Toyota, fully aware of this problem offered a "warranty enhancement" that offered replacement coverage up to September 30, 2013. It only covered customers whose care was demonstrating the problem, excluding any cars that were not showing signs of malfunction. We have a 2008 model, purchased from a Toyota dealership in 2011, that up until around 2-years ago showed no signs of malfunctioning. Therefore, the warranty did not apply. We now, however, are experiencing the malfunction on a daily basis and our vehicle is unsafe, and inconvenient to drive. I called Toyota regarding this and they will not offer any further coverage beyond the September 30, 2013 date. The repair for this malfunction is a minimum $1000, which rightfully should be covered by Toyota due to the potential safety issues surrounding this problem. We would like Toyota to acknowledge customers such as ourselves where the malfunction did not appear until later during our ownership of a 2008 Prius, and pay or reimburse for the repair.

The electric dashboard (warning lights, speedometer, fuel gauge, etc.) is sometimes off when starting the car. The backup camera and the center display also will not be working. The car will not shut off when the displays are not working. It will usually fix itself after pushing the on/off button a few times. It has happened many times now but isn’t predictable. It hasn’t been looked at by a mechanic yet.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving over a bump or rock the anti-skid warning light illuminated. The contact stated that while driving the brakes, ABS, and traction control warning lights illuminated. The contact called the local dealer but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 164,000.

The instrument cluster goes completely blank (no fuel gauge, no speedometer, no odometer) and the car cannot be shut down.

Enroute to Maryland, dashboard lights failed - no speedometer, no gas tank info, no mileage. Safety issue.

The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that the instrument cluster intermittently failed to operate as needed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and diagnosed with instrument cluster failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unavailable.

When driving on CA highway 4 at about 73 MPH the car complete shut off, with the momentum I safely manage to get on the off ramp and my car was towed to my house, the converter pump fuse was getting blown out every time I replaced, and need a new converter pump.

A RECURRENT AND HARD-TO-DIAGNOSE PROBLEM I HAVE HAD WITH MY 2008 PRIUS FOR SEVERAL YEARS IS THE FACT THAT THE DASHBOARD DISPLAY (SPEEDOMETER, FUEL GAGE, DRIVE / REVERSE ETC.) WILL OCCASIONALLY NOT TURN ON WITH THE CAR ON DAYS THAT ARE COLD AND RAINY. ALTHOUGH NEWER MODELS (2019) BOTH EXPERIENCE THIS ISSUE AND HAVE ENJOYED A RECALL FOR THE PART (THE COMBINATION METER) TO BE FIXED, FOR OLDER PRIUSES SUCH AS MINE THE EQUIVALENT WORK IS LIMITED TO THOSE WHO PAID FOR AN EXTENDED WARRANTEE RELATING TO THE KNOWN PROBLEMS OF THIS ONE SINGLE PART--A WARRANTEE THAT I WAS NEVER OFFERED WHEN I PURCHASED THE CAR IN 2011, AND THAT ENDED IN 2015. THE 2019 RECALL'S INFORMATION IS HERE: HTTPS://PRESSROOM.TOYOTA.COM/?GENERATE_PDF=58021 EVEN IF I HAD PURCHASED THE PART'S EXTENDED WARRANTEE, WHETHER OR NOT I'D EVEN ABLE TO *USE* IT BY DEMONSTRATING TO THE TECHNICIAN THAT THE PROBLEM IS OCCURRING IS QUESTIONABLE, NOT TO MENTION LITERALLY UP TO THE WEATHER. THE PROBLEM BEEN VERY DIFFICULT FOR TECHS TO DIAGNOSE SINCE THERE AREN'T MANY COLD AND RAINY DAYS TO SET IT OFF WHERE I LIVE, NOT TO MENTION IT WOULD OFTEN RESOLVE ITSELF BEFORE THE CAR CAN BE TAKEN INTO THE SHOP FOR DIAGNOSIS. IT WAS ONLY POSSIBLE THIS TIME AROUND BECAUSE THE PROBLEM WAS WORSE THAN IN THE PAST, SEVERE ENOUGH THAT I COULD NOT TURN OFF MY CAR. THE FACT THAT TOYOTA WOULD HIDE REPAIRS FOR A MASSIVE SAFETY FLAW BEHIND A LIMITED-RUN WARRANTY, WHEN THE PROBLEM IS ACTUALLY BROADER AND AFFECTS CARS PRODUCED OVER 15 YEARS APART (2004 TO 2019) IS ONE THING. BUT THE FACT THAT THIS PROBLEM ACTUALLY CREATES A HAZARD FOR THE DRIVER--NOT BEING ABLE TO TURN OFF THE CAR, NOT BEING ABLE TO KNOW IF YOU'RE IN DRIVE OR REVERSE, OR EVEN HOW FAST YOU'RE GOING!-- MAKES THIS LIMITING BEHAVIOR SEEM SOMEWHAT DESPICABLE. I FEEL THIS RECALL SHOULD INCLUDE ALL AFFECTED PRIUS MODELS, BECAUSE THIS IS CLEARLY A BROADER DEFECT.

1, DARK INSTUMENT PANEL, SPEEDOMETER, ODOMETER, FUEL GAUGE, PRND DISPLAY. 2, POWER BUTTON INOPERABLE, AT THE TIME OF SPEEDOMETER FAILSURE THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS WHEN DRIVING WITHOUT INSTRUMENT PANEL, YOU DO NOT KNOW THE SPEED OF DRIVING, YOU DO NOT KNOW WHEN YOU RUN OUT OF GAS , YOU DO NOT KNOW WHICH PRND MODE YOU ARE AT AND YOU CANNOT TURN OFF THE POWER OF THE CAR.

I JUST PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE ONE MONTH AGO. MY SON EXPERIENCED THE COMBINATION METER GOING BLANK WHILE DRIVING. HE WAS UNABLE TO SEE HOW FAST HE WAS GOING, HOW MUCH FUEL HE HAS, AND WHAT GEAR HE IS IN. THE BIGGEST ISSUE IS HE WAS UNABLE TO TURN OFF THE CAR ONCE HE FINISHED HIS DRIVE. EVENTUALLY HE DID. THIS APPARENTLY IS A KNOWN ISSUE BY TOYOTA. THE HAVE A TSB ON THE REPLACEMENT OF THE COMBINATION METER AS WELL AS A WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM (ZTV). FROM TALKING WITH TOYOTA, THE ORIGINAL OWNER WAS SENT A LETTER ABOUT THE PROBLEM, BUT NEVER DID ANYTHING ABOUT IT. WHETHER THIS WAS A PROBLEM FOR THAT OWNER OR NOT AT THAT TIME, I AM UNAWARE. EITHER WAY, THIS IS NOW A PROBLEM FOR ME AND ACCORDING TO TOYOTA, THE WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT HAS EXPIRED AND NOW I AM STUCK PAYING FOR THE REPAIR. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND SHOULD BE ADDRESSED AND RESOLVED BY TOYOTA.

I WAS DRIVING MY CAR AS NORMAL ON A CITY STREET AND THE SPEEDOMETER AND WARNING LIGHTS (EXCEPT FOR THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT) ALL TURNED OFF. WE PULLED OVER BUT THE CAR WOULD NOT GO INTO PARK OR TURN OFF. WE HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO CONTINUE DRIVING, NOT KNOWING OUR SPEED OR ANY WARNING LIGHTS THAT COULD PREVENT SERIOUS INJURY (INCLUDING KNOWING THE LEVEL OF THE GAS). ONCE WE GOT HOME IT TOOK ABOUT 10 MINUTES TO GET THE CAR INTO PARK AND OFF, BUT PRESSING THE PARK AND POWER BUTTONS IN RANDOM ORDERS. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT ULTIMATELY ALLOWED THE CAR TO TURN OFF. IT HAS HAPPENED TWICE NOW AND IT'S SCARY NOT KNOWING THE SPEED ALL THE SUDDEN IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING. ALSO, HAVING BEEN IN SUCH A HABIT OF CLICKING THE PARK BUTTON AND BEING SAFELY IN PARK, WE ALMOST CRASHED INTO OUR HOUSE AFTER BEING IN THE DRIVEWAY THE SECOND TIME, NOT REALIZING THE DISPLAY HAD JUST GONE OUT AGAIN FOR A SECOND TIME UPON ARRIVING HOME. THE CAR CONTINUED ROLLING FORWARD OF COURSE UNTIL THE BRAKES WERE SLAMMED. I UNDERSTAND THERE WAS AN EXTENDED WARRANTY FOR MY YEAR PRIUS (2008), BUT HAS SINCE ENDED. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHY THIS WASN'T A RECALL. TOYOTA NEEDS TO CONTINUE TO HONOR THE REPAIR OF VEHICLES THAT ARE AFFECTED. JUST RECENTLY, IT WAS RELEASED THAT TOYOTA IS RECALLING THE 2019 MODELS FOR THIS SAME ISSUE (SPEEDOMETER GOING OUT) AND THEY ARE REFERRING TO IT AS A SAFETY ISSUE. THIS SHOULD BE DONE FOR ANY MODEL AFFECTED AND SHOULD NOT HAVE AN END DATE.

CAR WON'T START AT TIMES. A CODE OF P0AA6 COMES ON BUT THEN I CANNOT GET A SUB CODE (DETAILED CODE) TO DETERMINE WHAT IS WRONG. I HAVE TAKEN IT TO 3 DEALERS AND 3 SEPARATE MECHANICS AND THE SAME THING HAPPENS. THEY CAN'T RETRIEVE A SUB CODE TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S WRONG. THEY RESET IT SO I CAN GET HOME AND THE SAME THING HAPPENS AGAIN AND I HAVE TO TOW IT TO ANOTHER PLACE. CAN'T DEPEND ON THIS CAR TO START.

A LOT OF TIMES WHEN I TURN THE VEHICLE OFF AND COME BACK TO TURN IT ON THERE'S NO DISPLAY FOR SPEED WHAT GEAR I'M IN MILEAGE OR FUEL. THE ONLY WAY I SEEM TO BE ABLE TO MAKE IT WORK IS TO POP THE BACK HATCH AND DISCONNECT THE MAIN POWER FROM THE BATTERY. SOMETIMES I DO THAT 20 OR 30 TIMES BEFORE IT WORKS.

RECURRING PROBLEM, INCONSISTENCY IN FUEL LEVELS AT THE GAS PUMP. POSSIBLE HYBRID ENERGY THEFT FROM BATTERIES OR HEATING ELEMENT. LAST FILL-UP AT THE NORTH CONDUIT MOBIL WITH 8 DOLLARS, RESULTING IN A LESS THAN A HALF A TANK LEVEL, WITH A QUARTER TANK LEVEL BEFORE FILL UP.

THE CRANK CASE VENTILATES RANDOMLY INTO THE CABIN. THE FOUL STENCH OF MOTOR OIL DISPERSES INTO THE CABIN INTERMITTENTLY. THE VENTILATOR ACTUATOR ORIENTATES THE CRANK CASE GASES, HAZARDOUSLY CONTAMINATING MY RESPIRATORY SYSTEM.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 TOYOTA PRIUS. AFTER PARKING THE VEHICLE AND TURNING OFF THE IGNITION, THE VEHICLE RESTARTED ON ITS OWN SEVERAL MINUTES LATER. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO JIM NORTON TOYOTA (9809 S MEMORIAL DR, TULSA, OK 74133, (918) 215-3786) WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE FAILURE MAY HAVE BEEN DUE TO A COMBINATION METER FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND PROVIDED CASE NUMBER: 1910093151. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 59,397.

NO DASHBOARD LIGHTS - COMBINATION METER IS BAD

COMBINATION METER DISPLAY NOT ILLUMINATING WHEN THE VEHICLE'S IGNITION IS TURNED 'ON' I HAVE A 2008 PRIUS THAT I MAINTAIN REGULARLY AT AUTHORIZED TOYOTA DEALERS WITHOUT A MISS. DASHBOARD ON TOYOTA PRIUS STOPS WORKING INTERMITTENTLY. WHEN IT FAILS, ONE CAN'T KNOW THE SPEED OF VEHICLE, MILAGE, GEAR (D/R/P/N) ETC. THIS HAPPENED COUPLE OF TIMES EVEN DURING MIDDLE OF DRIVE. WHEN IT HAPPENS, I CAN'T EVEN STOP THE CAR. I HAD DO BIT MORE RESEARCH TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO STOP THE CAR WHEN THIS HAPPENS. I TOOK IT A DEALER NEAR BY THEY DIAGNOSED ITS DUE TO DEFECTIVE COMBINATION METER. THE QUOTED $800 TO FIX THIS. WHEN I ASKED DEALER ABOUT WARRANTY, HE SAID THERE IS A WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT BUT IT WILL ONLY COVER 9 YEARS FROM DATE OF PURCHASE. UPON FURTHER RESEARCH ON INTERNET, THIS ISSUE APPEARS TO BE VERY COMMON IN TOYOTA PRIUS MODELS AND FOUND A REFERENCE TO WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT. I NEVER RECEIVED ANY SUCH COMMUNICATION, MORE OVER THIS IS A REAL SAFETY ISSUE THAT INVOLVES NO CONSUMER FAULT. I FOUND NO REFERENCE TO THIS IN TOYOTA WEB PAGES IN "MY TOYOTA" SECTION, RATHER FOUND REFERENCES IN INTERNET (ATTACHED). I CALLED 1-800-331-4331 NUMBER THE DEALER GAVE ME, THEY WEREN'T WILLING TO HONOR THE WARRANTY BECAUSE 9 YEARS GONE FROM MY DATE OF PURCHASE. I TRIED TO EXPLAIN WHY ITS SAFETY ISSUE WITH NO CONSUMER FAULT. FIX IS VERY COSTLY FOR CONSUMER FOR PROBLEM CAUSED BY TOYOTA.

COMBINATION METER FAILURE - WENT TO START CAR AND NO RESPONSE. LOOKED LIKE AN ELECTRICAL SHORT, NOTHING ON DASHBOARD LIT UP, NOTHING WORKED. WEATHER HAD RECENTLY TURNED COLD. ONLINE RESEARCH SHOWS THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM. THERE'S AN EXPIRED EXTENDED WARRANTY: BULLETIN NO.: POL12-05 THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL.

BRAKE ACU

CAR RUNS BUT DASHBOARD LIGHTS FAIL TO ILLUMINATE WHEN IT IS COLD OUTSIDE. THIS IS A WIDESPREAD PROBLEM WITH 2004-2009 2ND GEN PRIUS AS EVIDENCED BY PERVASIVE INTERNET COMMENTS BY OWNERS EXPERIENCING THIS PROBLEM. THE PROBLEM IS TOYOTA USED AN OVERLY WEAK CAPACITOR FOR A COMBINATION METER CIRCUIT SO WHEN IT IS COLD INSUFFICIENT ELECTRICITY IS AVAILABLE TO ILLUMINATE CRITICAL-SAFETY-RELATED DASHBOARD LIGHTS, INCLUDING THE SPEEDOMETER. TOYOTA RECOGNIZED THE ISSUE AND ISSUED A WARRANTY EXTENSION FOR THIS EXACT PROBLEM BUT LIMITED IT TO VEHICLES WITHIN 9 YEARS OF DATE OF FIRST USE. THE PROBLEM APPARENTLY TENDS TO EMERGE ONLY AFTER 8 OR 9 YEARS SO MANY VEHICLE OWNERS DISCOVER THE PROBLEM IS NOT COVERED. OWNERS FACE THE CHOICE OF A COSTLY REPAIR AT THEIR OWN EXPENSE OR DRIVING WITHOUT A SPEEDOMETER OR BACKUP CAMERA OR CRITICAL, SAFETY-RELATED WARNING LIGHTS. TOYOTA SHOULD BE REQUIRED TO FIX THIS HAZARDOUS CONDITION FOR ALL VEHICLE THAT DEVELOP THIS PROBLEM, ESPECIALLY SINCE IT IS DUE TO A RECOGNIZED, WIDESPREAD DEFICIENCY IN THE CAR'S ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRY.