2008 Toyota Prius Service Brakes, Hydraulic Problems
- 157
- Owner complaint records in our dataset
Records are owner complaints, not a measured failure rate.
Owner complaint recordsComplaint records reflect reports in our dataset and do not measure how frequently the problem occurs across all vehicles.
Among these 157 stored complaint records:
- 32 indicate a crash
- 5 indicate injury
- 1 indicate fire
What owners report
- traction control · 18 records
- anti lock · 16 records
- loss braking · 13 records
- braking system · 11 records
- light comes · 9 records
- control light · 9 records
Mileage in stored records
| Band | Records |
|---|---|
| 1–30k mi | 90 |
| 30–60k mi | 38 |
| 60–100k mi | 3 |
| 150–400k mi | 1 |
Complaint records
Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
I have a 2008 toyota prius, and it seems to have an extremely over-aggressive anti-lock brake system. When driving over ice, bumpy roads or even potholes and pressing the brakes, the abs system disengages the brakes on all wheels if even one of them momentarily slips. This is most egregious when the cause is a bump in the road, as traction is not in question for any of the tires (as it might be on ice). The effect…
ODI 10304409
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
About once a month the brakes partially fail then i press the brakes harder and they reengage fully. This happens after i've had my foot on the brakes for 5-10 seconds when i am trying to come to a complete stop. This has never led to an accident. I'm planning to take the car into the dealer to have it inspected. *tr
ODI 10304870
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
I would like to report a brake problem on my 2008 toyota prius. This is an apparent momentary loss of braking when hitting a rough spot in the road. The same problem was apparent on an earlier 2002 prius. It has not caused any accidents, but it is worrisome. It happens consistently and reproducibly. *tr
ODI 10304848
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Brakes momentarily fail and/or the car lurches forward when applying the brakes while driving on top of a pot hole or other similar obstruction. *tr
ODI 10307713
Service Brakes, Electric · Service Brakes, Hydraulic
I never owned a car with anti-lock brakes until i had my prius. I have always noticed that when applying the brakes, if i go over uneven ground like a pothole, the car lurches forward a bit for about a second. I thought it was because of the unique braking system in the prius, but after seeing all of these reports, i thought i should report it since my car is older than the ones mentioned in the news reports. *jb
ODI 10306174
Electronic Stability Control · Service Brakes, Hydraulic
2008 toyota prius. Brakes fail/inoperative when driving over bumpy roads and/or potholes. It seems as though the abs or the electronic stability control engages when there is no need. This is the same type of incident that is being reported in newer prius models as well. *tr
ODI 10305234
Electronic Stability Control · Service Brakes, Air · Service Brakes, Electric · Service Brakes, Hydraulic
My car is a 2008 prius. The incident is that my car didn't stop and skidded into a concrete curb, damaging the right front power steering rack. It was snowing, about 1-2" accumulated. Driving into my office parking lot, there is a street with a steep but short hill - maybe 50feet or less - (it was not plowed or sanded). At the foot of the hill, there is a left turn into a level parking lot or a right turn under a…
Crash reported
ODI 10307159
Service Brakes, Hydraulic · Traction Control System
2008 toyota prius. Have not experienced the braking failure currently being investigated in the 2010 prius, but i have experienced multiple similar failures with the traction control system on both slippery and bumpy roads where the car will completely disengage from the drive train for an unreasonably long period of time, and then pulse wildly between having the drive system engage and disengage. In minnesota with…
ODI 10305372
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Re: my 2008 prius. The brakes occasionally seem to 'skip,' especially on wet or rough roads. They always work, but seem to pause or hesitate before stopping. I've only heard word about 2010 models, but this has been happening to my 2008 too often! *tr
ODI 10305536
Service Brakes, Hydraulic · Traction Control System
I am an owner of a 2008 toyota prius. I have also experienced the braking problems that have been associated with the 2010 model. When hitting a bump in the road or an uneven part of the road, the brakes will not take hold and the vehicle seems to accelerate or jerk forward. Also the anti-lock brake light flashes. *tr
ODI 10306352
Service Brakes, Hydraulic · Tread/Belt
Proceeding to get on highway and in gravel driveway vehicle lost traction and brakes failed.(at least 5 or 6 times in 2009 and most rescent 2/03/10)\headlight and relay switch failed\front running light not working all the time\radio switching from fm,fm2and am randomly\car for no reason going dead at a store orbeing parked for an hour or 2and having to be jumped\main batteries losing charge(most of these issues…
ODI 10307072
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
On a few occasions when applying my brake a low speeds it does not apply the brake it seems to lock up the brake but not stop the vehicle. I will release the brake and reapply the brake until i get the desired reaction. *tr
ODI 10304233
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Even when new, only when braking on a bumpy surface, my 2008 toyota prius will reduce braking power all by itself, when i need them the most. When i press into the brake pedal, it will brake again, but by this time i will have lost 1 second of braking time. Recently on jan 20th, i almost hit the person in front of me when i had to panic-brake, and the road became bumpy as i was braking. By pressing the brake harder…
ODI 10310915
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 toyota prius. On january 19, 2010 while driving approximately 65 mph and applying the brakes to slow down with traffic flow the brakes failed to respond. The vehicle responded as if he was stepping on the accelerator pedal. He was able to change lanes and avoid a collision. He did not take the vehicle to the dealer, because he thought it was drivers error. The failure mileage was 19,000…
ODI 10316140
Service Brakes, Hydraulic · Vehicle Speed Control
There are two issues with my 2008 toyota prius. When trying to accelerate rapidly, the engine cuts out and hesitates. I think it's related to the traction control, but this happens way too easily. I have new tires and it happens on dry pavement. The second issue is related to the brakes. When braking and encountering small bumps in the road, the car appears to leap forward. There is a sensation of accelerating when…
ODI 10307685
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
I have a 2008 toyota prius. On several occasions when braking and hitting a pothole (right front tire) i have experienced a momentary loss of braking. It kind of felt like the car was floating above the ground before braking was reengaged. I did not know what was going on until i heard about the 2010 toyota prius brake problems and instantly recognized the symptoms. I have not experienced any adverse consequences as…
ODI 10307637
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
I own a 2008 prius and i have the same brake problem as many owners have reported. The brake sometimes does not work on a bumpy road edge and when it occurs the orange light that indicates unstable condition turns on. It also occurs when it is raining. Foursome reason, it works well in a heavy rain but doesn't work on a road under "light" raining condition. Whenever it happens, the car slows down but doesn't stop…
ODI 10306812
Electronic Stability Control · Service Brakes, Hydraulic
My 2008 toyota prius has the same problem as reported in the 2010 recall. When approaching an intersection (or doing anything), if my car hits a bump or pothole, the skid control takes over and i can not manually brake. Why is this not being addressed? The date in question i was approaching an intersection and hit a pothole and even though i was hitting the brakes, not until the skid control was finished could the…
ODI 10310465
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
2008 toyota prius brakes failed while driving causing and accident. *kb the consumer stated the vehicle in front of him began to brake and he thought he had plenty of time to brake. In fact, his foot was already on the brake pedal, with the system he believed was already in regenerative braking. In fact, it actually seemed to decrease significantly for about a second while exhibiting none of the foot pedal vibration…
Crash reported
ODI 10317587
Service Brakes, Hydraulic · Traction Control System
I own a 2008 toyota prius. I bought it new 4/12/08 in bend, oregon i live in madras, oregon. The problem has happened 3 times, it happens on packed snow slick conditions. It happened 2 times making 90 deg turns at 20 mph, i slow down into a right turn and half way thru i touch the gas and the car starts to slide and it will not come out of it. 1st time i hit the curb on the left side of road and went clear up on…
Crash reported
ODI 10305557
Service Brakes, Hydraulic · Traction Control System
When going downhill and approaching a right turn near my home i apply the brakes and often runover the same uneven surface on the road. That triggers my 2008 toyota prius' traction control light to blink on and off a few times and my brakes seem to stop applying pressure at that point while my car's speed increases for 1-2 seconds then the traction control light goes off and the brakes work fine. I am just worried…
ODI 10305123
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Driving on a dirt road which turns into a paved road. Started sliding as soon as i hit the paved road. Pumped on the brakes, the abs didnt work. The car kept sliding off the road into a fence. $4000.00 in damage. *cn
Crash reported
ODI 10306929
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
2008 prius on very slushy roads can momentarily "lose" its brakes when transitioning from regenerative braking to the wet and ineffective friction brakes at about 6 mph. The friction brakes then dry quickly and work. Consider requiring automatic intermittent light friction brake application during regenerative braking so that the friction brakes are ready to take over when they are supposed to. There is no single…
ODI 10305178
Service Brakes, Hydraulic
2008 prius abs takes much longer to resume braking after losing traction over railroad tracks or other bumps than did my three previous abs-equipped cars (from 1987 and 2001 with bosch abs). Car travels tens of feet at 30 mph with no apparent braking before braking returns. Don't believe regenerative braking forces bad abs performance -- there's an ample source of accumulated high pressure fluid available for the…
ODI 10305168
Service Brakes, Hydraulic · Traction Control System
I own a 2008 toyota prius and it also has a problem when braking while driving over a rough surface or pot holes. The traction control light comes on and there is a 1-2 second delay before the real brakes kick in. I have learned to be aware of this issue and press the brakes harder until the brakes start to work. *tr
ODI 10305771
Catalog parts for this system
Catalog year/make/model rows for 2008 Toyota Prius.
Catalog fitment does not by itself prove OEM-equivalent compatibility.