2010 Toyota Prius Exterior Lighting Problems
- 134
- 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 134 stored complaint records:
- 3 indicate a crash
- 1 indicate injury
- 3 indicate fire
What owners report
- high beams · 29 records
- beam headlights · 25 records
- both headlights · 25 records
- every months · 16 records
- beam lights · 14 records
- drive home · 14 records
Mileage in stored records
| Band | Records |
|---|---|
| 30–60k mi | 33 |
| 60–100k mi | 32 |
| 100–150k mi | 24 |
| 1–30k mi | 23 |
| 150–400k mi | 7 |
Complaint records
Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.
Exterior Lighting
I have had to replace my low beams at least eight times over the last two years. The time between them burning out gets shorter every time. I have tried different brands and quality of bulbs, and i always replace them in pairs. My last two pairs are so dim that i cannot even see the road. I have been pulled over twice for these headlamps, and now i try to avoid nighttime driving, but it is not always possible. After…
ODI 11047340
Exterior Lighting
Headlight out last year. Replaced both. One headlight out this month. Replaced the one with previous year good bulb. Now, both low beams out, only high beams work. *js
ODI 10817000
Exterior Lighting
I replaced both headlamps after having the passenger side low beam go out about two weeks ago. This morning on my way to work, in the dark, i had that same lamp go out again. I turned around to head back home when the driver side lamp went out as well. I was only a few blocks from home at least but this is could have been incredibly dangerous.
ODI 10810845
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting
Headlights continue to burn out. We have changed one or both headlights at least six times since may 2015. This happens unexpectedly, going down the road at night one or both headlights will burn out. When you change them, will last a couple weeks to months. Very scary when going down a two lane back country road at night. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Crash reported
ODI 10808076
Engine · Exterior Lighting · Seats
Burning oil issue. Front head light short circuit or burned out. Leather seat separated twice.
ODI 10821583
Exterior Lighting
Both headlights go out at the same time while driving. First time they just had to be screwed in but now a month later they are both out again. Has there been a recall?
ODI 10807867
Exterior Lighting
Recurring double headlight failure, sometimes intermittently. No warning of failure.
ODI 10785949
Exterior Lighting
The low beam head lights constantly burn out. My car is at 108,500 miles, and i have replaced the low beam bulbs at least 5 times in the last 3 years. I have had this occur while driving on the interstate 5. Another driver on the highway flashed lights at me, pulled up next to me, to indicate that my lights were out. I had to drive with the high beams on for over 20 miles. It was a very dangerous situation, because…
ODI 10910098
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting
We purchased the car used from a toyota dealership in spring of 2013. We had never had to replace the headlights until one side had stopped working in may 2015. As we always have done with our vehicles, we went to an auto parts store and bought the correct head lights for our make, year & model. We replaced both of them in may and in august (3 months later), both had gone out with the initial outage having occured…
ODI 10778100
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting
Tl* the contact owns a 2010 toyota prius. The contact stated that while driving at night approximately 55 mph, the headlights were very deem and visibility was diminished. After inspecting the vehicle, the contact noticed that the passenger side low beam headlight was out and two days later the driver side low beam failed. The light bulbs were replaced. The contact mentioned that the low beam headlight bulbs were…
ODI 10746823
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting
I was driving home from havenlock, nc on us 70, us 258, us 58 and us 264. I noticed that my low beam headlights were very dim making it very hard to see road marking or signs. There is a stretch of us 58 where they are repaving and they are no road marking at all and i could not see where my lane (2 way traffic). I considered this a very serious problem that the headlight are dim and could have led to a very serious…
ODI 10735091
Exterior Lighting
Vehicle's brake lamp bulbs stopped working (headlamps on/off no change except the upper bulb on the rear lights are illuminated w/headlamps/high beams on as they should be while the rest of the light is indifferent to brake pedal application, changing from park/drive etc). The bulbs were replaced but the issue persists, suspect it is something to do with the wiring harness. Please remedy because any electrical…
ODI 10717753
Exterior Lighting
I purchased the toyota certified pre-owned prius in july 2013. I first had an issue with the headlight in august 2014 when the headlight kept coming loose from it's casing. This happened again on april 24, 2015 only this time the headlight fell to rest on some plastic and caused the headlight assembly to start on fire. No one was injured. I used a fire extinguisher to put out the fire. I believe the socket part of…
Fire reported
ODI 10713445
Exterior Lighting
Since owning the vehicle, i have experienced the low beam headlights burn out within 9 months. Recently, one bulb burned out within 3 months. I was pulled over by the city police, driving with one headlight out is not only a safety issue, but could result in a citation. *tr
ODI 10713158
Exterior Lighting
Low beam headlights repeatedly stop working. Replaced bulbs multiple times. They stop working every few months. Last week, they both extinguished at the same time. Had to drive home in the dark, until i realized the high beams worked. Toyota won't repair the defect.
ODI 10820690
Engine · Exterior Lighting · Unknown Or Other
On february 27, 2015, our house burned in the middle of the night while we were asleep. The fire started in the near vicinity of the right front headlight of the 2010 toyota prius. The car had been serviced just before the fire on february 25, 2015 at the local toyota dealership. The car was off at the time and the key was not in the car at the time of the fire. While we were sleeping, the car evidently caught fire…
Fire reported
ODI 10760182
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting
I recently replaced one of the low beam headlights, only to discover a few weeks later that both of the low beams had burned out. I've never had two headlights burn out at the same time! Tonight i discovered that another of the low beams has burned out. That means that this bulb burned out in less than two months and only about 1000 miles. I am afraid to use my headlights during the daytime for fear that they will…
ODI 10714801
Exterior Lighting · Vehicle Speed Control
The headlight hid start to go on and off finally the left side went off . Also while driving the car desacelerated and increased speed by itself. *tr
ODI 10694918
Exterior Lighting
Both low beams went out at same time at night. High beams operational. Bulbs had been replaced a month ago. A quick search finds many instances of this happening. It shouldn't be the bulbs. Makes for very dangerous driving. *tr
ODI 10676375
Exterior Lighting · Visibility/Wiper
Low beam headlights stopped working during night driving. Had to drive home with high beams only at night. Felt endangered and very unsafe both for myself and the public. *tr
ODI 10676365
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting
After returning to vehicle, low beam headlights failed to properly illuminate. I replaced both bulbs with new ones, and they still fail to cast enough light. The bulbs appear to be on, but are too dim to be effective. *tr
ODI 10676945
Exterior Lighting
I was driving back home from work on a country road at night when my low beam lights both went out. I had to drive home with my high beams on. This is the 4th set of headlights in a year that we have replaced. *tr
ODI 10672365
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting · Unknown Or Other
The dash display mph and mileage totally went black. Looked it up on the internet and seems like it is a common problem for the 2010 toyota prius. Sounds like toyota use to cover this before this year model, but not now, even though it is still happening. They may have done their dash alittle different, but it is still having the same problem. *tr
ODI 10681133
Exterior Lighting
My low bean headlights keep burning out on my prius. I have replaced them with oem replacement bulbs and other high quality after market bulbs and no matter which one it is it continues to burn out. They continually burn out after very little use and in a very short time frame. I make sure i follow the recommended handling and installation procedures to ensure i don't compromise or wrongly install the bulbs. This is…
ODI 10894396
Exterior Lighting
Headlights started getting dim. Replaced bulbs with new hid bulbs. Headlights still dim. Dealer claims water is in both headlights. Requires me to replace both headlight assemblies for $1,000. Not covered under warranty. As an engineer i claim poor design.
ODI 10821484
Catalog parts for this system
Catalog year/make/model rows for 2010 Toyota Prius.
Catalog fitment does not by itself prove OEM-equivalent compatibility.