2011 Toyota Prius Exterior Lighting Problems
- 41
- 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 41 stored complaint records:
- 0 indicate a crash
- 0 indicate injury
- 1 indicate fire
What owners report
- beam headlights · 6 records
- passenger side · 6 records
- both headlights · 5 records
- high beams · 5 records
- both beam · 4 records
- side headlight · 4 records
Mileage in stored records
| Band | Records |
|---|---|
| 60–100k mi | 16 |
| 30–60k mi | 8 |
| 1–30k mi | 6 |
| 100–150k mi | 3 |
| 150–400k mi | 2 |
Complaint records
Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.
Exterior Lighting
Headlight bulbs fail frequently, several times per year. I called toyota in january 2020. I was informed they had a brief warranty extension to cover the issue, but that has ended. They've refused to offer any assistance. They claim they notified me of the issue, but they clearly did not; the address they claimed to have sent it to was not my address. This is a safety issue, because the bulbs fail so frequently and…
ODI 11299922
Exterior Lighting
My prius 2011 hybrid burning low beam headlight every one or two month. It is hard because no one have solution for this issue. The problem is not just changing the headlight every one or two months but the problem is safety, on highway once the light goes down. It happened to me! It was unbelievable.
ODI 11133428
Exterior Lighting
Both low beam bulbs not working, but high beams work. Bulbs not bad. Happened while driving on highway.
ODI 11101182
Exterior Lighting
Low beam headlights are burning out within a week of installation. When bulbs are replaced, one of the two bulbs will burn out within a week, yet the other bulb will stay active. Both sides are affected. It randomly chooses which side to burn out.
ODI 11282595
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting
Dim headlight problem while driving at night, unable to see road clearly with low beam headlights on at night, have to use high beam headlights to see road. This is a huge safety issue for me
ODI 11072238
Exterior Lighting
The headlights keep burning out one at a time, typically about 1-2 weeks after replace the other side. Tried switching to a better brand, same issue. Tried switching to led, even they burned out after 2 months.
ODI 11032983
Exterior Lighting
Front low beams headlights burn out about every six months
ODI 11020317
Exterior Lighting
When the headlights are turned on during the day (i.e. When it is raining), the lighted panel on the console fades to unreadable. Since the speed is indicated on the console, we cannot monitor our speed during these times. This is particularly dangerous when we are highway driving. My toyota service dealer did not fix this problem when we took the car in for repairing this problem, nor did they respond to three…
ODI 10993510
Exterior Lighting
Both headlights won't turn on. However, when i press and hold the lever for bright lights, the lights work on the "brights" setting. Lights don't work when i'm driving.
ODI 10959463
Exterior Lighting
Due to faulty headlight wiring and assembly, headlights will burn out regularly or be too dim for safe use. Both headlights will go out without warning, while in use, at night. This is a significant safety issue and is a documented/known issue with toyota. This is not a mild annoyance and should be recalled.
ODI 10956508
Exterior Lighting
Pulled into a parking spot at night, parked, turned the lights off, shut car off, returned to the car, started it and both low beams would not come on. High beams work fine. Not a fuse issue because horn works. Turning the light switch on the stalk turns on the dash indicator light but not the low beams or the parking lights.
ODI 10948073
Exterior Lighting
I replaced both headlights several times at a much faster time period than any other vehicle i have ever owned. Once i even had to replace the headlamp assembly when one of the headlights generated so much heat that the headlamp assembly plastic melted.
ODI 11278809
Exterior Lighting
Both low beam headlights failed within 1 week of each other. One while driving at night. *tr
ODI 10938709
Exterior Lighting
My headlight on the passenger side keeps dying out of nowhere after about three or four months of use (about 6,000 miles of driving). It has been doing this for the past year now and occurs about three of four times a year. It would happen out of nowhere. Today it occurred while driving in the rain during work (i deliver food, needing my car to drive).
ODI 10876301
Exterior Lighting
Headlamp, 2011 prius 5 door hatchback, i have replaced the right headlamp 5 times since purchasing the vehicle in 2012. Recently the lamp above the the headlamp has also gone out. If you move the wiring i noticed the lights will work for a while then go out. The headlamps will work for a while when replace but with the last replacement the right new headlamp will not work.
ODI 10876013
Exterior Lighting
There is a service bulletin concerning driver side low beam headlight malfunction toyota will be glad to fix the problem for $300 bs head lights should work !! This should be a recall
ODI 10871062
Exterior Lighting
The headlights in my 2011 toyota prius have burned out 3 times in the last 6 months, two of the times being at night and i've had to use my high beams so that i can see. When i brought it to my mechanic, i was told that it's a defect with the 2010 and 2011 prius and that the only way to repair the issue is to install an enhancement kit, which cost me over $500. When i called toyota about this problem, i was told…
ODI 10860952
Exterior Lighting
Low beams failing. Increasing in frequency. Both low beam headlamps will go out at the same time. Happening monthly and usually in damp weather. Frequency is increasing. Safety is a major concern.
ODI 10850218
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting
I was pulled over by the police, (while on a village street) because my headlight bulb was burned out. (again!) i have had 4 headlight bulbs replaced on the 2011 prius and it is only 4 years old! Toyota has a technical service bulletin on the wiring harness, that shorts out the bulbs prematurely, but no recall. Please recall the prius for the wiring harness, so i can stop getting pulled over by the police! 09\15…
ODI 10778422
Exterior Lighting
I own a 2011 toyota prius which i purchased in november of that year from arlington toyota in arlington, va. Since that time i have had to replace the headlights three times. As of nov 2015, the car had 29,105 miles on it which indicates i do not put a lot of miles on the car. On all three occasions, both low beams were inoperable when i started the car. Fortunately, i was not on the road driving. On every occasion,…
ODI 10788695
Exterior Lighting
Headlights burn out frequently or stop working intermittently; headlight assembly on passenger side appears to have leakage and low beam appears at a lesser brightness than driver side beam. Had at dealer 4 times in same day for issue with driver headlight in summer 2015 and now at dealer for passenger side issues. This happens in unpredictable circumstances including after long operation or after having just…
ODI 10889190
Exterior Lighting
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 toyota prius. While driving at a low speed, the headlamps failed. The failure recurred several times. The vehicle was not diagnosed. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.
ODI 10807405
Exterior Lighting · Seat Belts
Lights keep going out. I've replaced 5 times in the last year. Still keep going out every 2 to 3 months.
ODI 10845561
Electrical System · Exterior Lighting
Vin # [xxx] toyota prius 2011, driving on interstate 80 east, at 65 mph, smoke came out of the hood, headlight and wire smelled and burned, car was almost in fire. Shut off car and headlight and smoke stop. Both headlight are damage due to fire. Kept both head light off, got home and did not use the car for a few months. Car is still under warranty but dealer refuse to repair the problem, telling me i have use an…
Fire reported
ODI 10731939
Exterior Lighting
Both head lights stopped working at the same time, only high beam will work, regular beam stopped working and will not come back on. *tr
ODI 10668420
Catalog parts for this system
Catalog year/make/model rows for 2011 Toyota Prius.
Catalog fitment does not by itself prove OEM-equivalent compatibility.