2016 Toyota Prius

During summer months when temperatures are above 100 degrees when accelerating from a complete stop I can hear the engine rev and the RPMs increase but the vehicle will move at 1-2 mph. Even if the accelerator is to the floor. After 3-4 seconds the tires will squeal and the vehicle will be jolted forward then it will slowly accelerate. This happens occasionally and I have taken it to a Toyota dealership and a chain mechanic shop, neither have been able to recreate the problem. There are no warnings and no error codes. I have been stuck in the middle of intersections trying to turn left, I have not been hit, but I fear it will happen. There is a recall out for this issue on other Priuses and I believe the issue needs to be investigated further as there is another complaint on this site for the same issue and I have found it on other sites. I bought the car in fall of 2019 and this problem has been occurring since summer of 2020.

The contact owns a 2016 Toyota Prius. The contact stated while driving at approximately 70 MPH, the steering wheel stopped operating and the vehicle began to shut down. The contact stated that a yellow blinking light and a hybrid system malfunction warning light illuminated the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the hybrid battery was low and there was a failure of the engine wiring harness. The hybrid battery was able to recharge but the dealer stated that the electric wiring harness needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 159,141.

When the battery cooling fan is running, the car is slow to accelerate or will not accelerate at all. The incident has happened multiple times over the past year when the temperatures are above 90. If at a complete stop, the car will not accelerate, it will only jerk forward. The car has to be turned off and restarted to be able to accelerate. If braking or reducing speed, the car will be sluggish, and I have not been able to get the speed over 40 mph. I have taken it to the dealership, but they said they could not recreate the issue, though I do not believe that they followed the directions I gave them to recreate the problem. No warning lights appear when the issue occurs, so they did not have an answer. The first time the incident occurred, I had just had the scheduled maintenance completed two days earlier and they did not find anything in the inspection that needed to be repaired. The first time the incident occurred, I was at a stop light trying to make a right turn. The incident has occurred twice when trying to pull on to the highway and accelerate up to speed.

Vehicle stalls for 5-10 seconds when stopped at a red light. Seems to happen sporadically and is difficult to reproduce. There have been other reports of it online here: https://priuschat.com/threads/tsb-nimh-only-reduced-power-when-accelerating-from-a-stop.187455/ https://priuschat.com/threads/2017-prius-2-no-acceleration-movement-from-full-stop.209317/ https://priuschat.com/threads/2016-prius-2-stalling.200606/

THE GPS SYSTEM REPORTS INACCURATE SYSTEM LOCATION. I LIVE IN HENDERSON, NV, BUT IT SHOWS THE LOCATION AS BOULDER CITY, NV. THIS IS AN 11 MILE DIFFERENCE. I HAVE TOYOTA'S SOS FEATURE (LIKE ONSTAR), SO IF EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE IS NEEDED, THEY WOULD NOT COME TO THE CORRECT LOCATION. I DO NOT KNOW IF IT IS ONLY MY CAR OR OTHERS. THE SOS REP SEEMED TO BE AWARE, BUT NO NOTICE WAS SENT OUT TO CUSTOMERS FOR SERVICE OR RECALLS.

WHEN STARTING THE CAR THE ELECTRONIC DASHBOARD WAS BLACK WITH NO INFO ON SPEED. WE DROVE IT 70 MILES HOME GUESSING AT THE SPEED. WE TURNED IF OFF AND RESTARTED IT WITH THE SAME RESULT. THEN WE GOT HOME, TURNED IT OFF, RESTARTED IT AND THE DASHBOARD WAS BACK, WORKING NORMALLY. WTF? NOT HAVING A SPEEDOMETER IS A HUGE SAFETY HAZARD. THERE SHOULD BE A FALLBACK FOR THIS. WE CANT TRUST THIS CAR AND LIKELY WILL TRADE IT IN SOON FOR SOMETHING ELSE.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 TOYOTA PRIUS. WHILE DRIVING 66 MPH, THE VEHICLE DECELERATED AND LOST POWER IN THE MIDDLE OF TRAFFIC. THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO PLACE THE VEHICLE INTO NEUTRAL, BUT WAS UNSUCCESSFUL. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE CONTACT'S RESIDENCE AND THEN TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC. THE MECHANIC DIAGNOSED THAT A FUSE WAS BLOWN AND A NEW WATER PUMP NEEDED TO BE INSTALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND DID NOT ASSIST. THE DEALER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 223,601. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN.

WHEN THE CAR IS IN DRIVE AND STATIONARY ON A HILL FACING UP WARDS (LIKE IN A DRIVEWAY) THE CAR STILL SENDS ELECTRICAL POWER TO THE ELECTRIC MOTOR AND TO THE WHEELS EVEN WHEN THE BRAKES ARE APPLIED. THIS ONLY HAPPENS WHEN FACING UP A HILL. ALL ELECTRICAL POWER IS SUPPOSE TO TURN OFF WHEN THE BRAKE IS PRESSED. THIS STARTED HAPPENING TWO WEEKS AGO AND THE DEALERSHIP SAID THAT THIS IS NORMAL BUT IT IS NOT NORMAL AS IT NEVER DID THIS BEFORE. IT DOES NOT HAPPEN WHEN ON FLAT GROUND OR WHEN FACING DOWN HILL. DEALERSHIP CLAIMED THAT THIS IS THE HILL ASSIST FEATURE HOLDING THE CAR BUT THAT'S A LIE AS THE HILL ASSIST UTILIZES THE BRAKES AND NOT THE MOTOR. DEALERSHIP COULD NOT FIND ANY ERROR CODES AND REFUSED TO DIG FURTHER INTO THE ISSUE AND MADE UP LIES ABOUT IT.