Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government
holds on this vehicle.
16
Complaints
6
Crashes
0
Fires
2
Injuries
0
Deaths
Owners of the 2016 Toyota Prius V have filed 16
safety complaints with NHTSA
between April 2017 and December 2025.
The most complained-about system is the air bags,
named in 4 of them
(25%). The typical failure was reported at 22,651 miles, the median
across the 6 complaints that gave an
odometer reading.
NHTSA has issued 1 recall covering this
vehicle.
Recalls (1)
HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM: INVERTER
20V369000 · June 24, 2020
The defect
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2013-2015 Prius and 2014-2017 Prius V vehicles not included in recall 18V-684. Excessive voltage in the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) within the inverter may cause the hybrid system to shut down, causing the vehicle to stall while being driven.
The risk
An unexpected hybrid power system shut down may increase the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will perform a software update for the hybrid system. If the vehicle has experienced an inverter failure with certain hybrid system faults related to this condition, the inverter assembly will be repaired or replaced, prior to software update. All repairs will be performed free of charge. This recall began July 24, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's number for this recall is 20TB10 / 20TA10.
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing · up to 266,638 vehicles across all model years covered
What owners report
Complaints naming each system. One complaint can name several, so these add
up to more than 16.
AIR BAGS 4 25%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 4 25%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 4 25%
SERVICE BRAKES 3 19%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 3 19%
ENGINE 2 13%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 6%
POWER TRAIN 1 6%
STRUCTURE 1 6%
VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 6%
When the complaints arrived
By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures
happened. They peaked in 2017 at 2.
2017 to 2025
In owners' own words
Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the
people who filed them, not findings of fault.
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
1 injured · crash · towed
WHILE PARKING MY VEHICLE AND SLOWING DOWN TO ENTER A PARKING SPACE, I EASED OFF THE BRAKE TO PULL INTO THE SPACE WHEN I HEARD THE ENGINE REV LOUDLY AND THEN THE CAR ACCELERATED AND CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE DESPITE ATTEMPTS TO PUMP THE BRAKES, RELEASE THE BRAKES WITHOUT TOUCHING ANY PEDAL AND ALSO TRYING TO PUT THE TRANSMISSION INTO PARK. THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT STOP AT ALL. I WAS AFRAID FOR MY LIFE AND TRIED EVERYTHING TO AVOID OTHER VEHICLES AND PEDESTRIANS AS THE CAR ACCELERATED GREATLY. I STEERED THE CAR TO TRY AND AVOID A SLIGHT EMBANKMENT AND CURVE BUT WITH THE RAPID SPEED OF THE CAR, IT BECAME HARD TO MANEUVER THE CAR. THE VEHICLE JUMPED THE CURB STRIKING A TREE AND THEN A CONCRETE POST. …
NHTSA complaint 11154115, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
AIR BAGS
1 injured · crash · towed · 37,000 miles
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 TOYOTA PRIUS. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 40 MPH, THE CONTACT CRASHED INTO THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE OF ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE AIR BAG DID NOT DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED INJURIES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE VEHICLE WAS DAMAGED AND TOWED TO A BODY SHOP WHERE IT WAS REPAIRED. THE DEALER WAS NOT CALLED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 37,000.
NHTSA complaint 11154354. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
crash · towed · 70,000 miles
WHILE SLOWING AND PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE, IN FRONT OF THE DENTIST OFFICE WHERE MY WIFE HAD AN APPOINTMENT, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED. IT JUMPED THE CURB, AND SHE STEERED HARD RIGHT TO AVOID THE BUILDING DIRECTLY IN FRONT OH THE PARKING SPACE. SHE SIDESWIPED THE FRONT OF 2 VEHICLES PARKED NEXT TO THE SPACE SHE WAS MOVING INTO, AND THE CAR CONTINUED TOWARD THE STREET. IT HIT THE CURB GOING OUT OF THE PARKING LOT AND THE CAR FINALLY STOPPED. A PERSON CAME TO THE DRIVERS SIDE OF THE CAR AND ASKED MY WIFE IF SHE WAS OK, AND SAID SHE SHOULD TURN THE CAR OFF - WHICH SHE DID.
NHTSA complaint 11413018. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
AIR BAGS
crash · towed
Airbags failed to deploy upon impact with guardrail. Drivers side front corner hit the guardrail at approx. 45% angle at 50-60mph. The vehicle was inspected by an insurance rep. and was deemed a total loss. The car is available for inspection.
NHTSA complaint 11418913. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
SERVICE BRAKES
crash · towed
On [XXX] at [XXX] I was backing out of a driveway when my 2016 Prius V5 accelerated on its own. When I applied the brakes, nothing happened. I hit a curb, which flattened the front passenger tire. In order to get the car to stop, I took it out of gear and put it in neutral. The car finally came to a stop. My speed while backing out of the driveway was less than 5 mph. It accelerated to about 15 mph. I was told that because the tire flattened due to the force of impact with the curb, Toyota considered it an accident. Toyota had me complete an "Unintended Acceleration" form so they could investigate the situation. A case number ([XXX]) was assigned. I was also told that I needed to contact …
NHTSA complaint 11704813, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Car was driving fine one day and then while driving down the interstate I had the Pre collision system malfunction error, Brake light came on, Cruise will not operate, ABS light is on. After much research it seems Prius V has a common issue with brake booster faulting.
NHTSA complaint 11657666. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Driving on the freeway the car stalled and was unable to accelerate. The issue seems identical to the 2020 recall. 2020-06-23 Recall no. 20V369000 Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2013-2015 Prius and 2014-2017 Prius V vehicles not included in recall 18V-684. Excessive voltage in the Intelligent Power Module (IPM) within the inverter may cause the hybrid system to shut down, causing the vehicle to stall while being driven. I was told by the service center that my car is not on the recall list so they are unable to work it as a recall.
NHTSA complaint 11618479. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
STRUCTURE:BODY
While traveling on NHS CA 99 about 80 miles before taking exit 97, there were pieces of tire debri on the center lane. It couldn’t be spotted and my vehicle drove over it making a big thud sound. It shaked my vehicle and left my family scared. It could have been really dangerous if there was a vehicle right ahead or behind my car. This incident broke the front bumper and caused big dent on my right door. This is a big monetary hole in my pocket. This is big concern and should be immediately addressed to avoid incidents further. Kindly let me know if there is a way to file a claim with NHST
NHTSA complaint 11590827. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
POWER TRAIN
Driving on freeway my prius V started shaking violently from what appeared to be overheating of water pump failure or the coolant invertor pump. I believe this to be a known issue Toyota is aware of when I took my Prius into Camelback Toyota in Phoenix they said they could not recreate the issues. I know this was powertrain failure that could have caused me to crash on the freeway.
NHTSA complaint 11515500. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
AIR BAGS
crash · towed
While going 70 MPH, I hid a feral hog. Although the front end of my car crumpled up, and we came to a sudden stop, the air bags did not deploy.
NHTSA complaint 11461252. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.
If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon
law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back.
What each state asks for
, read from the statutes.
Where these numbers come from
Complaints: NHTSA's ODI
complaint file
, published August 20, 2026. One
complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.
Recalls: NHTSA's recall
campaign API
, most recent campaign filed August 12, 2026.
Investigations: NHTSA's ODI
investigation file
, published 2026-08-19.
A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by
us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that
sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.
G
Compiled and maintained by guarledes Independent developer and analyst