2020 Toyota Prius Owner Complaints

Complaint Summary
The 2020 Toyota Prius has 23 reported complaints.
- Top issues involve unknown or other and service brakes.
Reliability Score
Reliability Score
Based on 23 complaints
Most Frequent Issues
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
5 21.7%
SERVICE BRAKES
4 17.4%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
2 8.7%
TIRES:SIDEWALL
2 8.7%
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
1 4.3%
Quick Insights
The top category is UNKNOWN OR OTHER, accounting for 21.7% of all complaints.
Owners have reported issues across 14 distinct vehicle systems.
Note: Complaint data reflects owner reports and may not always indicate a verified defect. Compare with Recalls and TSBs for a complete picture.
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What owners keep reporting on the 2020 Toyota Prius
The 2020 Toyota Prius has 23 owner complaints in this dataset. UNKNOWN OR OTHER is the most common complaint category, representing about 22% of the reports shown here.
Most common complaint categories
The top complaint groups for the 2020 Toyota Prius are UNKNOWN OR OTHER (5), SERVICE BRAKES (4), ELECTRICAL SYSTEM (2).
Are these complaints a serious red flag?
Potentially. 9 complaint reports involve higher-attention systems like brakes, steering, engine, powertrain, fuel, suspension, airbags, or electrical components, which is enough to justify a focused inspection.
What should buyers inspect on a used 2020 Toyota Prius?
Start with the top complaint systems, compare them against the recall report, then inspect service records for evidence that those same areas were already repaired or monitored.
Detailed Complaint Log
Showing 14 of 14 systems
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
5 Reports22% of totalPreviewing the first 2 complaint summaries.
ORIGINAL TIRES FROM DEALERSHIP
12/26/2020
Attempted to park in my garage and overshot the turn. The brake then failed to stop and I dented my garage outer wall. I reversed my car and tried to reposition it to go inside the garage, putting it on drive. However, the brake pedal made the car accelerate and the car went on reverse. It then crashed into the neighbor's garage and crashed the door and car inside. Both the car inside the garage and the garage itself (along with the inside of the house) have been damaged.
11/4/2022
SERVICE BRAKES
4 Reports17% of totalPreviewing the first 2 complaint summaries.
MY DAD WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY. HE SAID THAT HE STEPPED ON THE BRAKES AND THE BRAKES DID NOT WORK. HE GOT INTO AN ACCIDENT IN WHICH THE ALL AIRBAGS WERE DEPLOYED AND THE CAR WAS TOTALED. THE CAR ONLY HAD 700 MILES. I BELIEVE THIS WAS THE SECOND TIME THAT MY DAD DROVE THIS CAR ON THE HIGHWAY. MY MOM, WHO WAS A PASSENGER, SAID THAT THE CAR ACCELERATED VERY QUICKLY. PRIOR TO PURCHASING THIS CAR, MY DAD HAD DRIVEN A PRIUS (2010 - 2012?), SO HE WAS VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE FEEL OF THE PRIUS. THE CLAIM # IS [XXX]. ATTACHED PLEASE FIND THE POLICE REPORT AS WELL AS A PICTURE OF THE TOTALED CAR. PLEASE NOTE THAT I AM FILING THIS COMPLAINT ON BEHALF OF MY PARENTS.*DT CONSUMER HAS CONTACTED MANUFACTURE. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).'*JB
8/12/2020
The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while, driving approximately 5 mph, making a right turn, the vehicle suddenly accelerated, jumped the curb, and crashed into the bushes. The brake pedal was applied however, failed to respond. There were no warning lights illuminated. There were no reported injuries, police report or air bag deployment. The vehicle was towed to an independent body shop. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified however no further assistance was provided. The contact was concerned about driving the vehicle. The failure mileage was 15,670.
9/24/2021
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
2 Reports9% of totalPreviewing the first 2 complaint summaries.
THE MULTI INFORMATION DISPLAY THAT SHOWS THE SPEED, FUEL, AND OTHER DRIVING METRICS STOPPED WORKING, I AM NOT ABLE TO SEE HOW FAST I AM GOING, HOW MUCH FUEL IS LEFT, ODOMETER OR OTHER ITEMS THAT IS DISPLAYED THERE.
3/28/2020
On May 16, 2023 I was slowly driving out of a market parking lot when the car suddenly accelerated, full throttle, and speeded across the street (Colusa Avenue, Berkeley, CA), crashing head on into a fence. Immediately after the crash, the dashboard displayed the following: "Check Engine (!) A malfunction in the electronic control of the engine, throttle, or automatic transmission has been detected. Contact your Toyota dealer to have your vehicle inspected." The car was towed and is now at a body shop selected by my insurance company, AAA. I received whiplash, small bruises on my chest and left hand, and a scraped shin. I was taken to Alta Bates Emergency by ambulance.
5/31/2023
TIRES:SIDEWALL
2 Reports9% of totalPreviewing the first 2 complaint summaries.
I was making a left turn into my subdivision after a full stop. My speed was no more than 5 MPH. The Toyota dealer informed me that the sidewall had blown and was not repairable. They had no definitive cause as to why the tire blew. The tire was retained by the dealer. The tire size is P 195/65R15 and is a Toyo NanoEnergy A41 Tire. It was original equipment on the Toyota Prius as built in Japan. I have found that the tire has no manufacturer's warranty. I just returned from a vacation three days ago driving from Hilton Head Island, SC. Had this happened on the interstate system, the results to me, my wife, or other drivers could have been very different. To the best of my knowledge, the tire has not been inspected by any party. I was not given any tire DOT information on the new tire.
8/6/2021
Ballooning on side wall of tire. When brought to dealer, they indicated that three other tires had same problem but not as obvious. Car had only 24k miles, with half these on these tires (rest on snow tires). Dealer reported that this was a serious danger.
6/15/2022
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
PROXIMITY SENSORS GENERATED AN ALERT THAT PARKING ASSISTANCE SENSORS NEEDED CLEANING DURING MODERATE RAIN CLEANING THE SENSORS DID NOT RESOLVE THE ISSUE. STOPPED AT DEALER TO HAVE IT CHECKED AND WAS ADVISED THAT THE SENSOR DO THAT IN INCLEMENT WEATHER AND I WOULD NEED TO LEARN TO LIVE WITH IT. IF IT WAS JUST THE PARKING SENSORS IT WOULD NOT BE AS SIGNIFICANT BUT I DID DETERMINE THE FRONT ACCIDENT ASSISTANCE DID NOT FUNCTION AS IT SHOULD HAVE - AS I APPROACHED A VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME WITH CRUISE CONTROL THE SPEED REDUCTION THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO OCCUR DID NOT HAPPEN. HAD I NOT BEEN CHECKING TO SEE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE PROXIMITY SENSORS WERE MALFUNCTIONING IT COULD HAVE RESULTED IN AN ACCIDENT. I DID NOT ATTEMPT ANY OTHER ACTIONS WHICH RELY ON PROXIMITY SENSORS TO FUNCTION AS I DID NOT WANT TO CAUSE OR BE INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT. I WAS DRIVING AT THE TIME AND I EXPECT THAT ALTHOUGH THE ALERT SPECIFICALLY MENTIONED PARKING SENSORS, THE FACT THAT THE CAR DID NOT SLOW AS TOYOTA HAS INDICATED IT SHOULD LEADS BE TO BELIEVE THAT ANY AND ALL "DRIVER ASSISTANCE TECHNOLOGIES" MAY FAIL WHEN THAT ALERT OCCURS RESULTING IN POTENTIAL ACCIDENTS AND INJURIES THE VSC OFF INDICATOR WAS FLASHING AT THE TIME. *TR
5/29/2020
POWER TRAIN
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
2020 TOYOTA PRIUS. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO NEEDING TRANSMISSION REPAIR AFTER VEHICLE WAS TOWED. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED THE AXEL RODS, RIMS NEEDED TO BE REPAIRED/REPLACED, STEERING ISSUES,. REAR WHEEL ISSUES, AND BUMPER REPLACEMENT. *JS
10/2/2020
STRUCTURE
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
2020 TOYOTA PRIUS. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO NEEDING TRANSMISSION REPAIR AFTER VEHICLE WAS TOWED. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED THE AXEL RODS, RIMS NEEDED TO BE REPAIRED/REPLACED, STEERING ISSUES,. REAR WHEEL ISSUES, AND BUMPER REPLACEMENT. *JS
10/2/2020
WHEELS
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
2020 TOYOTA PRIUS. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO NEEDING TRANSMISSION REPAIR AFTER VEHICLE WAS TOWED. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED THE AXEL RODS, RIMS NEEDED TO BE REPAIRED/REPLACED, STEERING ISSUES,. REAR WHEEL ISSUES, AND BUMPER REPLACEMENT. *JS
10/2/2020
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:ACCELERATOR PEDAL
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while, driving approximately 5 mph, making a right turn, the vehicle suddenly accelerated, jumped the curb, and crashed into the bushes. The brake pedal was applied however, failed to respond. There were no warning lights illuminated. There were no reported injuries, police report or air bag deployment. The vehicle was towed to an independent body shop. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified however no further assistance was provided. The contact was concerned about driving the vehicle. The failure mileage was 15,670.
9/24/2021
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
On May 16, 2023 I was slowly driving out of a market parking lot when the car suddenly accelerated, full throttle, and speeded across the street (Colusa Avenue, Berkeley, CA), crashing head on into a fence. Immediately after the crash, the dashboard displayed the following: "Check Engine (!) A malfunction in the electronic control of the engine, throttle, or automatic transmission has been detected. Contact your Toyota dealer to have your vehicle inspected." The car was towed and is now at a body shop selected by my insurance company, AAA. I received whiplash, small bruises on my chest and left hand, and a scraped shin. I was taken to Alta Bates Emergency by ambulance.
5/31/2023
ENGINE
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
On May 16, 2023 I was slowly driving out of a market parking lot when the car suddenly accelerated, full throttle, and speeded across the street (Colusa Avenue, Berkeley, CA), crashing head on into a fence. Immediately after the crash, the dashboard displayed the following: "Check Engine (!) A malfunction in the electronic control of the engine, throttle, or automatic transmission has been detected. Contact your Toyota dealer to have your vehicle inspected." The car was towed and is now at a body shop selected by my insurance company, AAA. I received whiplash, small bruises on my chest and left hand, and a scraped shin. I was taken to Alta Bates Emergency by ambulance.
5/31/2023
BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
After heavy rains, the car says the park assist doesn't work, as well as the parking sensor system. There is a warning sign that says it doesn't work.
2/8/2024
AIR BAGS
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
I was the victim of an accident on [XXX]. The person of the other vehicle that collided with my vehicle after crossing at high speed and without stopping in the red light. The sensors of the anti-collision vehicle of my vehicle did not work and the air bag also did not work. Due to speed the airbag of the other vehicle triggered. I have shoulder pain due to impact. At the moment the insurer of the party involved is making it difficult to pay the compensation. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
8/18/2025
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
1 Report4% of totalPreviewing the first 1 complaint summaries.
I was the victim of an accident on [XXX]. The person of the other vehicle that collided with my vehicle after crossing at high speed and without stopping in the red light. The sensors of the anti-collision vehicle of my vehicle did not work and the air bag also did not work. Due to speed the airbag of the other vehicle triggered. I have shoulder pain due to impact. At the moment the insurer of the party involved is making it difficult to pay the compensation. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
8/18/2025
Data and Methodology
Scores are derived from NHTSA recalls and owner complaints, normalized by vehicle segment averages.
What are the most common owner complaints for the 2020 Toyota Prius?
Are complaints about the 2020 Toyota Prius a serious warning sign?
How should buyers use complaint data for the 2020 Toyota Prius?
Are complaints about the 2020 Toyota Prius severe?
Complaint list entries are sourced from owner-submitted NHTSA ODI records.
Toyota Prius: How should complaint data influence buying decisions?
Carfocal links complaint data directly to recall and maintenance routes for the same model year.
- Complaint entries
- 23
- Top-topic view
- 5 grouped topics shown
- Primary source
- NHTSA ODI owner complaint records
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