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Transmission and drivetrainPart report

2012 Toyota Prius V Transmission and drivetrain Problems

Complaints
7about this part
Share
3%of 218 total for the year
Median mileage
8,500miles
Trend
Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.

NHTSA recorded 7 complaints about the transmission and drivetrain of the 2012 Toyota Prius V, 3% of the 218 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 8,500 miles. 1 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.

Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“The car was parked on a steep incline while I closed a gate behind me to a gated driveway. When I got back in the car and put the car in drive, I took my foot off of the brake and before I could get it to the gas pedal the car immediately rolled back and into the gate. The car released as if it was a standard shift car that needed a clutch and slammed into the gate. I have taken the car to other safe spots that are on hills and found that this car can not hold a stopped position on an incline.”

NHTSA complaint #10556928, filed 2013-12, 9,000 miles

“I owned this vehicle since brand new. It had happened more than a dozen times. When going over bumps or uneven surfaces, with the same pressure applied to the break, the 2012 privus failed to stop and lurched several feet before stopping. We had an incident that we almost ran into pedestrian yesterday when this issue occurs. This is very concerned to my family. We bought this vehical back to the dealer ship where we purchsed it.(expressway dorchester Toyota in masschusettes) they said they could not fix it because they could not reproduced at the dealship. …”

NHTSA complaint #10663065, filed 2014-12, 4,500 miles

“At least 2 or 3 times a week, when shifting the car into drive when the car is stopped, the car goes into reverse instead. The first few times I thought I had made a rushed error, so I started watching quite carefully. You can even be backing up and then brake and shift the car specifically into drive and it stays in reverse. It might take 3 or 4 attempts to get it into drive. I have realized this must be why they installed the beeping in the system to alert you that the car is in reverse, it must be a more pervasive problem than simply in my car. …”

NHTSA complaint #10556931, filed 2013-12, 8,000 miles

“Found car tampered with cut in carpet under driver seat to check battery maintenance per Toyota owner manual where hybrid battery was not receiving charge , was running hot Unknown person impersonated me registered my VIN to enroll with Toyota upgraded software app Entune version not with purchase is a 2021 software version with parental like controls, I took to Toyota dealerships below for assistance , new battery and hybrid faulting losing charge, car does not provide hybrid fault notice , loses charge , uses little gas , I researched on side of road to rest throttle and work around as I…”

NHTSA complaint #11427529, filed 2021-08

“Took in car for oil change /tire rotation , a software update was performed without my authorization from Toyota on to my Prius V , car went from getting 40 mpg highway to 32-33 mpg highway . City mpg dropped from 41 mpg to 36-37mpg . Dealer claims car has wrong tires which I agree, except those tires were the same tires on the car before and after the software update. Calculated the gas mileage myself before the recall and was pretty close to what the car's computer said ti was , calculated the gas mileage after the software update was done and it came very close to what the computer said.”

NHTSA complaint #10947964, filed 2017-01

Related service bulletins

Transmission and drivetrain: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
201616%
2015313%
201445%
201376%
201273%

Other parts of the 2012 Toyota Prius V

Brakes
133 complaints
Engine
36 complaints
Electrical system
24 complaints
Other or unknown
15 complaints
Vehicle speed control
15 complaints
Steering
11 complaints
Air bags
8 complaints
Electronic stability control
7 complaints
Forward collision avoidance
6 complaints
Fuel system
5 complaints
Body and structure
4 complaints
Exterior lighting
3 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2012 Toyota Prius V

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology