2014 Toyota Prius V Problems

What owners report

Owners of this model year most often describe problems with the brakes, especially the brake booster and brake actuator, which cause warning lights and a pedal that goes soft or firm. These reports show up across a wide mileage range, from tens of thousands to well past 150,000 miles, and are often sudden rather than gradual. A smaller but notable group describes engine-related problems such as coolant loss and head gasket issues, usually at higher mileage.

1. 1
   Brakes

   Brake booster / actuator failure with warning lights

   • 28 complaints (34%)
   • median 137,919 mi at 9.5 yrs old (6 state mileage, few)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $4,300 (median of 9 quotes)
   • filed 2018–2026

   Owners describe the brake, ABS, traction-control and master-warning lights coming on together, sometimes while driving. The brake pedal then feels spongy, hard, or travels toward the floor, and some report the pump or actuator making a buzzing or hissing noise. Dealers typically diagnose an abnormal leak in the accumulator or a failed brake booster pump and quote a replacement; some owners say a customer support program covered the repair for a limited time or mileage. Reported across a wide range, roughly 80,000 to 160,000 miles, and often came on suddenly during ordinary driving.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether the brake booster and pump assembly have been replaced, and whether any customer support program repair was done. Watch for brake or ABS warning lights and listen for a pump that keeps cycling while the car is stationary.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “While braking on the interstate, this car threw error code C1391: Abnormal Leak of ACC PRESS. This is the brake system accumulator pressure - meaning lost all assistance to braking - it took a long time to slow down and come to a stop. Easily could have caused a serious crash had I been on a hill or coming up on stopped traffic. I did some research and found this is a KNOWN ISSUE with Toyota and SHOULD HAVE BEEN A RECALL! …”

   NHTSA complaint #11668796, filed 2025-06

   “ABS Brake pump actuator booster failed. It is available for inspection. While driving, I started hearing a hissing sound from my brakes. I tried to slow down and my several diagnostic lights (ABS, traction control, brake, check engine, etc.) flashed on while my brakes failed to work properly. I turned on my hazard lights immediately. I was in the middle of the road with my toddler in the car and I almost rammed into the car in front of me. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11675955, filed 2025-07
2. 2
   Engine

   Engine stumbling, coolant loss and head gasket failure

   • 9 complaints (11%)
   • median 181,667 mi at 5.2 yrs old (6 state mileage, few)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2016–2026

   Owners describe the engine shaking or misfiring, especially on cold start, with the check engine light on and codes for cylinder misfires. Coolant level drops and the engine can overheat; dealers and independent shops diagnose coolant leaking into the engine and recommend head gasket repair or engine replacement. Some also report rough running and low power before the diagnosis. Mostly reported at higher mileage, generally above 100,000 miles and often near or past 150,000.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Check the coolant level and look for white residue or a sweet smell, and ask whether the head gasket has been replaced. Have a pre-purchase inspection check for misfire codes and compression.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I am the first owner of this vehicle it has about 110k miles recently the started to shake when I start it in the morning or when parked for a while it started to show the check engine light some time it goes away on its own so I figured I will do 100k service changed the spark plugs oil filter etc. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11326440, filed 2020-05, 111,000 miles

   “The head gasket in the engine failed at 120000 miles and when starting the car in the morning the whole car shook and shuddered. The same problem happened to my friends car a 2015 model at 70000 miles so I think this is a faulty gasket Toyota has used in all its Prius V model cars from 2013 to 2016 years therefore there should be a recall of these cars which Toyota should fix without charge. I spent $3985 to fix the problem.”

   NHTSA complaint #10924544, filed 2016-11, 120,000 miles
3. 3
   Electrical system

   Hybrid inverter fault and stalling

   • 9 complaints (11%)
   • median 119,000 mi at 5.9 yrs old (4 state mileage, few)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2017–2026

   Complaints describe the hybrid system shutting down or dropping into reduced power, sometimes with multiple warning lights and a loss of power steering or brakes. Owners report the car stalling while driving and needing a restart, and dealers diagnosing the inverter or hybrid module. Some owners say a prior recall software update was applied and the problem still occurred. Reported from under 80,000 miles up to about 220,000 miles, often during highway driving or on acceleration.

   Recall 20V369000Recall 18V684000Recall 15V4490004 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether both inverter recalls were performed and whether the intelligent power module was replaced or only reflashed. Note any history of stalling, warning-light clusters or reduced-power events.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The car stalls randomly and does not enter fail-safe mode. The dealer says it is the transmission but the transmission has never shuddered or hesitated. I am reading that these vehicles have intelligent power modules in the hybrid inverter that fail and can cause stalling. I feel like the dealership is working with Toyota to avoid addressing the actual problem. In the meantime I was sent home in a vehicle that continues to stall randomly and does not enter fail-safe mode.”

   NHTSA complaint #11673861, filed 2025-07

   “My car stalled while I was driving it on 2 separate occasions. It is a 2014 w less than 70K miles: 1/2022 Within seconds of 2 or more warning lights going on, the engine stalled. I was able to steer, brake and drive on the electric motor towards home. The electric motor drove another .5 mile before it also died, leaving me with no power steering or brakes. I was on a slight incline and coasted most of the way off road. The car was towed to our local dealer, which said the intake manifold had failed. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11469843, filed 2022-06
4. 4
   Vehicle speed control

   Sudden braking or unintended acceleration at low speed

   • 9 complaints (11%)
   • median 95,500 mi at 6.0 yrs old (8 state mileage, few)
   • 4 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2015–2024

   A separate group describes the car surging or lunging forward, or the brakes not responding, at low speeds such as parking or pulling into a driveway. Complaints mention the pedal being depressed but the car not stopping, in some cases resulting in a collision. Dealers were often unable to reproduce the condition. Reported at low mileage, from a few thousand up to about 80,000 miles, and at low speed in parking or driveway situations.

   What to check: During a test drive, try slow-speed parking maneuvers and check that the brakes feel consistent. Ask the seller whether any prior complaints or repairs relate to pedal feel or unexpected movement.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I experienced sudden but momentary braking when traveling at high speed (> 50 MPH) while either entering ro exiting hwy. This occurred twice in last two mons. I drove my car to closest dealership the 2nd time this happened (nov. 21, 2105; waldorf md Toyota), who told me they received an email (but no recall) from Toyota corporate about this issue. Dealership could not detect the problem or reproduce it so, as instructed by dealership, I called Toyota corporate nov. 23, 2015 to get case number assigned. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10809177, filed 2015-12, 7,000 miles

   “I was parked in my driveway and put my 2014 Toyota Prius in reverse to back up and park in front of my late husband’s workshop about 15 ft. away,on Oct. 10, 2022. The car sped up so fast I could not brake fast enough (no warning).It stopped when it hit the large door of the workshop, and damaged it and the back of my car, costing about $2,000 to the car. I contacted my insurance agent right away, and the person above him at the company the next day, as well as the service manager at the Toyota dealer where we bought the car at the end of 2014. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11489883, filed 2022-10
5. 5
   Electrical system

   12-volt battery drain and electrical glitches

   • 9 complaints (11%)
   • median 7,500 mi at 3.8 yrs old (4 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2015–2025

   Owners describe the car being dead after being parked, requiring a jump start, and settings such as the clock and radio resetting at random. Some report the horn or other electrical functions working intermittently, with a spiral cable or clockspring diagnosis. Dealers replaced batteries and attempted repairs without fully resolving the issue in some cases. Reported from very low mileage, under 10,000 miles, up to about 90,000 miles.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask how old the 12-volt battery is and whether the car has a history of dead-battery or no-start events. Check that the horn, radio and clock settings behave consistently.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “After parked for 20 minutes, the car is dead, had to jump start. Battery was replaced by the dealer, but the issue was not taking care of. At least 3 more times since the battery replacement, I found my car was again ded after parking, can not even open the door with remote. But all 3 times the car was able to power on after a few minutes on it's own while waiting for tow... Above that, the clock, trip odometer and temp settings were resetting on random times since 650 miles, as well as the radio which will turn on and off at random. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10736030, filed 2015-07, 1,429 miles

   “While driving my 2014 Prius V it stalled. I turned it off and restarted it. The yellow car symbol with an exclamation point lit up. I turned the car on and off again. The light went away and I was able to drive home. I was unable to get any OBD 2 codes on my personal reader. I changed the 12 V battery and thought this had fixed the stalling. Then it stalled again and repeated the same process. Though we were able to drove the car I had it towed to a dealership for safety reasons. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11662646, filed 2025-05

Buying note. Have a used example inspected for brake booster and actuator condition and for head gasket or coolant issues, and confirm the inverter recall work was completed. Ask for service records showing these items were addressed, since the brake and engine repairs can be costly.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.