2001 Toyota Prius Engine cooling Problems
- Complaints
- 18about this part
- Share
- 11%of 165 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 37,700miles
- Trend
- StableComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are within 25% of the 3 years before.
NHTSA recorded 18 complaints about the engine cooling of the 2001 Toyota Prius, 11% of the 165 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 37,700 miles. 1 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers. 1 recall campaign on record is filed under a similar system.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“My 2001 Toyota Prius has stalled twice at high speeds (~75 MPH) while on the highway. In both incidences it was only due to good driving and to luck that I was able to get off or to the side of the highway. I have contacted my dealer and in both cases they looked at the engine and claimed that they had never seem the problem with any other vehicles. I was to bring the car back if it happened again.”
NHTSA complaint #10139629, filed 2005-10, 28,000 miles“My 2001 Prius has always been stalling (at least 30 times), usually upon startup, (and especially in hot weather when AC is on at startup) but on 4 occasions, stalls occurred during critical driving in dangerous areas resulting in total power loss and near death experiences. I informed Toyota president watanabe, and they recalled for the crankshaft position sensor , to fix the stalling problem, but it obviously didn't fix situation because car is still stalling. Dealer is beyond ignorant and clueless and no longer worth talking to, as they are as informed as a rock on a cliff. …”
NHTSA complaint #10197158, filed 2007-07, 40,000 miles“Twice now I have had warning lights appear on my 2001 Toyota Prius screen. The first time was three weeks ago while I was driving on a freeway in hot weather. I pulled over as I was losing power. The gas engine would not turn on. I was on battery power only. I limped to an exit and parked the car. I had the car towed to the nearest Toyota dealer. He fixed a steering recall part and thought it might be the problem. He could find no error codes. I drove off. Yesterday it happened again under the same conditions. I pulled over, waited twenty minutes and started the car again. …”
NHTSA complaint #10036657, filed 2003-08, 36,300 miles“Dt: while driving vehicle shut down and would not restart. All 3 times that this happened consumer was on the freeway. Consumer owned the car for 1 year before it started stalling, and it has stalled two more times since then. Each time the car was taken to Toyota, and each they time they were unable to figure out what the cause of the problem was.”
NHTSA complaint #10123729, filed 2005-06, 25,000 miles“2001 Toyota Prius sudden loss of power at highway speeds three incidents late aug 2006 first week oct 2006 second week oct 2006 in all cases vehicle will not start for 15 minutes but then runs normally. Brought to dealer after first incident and they completed a recall replacement of crankshaft position sensor. Brought to dealer after third incident they have been unable to diagnoses problem or reproduce after 90 miles test driving. …”
NHTSA complaint #10173144, filed 2006-11, 104,000 milesRelated recalls
- 06V266000Jul 19, 2006On certain passenger vehicles, due to improper molding of the resin body of the crankshaft position senor installed on the engine block, engine oil may…Covers: Toyota Prius 2001–2002, Echo 2001–2002
Related service bulletins
- 10253223Mar 4, 2024This is to advise of various price adjustments that will affect Toyota Genuine Motor Oil and Long Life Coolant, effective March 1, 2024. These products are ordered through the…
- 10034284Feb 4, 2010Toyota: techstream ecu flash reprogramming procedure. Flash reprogramming allows the ecu software to be updated without replacing the ecu. Flash calibration updates for specific…
- 10030908Jun 17, 2009Toyota: some vehicles may exhibit a mil on condition if an abnormally low engine power output or failure to start has been detected during a particular ths drive cycle.
- 10021528Sep 21, 2007Malfunction indicator lamp (mil) on diagnostic trouble code (dtc) p3130, and information code 346. *kb updated 10/26/07.
- 10015979Dec 20, 2004Engine oil specifications.
Engine cooling: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 1 | 4% |
| 2019 | 1 | 3% |
| 2018 | 3 | 8% |
| 2017 | 1 | 1% |
| 2016 | 1 | 1% |
| 2012 | 1 | 0% |
| 2011 | 5 | 1% |
| 2010 | 33 | 1% |
| 2009 | 7 | 1% |
| 2008 | 16 | 1% |
| 2007 | 17 | 1% |
| 2006 | 20 | 1% |
| 2005 | 64 | 6% |
| 2004 | 89 | 15% |
| 2003 | 11 | 11% |
| 2002 | 11 | 7% |
| 2001 | 18 | 11% |
Other parts of the 2001 Toyota Prius
45 complaintsElectrical system
27 complaintsTires
27 complaintsVehicle speed control
25 complaintsBrakes
16 complaintsFuel system
12 complaintsSuspension
9 complaintsOther or unknown
6 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
5 complaintsEquipment
4 complaintsBody and structure
3 complaintsWheels
3 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2001 Toyota Prius
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 28, 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