Toyota has issued a safety recall on a number of 2013-2015 Model Prius and 2014-2017 Model Prius v vehicles due to a failsafe driving mode problem. In total, some 752,000 vehicles are being recalled worldwide, with approximately 267,000 of those vehicles having been sold in the US.
The hybrid vehicles are designed to enter a failsafe driving mode if certain hybrid systems fail. What Toyota discovered is the failsafe mode isn't being triggered "in rare situations," which has resulted in the recall being issued. The main issue is the vehicles may lose power and stall, with Toyota explaining, "While power steering and braking would remain operational, a vehicle stall while driving at higher speeds could increase the risk of a crash."
The good news for owners is the fix looks to be a simple one and Toyota is classing it as a voluntary recall. A local Toyota dealer needs to update the hybrid system software in these vehicles, which will of course be carried out for free. Toyota also stated that any inverter failures related to this condition will be repaired or replaced at no charge to the customer.
If you own a Prius, don't worry, as Toyota intends to contact anyone who owns a model with the fault "by late August." In the US, that's around 267,000 vehicles, but Autoblog confirmed that there's actually 752,000 Prius and Prius v models that require the update worldwide. If you want to know if your Prius is affected without waiting for Toyota to make contact, head on over to Toyota.com/recall or nhtsa.gov/recalls and enter your Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) or license plate information.
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