Problems · by component

2005 Toyota Prius power train problems

41 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2005 Toyota Prius cite power train, 4% of all 1,051 complaints for this model year.

Complaints
41
4% of all complaints
Crashes
4
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
2
Reported by owners
01 —Owner reports

What owners say about the power train

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“DURING COLD WEATHER TRYING TO DRIVE THE CAR IT WILL NOT STAY IN THE GEAR I HAVE TO HOLD IT DOWN EVEN WHEN I BACK OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY OR WHEN I GO ANYWHERE IT STARTS TO WARM UP THEN THE CAR MAY SOMETIMES STAY IN GEAR.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Mar 1, 2021Power trainODI 11398512
“WHEN I ATTEMPTED TO SHIFT INTO DRIVE OR REVERSE, THE CAR WOULD REVERT BACK TO NEUTRAL UNLESS I HELD DOWN THE GEAR SHIFT IN POSITION. THIS HAPPENED WHEN I HAD THE CAR IN MOTION ON CITY STREETS. PARKING (USING THE BUTTON ON THE PRIUS) WAS ALSO DIFFICULT, AND I HAD TO TRY MULTIPLE TIMES TO PUT THE CAR IN PARK AS IT CONTINUALLY WANTED TO GO BACK TO NEUTRAL.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jan 15, 2019Power trainODI 11170267
“PRIUS WILL NOT STAY IN GEAR, KEEPS POPPING BACK INTO NEUTRAL. FIRST HAPPENED WHEN STATIONARY --- PRESS POWER BUTTON, "READY" ON THE DASH, GO TO SHIFT INTO DRIVE OR REVERSE AND IT POPS BACK INTO NEUTRAL. THIS OCCURRED WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION ON A CITY STREET. FINALLY GOT IT TO WORK (NO IDEA WHY?) THEN WHEN DRIVING, AGAIN, IT POPPED INTO NEUTRAL FROM DRIVE. VERY DANGEROUS!!!”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 6, 2017Power trainODI 11031991
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 TOYOTA PRIUS. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE GEAR SHIFTER FAILED TO CHANGE FROM DRIVE INTO NEUTRAL. THE FAILURE RECURRED NUMEROUS TIMES. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO A DEALER. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. IN ADDITION, THE VEHICLE WAS PREVIOUSLY SERVICED PER AN UNKNOWN RECALL IN WHICH THE INVERTER WATER PUMP WAS REPLACED; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE REPAIR WAS A ONE TIME REMEDY. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 97,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jun 14, 2017Power trainODI 10995117
“THE CAR JUMPS OUT OF GEAR, OR IT WON'T GO INTO PARK. BUT IT STARTED TO DRIVES AWAY AFTER I GOT OUT OF THE CAR, OR AS I WAS GETTING OUT. THIS HAPPEN TWICE, ONCE AT THE DEALER. THE DISPLAY FOR TRANSMISSION POSITION WAS BROKEN. THE SAME DISPLAY THAT SHOWS SPEED, FUEL LEVEL AND OTHER ITEMS WAS NOT WORKING. ALSO, I COULD NOT SHUT OFF THE CAR OR REMOVE THE KEY. THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPEN WAS 8/19/2015 AT A CAR WASH. THE DISPLAY WENT DEAD DURING THE WASH. WILE TRYING TO FIX THE PROBLEM, THE CAR DROVE AWAY IN REVERSE AND KNOCKED ME OVER. I HAD MINOR INJURIES. I MIGHT HAVE SOME OTHER PROBLEMS AS A RESULT OF THAT ACCIDENT. THE NEXT DAY I WANT TO THE DEALER. WITHOUT LOOKING AT THE CAR (NO COMPUTER ANALYSIS), THE SERVICE MAN TOLD ME THE DISPLAY AND COMPUTER WAS BAD. HE SAID IT HAPPENS A LOT. HE ALSO QUOTED ME A PRICE OF AROUND $700. I WENT BACK TO MY DAUGHTER HOUSE TO LOOK FOR ANOTHER DEALER AND TO RESEARCH THE ISSUE. (I WAS VISITING FROM CA). AT HER HOUSE, I NOTICED THE CAR WOULD NOT SHUT OFF AND I COULD NOT GET THE KEY OUT (THE DEALER REP TOLD ME TO PUT THE KEY IN THE SLOT). SO I JUST WENT BACK TO THE DEALER TO HAVE THEM FIX IT AND PAY THE PRICE. (IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 24, 2015Power train, Electrical systemODI 10758925
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 TOYOTA PRIUS. AFTER THE VEHICLE WAS SHIFTED INTO THE PARK POSITION, THE CONTACT EXITED THE VEHICLE AS IT BEGAN TO ROLL AWAY. THE VEHICLE STRUCK THE CONTACT. THE INSTRUMENT PANEL FAILED TO ILLUMINATE. A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED AND THERE WERE NO INJURIES REPORTED. THE FAILURE RECURRED NUMEROUS TIMES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER, WHERE IT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. IN ADDITION, THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO TURN THE IGNITION TO THE OFF POSITION, BUT THE KEY FAILED TO EJECT FROM THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALER, WHERE IT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 174,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 24, 2015Power train, Electrical systemODI 10758945

Showing 6 of 41 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 5, 2026NHTSA vehicle page

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.