Problems · by component

2008 Toyota Prius air bags problems

41 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2008 Toyota Prius cite air bags, 3% of all 1,497 complaints for this model year.

Complaints
41
3% of all complaints
Crashes
34
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
32
Reported by owners
01 —Owner reports

What owners say about the air bags

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“the cruise control was inop, technician said it was a clockspring failure, replaced the clockspring with a new part from walmart, then at times, the airbag failure light would come on, paid a technician to replace the replacement clockspring with an new one and the failure stopped, walmart is selling a part that could result in death”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Apr 22, 2026Air bagsODI 11733033
“The contact owned a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while his mother was driving approximately 37 MPH, a second vehicle crashed into the rear passenger side causing the vehicle to go airborne and crash. During the crash, the front driver's side and front driver's side curtain air bags did not deploy. The driver's chest impacted the steering wheel causing her heart to sustain severe pressure and her ribs to collapse. Also, the front seat passenger was ejected from the vehicle through the windshield. Both occupants sustained fatal injuries due to the crash. The front passenger was not wearing a seat belt during the crash. A police report was taken at the scene. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to an impound lot. The vehicle was then towed by Toyota who confirmed there was an air bag failure. The vehicle was resold after being salvaged. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The local dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 6,500.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jun 10, 2024Air bagsCrash reportedODI 11593497
“The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 MPH, the brakes failed when pressed causing the vehicle to crash into the rear end of a second vehicle. During the crash, the air bags did not deploy and the rear driver-side seat belt had sprung outward, although no rear seat passenger was present. The second vehicle's rear driver's side passenger was later treated for an undisclosed injury. A police report was taken at the scene and the vehicle was towed away. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 240,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Feb 26, 2024Air bags, Seat belts, Service brakesCrash reportedODI 11574057
“Air bags did not deploy Driver's side Seat belt adjustment did not go low enough Seat belt tightened so tight my pelvic bone could have broke and killed me The reflection of the dash lights on the windshield at night The battery replacement(s) being way too expensive and explosive Needs the blind spot mirrors The undercarriage needs to be more secure The cost of amount of public knowledge for muffler Needs lifted up a bit Easier ways to add covers to seats I guess the whole Navy missed coach buzzer a little more than we did lol Headlights t Center vents air flow Speedometer change delay by maybe .2 seconds Not enough charging ports Nor were they real None of my hands free electrical safety features worked properly Gas guzzler My boyfriend thinks I tried to kill him Backseat adult who doesn't listen really just didn't listen or care Driver remembers everything Braking should always be left up to the driver No too close warnings or nothing Security system failed when my car and tires were not left untouched Back hatch will still open if keys are locked in the car Other drivers hit me and ran Needs a more sturdy beam to use for the jack to jack up to change a tire”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled May 20, 2021Air bagsCrash reportedODI 11417875
“WENT OFF THE ROAD INTO A DITCH TO AVOID A DEER. DITCH WAS IM GUESSING ABOUT 4 FOOT DEEP . AIR BAGS DID NOT WORK. HIT MY HEAD AND HAVE A LARGE BRUISE ON MY CHEST .”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Mar 26, 2019Air bagsCrash reportedODI 11191751
“I WAS IN AN AUTOMOBILE ACCIDENT IN FEB OF 2015 I HOT ANOTHER VEHICLE GOING APPROXIMATELY 15MPH NO AIR BAGS WERE DEPLOYED AND THE POLICE OFFICER AND BODY SHOP BOTH WERE SURPRISED NO AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. I'M CURIOUS IF THIS WAS DUE TO A FAULT YOU AIRBAG AND LUCKLY I WASN'T SERIOUSLY INJURED. MY DASH COMPUTER SENSOR WENT OUT IN 2015, CAUSING ME TO NOT BE ABLE TO READ AN ODOMETER, SPEEDOMETER, ETC. I HAD THIS PART REPLACED AT MY EXPENSE DUE TO THE SAFETY HAZARD IT POTENTIALLY COULD CAUSE I'D LIKE TO SEE A FORMAL RECALL FOR THIS PART. TOYOTA ACKNOWLEDGED THE SAFETY ERROR AND DID ISSUE A EXTENDED WARRANTY WHICH I WAS NOT COVERED BY. I REPLACED MY INVERTER A THIRD TIME IN 2017 DIE TO OVER HEATING. AFTER THE RECALL WAS PERFORMED I DID NOTICED DECEASED POWER WHICH GREATLY AFFECTED THE PERFORMANCE OF MY VEHICLE MAKING IT MORE SLUGGISH. DUE TO THE PERFORMANCE LOSS I'VE NOT BEEN ABLE TO USE THE CAR FOR NORMAL TRIPS THAT WERE TAKEN PREVIOUSLY DUE TO SAFETY CONCERNS.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Mar 17, 2018Electrical system, Air bags, Fuel/propulsion systemCrash reportedODI 11079898

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

Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 4, 2026NHTSA vehicle page

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