Problems · by component
2008 Toyota Prius fuel/propulsion system problems
27 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2008 Toyota Prius cite fuel/propulsion system, 2% of all 1,497 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
27
2% of all complaints
Crashes
5
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
4
Reported by owners
What owners say about the fuel/propulsion system
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“About 3 years ago we started getting the red triangle of death with 2 amber lights on display the vsc and the round circle with the exclamation point in the center. This could happen in 500 miles or it could happen tomorrow. When this happens I loose all exceleration and air conditioning and a orange car emblem with an exclamation point in it on the display screen. Once safely off road press power button off and back on and everything is back to normal except red triangle and car on display screen car is then drivable again. Using a code reader to check codes no codes appear but still have red triangle. Leaving car set for a period of time and restarting car and red triangle is extinguished. Have to drive in right lane on freeway in case it wants to quit. The most recent time was last week had driven it about 80 miles with a stop about halfway for 1 hour and stopped for a movie came back got in car started it and within 1000 feet got the red triangle, was in left turning lane with red light, shut off and restarted and was able to drive again as in all other times, took it to a neighbor who had a code reader(about 9PM) and no codes found, he reset it and red…”
“The catalytic converter was stolen off of the car and yes it is available for inspection upon request. I’m not sure of the safety risk, we drove the car one time and the engine light came on. The problem has not been reported to a dealer or independent service center. Once the incident happened one of our neighbors called the police and they came but they didn’t know which apartment we were in and out neighbor told us that it was our catalytic converter and the police waited for a few minutes and then they left. Our neighbor told us when they heard our car starting.”
“I cannot add gas more than 3 to 4 gallons in the gas tank when it is almost empty. Gas meter says full after 3 to 4 gallons in the tank. While driving, it can run out of gas at any time because meter is not correct While adding gas at the gas pump, it spills the gas back out of the fill pipe of the car. So spilled fuel can catch fire if it touches the hot surface. Its fuel vapor management system is dangerous and defective which could result in fire and it could make the gas to fall on person legs and feet. Its gas tank has rubber bladder that has shrink making the meter totally wrong. If you search on the internet tons of people has the same problem. There is no way to tell how much gas is in the tank, while the meter could say full.”
“There seems to be a problem with the float in the gas tank. Once car gets down to empty, the fuel tank will only allow you to pump in 5 to 6 gallons of gas into the tank. We searched online and apparently a lot of people are having this issue but may not have reported it to NHTSA. Thanks”
“MY VIN NUMBER SAYS ITS A 2008, IT IS A 2011, PRIUS MY BRAKE BOOSTER PUMP WENT OUT AND LOCKED MY BREAKS. I ENDED UP ON SIDE WALK. CALLED DEALER SAID IT WAS DANGEROUS TO DRIVE. IT APPEARS THAT THERE IS A RECALL/CLASS ACTION. COSTING ME $1400.00 FOR A NEW SYSTEM. IT WAS IN MOTION.”
“MY VEHICLE WAS SHOWING 4 BARS FOR HOW MUCH GAS WAS LEFT IN THE TANK. I DROVE TO FILL IT UP BUT DESPITE HOW MUCH I PUT IN THE FUEL GAUGE WON'T READ IT AND IS STUCK ON 4 BARS. WHEN DRIVING IT WON'T DECREASE EITHER I'VE DRIVEN OVER 70 MILES AND IT STILL WON'T ADJUST.”
Showing 6 of 27 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.