2016 Toyota Prius Problems, Recalls & Reliability
215 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2016 Toyota Prius, alongside 5 recall campaigns and 1 defect investigation. It scores 6/100 on the trouble index — one of this model's quieter years. Visibility & wipers leads the reports, typically around 17,900 miles.
One of the quieter years. Relative to its siblings, the 2016 Toyota Prius has drawn well-below-average complaint volume with at least four years on the road.
Better year
Where 2016 sits among all Prius years
What owners report
“Windshield cracked 12+ inches overnight with no cause. Vehicle was parked in garage. Crack has since grown to 20+ inches”— owner report to NHTSA, 2016 Prius
“My windshield randomly cracked and looking on-line this seems to be a common occurrence on the prius 4th generation vehicles.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2016 Prius
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 122 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 20,000 miles. Half of those reports fall between 9,400 and 34,100 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
Recalls (5)
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Toyota Prius vehicles. A portion of the engine wire harness connected to the hybrid Power Control Unit (PCU), could contact the cover at this connection and wear, causing an…
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the engine wire harness assembly and replace it if damage is found. A protective sleeve or protective tape will be included to prevent any future…
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2016 Toyota Prius and Lexus RX 350, RX 350 F Sport, RX 450h F Sport and RX 450h vehicles and 2015-2016 Lexus NX 200T, NX Turbo and NX 300h vehicles. The air bag pressure sensors and/or…
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the sensors as necessary based on their serial numbers, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin March 12, 2018. Owners may contact Toyota…
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2016 Prius vehicles. A capacitor within the hybrid system may not have been properly bolted to the inverter housing.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the inverter, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin by early December 2017. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at…
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Prius vehicles manufactured August 6, 2015, to October 3, 2016. The affected vehicles are equipped with a foot-operated parking brake system that has a parking brake…
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will install a clip at the parking brake cable end to prevent the cable from disengaging, free of charge. The recall began November 10, 2016. Owners may…
Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2016 Toyota Prius vehicles manufactured November 30, 2015, to June 14, 2016. An air bag inflator manufacturing error may result in the inadvertent partial inflation of the…
Fix: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag assembly, free of charge. The recall began November 10, 2016. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at…
Federal defect investigations
Led to recall campaign 22V063000.
Technical service bulletins
300 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on electrical and body & structure — are on file for the 2016 Toyota Prius. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
Complaint history for this model year
When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.
Questions buyers ask
Is the 2016 Toyota Prius reliable?
The 2016 Toyota Prius drew 215 complaints in federal safety records — one of this model's quieter years. Its trouble index is 6/100, scored against the model's worst year (2010).
What are the most common 2016 Toyota Prius problems?
The top reported problems for the 2016 Toyota Prius are visibility & wipers (42 complaints), other (34), and electrical (23).
At what mileage do 2016 Toyota Prius problems show up?
Owners most often report 2016 Toyota Prius problems around 20,000 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 9,400 and 34,100 miles.
Does the 2016 Toyota Prius have recalls?
5 recall campaigns apply to the 2016 Toyota Prius. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.