2022 Toyota Prius Problems

What owners reported to NHTSA about the 2022 Toyota Prius, its recalls, and what to check before you buy one.

Toyota Prius, 2016 to 2022 model years
Photo: SsmIntrigue, CC BY-SA 4.0
How the 2022 compares

Too new to judge fully

It has been on the road 4 years, so complaints are still coming in. So far it has fewer than a typical older Prius year, which is normal for a newer car. The area owners report most so far is the electrical system.

Based on owner complaints to NHTSA, compared with other Prius years from 2012 to 2024. A good year can still be a bad car, so check the one you are looking at.

Owners have filed 24 complaints with NHTSA about the 2022 Toyota Prius. The most reported problem area is the electrical system (7, 29% of complaints), followed by the brakes and stability control and the engine and cooling. That ranks 10th of 13 Prius years from 2012 to 2024 for complaints. It has 1 recall.

Complaints24filed with NHTSA
Recalls1for this model year
Crashes44 injuries reported
Fires0reported in complaints
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Most reported problems

Problem areas ranked by how many complaints mention them. One complaint can name more than one area. Open an area to see what to check on a 2022 Toyota Prius before you buy.

Electrical system

7 complaintsDead batteries, warning lights, failed screens and cameras, and electrical shorts.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • Test every switch: windows, locks, mirrors, seat heaters, the screen, the backup camera, Bluetooth and every USB port.
  • Watch the dash at startup. Every warning light should come on briefly and then go out.
  • Have the battery and charging system tested. A weak alternator or battery drain shows up here.

Tools that help

What owners said

Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2022 Toyota Prius. It was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 29,909. At the time of the registration, it was discovered that the mileage was 173,000.Owner complaint, filed 2026, at 173,000 miles
The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Prius. While attempting to start the vehicle using the Push to Start feature, the vehicle made a loud screeching sound. The contact drove the vehicle to a dealer, where the failure was diagnosed as a failure with the Data Control Unit (DCU). The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not…Owner complaint, filed 2026, at 55,000 miles

Brakes and stability control

5 complaintsBrakes that feel soft or grab, grinding, ABS and stability control faults.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • The pedal should feel firm and the car should stop straight without pulling, grinding or a pulsing pedal.
  • The ABS and stability control lights should go out after startup and stay out.
  • Look through the wheels at the rotors. A deep lip on the edge means brakes are due soon, which is a fair thing to negotiate on.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving, depressed the brakes, brake pedal became stiff and had to apply extra force to apply the brakes. The issue occurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it bent brake pedal and the bracket was bent. The vehicle was not repaired at the time…Owner complaint, filed 2026, at 121,000 miles
My 2022 Toyota Prius (approx. 12,500 miles) suddenly displayed multiple warning lights while driving, made abnormal noises, and lost the ability to move. The vehicle remained powered on but could not drive and had to be towed to a Toyota dealership. The dealer diagnosed a failed brake booster with master cylinder assembly and quoted…Owner complaint, filed 2025

Engine and cooling

3 complaintsStalling, misfires, oil consumption, leaks, overheating and engine failure.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • Ask the seller not to warm the car up, and start it cold. Listen for ticking, knocking or a rough idle in the first minute.
  • Pull the oil dipstick and the oil cap. Low oil, a gasoline smell or a milky film on the cap are reasons to walk away or get an inspection.
  • Plug in an OBD2 scanner. Stored or pending codes matter, and so do readiness monitors that show "not ready", which usually means the codes were cleared right before the sale.
  • Ask for oil change records. A gap in the records on a model known for engine complaints is a negotiating point at minimum.

Tools that help

What owners said

Carfax notified us that our vehicle was part of a recall on 9/24/21. Toyota never contacted us. I contacted Toyota Corporate the week of Oct. 18th and they contacted the dealer (Hudson Toyota in Jersey City) and the dealer said they had a fix. I brought it in and the service department said there was a mistake and the fix wasn't…Owner complaint, filed 2021
My 2022 Prius LE hood latch does not work. It does not click and hood stays locked. They told me at Walmart that the hood latch is probably corroded somewhere or defective. It takes two people to open the hood. My vehicle has 54,490mi. This has happened twice now in 2 months. I have not purchased an extended warranty and this is…Owner complaint, filed 2025

Air bags

3 complaintsAir bag warning lights, air bags that did not deploy, and inflator recalls.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • The air bag (SRS) light should come on at startup and go out within a few seconds. If it stays on, the system may not work in a crash.
  • Air bag recalls are some of the most serious. Check this exact VIN for open recalls and get proof any recall work was done.

Tools that help

What owners said

My husband and I rented a car from Avis on June 19, 2023. THe car they we selected was not available so they picked a prius out of the lot and gave it to us. On the morning of June 20, I was slowly turning into the driveway at [XXX] , my foot on the brake the whole time to slow to a stop so I could park parallel to my realtor's car. My…Owner complaint, filed 2023
Airbags never deployed front or side. Vehicle equipped and activated SOS system did not work. vehicle was a total loss and I nearly died in the processOwner complaint, filed 2022

Lights, wipers and visibility

2 complaintsHeadlights that dim or fail, wiper and washer failures, and windshield cracks.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • Check every light: headlights on low and high, fog lights, brake lights, turn signals and reverse lights.
  • Run the wipers on every speed with washer fluid, and run the defroster front and back.

Tools that help

What owners said

Started vehicle in driveway to warm up for a minute. Sitting in vehicle with front defrost turned on medium fan, 75 degrees settings. After a few minutes, while still in park, I heard the windshield crack and noticed that a 12-18 inch crack appeared from the bottom middle part of the windshield.Owner complaint, filed 2023
Driving 60mph on highway and driver's side window spontaneously shattered and covered the driver, drive seat and floor, leaving only about 10 square inches that fell secondarily. There was no projectile that penetrated into the car at all, and no glass was projected over to passenger side as would be indicated if there had been a…Owner complaint, filed 2021

Hybrid and EV system

1 complaintLoss of power, warning messages and battery problems on hybrid or electric versions.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • Ask for a hybrid battery health report from a dealer or hybrid shop.
  • Watch for warning messages at startup and on the test drive, and confirm the car switches between gas and electric smoothly.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Prius. The contact became aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V734000 (Hybrid Propulsion System, Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the dealer informed the contact that the part for the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for…Owner complaint, filed 2021

Transmission and drivetrain

1 complaintHarsh or delayed shifts, slipping, shuddering, CVT whine, and drivetrain clunks.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • Drive it from cold if you can. Shifts should be smooth in every gear, including reverse.
  • Feel for slipping (revs rise without the car speeding up), shudder at low speed and a delay when you put it in gear.
  • Listen for whining, which is a common CVT complaint, and clunks when you go from drive to reverse.
  • If it has 4WD or AWD, engage it on the test drive and ask when the transmission and differential fluids were last changed.

Tools that help

What owners said

2022 toyota prius. Consumer writes in regard to unintended acceleration. The consumer stated the vehicle [VIN] for a few seconds when the turn signal is activated while the cruise control is active. The consumer stated the dealer was notified.Owner complaint, filed 2022

Cruise control and acceleration

1 complaintHesitation, loss of power, sudden acceleration and cruise control problems.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • On the test drive, press the gas gently and firmly. The response should be smooth with no lag or surge.
  • Set the cruise control, then use resume and cancel to make sure each one works.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owned a 2022 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while idled forward into a parking space at the local car wash, the brake pedal was depressed to stop but the vehicle erroneously accelerated forward and crashed into a brick wall where it came to a stop. During the crash, the air bags did deploy and no injuries were…Owner complaint, filed 2025, at 25,000 miles

Seats and seat belts

1 complaintBelts that will not latch or retract, seat adjusters and passenger occupancy sensors.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • Pull out and latch every seat belt, and let each one retract on its own.
  • Try every seat adjuster, and watch for a passenger air bag "off" light when an adult is in the seat.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owns a 2022 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while attempting to use the front driver's side seat belt, the lap belt and the anchor bolt detached, rendering the seat belt unusable. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the lap belt was reattached to the seat. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted…Owner complaint, filed 2026, at 34,600 miles

Body, doors and structure

1 complaintRust, doors and liftgates that will not latch, leaks, and frame or structure concerns.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • Look underneath with a flashlight. Utah road salt is hard on frames, brake lines and the bottoms of doors.
  • Open and close every door, the hood and the liftgate, and lock and unlock each one.
  • Use a paint thickness gauge and compare panels. A panel that reads very differently from the rest has likely been repaired.

Tools that help

Wheels and tires

1 complaintTire failures, wheels and lug nuts, and tire pressure sensor faults.What to check before you buy

What to check before you buy

  • Read the four-digit DOT date on each tire. Tires older than about six years should be replaced, whatever the tread looks like.
  • Check tread depth on all four. On AWD vehicles all four tires should match.
  • The tire pressure light should go out after startup.

Tools that help

What owners said

The rear passenger Dunlop Enasave 01 AS 195/65R15 tire on my 2022 AWD model Prius blew while I was driving 50 MPH down a residential highway. I ran over nothing, and the tire tread was completely separated from the rest of the tire and rim.Owner complaint, filed 2021

Toyota Prius complaints by year

Compare the 2022 with other years before you choose one. Tap a year to see its problems.

Compare with similar 2022 compact cars

Each car is rated against its own other years, since popular models always get more complaints than rare ones.

CarVs. its other yearsRecallsMost reported
2022 Toyota PriusToo new to judge1Electrical system
2022 Toyota CorollaToo new to judge0Electrical system
2022 Honda CivicWorse than most years4Steering
2022 Mazda Mazda3Too new to judge0Air bags
Compare side by side

2022 Toyota Prius recalls

This is every recall issued for the 2022 Toyota Prius, not what is still open on one car. A recall that was fixed does not show up any differently here. Check a VIN at NHTSA to see what is still open on the car you are looking at, and ask the seller for proof any recall work was done.

Engine and cooling Engine control module

Sep 2021 · NHTSA campaign 21V734000
Risk
A loss of drive power increases the risk of a crash.
Fix
Dealers will update the ECU software, free of charge.
Full recall summary

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2022 Prius and Prius Prime vehicles. The Engine Control Unit (ECU) software may falsely detect an error and shut down the hybrid system, causing a loss of drive power.

2022 Toyota Prius questions

What are the most common problems with the 2022 Toyota Prius?

The most reported problem areas on the 2022 Toyota Prius are the electrical system (7 complaints), the brakes and stability control (5 complaints) and the engine and cooling (3 complaints).

Is the 2022 Toyota Prius a good year to buy?

Too new to judge fully. It has been on the road 4 years, so complaints are still coming in. So far it has fewer than a typical older Prius year, which is normal for a newer car. The area owners report most so far is the electrical system. Based on owner complaints to NHTSA, compared with other Prius years from 2012 to 2024. A good year can still be a bad car, so check the one you are looking at.

How many recalls does the 2022 Toyota Prius have?

NHTSA lists 1 recall for the 2022 Toyota Prius. The most recent, from Sep 2021, covers the engine control module. Recalls cover the whole model year, so check the VIN of the car you are looking at to see which are still open.

Which Toyota Prius years should I avoid?

The Prius years with the most complaints compared with the rest are 2012 and 2013. Years with clearly fewer complaints are 2019, 2020 and 2021. Years from 2022 on are too new to rate fairly yet.

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Where these numbers come from. Complaints are reports that owners filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), counted from NHTSA’s complaint database as of November 5, 2026. Owners do not have to prove a problem to file one, so a complaint is a report, not a confirmed defect. Models that sell in big numbers get more complaints, and newer model years have had less time on the road, so compare years of the same model rather than different models. Recalls come from NHTSA’s recall database and cover every vehicle of that model year, not one particular car. Quotes are trimmed, and anything that looks like a VIN is hidden.