PRE-COLLISION SYSTEM UNAVAILABLE

Last week on a trip home from the airport, I noticed the big message on the display PRE-COLLLISION SYTEM UNAVAILABLE, and a blinking icon of a car crashing. This is the first time I had seen these messages. I had been gone for 12 days - hubby drove me to the airport in my 2016 Prius and dropped me off, drove home and parked it head-first in the driveway, then didn't use it again until he came to fetch me from the airport.

After checking the manual to see if somehow I had inadvertently turned it off and not finding anything, I took it to the Toyota dealer. At first, they told me it was just some dirt/debris around the sensor (the logo in the front) that needed cleaning. But when I went to pick up the car, the messages were still there! So I had to leave the car again while they figured out what the problem was. To cut a long story short, they said that the front sensor, located behind the Toyota emblem, was putting out all sorts of error codes as a result of being damaged/dislodged by some sort of impact. They compared it to another Prius with a working PCS, and mine was loose compared to that one. They recommended first recalibrating it to see if that fixes it, if not, the sensor itself would have to be replaced. And since they determined that it was due to being damaged, it wouldn't be covered under the new car warranty. Just the recalibration would cost $340.

I did not hit anything and, as far as I know, nobody hit me. The warning message wasn't there when I went to the airport, and nothing happened to the car in the two weeks that I was away because, other than hubby driving it home and then back to the airport to pick me up, it was parked in the driveway face-forward the whole time. There are some very tiny abrasions/scuffs around the Toyota emblem, but they look old and there is nothing that suggests a hard impact. The licence plate, a new one I had installed a few months ago and which sticks out further than the emblem, is in pristine condition. The last time I had the car in the shop, other than for routine service, was for hail damage repair about 15 months ago.

I declined the recalibration until I find out if there is any other possible explanation. Any ideas?

 

I agree that if I had had a front-end collision, there would have been obvious damage. And it doesn't make sense that the PCS could be dislodged by a small impact that doesn't even leave a dent. The type of "damage" I have looks like a couple of small dings that might have been made by road debris. The problem is that unless I find other people who have the same problem with the PCS, it seems to be my word against theirs. So I don't know how I can get them to fix it under warranty if they say it's not covered.

 

I called Toyota Care and basically they said that they rely on the dealer's shop to determine whether the problem is covered under warranty or due to external factors (such as a collision). She said they do not have any records of similar complaints. My only recourse, apparently, is to get another dealer to take a look and see whether they come to the same conclusion.

 

Yes, they told me the sensor behind the emblem works in conjunction with two other sensors behind the the rear-view mirror mount, so I would imagine they checked those as well. And they did run the car through the car wash.

 

I'm attaching the diagnostics below.

Thanks for the tip about dispute settlement. I will give it a try but I doubt I'll get anywhere.

I did go to another dealer and they basically said the same thing, that it was hit, although they were a little more specific about the damage they were talking about. The picture below shows the front emblem. It's hard to see but about two-thirds of the way down, below the center of the emblem, there is a very shallow dent on each side of the surrounding area (white part, not the emblem). Also, there is a hairline crack just below the vertical oval in the emblem itself. It looks like it was hit head-on by a horizontal bar, causing dents on both sides of the emblem but nowhere else. You can see that there is no evidence of any damage to the surrounding area (except for the little ding on the left) or license plate and holder, which stick out further. I had installed the new license plate in June.

What's so confounding is that I am positive that nothing hit the car between the time that the message was not there and the time it came on. Apart from the trips to the airport and back, it was parked in my driveway facing forward. Even if someone had hit it, say while rolling out the trash can or something, I can't imagine it being hit head on right in the center and not cause any damage or scuffing on the side. I also can't imagine a tree branch hitting it horizontally. If this had been a result of something that occurred earlier, the message would have come on then.

 

I just went out and looked at the emblem again. I actually can't see the crack in the emblem that they said was there. In the above post, I said that there was a hairline crack underneath the vertical oval - but in fact there's a matching line above the oval as well, so I don't think it's a crack and don't know what they were referring to.

And again, while I don't know how or when it got hit, I don't see how an impact that causes such minor damage to the body would damage the sensor. You can hardly see the dents and have to feel them to tell that they're there.

 

I'll try!

 

Yes, I've asked. He says nothing happened to it driving back from the airport after dropping me off and driving to it after picking me up. I know he didn't drive it while I was away because I checked the ECO Diary.

 

It's been nearly two weeks now and it's been on the whole time. I can turn off the message just by turning off the pre-collision system but the message returns when I turn it back on.