Prius v (lowercase v) Touch Screen

Hey everyone.. I bought a 2015 Prius v (wagon) with ATP on Memorial Day weekend and have been having the same issue of the touch screen freezing up randomly and needing a reboot. The dealer, fortunately, has been awesome at getting the issues I've had with the car fixed (it arrived with some dings and scratches from transit), and they are planning to replace the head unit ASAP for me. After reading this thread, I've also called Toyota to put my two cents in on the issue, and at this point my main reason for posting is to let people know that there are still new cars out there being sold with this issue. Hopefully this will be resolved soon!

 

The touch screen seems in the same class as the keyless fob and the TPMS. Maybe I'm a Luddite but all of these seem questionable in merit, trouble prone (and very pricey) "improvements".

 

June 8, 2015

This is a follow up to a previous post of mine regarding the Nav Screen freezing.

As requested I took my new Prius v (lowercase v for the Prius v wagon) back to Toyota Service Tuesday June 2, 2015 and left the car with them from 9 AM until 4 PM. When I picked the car up the service rep said they did a software update and I pointed out to him that the Head Unit was the issue and should be replaced. His response was "it is a process they have to go through".

That particular day was fairly cool and it wasn't until yesterday (Sunday June 7, 2015) when I was able to leave my vehicle in the sun for approximately 5 1/2 hrs. and the outside temperature was indicating 27 C (80 F) that the problem reoccurred at 3380 Km (2100 miles).

I notified the Toyota service representative by e mail of the failure and after waiting a day, I have yet to get a response from him and intend to start moving up the ladder to get this issue resolved even if it means going to a new dealer.

 

Hi Don;
The expedited process to replace the head unit right away is spelled out in Tech Service Bullitin TSB (T-TT-0336-15). Email your dealer and ask them to look it up.

 

See following email, received yesterday, from my local Toyota dealer Customer Service Rep:

"The latest feedback we've received from Toyota and Panasonic is that the remedy has not been determined and they have "pushed back" the availability of a replacement radio to August 2015. I will keep you informed on the radio's ETA. In the meantime, I would suggest you contact Toyota Customer Experience Center and open a case. That way, your concerns are being tracked by Toyota, as well.

Please let me know if I can provide any additional information at this time."

Clearly, we are not happy. Her response also raises the question of why others have successfully had their units replaced and we are being told otherwise. Additionally, we did call Toyota and open a case with them, though our interpretation after reading the TSB was that the dealer service people should have done this on our behalf when the car failed during their service inspection. We are personally spending hours, days, and now months on this issue while the dealer sits back and accepts no responsibility for selling us defective equipment. I would think the dealer would be peeved with Toyota for providing them with cars with problems and want to push Toyota as hard as possible to resolve the issue so they might maintain a good reputation in the community. Sadly, not the case for our local dealer. As mentioned above, Toyota (and our dealer) continues to sell these cars knowing there are problems and not disclosing those problems to unsuspecting buyers. What a disappointment (and hassle) for buyers!

 

Thanks for the suggestion, however, I have already given them that information and number but they claim they do not have that particular information available here in Canada and are giving me the "it is a process they have to go through" routine which is wearing thin with me in light of the other information posted on this site dealing with this problem.
I still haven't had a response to my last e mail but will be following up later today to see what their next move will be.

 

Why don't they have one in inventory to replace yours?

Because they only just started making ones with the hardware fix in them?

Because Toyota wants a certain number of the fixed ones for new cars?

Because the parts have to wend their way through the supply chain from Panasonic thru Toyota Japan to Toyota distributors and then to the dealers?

Because there are others who complained first in line in front of you?

Because the complaint, recall, fix-it systems are overwhelmed with air-bag issues right now?

 

June 9, 2015


The saga continues.


After sending a lengthy e mail message with the service advisor I have been dealing with plus a follow up voice mail message to call me, no response to my complaint that the software update did not rectify the screen freezing.


I called another service advisor at another dealership and he readily acknowledged there were some issues with the Prius V's Nav Screen. When I called he mistakenly thought I was a customer he had dealt with the previous day about that same issue.


I mentioned to him about Toyota's T-TT-0336-15 and he informed me that it is not a TSB (Technical Service Bulletin) but was, what he referred to, as a Toyota Tech Tip (hence the T-TT) and furthermore he had attempted to find it and it appears that Tech Tip is not available in Canada. I guess Canada equates to North Korea.


He went on to explain that the unit has to be "re-flashed" and when I pointed out that the Head Unit might need to be replaced he said that they tried that on another vehicle and the problem reoccurred. He was unsure as to when this new "re-flashing" of the Nav Screen will take place because they are waiting for the fix. I intend to take my Prius V to this dealership if I cannot get any response from the first ones I have been dealing with.


However, all has not been a total loss. While I was driving today, the Nav Screen froze long enough for me to return home, leave the engine running , get out my digital camera and make a video of the problems everyone appears to be experiencing.


At least now I will be able to download the video onto a disc or thumb drive and show the service advisor and/or technicians exactly what the problem is rather than waste time while they try and duplicate it.

 

Post to YouTube too?

(Try saying that quickly, lol.)

 

HI Medel;

I'll have to wait for the grandkids to do it for me but it is similar to this link.

 

I had a problem with the touchscreen becoming intermittently responsive in my 2012 Prius v (lowercase v for the Prius v wagon). I shot a video of myself attempting to make it work by touuching the "buttons" using my cell phone and took the video to the dealer. The dealer found that Toyota is stating in their service manuals to replace the head unit for this problem. They did this at no charge as I had a ToyotaCare 8 year/100,00 zero deductable warranty. It has worked fine since. (Note: The replacement radio will be factory reconditioned. They do not replace it with a factory fresh new one.)

 

Brought my PRIUS v back in today for the head unit touch freezing. I took multiple videos with my phone and showed the odometer reading as well. Toyota said that they are aware of the issue and has ordered me a a new unit. Hope this solves the problem.

 

My Prius v trim 5... I have had 3 weeks..first trip nav system locked up. Bought this forum to my dealer...I took car back to dealer..they did an update. Drove 350 miles today and everything worked great!!!

 

For the benefit of others similarly affected, what was the service/campaign/update ID the dealership performed?

 

June 12, 2015

Some good news --- and some bad news...

Took my 2015 Prius v (lowercase v for the Prius v wagon) back to the service department with my video ready but this time the Assistant Service Manager took down the number (on the lower right) of my radio and said a new unit would be ordered from Panasonic.

The bad news?

Well, I received a call the following day to tell me the unit was ordered, however, they were not available from Panasonic until August but was assured it would be a newer updated version.

And to Keith --- hope your update solves your issue. I know they did a "software update" on mine but as soon as the vehicle was subjected to a hot day, the problem returned --- and I was able to video the issue too.

 

We picked ours up 3/24 and apparently it happens twice a week or so.
It's my wife's ride and she is primary driver so I didn't know it was that bad until recently.
First Toyota but if this doesn't get corrected before our annual 5800 roadtrip (in mid Aug) it will certainly be the last. I'm gonna call Monday @ 7AM to try and reserve my spot in the crap-shoot of replacement orders.

So everyone is saying this is a hardware issue related to temps... is it more common in heat extremes?
I'm in pacific-northwest and its usually very mild. Since we've had our car temps have ranged from 50-80F, but very dry (the weather here is bipolar).
In August we'll be heading back to reality... 100F/ 100% humidity Texas weather.
I just want to know will this most likely get worse?
We got the new color (Toasted Walnut) and Toyota is definitely trying to make the car live up to the "Turd Wagon" nickname.

 

I bought my 2015 Prius v 5 with ATP March 15. Within 2 weeks I found my touch screen was unresponsive occasionally and my GPS didn't work at all. My dealer replaced the GPS but could not confirm the touch screen problem. Last week I was passing by a different dealer when the touch screen quit working so I went in and showed it to the Service Manager. He said he was aware of the problem and it was a software problem. He had an update available but said he had heard there was a second update coming so now I am waiting to get both updates at once and see if that finally solves it. Hope so.

 

Well it's official. I am in the cue to get a replacement unit. Dealer was told no ETA on replacement.
If it continues to get worse and I get no replacement by 1 week of August, Toyota is going to have to offer me something special.
I'm not driving a car 5800 (roundtrip) miles having to pull over randomly (other than fuel) to power-cycle the ignition. We usually do each leg of the trip non-stop.

 

You don't need to do anything but press and hold the volume button till it reboots.

 

I'd like to chime in with my status.
Got my 2015 Prius v (lowercase v for the proud v wagon) a couple weeks ago, and from Day 1, I have been experiencing this issue everyday.

Luckily I had an appointment to disable the reverse beeping already didn't have to schedule a new one for this. When I went in for the service, I described the problem (first she treated me stupid, told me no control over Nav. system when you are driving. duh.) I immediately referred to the tech tip mentioned in this thread, then she became serious. She said she hasn't seen many Prius v with this issue.

While I waited, technician looked at it, and they decided to open a case with Toyota. This was 2 days ago. Yesterday the service advisor called and saying Toyota ordered a new head unit for me, and the new unit will be in sometime next week.

This morning the service advisor called me again she needs to grab a number off the screen. On my way to work, I stopped by the dealership, she took the number. She also said she is getting a lot of this all of sudden. The weather here in Portland, OR has been super nice (sunny/hot), and probably a lot of owners started experiencing the same issue.

She also said, there are two different causes of this freeze up issue. (I believe this has been mentioned earlier, but will do it again)
Hot Soak - Hot temperature in the car will cause the issue. Resolution for the hot soak is the head unit replacement
Cold Soak - Cold temperature in the car will cause the issue Resolution for the cold soak is the re-flashing the software.
If your issue is 'Hot soak', you probably want to contact the service ASAP to get your new unit ordered. She feels this thing can go backordered anytime, and you never know when you will get your unit.

Glad to join the forum. Nice e-meeting you all.