2014 Prius C 2, No Brakes!!!! Yikes!

Think I know the answer, but anyway: when were the brakes last serviced?

(See page 41 of your Warranty and Maintenance Booklet)

 

Yeah, sadly: very safe. The US schedule says every 36 months or 30,000 miles. Toyota's cavalier in describing what's involved, and I think this has led to widepread brake neglect. The Coles Notes version

1. Disconnect and lift off caliper.
2. Remove pads, separate shims, check/record pad thickness. Clean, apply fresh lube (molybdenum anti-seize) to all contact points, reassemble and reinstall. Also lube contact points on caliper.
3. Remove, relube (Sil Glyde or equal) and reinstall caliper glide pins.
4. Reinstall caliper.

If the the car's getting on, and/or there's pulsation:

1. Check rotor thickness with micrometer, against spec.
2. Check rotor runout with dial gauge, against spec.

Toyota Canada also says to replace brake fluid tri-yearly or 48,000 km's (30,000 miles). The fluid attracts water, and that can lead to rusting, clogging. I'm not sure where Toyo USA stands, it's good practice though. It's not that hard, DIY under $20 for 2 pints of Toyota DOT3 fluid. See @NutzAboutBolts video, pinned in maintenance section, of 3rd gen. The Prius c definitely might have some differences, especially the chicken-dance at the outset, but it's still worth watching.

 

did the dash light up like a Christmas tree?

 

Yeah, brake maintenance is my pet peeve. But I agree: sounds more like electronics at play in your case. I've had the brakes go into a sort of fail-safe mode, still working, but takes more of a push.

 

you need to take it to a dealer to have the trouble codes read.

 

What was the history of the car prior to your ownership? Any accidents?

I would check the brake fluid level and see if it is low.

I had a Jaguar that got rear ended and was "repaired" only to have a similar occurrence to what you describe. When the rear brakes were put back together, the brake line was rubbing on the rotor and it eventually failed, putting the brake pedal to the floor.

Definitely worth looking at all corners and under the hood at the fluid level.

Keep us posted

 

Brake booster is expensive I've heard, hopefully not.

 

In my experience with non-hybrid braking systems, a symptom of a failed brake booster is a pedal that is very difficult to depress with very little braking effect. Conversely, a pedal that goes to the floor with very little braking effect indicates a loss of hydraulic pressure (brake fluid leak or empty brake fluid reservoir). Of course, I have less experience working on hybrid braking systems, but the friction brakes on the Prius c still operate as a hydraulic braking system and to me it sounds like a loss of hydraulic pressure. I am interested to see what you discover.

 

thanks!

 

Hi folks. Instead of creating a new thread, I figured to just mention my situation here. I have a 2014 Prius C, 3, 55k. Was driving in snowy/semi-sleet weather recently and was coming downhill to a light. I applied the brakes but I didn't feel what I normally feel when I apply the brakes, which would be a stopping feeling . It felt like nothing was really happening when I applied the brakes but the brake pedal still gave the same normal resistance as usual. I heard no (normal) mechanism that begins to engage the brakes when gently push the pedal down...which is then followed by (what I think is) the actual brakes contacting when coming closer to a full stop. It was just silent and I wasn't really sure if the car was actually going to stop (light turned green and I made my turn before coming to a stop). Car didn't pull left or right, no Christmas lights on dashboard going off. Just an eerie silent attempt to stop the car. I tested the brakes right after and they seemed to be working (please no spanking comments about why I kept going with possible brake issues, lol). My thought is that something may have gotten frozen, which is horrible if that's the case. Has anyone driven in snowy weather and had an issue like this where something may have actually froze up while braking...maybe caliper...do not know. I've had my brakes inspected last oil change (about 5k miles ago) and Toy said all is good. I plan on bringing the car back to have them check all the brake parts and inspect again, but wanted to ask you guys first for insight.
Thanks in advance for your help!

 

Honestly it sounds like you needed more stop than was actually available between your tires and the ice.

 

Thanks Lead. I wish that was all it was...but I'm just not sure with this wind-up toy. Thanks though for your thoughts and feedback.

 

Has anybody heard from the OP again? I think I missed this thread the first time. Not sure if CSuirp's issue is really the same.

Floored-pedal-no-stoppie is a rare, worst-case brake failure mode, and it's worth remembering how many kinds of brake problem there are that don't cause it. Pads, for example, can be worn all the way to the metal and still (poorly, with dreadful scraping noises) slow down the car. Loss of power assist will make the pedal really hard to depress, but standing on it will slow the car down, and it won't hit the floor.

I've been spinning some theories about what kinds of things really could cause FPNS in a Prius, but nothing I'm really sure of yet. I am not surprised that OP got lots of warning lights when it happened, but one thing I would be very interested in learning would be whether there was any history of disregarded warning lights in the weeks or months leading up to the incident, or any peculiar squishy, squirty, barky, or honky brake sounds.

 

What tires (presuming they are not the factory tires), and how many miles on those tires?

Also, what state or region are you driving in?