Inverter failures rare??

Toyota sold hundreds of thousands of these cars, to find a few reported cases, I'd say it's a rare failure.

You'll most likely see more head gasket failures than inverter failures

 

Agree with JC, pretty isolated issue and very well supported by Toyota. They straight up fix these with no BS. When you think about it, the 2010 model in particular was starting it's 5th year when they implemented the software patch in Feb. 2014. Plenty of time for failure to occur but they seemed rare up to that point. It almost seems like they (IPM failures) have become more prevalent since the E0E (software fix), which would support the dealer claim regarding the patch. This makes sense as all turd gens up through 2013 had a decent amount of time to accumulate fatigue before the software flash.

Driving in ECO mode suggests gentle acceleration. This is good as full-throttle acceleration is generally thought to be the straw that breaks the camels back. I'd say you really don't have anything to worry about with this issue. As JC said, if you are planning on going high miles with your 2012, EGR circuit/head gasket issues need to be more of a concern.

 

In all seriousness, this will be the last Toyota car I will ever buy.

 

That’s cause your going to do all the preventative maintenance to make it last a very long time.

 

My sense from reading here the past couple years is that it's the other way around. The head gasket gets more attention because it's usually not covered by warranty. The IPM failures are fixed quickly under a warranty enhancement, usually without a fight. Maybe my sense is colored by my car having the inverter failure under the previous owner before I bought it.

 

Strong point, Lightning Racer...

 

Understand this feeling toward Toyota regarding turd gen issues. I try to focus on the fact that across the board they serve up the overall most reliable line of vehicles of any manufacturer, and back it with the same level of support to loyal customers. That's not to say they don't hardball some owners on warranty issues and don't warranty some issues we feel they should. They are an automaker after all, and guilty of the typical industry BS to a degree.

With direct regard to the turd gen engine issues, I believe they are a result of pushing the limits of efficiency in a model they've defined an industry segment with. Something's gotta give at some point, and the EGR design fail tends to rear it's ugly head at a mileage which allows Toyota to take the low road. But as Ray says, if you're willing to keep the EGR free breathing by your own doing, the turd gen can reliably run a more Gen 2-like lifetime, imo.

 

I found this in the service history on my Prius. This was done before I got the car. Should I be worried about another failure?

 

Nope .

The IPM warranty was there for the prior owner and now you.

Should be good to go.

 

My wife's 2010 Prius had 60K on it when the inverter failed and the check hybrid system light came on.The dealer ended up replacing it under what i believe is the "IPM" warranty. I wouldnt say its "rare" but I wouldnt say its "common" neither. The dealer knew exactly what it was as soon as I brought it in.