Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (front, side and curtain air bags, sensors and inflators).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2010 Toyota Prius owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 mph, while coming to a stop on wet pavement, the vehicle failed to stop and crashed into the vehicle ahead of him. The air bags failed to deploy. A police report was filed. There were no injuries sustained. The contact stated that whenever the roads were wet, excessive force on the brake pedal was needed to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer and was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 208,000.
ABS system displayed airbag symbol displayed brake symbol displayed seat belts light flashing airbag system showing off. Toyota dealership is aware of the problem with the ABS system along with the items mentioned. accident could have been avoided contact if the ABS system was working. Airbags did not deploy. Advise Toyota corporation on 27 February 2023 file number 230-227-00 2210 in regards to the ABS they were also advised of the airbag symbol displayed in the seat belt fasten flashing on driver side when an individual is seated in the car and buckled in. Vehicle has not been inspected yet however on Monday 6th of March it will be inspected by copart, by the direction of the USAA insurance company.
I was hit in the back by an SUV (my speed=40 mph, the SUV's speed=70 mph). As a result of the impact, my prius flew off the road, hit the roadside railings, and then rolled over 4 times landing upside down. However, NONE of the airbags deployed. This includes the front, side, and curtain airbags. The vehicle was serviced at a Toyota dealership a few years ago where they performed the airbag recall. However, the airbags did not deploy at all. Only sheer luck saved me from death due to the airbag malfunction.
The airbag sensors for my passenger seat do not work. Regardless of if there is someone sitting in the passenger seat, buckled it, the system indicates that there is no one sitting in the seat and that they are not buckled in. This is of course a safety issue since the airbags would likely not go off even if someone was sitting in the seat. My vehicle is available for inspection upon request. They first appeared shortly after I purchased the vehicle from the last owner. The vehicle was lightly used and is very clean, and I have no reason to believe the passneger seat was abused in any way. My concern is this: this airbag sensor issue is a recall I have seen for other 2010 Toyota Priuses. I understand that in the systems, this recall does not show up for my car. …
The contact owns a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V487000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
The driver airbag deployed without an accident while driving in the highway. The airbag deployment caused near control lost of the car. I was lucky to not have any other cars near me so I managed to get the car safely out of the highway. The airbag deployment was scary and caused me not able to see through the windshield due to the gas from the airbag.
The airbag light on my 2010 Prius intermittently goes on and off. I have brought it to Toyota as well as my mechanic to see if anyone can find the problem. I've been told I need to change the seat and or the weight sensor isn't working. When I looked at the numerous PRius websites this is unbelievably common!
Air bags failed to deploy in car crash: my 2010 Prius was stuck by another car who ran a red light, in the front right (passenger side). The car that struck me was traveling approx 35mph and pushed my car (also traveling approx. 35mph) into the path of a wooden telephone pole that suspended the traffic lights over the intersection. My car traveled about 20-30 feet further and stopped when my car hit the pole head on. The telephone pole broke in two in the impact. None of my air-bags deployed. The police report is incorrect regarding the airbags. I have contacted the police department to amend the report. As seen in the accompanying photographs, the air bags did not deploy, contrary to the police report.
Tl* the contact owned a 2010 Toyota Prius. The contact stated that while driving at 25 MPH, another vehicle crashed into the front passenger's side. The front driver's side air bags deployed as a result the contact sustained a leg injury. The contact was hospitalized and the driver for the other vehicle had unknown injuries. A police report was filed and the vehicle was towed to a tow yard. The vehicle was totaled by the contact's insurance company. The contact stated that she just received a recall letter number: 16V487000 (air bags) however, the accident occurred back in April of 2016. The dealer and manufacturer were not contacted. The failure mileage was 40,000.
I had just pulled into the garage and was at a complete stop when the car surged forward and slammed into to the back of the garage, I would tip overattempted to stop the car with the brakes and they were not working so I shifted the car to reverse and it speed out of the garage up an embankment into a fence. It. Was up on it's side and I was afraid that it would tip over so in an attempt to bring it down level I shifted to drive and it speed off forward it then jumped a row of bushes into the front yard and did a large circle in the front yard missing three large pine trees and hitting a small tree that ended up stopping the car and deployed the air bag.
Related recalls
Air bags › Side/window
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2010-2012 Toyota Prius, 2010 and 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid, and 2011-2012 Lexus CT200h vehicles. A weld in the curtain shield air bag inflator may crack causing one or both portions of the inflator to eject into the passenger cabin.
Remedy: Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will install retention brackets to the curtain shield air bags, free of charge. The recall began on October 17, 2016.
Airbag complaints in other Prius years
Frequently asked questions
How common are airbag problems on the 2010 Toyota Prius?
NHTSA has 84 complaints about the air bags of the 2010 Toyota Prius, 3% of the model year's 2,823 complaints. The component named most often is on-off switch assembly (1 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2010 Toyota Prius airbag problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 16V-487 (side/window, Jun 30, 2016). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2010 Toyota Prius airbag problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 61,000 miles, and 21% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 27 crashes, 0 fires and 23 injuries to air bags problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.