Toyota Grand Highlander Complaints

314 consumer complaints on file.

#11760011August 27, 2026
SEATS, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Load cabin wind noise. Service said it was the luggage bars on the roof. I removed the bars and the noise was the same. Came back to the shop on August 22, 2026 they looked and said the panoramic seal was lifting and leaking. Before buying the car we were told the prior issue with panoramic sunroofs leaking had been resolved. In addition the plastic handle that controls the middle seat broke off after using it three times.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759952August 27, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Small object came through the front grill and put a hole in AC condensing unit. Grill does not protect from small road objects.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759845August 26, 2026
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
I have noticed on several separate occasions a strong gas odor coming from my 2025 Toyota Grand Highlander after I have completed a drive. This has been intermittent, however, yesterday on XXX, the gasoline odor was so strong after I parked my vehicle in my garage, that it quickly filled the garage with an overwhelming odor. My son urgently came to get me when he stepped into the garage and realized how strong the fumes were. We had to open the garage to air it out. I called the Larry Miller Peoria Toyota dealership immediately and had my vehicle inspected the following day on XXX. I was informed by the service advisor that Toyota receives numerous complaints daily about this very issue with the newer model Highlanders, Grand Highlanders, Tacomas, and 4Runners. I insisted that my vehicle be inspected. The report stated that they were unable to duplicate the condition. The report states that no leaks were found with the evap system. The report also states that whe outside temps are extremely high, fuel inside the tank expands and creates additional vapor. I was assured by the service team that the fuel tank is operating correctly, despite the overwhelming fuel vapors that are intermittently emitted. I have lived in [XXX] my entire life and I have never encountered this issue with any vehicle that I have owned. These fumes are toxic and I am very concerned about my family being exposed and our safety/wellbeing. I have installed a carbon monoxide monitor in my garage. I have also filed a formal complaint at the Corporate level within Toyota and am awaiting a response. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759777August 26, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
A/C condenser damaged and broken caused by open grill design.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759653August 26, 2026
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
While stopped waiting to takeoff (turn into a road or area), during takeoff acceleration, the car will sometimes have a dead pedal and slow or stop acceleration leaving you a sitting duck in an intersection or road.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759636August 26, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Multiple times a week in the summer my car will hesitate to go once I have stopped at a stop sign/busy four way intersection. When I push the gas the car doesn’t respond and hesitates for a long while before I can get the car to start moving again. The car will roll into the intersection after I take my foot off the break to go and it won’t do anything. It is terrifying and confuses other drivers around me thinking that I am letting them go. This has happened upwards of 20 times since I have had the car. It happens only on hot days when the external temperature is above 80 or so degrees and happens when car is freshly started. It reliably happens when I go up a pretty small hill by my house about 1 minute after starting the car (even when it is coming from being parked in my garage). Joseph Toyota on Colerain in Cincinnati has not been able to reproduce the issue. I drive with two children in the car and it is so scary when it happens because I have almost been hit with them in the car many times now.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759592August 25, 2026
ENGINE, POWER TRAIN, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
I continuously have issues accelerating from stop in my max hybrid. the issue is particularly worse when it is warm out. I press the gas and the RPMs drop really low and I barely move through the intersection for a few seconds. Once it finally registers after a number of seconds, the RPMs rev up over 4000. It is very dangerous trying to proceed through an intersection and the car basically stalls when I press the gas. It especially concerns me that I have my child in the car with me and I worry when it is going to act up. I know others have experienced this issue and there was a TSB for 2024 models that had this issue. I have a 2025 and experience this issue. I have had toyota look at it and they said they cant do the TSB since it's bot for my VIN. A solution needs to be found for the the safety of myself and others.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759577August 25, 2026
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
The car stalled on entering secondary roads from my own neighborhood. When it happens, I have pressed the throttle and the car stops moving forward. It takes 5-10 seconds before the engine picks up and the car moves. The first owner found the same thing and now as the second owner, it has done the same thing.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759572August 25, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I have over 30k miles on my car. Over the period that I’ve owned it there have been a few, roughly 6, occasions where I’m trying to change lanes from a stop into quick traffic and my car lags 1-3 seconds in response to me pressing the gas petal. It happens infrequently and is not the normal response. Other times the car responds as one would expect.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759560August 25, 2026
POWER TRAIN, ENGINE, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Sometimes, when trying to accelerate in certain situations, the vehicle accelerator pedal will not respond or the engine stutters and won't immediately respond to input and the vehicle seems to stall. This has been scary several times in traffic. The vehicle originally would throw an engine code on the dash about system failure and was taken into the dealer after several of these incidents and a software updates was performed, but it still happens randomly although now with no code.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759554August 25, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
My coolant evaporates . I think a tick hit through grill and damaged the heat exchanger. I have to fill the coolant monthly
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759524August 25, 2026
STRUCTURE:BODY, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Damage occurred to the front air conditioning system because a rock flew through the open grill area. This punctured the system causing a couple thousand dollar repair, not under warranty. The car was nearly brand new at the time. The grill area is a problem, it's a bad design.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759500August 25, 2026
ENGINE
The engine would not engage for 4-5 seconds when pulling out of my neighborhood. Gas pedal was all the way down and after a delay, the car rolled forward as if trying to start in 2nd/3rd gear. I am a cautious driver, but this is an unsafe scenario when pulling out into traffic.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759369August 25, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
on 8/13/2026, I was driving alone on West I-80 right before Park City, Ut; I heard a loud pop and my panoramic sunroof exploded which was really scary. I was not using my sunroof at all, so the cover protected everything on the inside. At first I thought it was a flat tire, but no warning messages came onto the control panel. There were not immediate safety issues, so I was able to get to a Toyota Dealership to have it repaired. I did not hear any gravel or road debris flip up onto my sunroof, nor did I hear any under my tires when driving. My vehicle was inspected by a service technician at the Toyota Dealership and he just said it was probably caused by an outside influence.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759213August 24, 2026
STRUCTURE:BODY
The hybrid inverter cooler failed due to an impact with what was described as a rock or road debris shooting through the front grill and striking the inverter cooler so that it leaked coolant and failed. There was no notice of impact, while driving on the highway the hybrid system rapidly went into shut down/safety mode and acceleration and power to the drivetrain of vehicle dramatically reduced. This took a matter of seconds while on the highway without any warning. The problem, cause, effect, and repair was all diagnosed by a Toyota service personnel at a Toyota dealer. It was reported that this is a common issue with the grill design.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759168August 24, 2026
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, STRUCTURE:BODY, ENGINE
road debris entered into front grill though the holes in grill adn damaged condensor fins causing vehicle to loose propulsion. Vehicle would not travel over 25 mph after the incidnet. This is safety issue as vehicle slowed from 55MPH to 25MPH rather abruptly on highway. Multiple lamps came on dash at time of incident and were reatained untill fixed (non warranty repair)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759021August 24, 2026
POWER TRAIN, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
The contact owns a 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander. The contact stated that while making a right turn from a complete stop to merge into traffic, the vehicle hesitated and failed to exceed 7–10 MPH. The contact released and then depressed the accelerator pedal again, and the vehicle responded as intended. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where software updates were performed on several occasions; however, the failures persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 800.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759009August 24, 2026
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
For no reason at all windshield has two parallel lines crack in upper right side, no signs of impact and not sure what caused this.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11759004August 24, 2026
ENGINE
During normal highway driving, a small road rock/debris entered through the front grille and damaged the radiator/heat exchanger. The damage caused coolant to leak, and the vehicle subsequently lost propulsion and became disabled. I had to stop driving the vehicle and have it inspected and repaired by a Toyota dealer. The Toyota dealer inspected the vehicle and confirmed that the radiator/heat exchanger was damaged by an outside object and was leaking. The dealer indicated that rocks or road debris can cause this type of damage. The total repair cost was approximately $1,350. I am concerned that the large openings in the front grille allow ordinary road debris to reach the radiator/heat exchanger, which is not adequately protected. A relatively small road object resulted in a critical cooling system failure and sudden loss of vehicle propulsion, creating a significant safety risk, particularly if this occurs while traveling at highway speed. I understand that NHTSA is currently reviewing similar reports involving the grille design and damage to the heat exchanger/radiator on Toyota Grand Highlander vehicles. My vehicle experienced a similar failure. I believe this issue should be investigated as a potential design-related safety defect and that an appropriate protective solution should be considered.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11758880August 23, 2026
ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
While driving on a highway at highway speed of approximately 62 miles per hour, a rock from the highway went through the front grille's hole, and punctured the area of the radiator, resulted in a large loss of coolant, and the vehicle's speed suddenly lost highway speed and lost propulsion on the highway, while driving at a highway speed. Thankfully noone was driving behind me. However, If someone was behind me, they would have hit me from the rear due to my loss of propulsion.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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