Toyota Highlander Complaints (2019)

514 consumer complaints on file.

#11694825October 21, 2025
POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH uphill and depressing the accelerator pedal, the contact heard a grinding sound and smelled an odor coming from the front of the vehicle. A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was towed to a dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure and opened a case. The approximate failure mileage was 160,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11694489October 20, 2025
POWER TRAIN
My car was having trouble shifting gears and then every single light came on indicating a big problem. The check engine light came on, it said ABS off and went through a bunch of different things saying they all turned off and would barely roll at 2mph. I took it in and it needs a full transmission replacement at barely 73,000 miles. Upon looking into it, I saw online that this is a common issue that Toyota still has not issued an official recall for despite it being a very common issue. It’s a 2019 Toyota Highlander XLE and should not be having these issues this early on.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11693031October 13, 2025
AIR BAGS, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Clog of evaporator box caused water intrusion into vehicle. Water leaked onto Airbag ECU causing malfunction and requiring replacement of Airbag ECU.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11692735October 11, 2025
POWER TRAIN
Engine revs up to 5k rpm by itself and barely moves forward when stepping on the accelerator. When it does move it’s only up to 40 miles per hour only and the engine will rev up to 5k rpm without moving any faster.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11692580October 10, 2025
ENGINE
Started noticing a whining noise when accelerating. This appears to be drive shaft/transmission issue. Was quoted 7k to remove and replace. This should be an active recall for this issue what is Toyota doing?
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11691808October 7, 2025
POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was a high-pitched whining sound coming from the vehicle. In addition, the contact became aware that the transmission was shifting abnormally rough. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000. The VIN was unavailable.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11691718October 6, 2025
POWER TRAIN
The 2019 hylander started whining when pressing the gas pedal. I had it checked out and found that it needs a new transmission but it is so prevalent of an issue with this vehicle that the transmission is on severe back order. Every complaint on the department of transportation website about this vehicle are about this issue save a handful. We should not be liable to pay for this repair nor for a rental car for months while we wait for the parts.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11691454October 5, 2025
POWER TRAIN
,At approx. 76,000 miles, we begin to hear a whine with acceleration. We also begin experiencing slight hesitation? It was diagnosed at The Williams Toyota Dealership in Big Flats New York 9/22/25. The dealership indicated the final drive gear bearing is starting to fail and we need to replace the transmission at the cost of $7472.00 plus tax. We are aware of the several class action lawsuits that have been filed against Toyota regarding the UA80E/F 8-speed automatic transmissions. The litigation covers multiple Toyota models 2017 model year and onward including the Highlander.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11691043October 2, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Intermittent EXTREMELY LOUD ear-piercing high pitched noise coming from speakers upon starting the vehicle. The volume of the sounds is extremely high, the loudest noise I've ever heard. The sound lasts about 5 seconds. I am concerned for the safety of our hearing, for my family, including our children. It has not been reproduced at the service center because it is intermittent. I have read online where others with the similar year/make/model experienced it and have varying success by re-subscribing to Toyota SOS Safety connect ($80/year), or replacing the Data Communication Module (DCM). If not uner warranty, this costs thousands of dollars. I have tried re-subscribing to the Safety Connect but it does not work, and the dealer wants me to pay additionally for them to see why this safety feature is not working in my car. There is no warning before this loud sound presents.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11690601September 30, 2025
POWER TRAIN
A couple of days ago, I started hearing a faint whining noise coming from my vehicle when I pressed on the gas pedal. When I brought my vehicle into the dealership today for my 100,000 mile service, I advised them of such. After raising the concern, I was told that there was an issue with my car's transmission and that it was not covered by the warranty as the warranty for that part ended at 75,000 miles. After looking up this issue and the cost to replace, I learned that this transmission issue is a prevalent issue with 2017-2021 highlanders with over 60,000 miles. This issue is so prevalent that there is a huge backorder for parts needed to fix this specific issue. I have owned multiple Toyotas because of their reliability. I had a 4 runner that I used past 225,000 miles with no issues. The fact that I'm having an issue with a transmission issue with a vehicle with less than 100,000 miles on it that I always service every 5,000 miles at the Toyota dealership I bought the vehicle at is huge red flag and is making me reconsider my allegiance to the Toyota brand. The dealer has quoted me a price of $7,500 to fix the issue. I believe that Toyota should make this right as it is clear that this is a known and prevalent issue with the highlanders. In fact, I'm surprised given the number of people complaining online that it is not the subject of a recall. As a lawyer, this sounds like an issue ripe for a class action. That being said, I am hoping that Toyota will work with me and pay for the repair and/or furnish me with a new car credit.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11690151September 28, 2025
POWER TRAIN
The transmission was checked by Toyota at 55,000 miles for whining sound. Technician advised that it is a normal sound for that type of transmission and it is ok. The sound continued to get louder , so we took it to 2 independant garages and they advised that the noise is the transmision going bad. At 64,000 miles we took it back to the same dealer to tell them we thought it was the transmission. The technician road with us and said he thought it was the brakes or something else. After returning from the test drive with the technician, 3 technicinians looked at it and agreed that the transmission is bad and should be replaced. The factory warranty expired at 60,000 miles and Toyota is not honoring that we took it to them for the same problem prior to warranty expiration. They are advsising that it has not completely failed yet, so it's not a problem. I do not want to drive my vehicle for any distance or at highway speeds for fear of failure in a dangerous area or stranded during bad weather.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11688640September 20, 2025
ENGINE, POWER TRAIN
The car only has 73, 000 miles on it and Toyota said it needs a new transmission. The car starting making a "whining" sound on acceleration so we took it into Toyota for diagnostic. We also found out that the Rav 4, Sequoia and Tacoma were all recalled for this same year for transmission issues. Toyota is trying to charge us $10,000 to have the transmission replaced since it is no longer under warranty.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11688553September 19, 2025
POWER TRAIN
Transmission failure
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11687904September 17, 2025
POWER TRAIN
Transmission whine at 63k miles
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11687609September 16, 2025
SEATS
I have captain seats in the middle. Driver side seat has 4 bolts that secure it to the vehicle floor. The front two bolts were ready to fall out. Caused a squeak that only my wife could hear due to my hearing impairment. I tightened that bolts and the squeak is gone. Pretty serious issue if only 2 of the 4 bolts holding the seat in place are tight.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11687114September 13, 2025
POWER TRAIN
Transmission failure. Car will not drive or reverse. Engine turns on. I’m told that transmissions are on back order with no ETA.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11686935September 12, 2025
POWER TRAIN
I have 2019 Toyota Highlander and it has less than 78k miles. A few months ago ago it started barley noticeable wheezing sound and then it got progressively worse. I took it to a the mechanic and he said it was the transmission. It expensive to fix and I saw that a lot if people are complaining about the same problem. I think Toyota should be responsible for replacing the faulty transmissions. My car has been sitting in the driveway because I can’t fix it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11686294September 10, 2025
POWER TRAIN
Car Manufactured in April 2019. Transmission failure at 113,000 miles. Before failure, the transmission had a whine and lag when accelerating from a full stop, creating an unsafe situation when pulling into traffic. The cost to repair is over $9,000, and the part is on backorder for several months. The NHSTA facilitated a voluntary service bulletin with Toyota that extended the warranty for the Highlander model years 2017 to 2018 for issues related to the UA80F transmission. The service bulletin should extend to the 2019 model year, as the issues are the same and the transmission model is the same, and possibly for models built early in 2019, which likely have transmissions built or component parts from 2018.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11686021September 9, 2025
POWER TRAIN
Erratic shifting, dangerous hesitancy and slow starts when pulling into traffic, whining. Took the car to the Toyota Dealer on 08/19/2025, diagnosed as having a failing transmission (detailed service invoice attached).
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11685258September 5, 2025
POWER TRAIN
The transmission has exhibited signs of premature failure due to an internal component defect. The only indication was a whining noise when accelerating. This was first noticed around July 2025 when the car had about 78,000 miles on it. The car was later inspected by the Toyota dealer on 08/20/2025 with 79,253 miles on it. The Toyota dealer determined that "the noise being heard was the transmission becoming faulty" and prescribed replacing the transmission "as soon as possible." This is a safety concern if the transmission suddenly fails while driving, but I am not going to wait for that to happen before replacing it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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