Toyota Highlander Complaints

958 consumer complaints on file.

#11541007August 27, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
At about 3500 miles the car has started lagging really bad. I have almost been hit in stop and go traffic and have almost hit the car in front of me because I never know if when I put my foot on the gas if I’m going to go or not. When pulling out into on coming traffic I have to make sure the cars are really far away because again I never know if the car is going to actually get up and go. It lags, shakes like of it has no power. Once you get going it ok but to actually get going it’s awful. I’m really nervous the almost getting hit or hitting someone is actually going to happen because you have to floor it to get it to actually go and randomly sometimes it actually does get power that when it does take off it’s to much. There is no smooth to this car. Dealership says nothing wrong.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540863August 26, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I purchased a 2023 Toyota Highlander 2.5 turbo in June of 2023. This car was bought for my wife so I had not noticed a operation issue until I had a opportunity to drive it, at about 1,500 miles on the odometer. Upon accelerating from a stop, the car slightly hesitates then surges followed by slight bucking. My wife acknowledged the issue when I mentioned it. I have to state that the problem does not exist from every acceleration from a stop. I took the car to the dealer where I bought the car to investigate the issue. They said the mechanic did not experience the issue. I've read of many like minded comments from owners on toyotanation.com. I do believe this issue if not resolved may eventually lead to a accident.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540829August 25, 2023
STRUCTURE:BODY
I was driving on the highway when suddenly I heard a terrible sound like a shot, I thought that we were shot or had an accident. But the sunroof glass was broken. there wasn't anything causing impact I you can see this incident is outward like something exploded from inside via stress
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540745August 25, 2023
POWER TRAIN, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
There is a significant hesitation / stuttering when the gas pedal is pressed (i.e. the vehicle doesn't move properly when the gas pedal is pressed). This is especially dangerous when pulling out into traffic, making turns, etc. This appears to be a known problem with this model and Toyota is working on a TSB (supposedly). Doing a Google search for this problem shows that a number of consumers are having a similar issue. A few people have documented the issue here: https://www.toyotanation.com/threads/2023-highlander-2-4-turbo-surging-and-bucking-under-acceleration.1751952/ This is an ongoing problem. It hasn't resulted in an accident yet, but the lag / stutter in accelerating is putting consumers at risk. I just picked one random date below, but it has been ongoing since the vehicle was purchased new and appears to be happening to numerous other people as well as is evidenced by an internet search.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540678August 25, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
My 2023 highlander limited hesitates and lags when pulling out into the roads and highways! I almost have gotten hit several times. It has so called been inspected three times and they all tell me it doesn’t show on our computer so it’s fine ! No messages or warnings ever come up. This is so very dangerous and I could be killed along with others
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11540457August 24, 2023
ENGINE
Sudden engine coolant temperature high warning comes on. Temperature jumps from normal to maximum on gage. Needle hunts from normal to high. Sometimes needle stays at high. Outside air temperature was 97 degrees Fahrenheit. Similar incident happened on 7/5/2023 when temperature was in the 90s.. Toyota dealer could find nothing wrong with the vehicle. This time I took a picture of the panel with the warning showing.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11539954August 21, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES
When slowing down with steady brake pressure, sometimes there is a short pause, 1-2 seconds where it feels like you just lost the brakes. Sometimes this happens when turning and braking too. It isn’t something I can recreate and Toyota opened a case, looked at the car, and said it is normal. Not my 1st hybrid and this is not normal. This has happened many times over the last year and Toyota has looked at the brakes at least 3 or 4 times.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11539369August 18, 2023
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:ACCELERATOR PEDAL, ENGINE
The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. While depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle hesitated and the engine misfired. The secondary collision, braking system malfunction, brake ligation malfunction, and throttle control system advanced warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was sludge in the engine. The oil was changed, and the warning lights reset. Additionally, the contact was informed that the DTC exhaust cam shaft sensor and oil pan assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 2,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11538039August 11, 2023
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Vehicle does not fill above 14 gallons of gas. It says 10 miles until empty, but when you fill it and try to force as much gas in as it will take, it only fills to 14 gallons not the capacity of 17.8 that is advertised.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11537146August 8, 2023
ENGINE
Pulled out of intersection and vehicle hesitated and surged upon acceleration causing bear miss from oncoming traffic vehicle consistently hesitates and surges from stop to 35-40 mph
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11536426August 4, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The side mirrors on the vehicle are melting and deforming. This happened with the vehicle being less than 1 year old. Nowhere else on the vehicle is melted but the dealership claims it’s “solar convergence” however none of this damage is happening to older model Toyotas that have been exposed much longer to the elements/sun. I have read online numerous people’s vehicles from Toyota suffering this same issue
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11536225August 3, 2023
POWER TRAIN
Almost since purchase this vehicle has emitted a shudder when driving. The loss of power has affected ability to evade when making turns, acceleration on highways, and has caused safety concerns while driving with children in the vehicle-this is a brand new vehicle purchased with approximately 7 miles on the odometer. Vehicle has been in the shop at least 3 times, 4 with today's visit. ToyotaNation forum shows that there are MANY vehicles with this issue and that Toyota Master Technicians are aware of the issues.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11536014August 2, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES
A few months after the winter of 2022/2023 the car started making noise and shaking while breaking, the car was taken for regular maintenance at the dealer and I was told everything was fine on April/2023, it just got worse over time and the breaks are now failing and not stopping properly due to huge clusters of rust in the rotors. Car was taken again to the Toyota dealership and they said the warranty does not cover the rotors as they are considered wear and tear parts, rotor isn't worn but has increased in thickness in the areas were the clusters of rust are. After speaking to another mechanic I was told it happened because of the low quality steel of the rotors used by Toyota, which do not perform well in a climate where salt and other chemicals are used to treat the roads. The breaking quality has reduced so much the vehicle is taking twice as long to stop putting myself and others at risk.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11535729August 1, 2023
TIRES, TIRES:PRESSURE MONITORING AND REGULATING SYSTEMS
Tire Size 235/65R18 Tires are under 40,000 miles and especially passenger right tread is gone. Tire’s already need to be replaced. The tire won’t hold air. No puncture anywhere, went to dealership and they couldn’t believe that the tires are so worn down already with such low mileage. I tried contacting Bridgstone they dismissed any concerns. I've been trying to get some help. These tires seem defective.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11535351July 30, 2023
POWER TRAIN, ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
2023 Toyota Highlander XLE with 2.4 Turbo hesitates for an unacceptable period of time when accelerating from a stop. This could pose a huge safety risk when merging into traffic from a stop sign. The lag / hesitation is present on all eco / normal / sport drive modes. The issue has been occurring since the vehicle was purchased at 70 miles and currently has about 5200 miles. Toyota needs to look into this issue and address it as soon as possible.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11535162July 28, 2023
ENGINE
The "turbo lag" as the dealership calls it is horrendous. Vehicle has extremely poor acceleration from a stop. It is very dangerous when pulling out into traffic as acceleration falls flat for a second or two until it eventually responds and accelerates. I try to be very cognizant of the poor performance of the vehicle, but I feel it is a matter of time until something bad happens. I took the vehicle to the dealership and was told the vehicle drives as designed. Since there are no faults, the dealership has washed their hands. Contacted Toyota HQ and open a case but was told "sorry we do not have anything to offer". The complaints are all over the internet from a simple Google search and I believe Toyota will eventually release updated software as this really negatively impacts the performance of a 50K vehicle. Right now they seem to be in a state of denial and I am really disappointed.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11534843July 27, 2023
ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Vehicle unpredictably hesitates during light to moderate acceleration in all driving modes (Sport, Normal, and Eco). This is especially dangerous when crossing in front of oncoming traffic from a stop or slow speed. Had a certified mechanic drive the car and verify the problem, but the car's systems don't report that there is a problem, so he had no answers.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11534090July 24, 2023
POWER TRAIN, ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The vehicle hesitates when accelerating from a stop. Dealership Technician says he noticed the hesitation when accelerating, but since there are no DTC’s and No Data found saying that there is a malfunction
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11531965July 13, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
While driving from Detroit to Chicago I was in a single lane traffic due to construction. I started getting message "Engine coolant temperature high, pull over when safe to do and contact dealer". The coolant temperature needle will jump to high then go back to normal. I stopped 5 different times before I could get the car to the dealer. Only once during this ordeal the gage temperature stayed at high for couple of minutes. The Toyota dealer ran all the tests and couldn't find anything wrong other than the coolant level was a little below full. The outside temperature was 90 degrees Fahrenheit, Air conditioning was on high and speed was between 40 and 60 MPH. This Hybrid car had just gone past the 5000 miles mark when this started happening.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11531857July 12, 2023
ENGINE
When I hit the gas the car doesn’t go anywhere and almost got into an accident. Turbo lag maybe or something really really wrong. This is going to cause a huge accident
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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