NHTSA Data Explorer

Toyota Highlander

Data refreshed August 8, 2026

Select a model year to filter results to that year of the Toyota Highlander.

Complaints

6,404

Active records

Recalls

57

Active records

TSBs

1,369

Active records

Filing history

Monthly totals over the last 20 years. Click a legend item to show or hide that series.

Reported severity

Based on consumer complaints filed since 2000. Recalls and TSBs do not include severity data.

Deaths

58

Injuries

407

Crashes

523

Fires

75

Top reported issues — Toyota Highlander

Click a category to expand its values.

Operating state

2,196

Condition issue

1,330

Noise

1,136

Reporting mechanism

1,061

Braking behavior

764

Performance issue

678

Driver assistance issue

584

Engine behavior

498

Transmission/drivetrain behavior

412

Safety restraint issue

403

Fluid issue

394

Access/entry issue

314

Vibration/harshness

278

Electrified system issue

252

Steering behavior

222

Thermal issue

220

Safety restraint behavior

215

Electrical issue

155

Infotainment behavior

149

Lighting behavior

126

Starting behavior

114

Powering on/off behavior

89

HVAC behavior

86

Smell

77

Ride/handling behavior

62

Recent change

40

Wiper/washer behavior

18

Communication/network issue

12

Charging behavior

1

Recent filings

The 10 most recent filings for each type.

2023 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Aug 5, 2026


2023 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Regenerative Brake Transition loss of brake pad pressure resulting in acceleration of the vehicle under downhill conditions. Have momentarily experienced the loss of braking frequently during braking when going downhill. This results in the vehicle gaining speed during this 1 or 2 second period before braking returns. In one case it allowed our car to get dangerously close to the vehicle ahead of us but fortunately I was able to push the brakes harder to prevent…

2006 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Aug 5, 2026


ABS actuator/accumulator issue on 2006 Toyota Highlander hybrid limited. Internal component failure there are recalls on others but not this particular year. Was driving along hit the brakes and got hard pedal. Yes there were other indicator lights on including the VSC system and traction control I came to an intersection and I couldn't stop I couldn't even kind of stop it was all hard pedal were before it was normal as if there wasn't an issue. I've done a lot of research and I've seen a lot…

2021 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Aug 4, 2026


Vehicle is experiencing a distinct, high-pitched mechanical whine or grind sound from the transmission during acceleration that increases in pitch with vehicle speed. The noise does not happen while cruising or coasting. This symptom aligns directly with Toyota Technical Service Bulletin T-SB-0008-21 ('Whine or Grind Noise From Transmission'). I am concerned about a premature, catastrophic internal bearing or gear assembly failure of the UA80 8-speed transmission while driving at highway…

2021 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Aug 4, 2026


My transmission started to have a noticeable whine at 53k miles. It became noticeably louder during acceleration. It was diagnosed at the Toyota dealership as a failing transmission. My vehicle was a few months out of warranty. I was told to contact Toyota corporate to ask for assistance. I was told since I did not have a service record at the dealership, they would deny my claim. I advised them the transmission was a sealed unit with no dipstick. My vehicle has been meticulously…

2015 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Aug 4, 2026


The factory paint on my 2015 Toyota Highlander, Blizzard Pearl (Toyota code 070), is delaminating from the primer. The base coat lifts and peels in sheets, starting on the roof, fender, and pillars — the panels with the greatest UV exposure. There has been no collision, repaint, or chemical damage; this is spontaneous adhesion loss between the factory base coat and primer. First noticed 5/5/2026 at ~137,193 miles, it has spread across the roof and pillars, with the largest piece so far (~4x2)…

2019 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Aug 2, 2026


My 2019 Toyota Highlander has the same UA80 transmission that Toyota was required to fix under CUSTOMER SUPPORT PROGRAM ZJC, which covers 2017-2018, the transmission has the same whining noise and shifting issues. Toyota must accept responsibility for their manufacturing error where the washer tab was not bent properly, allowing a nut to loosen leading to the whining noise. I expect the NHTS to require them to cover their 2019's as well, as a consumer we are getting screwed here.

2025 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Jul 31, 2026


Crash

I was backing up the vechial accelerated the steering wheel was turning rapid & a grinding noise causing me too hit another vechial about a month before my husband was driving & the vechial accelerated going toward also we had had some issues with back camera not doing a warning signal with a object behind vechial when the accident happened my vechial has braking system that stops you if something is behind you this time it didn’t I called the dealership when accident happed which was May 21…

2023 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Jul 31, 2026


The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the driver’s and passenger’s side mirrors moved downward independently, causing the contact to manually adjust the side mirrors. A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed; however, the diagnostic result was unknown. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 28,000.

2021 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Jul 31, 2026


High pitched whirring from engine when accelerating. Took to mechanic who diagnosed worn internal transmission bearings that could lead to transmission failure. No warning lights or indicators. Toyota is aware of this issue (see Toyota Technical Service Bulletin T-SB-0008-21) but is doing nothing in response.

2023 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

Filed Jul 30, 2026


The transmission developed hesitations at take off, a whine at low speeds and over time got louder. Diagnosis by the dealer confirmed yet another bad eight speed transmission failure. This vehicle has 41K miles.

Data sourced from NHTSA's public datasets. Issue classifications are generated by Repair Surge. About this data.

Updated August 8, 2026. Refreshed nightly.