2023 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER

What owners reported to NHTSA, ranked by how often and how seriously.

This is complaint data, not a random sample.

It only includes owners who chose to file a federal complaint, so it over-represents dramatic and safety-related problems and under-represents minor issues an owner just had fixed without reporting. Read this as what NHTSA complainants report most, not as this vehicle's true failure rate. Full methodology.

Component ranking

  1. #1

    other

    15 unsafe, 3 broken, 8 annoyance

    26
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=8)

    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated while driving 5 MPH and hitting concrete, the lower front bumper cover mounting tabs detached and created holes on the lower front bumper. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the parts were o…"~1,500 mi, complaint #1995182
    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked,  unattended an unknown vehicle crashed into the front bumper. A police report was not filed. There was no air bag deployment, fire, or injury. The contact attached…"~8,000 mi, complaint #1973260
    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact heard an abnormal sound coming from behind the dashboard and the rear passenger-side door. The contact stated that it sounded as if something…"~15,700 mi, complaint #2161568
  2. #2

    acceleration loss or hesitation

    24 unsafe, 1 annoyance

    25
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "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 "complaint #1912533
    • "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 v…"complaint #1913681
    • "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 d…"complaint #1914432
    • "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 ve…"complaint #1915676
    • "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 "complaint #1917060
  3. #3

    brake hydraulics

    13 unsafe

    13
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The vehicle brakes stop working suddenly requiring lift the pedal and slam the brakes to make it work correctly. I almost have a bad accident for this problem. I did my research and learned this is a problem that Toyota need to fix. The situation was very scar…"complaint #1873411
    • "Picked up my Toyota Highlander in April 2023 I have had to return it to the dealer on two occasions for check engine light and secondary Break failure I'm at the fourth check engine light and secondary brake failure report now it has been inspected by the deal…"complaint #1930259
    • "Brakes momentarily lost during certain conditions. If going down a hill and applying brake, suddenly loses pressure and vehicle surges forward. Taking a right hand turn, slowing, brake suddenly loses pressure and lunges forward causing vehicle to go into wro…"complaint #2011025
    • "the car surges forward when braking, as if the brakes are momentarily released. it almost caused be to hit the car in front of me. the brakes released in the middle of braking"complaint #2020755
    • "I was involved in a vehicle crash on 7-1-25. I had just pulled out of the gas station and was coming up to a stop sign so I was only going about 8mph I put my foot on the brake and nothing happened. I had my foot all the way down on the brake pedal because I s…"complaint #2112062
  4. #4

    airbag system

    10 unsafe

    10
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "The contact owned a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while his friend was driving at 45 MPH, he failed to yield when exiting the interstate at an exit ramp. As a result, the driver t-boned the passenger side of another vehicle. The air bags did…"~26,000 mi, complaint #2028828
    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving at 60–65 MPH, the contact's vehicle crashed into the passenger's side of an oncoming vehicle. The air bags did not deploy. In addition, the contact stated that it was a very hard…"~34,125 mi, complaint #2199344
  5. #5

    sunroof

    5 unsafe, 1 annoyance

    6
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "I bought toyota 2023 highlander in january. But I found water damage on roof of interior. so I went to dealership service center ( Midland toyota ). and they told to me . sun roof glass angle had wrong angle. and fixed it. ater 3 monthes same problem was appea…"complaint #1896143
    • "While driving in rain, I noticed drops of water coming into the car near the sunroof. I immediately drove to Jim Norton Toyota. The service technician told me that sunroofs are not waterproof. I went to Bob Howard Toyota for another inspection/more details.…"complaint #1938840
    • "While driving on the freeway, the sunroof just spontaneously exploded. The hole was right on the center of the sunroof. I am suspecting the explosion is due to weak material used on the vehicle not withstanding thermal expansion. In any case, this is very dang…"complaint #1968663
    • "While driving down the highway I went over a bridge joint and my sunroof suddenly exploded sending glass both into and off the back of the vehicle. I was able to find the moment of the explosion on my rear dashcam (saw the falling glass) and checked the front…"complaint #2183959
    • "driving down the road and the sunroof exploded "complaint #2216287
  6. #6

    trunk or liftgate

    6 unsafe

    6
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that the liftgate had failed to open or to close intermittently. The contact stated that the liftgate made an abnormal grinding sound while opening and would open 3-inch at a time while the contact…"~28,000 mi, complaint #2146512
  7. #7

    fuel tank and lines

    4 unsafe, 1 annoyance

    5
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the odor of gasoline was present inside and outside of the vehicle. The contact indicated that the failure had occurred intermittently after refueling the vehicle o…"~40,000 mi, complaint #2031488
  8. #8

    infotainment head unit

    3 unsafe, 2 annoyance

    5
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "I am on CarPlay Maps following direction and suddenly a pop up come up on the screen advertising the Toyota Driver experience connect subscription or asking me to reset the Toyota apps pin. In order to come back to the maps, I need to take my eyes off the road…"complaint #1983154
    • "I am writing to complain about the app called experience Drive connect. It is a push ad for a subscription that I do not want it interferes all the time, and is a safety issue. I can be using a navigation app like Waze and this blue ad will pop up, taking the…"complaint #2027575
    • "THE MULTIMEDIA CENTER KEEPS POPING UP "EXPERIENCE DRIVE CONNECT". This covers up the map and to try and remove the ad you have to take your eyes off the road push multiple buttons on the screen to return to the map. This is dangerous at any speed. The dealer…"complaint #2043720
    • "Unable to clear a screen on the navigation/media center. It has a pop-up for Drive Connect(a monthly fee based service from Toyota) that covers the screen about every 10 minutes while driving. It requires at least 2 touches to the screen to clear, but comes b…"complaint #2045059
    • "I bought this vehicle new in March 2024. I normally use Apple CarPlay for music and more importantly maps. Approximately 1 year after purchase, I was driving along and all of a sudden a new screen appeared with a keyboard requesting that I sign in with my ema…"complaint #2183726
  9. #9

    mirror

    4 unsafe, 1 annoyance

    5
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "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. T…"~28,000 mi, complaint #2231003
  10. #10

    transmission automatic

    5 unsafe

    5
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Right after vehicle passed 60k miles mark (manufacturer warranty ended) I noticed a whining noise under load. During acceleration the noise is most noticeable between 30-50 mph speed range. If a gas pedal released the noise is gone and if pressed again the noi…"complaint #2206599
    • "My 2023 Toyota Highlander was experiencing a high pitch whiny noise when accelerating. I looked up on line and saw that this could be a failing transmission issue. I took it into the Toyota Dealership , [REDACTED ADDRESS], Kennewick, WA 99336. They confirmed…"complaint #2212102
    • "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. "complaint #2230553
    • "I have a 2023 Toyota Highlander XSE with 77,015 miles on it. Last week we noticed that when pushing on the gas pedel to accelerate that the car started making a terrible whinning noise that did not go away. i scheduled a service call with dealership i purchase…"complaint #2234078
    • "Transmission failure under 50k miles. Replaced under powertrain warranty. UA81E incurred a whine that was prevalent at light acceleration over 40 mph. This is a known issue that spans multiple years at some point someone has to admit this is a design flaw."complaint #2239062
  11. #11

    instrument cluster

    4 unsafe

    4
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving at 40 MPH, the digital instrument panel went blank and showed a white screen. The contact was unable to see critical safety information and warning lights during the failure. The…"~29,500 mi, complaint #2131232
  12. #12

    seat mechanism

    1 stranded, 2 unsafe

    3
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Rear back seat unproper locking system. I have got rear ended while my kids were at back and I found out the rear seat slide a bit about couple inches. Dealership can't do anything of the recall at the moment. "complaint #2206658
    • "The driver’s seat lower cushion in my 2023 Toyota Highlander provided inadequate support during normal driving, particularly on the left side of the seat cushion where support for my left leg and hip area appeared insufficient. This caused uneven seating postu…"complaint #2212552
    • "My 2023 Toyota Highlander was grounded by the dealership on 4/30/26 due to safety recall 26TB06 (NHTSA Campaign 26V128) regarding a defective 2nd row seat back latch. The vehicle has been sitting un-remedied on the dealer lot for over 47 consecutive days. Th…"complaint #2216507
  13. #13

    seatbelt and pretensioner

    1 unsafe, 2 annoyance

    3
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, and driving at an undisclosed speed, the seat belt alarm chimed while the seat belts were properly buckled. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle, and rel…"~21,000 mi, complaint #2191119
  14. #14

    tire failure

    3 unsafe

    3
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "I am writing to bring to your attention a serious issue regarding my Toyota vehicle, which is still under warranty. While my wife was driving to work, the front passenger tire exploded unexpectedly, without any warning lights or messages. This is particularly…"complaint #2031993
    • "-Tire Sidewalls are cracked within 2 years of use and more than half of tread is unused -Cracking sidewalls leads to blowouts as complained about by prior consumers -Went to goodyear service center for inspection as requested for warranty claim -No warning lam…"complaint #2052396
    • "2023 Toyota Highlander XLE, Bridgestone Alenza Sport A/S 235/65R18. This is the 2nd time we had a side wall tire blow out. First incident 08/2023 and today 03/06/2025 happened again with 3 slit/cracks/holes(not sure how describe it, attached picture) in the si…"complaint #2071821
  15. #15

    unintended acceleration

    3 unsafe

    3
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving at lower speeds, pulling into an uphill driveway, the vehicle had independently accelerated while the accelerator pedal was depressed. In addition, the contact stated that she was…"~59,000 mi, complaint #2203873
  16. #16

    wheel or rim

    1 stranded, 1 unsafe, 1 broken

    3
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Car tire burst on interstate at normal operating speeds. Bursts throughout tire wall with large blow out on inside. No damage to tread and no other signs of damage. Tire began smoking while finding safe pull off spot. A Goodyear inspector suggested a vertica…"complaint #1888191
    • "On November 24, I took the vehicle into Gene Messer Toyota in Lubbock, TX to have them diagnose a noise in the front end. They confirmed hearing the noise but assured me the vehicle was safe to drive. No repairs were performed. 10 days later, on December 10, t…"complaint #2157873
    • "I was at a gas station and enter car wash, the machine didnt wash my car and distriy my front right tire "complaint #2200062
  17. #17

    adas blind spot

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The right side blind spot warning does not always show a vehicle is in blind spot. The forward collision will alert will start and keep beeping for up to 3 minutes when nothing is in the area. I pulled into driveway and the vehicle started to beep a warning bu…"complaint #1973914
    • "Blind spot feature is detecting a vehicle two lanes over from the lane I’m driving on. This has caused to almost result in a crash due to this safety hazard. Blind spot is always detecting a vehicle driving two lanes over. Blind spot signal on driver mirror fl…"complaint #2144200
  18. #18

    adas collision warning

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The warning lights go on for no apparent reason. Dash instrumen just disappear for no apparent reason and then reappear randomly. Such as compass disappearing and reappearing throughout the drive at long stretches at a time. The forward and rear collision warn…"complaint #1993604
    • "There is a wobbling sensation on my Highlander during braking at highway speeds. There is no such feeling while driving around city. It appeared after my trip on highway in heavy rain. There was no traffic, and I were using cruise control. Suddenly, doing noth…"complaint #2141657
  19. #19

    door latch and hinge

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle drove over a pothole, and the driver’s side front door opened about 3-4 inches wide. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer…"~8,874 mi, complaint #1965818
  20. #20

    engine cooling

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "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 t…"complaint #1909425
    • "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 7/5/202…"complaint #1921841
  21. #21

    engine internal

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "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…"~2,000 mi, complaint #1920220
  22. #22

    engine stall or no start

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "When 87 octane fuel is put into the vehicle, the 2023 highlander is sluggish to start and make jump at times as well. After reading other complaints online, the current fix was putting 93 octane in the vehicle to remedy the issue. Putting 93 octane fuel in the…"complaint #2004550
    • "There’s a noticeable lag in the engine, especially when starting or turning. Sometimes, it’s almost a full second, which is quite alarming. When I asked the mechanics at a few dealerships about this, they all said it’s normal for these new “Green” type engines…"complaint #2088820
  23. #23

    engine turbo supercharger

    2 unsafe

    2
    incidents

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "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 "complaint #1909267
    • "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…"complaint #1914133
  24. #24

    brake pads and rotors

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "There are two problems with our 2023 Toyota Highlander. 1) We only have 25k miles on our vehicle and the brake rotors became warped, to the point of causing severe chatter while downhill braking. Toyota stated that the warranty does not cover brakes. My argume…"complaint #2001637
  25. #25

    ev drive unit or inverter

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "When applying brake, in sporadic and unpredictable circumstances, the vehicle seems to switch from regenerative braking to brake pump braking. During this switch, braking power is lost completely. The vehicle was inspected by the Dealer, they stated no issues…"complaint #2215242
  26. #26

    evap system

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "On hot days the evap system does not function properly. You can visibly see gas fumes spewing from the filler neck area. The smell of gas inside and outside of the vehicle is horrible. It has caused headaches, nausea and dizziness to the passengers inside of t…"complaint #2024780
  27. #27

    glass and windshield

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The rear window on my car spontaneously shattered as I was driving. This was in light rain on the freeway. I had turned the rear-window defrost on at the beginning of my [REDACTED ADDRESS] to work in the dark at 5:30AM . When I was almost at my destination,…"complaint #2180828
  28. #28

    key fob and immobilizer

    1 annoyance

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Toyota gave me one FOB Key when I purchased the vehicle. I should be receiving 2 FOB keys. The dealer told me TOYOTA will send me a letter when the second key will be available. I called the TOYOTA Hot Line last Feb. 2024. I was told it will be available Ju…"complaint #2023451
  29. #29

    noise or vibration unspecified

    1 annoyance

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "This car when I’m driving it has a loud wind noise I went to dealer couple time but they told me that they can’t hear any noise but I have evidence and video about the noise when I’m driving 45 mph. It is still loud noise."complaint #1888502
  30. #30

    software or update

    1 annoyance

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "Toyota has a software program called Drive Connect. This is built into their 2023 and 2024 vehicles. This program has a navigation system and some other features that Toyota offers for about $200 per year. Toyota gives you 12 months free when you buy a new c…"complaint #1964782
  31. #31

    stability and traction control

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=1)

    • "The contact owned a 2023 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 MPH on a heavy snow weather condition, the vehicle lost traction, causing the contact to lose control of the vehicle and crash into a tree, where the v…"~50,000 mi, complaint #2078732
  32. #32

    steering rack mechanical

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=2)

    • "The contact owns a 2023 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel was excessively difficult to steer. The power steering malfunction and pre-collision warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken…"~49,050 mi, complaint #1980175
  33. #33

    transfer case awd

    1 stranded

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "The transfer case blew out when I stopped at a red-light, within the first 3 years of original ownership. Only 65,000 miles on the odometer, mostly from highway driving. The car is now inoperable and repair quotes are prohibitively expensive."complaint #2165168
  34. #34

    wiring harness

    1 unsafe

    1
    incident

    Mileage: suppressed (fewer than 10 mileage-bearing reports; n=0)

    • "We live on a farm so the fact there is rodents is no surprise. However strangest thing is the knock sensor harness has been chewed completely off two times in last two months.. when this happens it causes power loss. With the extra shielding the wire has tells…"complaint #2093447

Search NHTSA's own recall and complaint database for TOYOTA HIGHLANDER directly.