2008 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER Complaints

BRAKE MALFUNTION WARNING INDICATOR LIGHTS, ABS ,VSC(SLIIP INDICATORL) LIGHT),EMERGENCY BRAKE LIGHT AND MASTER WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATE ON INSTRUMENT PANEL. I,VE BEEN DEALING WITH THIS FOR 2 WEEKS NOW. THE FIRST TIME I TOOK IT IN TO THE DEALERSHIP, THE DIAGONISTIC TEST SHOWED NOTHING, , BUT, POSSIBLY COULD BE LOW VOLTAGE FROM A PERFECTLY GOOD 18MONTHS AND 20 DAY OLD BATTERY BOUGHT FROM THE DEALERSHIP. I HAD A NEW BATTERY PUT IN FOR FEAR OF DOING ANYTHING TO HARM THE HYBRID SYSTEM. MAY I ALSO ADD THAT THE DEALERSHIP OFFERED NO PRORATE ON THE BATTERY. . ABOUT 200 MILES, LESS THAN 4 DAYS , EVERYTHING LIT UP AGAIN. FEARING WHAT I HAD RESEARCHED ON LINE, THEY QUOTED ME A PRICE OF $5129.00 FOR THIS REPAIR OF ABS PUMP/BRAKE ACTUATOR.. REALLY?? WHO HAS THAT KIND OF MONEY FOR A DEFECT THAT SHOULD BE TAKEN CARE OF BY TOYOTA? I ASKED THEM TO RETURN THE BATTERY TAKEN FROM MY CAR A FEW DAYS EARLIER SINCE THAT WASN'T THE PROBLEM . I TOLD THEM I WOULD HAVE TO LOOK AT MY OPTIONS ABOUT THE RIDICULOUS REPAIR. I WAS OFFERED $6000.00 AT THE DEALERSHIP OR POSSIBLY MORE FOR A TRADE IN FOR MY VEHICLE.. NICE, RIGHT?? STILL IN SHOCK,, I PULL ALL THE MAINTENANCE RECORDS OF WHICH THIS VEHICLE WITH 113,400 MILES HAS BEEN METICULOUSLY MAINTAINED.SINCE IT WAS BOUGHT AT THAT DEALERSHIP NOW, I AM WONDERING IF THEY EVEN KNOW HOW TO DO DIAGIONISTIC TESTING SINCE ONE WEEK IT DIDN'T SHOW UP AND A FEW DAYS LATER IT DID! NOW, I RESEARCH MORE AND AND FIND A RECALL 13V396000 OF 09/04/13 FOR THE HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM,INVERTER COMPONENT WHICH EXPLICITLY DESCRIBES WHAT HAPPENED TO MY HIGHLANDER. I AM WONDERING IF MY CAR WAS IN THAT GROUP AND IF I WAS. TOYOTA NEEDS TO STEP UP AND MAKE IT RIGHT. I HAVE NO PROBLEM PAYING FOR NORMAL WEAR AND TEAR OF A VEHICLE,....BUT THIS IS CLEARLY A TOYOTA DEFECT!!

THE ABS ACTUATOR FAILED AND TOYOTA HAS A RECALL FOR THIS PART ON 2006&2007 MODELS BUT NOT FOR THE 2008 MODEL. THE REPAIR COST AT A MINIMUM IS $3000 WHICH IS ABSURDLY HIGH. THIS MEANS THAT I DO NOT HAVE ANTI LOCKING BRAKES MAKING IT UNSAFE FOR ME TO DRIVE.

WHILE DRIVING MY VEHICLE ON THE NORTHBOUND I-405 AT ABOUT 4:30 PM ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON, THE VEHICLE'S ELECTRIC ENGINE SHUT-OFF WITH NO WARNING OR EXPLANATION. DASH LIGHTS WERE STILL LIT AND VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION. COULD NOT GET OUT OF TRAFFIC SAFELY EXCEPT WITH REMAINING MOMENTUM FROM THE NO. 3 LANE OF TRAFFIC. ELECTRIC ENGINE WOULD NOT POWER-UP. THERE WERE NO FUEL OR BATTERY PROBLEMS. THE TECHNICIAN'S TEST NARROWED THE PROBLEM TO THE DC INVERTER WHICH WAS PREVIOUSLY A RECALL ISSUE. THIS RECALL DOESN'T APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN RESOLVED, THOUGH THE DEALER CLAIMS IT WAS. THANK YOU.

WE PURCHASED A 2008 HIGHLANDER HYBRID IN 2016. THE CAR WAS PRACTICALLY MAINTENANCE FREE UNTIL LAST WEEK. ALL SERVICE EXCEPT OIL CHANGES HAVE BEEN DONE BY THE LOCAL TOYOTA DEALER. MY WIFE WAS PULLING OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY WHEN THE ABS/VSC LIGHTS CAME ON AND THE CONSOLE SAID TO PULL OVER. A CODE SCAN SAID IT WAS C1391, INTERNAL ACC PRESSURE LEAK. TOOK IT TO THE DEALER. THEY SAID IT NEEDED A NEW BRAKE ACCUMULATOR AND A NEW BRAKE BOOSTER FOR A TOTAL OF OVER $5000! RESEARCHING THE ISSUE, I FOUND IT IS A FAIRLY COMMON ISSUE FOR THESE CARS. WHEN I CALLED TOYOTA TO ASK IF THE COST OF THIS REPAIR, EQUAL TO 1/3 THE COST OF THE VEHICLE, COULD BE MITIGATED, I EVENTUALLY GOT A WOMAN WHO TOLD ME THAT SINCE I DIDN'T TAKE THE CAR IN TO THE DEALER FOR NEARLY A YEAR IN 2015, I WAS NOT A LOYAL TOYOTA CUSTOMER AND THEY HAVE CHOSEN NOT TO HELP ME. REALLY!!?? THE CAR DIDN'T NEED ANY SERVICE DURING THAT TIME! I OWN 5 OTHER CARS INCLUDING A COUPLE OF BMWS AND I HAVE NEVER HAD A REPAIR THIS EXPENSIVE AND HAVE NEVER BEEN ADMONISHED BY AN AUTOMOBILE COMPANY REPRESENTATIVE FOR NOT GETTING A CAR SERVICED WHEN IT DIDN'T NEED IT. THIS WAS OUR FIRST TOYOTA AND WILL BE OUT LAST.

I HAVE A 2008 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER. WHILE DRIVING A SIDE CITY STREET, ON A SLIGHT CURVE, THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED AND COULD NOT BE TURNED. AS A RESULT, MY DAUGHTER HIT A TREE. MY DAUGHTER WAS GOING APPROXIMATELY 25MPH AND THE IMPACT WAS IN THE CENTER OF THE VEHICLE. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY.

MY STERING WHEEL IT MAKING NOISE ALL THE TIME WHEN YOU TURN LEFT OR RIGHT ITS CLICKING WHEN I WENT TO TOYOTA DEALER THEY ASKED FOR $3000 FOR REPAIR AND I HAVE THAT CLICKING THE YEAR AFTER I BUY THIS CAR

3 WEEKS AFTER WE PURCHASED OUR 2008 HIGHLANDER HYBRID WITH ONLY 115,000 MILES ON IT, THE WHOLE DASHBOARD LIT UP WITH WARNING LIGHTS. THE LIGHTS INDICATED THAT THE ABS HAD MALFUNCTIONED. IT SAID TO PULL OVER AND GET IT CHECKED BY THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP IMMEDIATELY. WE TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP AND WERE TOLD THAT THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL LEAK IN THE ACCUMULATOR AND THAT IT WILL COST $4693.46 TO REPAIR. THIS IS AFTER WE HAD JUST PURCHASED THE VEHICLE FOR $15,000. WE ARE A FAMILY WITH 6 KIDS AND OBVIOUSLY DO NOT HAVE THAT KIND OF MONEY. WE CONTINUED DRIVING THE HIGHLANDER UNTIL IT BECAME COMPLETELY UNSAFE. THE BRAKES STOPPED WORKING WHILE I WAS DRIVING IT ONE DAY WITH MY KIDS. THE BRAKES WOULD GO ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR AND BARELY EVEN STOPPED ME. I MANAGED TO MAKE IT HOME WITHOUT BEING IN A WRECK, BUT WE FEEL THAT IT IS TOTALLY UNSAFE TO DRIVE. IT IS THE ONLY VEHICLE THAT WE HAVE TO TRANSPORT ALL OF OUR FAMILY, AND WE AREN'T SURE WHAT TO DO. MY HUSBAND HAS RESEARCHED AND DISCOVERED THAT THE ABS HAS BEEN RECALLED IN THE 2006 AND 2007 TOYOTA HIGHLANDERS. WE HAVE ALSO DISCOVERED THAT THERE ARE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS SIMILAR TO OURS WITH THE 2008 HIGHLANDER. WE REALLY HOPE THAT YOU CONSIDER THE SAFETY ISSUE THAT IS AT STAKE WITH THE BRAKES GOING OUT IN THESE VEHICLES. THIS PART NEEDS TO BE RECALLED AND THIS ISSUE NEEDS TO BE TAKEN CARE OF TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF MANY AMERICANS.

A BUNCH OF LIGHTS CAME ON INCLUDING MY ABS AND WARNINGS FLASHED.. I BROUGHT IT TO A TOYOTA DEALERSHIP IN GA AND THEY TRIED TO CHARGE ME LIKE 4000 TO REPLACE IT.. THEY TOLD MY WIFE IF IT WASN'T REPLACED SHE MAY DIE WHEN SHE LEFT THE DEALERSHIP. SHE WAS PRAYING AND COMPLETELY SCARED OUT OF HER MIND. IT'S STILL NOT FIXED.. SHE DRIVE IT WITH ALL THE LIGHTS ON TO COLORADO AND I STILL HAVE NO IDEA HOW I CAN FIX THIS PROBLEM. APPARENTLY I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE.. I LOVE TOYOTA AND REALLY HOPE SOME ONE REACHES OUT SOON.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER HYBRID. WHILE DRIVING 35 MPH, THE BRAKE PEDAL PULSATED. ALSO, THE BRAKE MALFUNCTION, ABS, BSB, CHECK BRAKE SYSTEM, AND EMERGENCY BRAKE WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO TOYOTA OF CLERMONT (16851 STATE ROAD 50, CLERMONT, FL 34711) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE BRAKE ACTUATOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND REFERRED THE CONTACT TO NHTSA. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 141,565.

I WAS ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN MY CAR GAVE A WARNING TO PULL OVER SAFELY DUE TO A BRAKE MALFUNCTION AND TO TAKE TO THE DEALER. THE VSC SYSTEM LIGHT ALSO CAME ON. I SEE TOYOTA RECALLED THIS IN THE 2006 AND 2007 BUT NOT THE 2008 HIGHLANDER HYBRID. THIS IS A $2000.00 FIX FOR THE ACCUMULATOR BRAKE ACTUATOR ASSEMBLY. IF THIS IS SUCH A KNOW PROBLEM WHY IS THERE NO RECALL FOR 2008.