2005 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER Complaints

MY DRIVER SIDE HIGH BEAM HEADLIGHT FLASHED BURNED MY LIGHT ENSEMBLE ON MY 2005 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER. SHOWED TECH AT TOYOTA AND CLAIMED DESPITE NEVER SEEN A FIRE CAUSED BY HEADLAMP THAT IT DID INDEED BURN PLASTIC HOUSING FROM FLASH BURN OUT NOT COVERED BY WARRANTY.*JB

2005 V6 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER - TRANSMISSION UPDATE FLASH - DOES NOT RESOLVE LAG ISSUE AS INTENDED, AND LATER MAKES TRANSMISSION STUTTER AND JERKY - NOT RESOLVED AFTER TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGE AND INSPECTION. TWO DEALERS STATED: COULD NOT REPLICATE ISSUE. FAMILY AND FRIENDS HAVE DRIVEN AND RIDDEN IN VEHICLE AND STATE THEY FEEL IT DRIVES LIKE AN OLD CAR OR WORSE - MAKES NOISES AND IS NOT SMOOTH, ALSO CAN BE DANGEROUS IF A QUICK RESPONSE IS NECESSARY. *TR

DEFECTIVE HEADLIGHT LENSES IN JULY 2006, A 1-INCH DIAMETER OPAQUE "DISCOLORATION " APPEARED IN LEFT FRONT HEADLAMP LENS, DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF AREA CLOSEST TO HALOGEN BULB. BESIDES IMPAIRING LIGHT OUTPUT, I WAS FEARFUL THAT DEFECTIVE AREA WOULD EVENTUALLY BREAK OR CRACK, ALLOWING WATER TO CONTACT HALOGEN BULB - CAUSING IT TO EXPLODE WHEN HOT. (2005 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER WAS 18-MONTHS OLD AT THAT TIME, WITH 25,263 MILES.) TOYOTA REPLACED SAME UNDER WARRANTY. NOW SAME LENS DEFECT / DISCOLORATION IS OCCURRING TO RIGHT FRONT HEADLAMP PLASTIC LENS AT 45,000 MILES, AND AGAIN FEARFUL THAT LENS FAILURE WILL RESULT IN EXPLODING HALOGEN BULB. UNSURE IT TOYOTA WILL COVER THIS SECOND REPAIR. HEADLAMPS AND BULBS ARE ORIGINAL FACTORY EQUIPMENT. *JB

THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN HAPPENING FROM THE FIRST MONTH I BOUGHT MY 2005 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER NEW AT THE DEALERSHIP. TRANSMISSION SHIFT ERRATICALLY. JOLTING SHIFTS ALL THE TIME; ESPECIALLY WHEN ACCELERATING. LAGS IN DOWNSHIFTING, HESITATION IN SHIFTING. I'VE TAKEN IT TO THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP MANY TIMES. THEY HAVE SAID IT IS LEARNING MY DRIVING HABITS. ONE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME TO TAKE MY FOOT OFF THE GAS AND DEPRESS IT AGAIN - THIS TELLS THE TRANSMISSION WHAT I REALLY WANT TO DO. HE ALSO SAID TO BE AGGRESSIVE WITH THE GAS. MOST OF THE TIME THE DEALERSHIPS SAY THERE DOESN'T SEEM TO BE ANYTHING WRONG WITH IT. BUT I'VE NOTED THAT THEY NEVER TYPE IN MY COMPLAINT ON THE WORK ORDERS. *JB

2005 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER. CONSUMER WOULD LIKE TO RECEIVE RECALL INFORMATION. *MC *TR

TOYOTA HILANDER LIMITED. I HAVE A HESITATION WHEN I ACCELERATE. I HAVE HAD IT BACK TO TOYOTA AT LEAST 3 TIMES CONCERNING THIS PROBLEM. THEY TELL ME THAT'S THE WAY IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE. IT'S DANGEROUS IF YOU ARE TRYING TO GET ON AN INTERSTATE AND DON'T HAVE THE ACCELERATION YOU NEED. *AK

PURCHASED NEW TOYOTA HIGHLANDER 2005 MODEL YEAR IN JULY 2005. VEHICLE WAS PARKED IN DRIVEWAY SINCE. VEHICLE ONLY HAS 23,000 MILES. CORROSSION DEVELOPED WITHIN 9 MONTHS OF PURCHASE IN THESE AREAS: BASE OF ANTENNA, ANTENNA MAST, WINDOW FRAMES, AND ALUMINUM OR ALLOY WHEELS SHOW BUBBLING IN THE SURFACE THAT ARE INCREASING IN SIZE AND DIAMETER.**AK DEALERSHIP AND TOYOTA WERE CONTACTED TO REMEDY PROBLEMS WITH WHEELS WITHOUT SUCCESS. DEALERSHIP REPAINTED CORRODED WINDOWS. DEALERSHIP AND TOYOTA CLAIM CORROSION IS DUE TO ENVIRONMENT - I HAVE HAD 2 OTHER VEHICLES PARKED IN THE SAME LOCATION WITHOUT VISIBLE SIGNS OF CORROSSION. I AM CONCERN THAT THE CONTINUED EXPANSION OF THE BUBBLES AND CORROSSION ON THE WHEELS WILL CREATE A SAFETY HAZARD IF IT WEAKENS THE STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY OF THE WHEES.

BRAKE PROBLEM I BOUGHT A 2005 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER IN APRIL 2005. EARLY NOVEMBER 2006 THIS HAPPENED: AFTER I STARTED THE CAR, I HEARD AN EXTREMELY LOUD NOISE WHEN THE BRAKES WERE STEPPED ON. IT SOUNDED LIKE NOISY CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT. THE NOISE REPEATED EVERY TIME THE BRAKES WERE STEPPED ON. I HAD THE CAR TOWED TO THE SERVICE AT CRYSTAL TOYOTA IN GREEN BROOK, NEW JERSEY, AND THEY DID SOME WORK ON IT. ABOUT TEN DAYS LATER THE NOISE RETURNED. THE CRYSTAL TOYOTA SERVICE FOREMAN STATED THAT ROTOR PADS NOW HAVE A METALLIC CONTENT. WHENEVER MOISTURE FORMS ON THE PADS DUE TO THE WEATHER, NOISE CAN RESULT. THE SERVICE APPLIED AN ADDITIVE. THE LOUD NOISE REAPPEARED EARLY JANUARY 2007. CRYSTAL TOYOTA SERVICE SUGGESTED DRIVING THE CAR A SHORT DISTANCE AND THE NOISE WOULD GO AWAY. THIS WAS CORRECT. THE NOISE WENT AWAY AFTER DRIVING ABOUT HALF A MILE AND STEPPING REPEATEDLY ON THE BRAKES. I COULD NOT SEE THIS AS A LONG- TERM SOLUTION, HOWEVER, AS THE NOISE LEVEL WAS EXTREME, AND IT WAS LIKELY THAT AN EXCESSIVE IMPACT AND STRESS WERE OCCURRING. IT APPEARED THAT THE BRAKES WOULD EVENTUALLY FAIL. I CONTACTED THE TOYOTA CORPORATION CUSTOMER SERVICE AND JOE LACEFIELD, A NEW JERSEY REPRESENTATIVE, CALLED ME. LACEFIELD DOWNPLAYED MY CONCERN AND SAID HE WOULD LOOK AT THE CAR ON JANUARY 26. I TOLD HIM THAT HE WOULD PROBABLY NOT HEAR THE NOISE SINCE IT DID NOT OCCUR ON MOST DAYS. LACEFIELD CALLED ME AFTER LOOKING AT THE CAR AND SAID THAT HE HAD HEARD NO NOISE. I TOLD HIM THAT I HAD EXPECTED THAT AND HAD POINTED IT OUT TO HIM. HE THEN SAID THAT WHAT I HEARD MUST HAVE BEEN SOME PLAIN EVERYDAY BRAKE NOISE AND THAT THERE WAS NO PROBLEM! TOYOTA CORPORATION CUSTOMER SERVICE THEN TOLD ME THERE WAS NOTHING ELSE THEY COULD DO. THE NOISE HAS NOW OCCURRED ABOUT A DOZEN TIMES. THE ATTITUDE OF LACEFIELD AND OF TOYOTA CUSTOMER SERVICE IS THAT MY COMPLAINT HAS NO MERIT, AND THAT THE EXTREME LOUD NOISE DOES NOT EVEN EXIST! MARCH 14 WAS THE LATEST NOISE OCCURRENCE. UPDATED 05/04/07

PURCHASED A NEW 2005 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER 4WD. AFTER 45K MILES THE 4WD TRANSFER CASE BEGAN TO LEAK GEAR OIL AND TRANSMISSION FLUID. I NOTICED THIS SINCE I DO ALL MY OWN OIL CHANGES ON THE VEHICLE. NO HARM WAS DONE, BUT I HAVE BROUGHT THE SAME PROBLEM TO THE DEALERSHIP 5 TIMES. EACH TIME THEY STATED THAT THEY HAVE REPAIRED THE PROBLEM. HOWEVER, WITHOUT FAIL SEVERAL MONTHS LATER I AM STILL EXPERIENCING THE PROBLEM. TOYOTA'S CUSTOMER SERVICE WAS NOT VERY FRIENDLY OR HELPFUL. ONE REPRESENTATIVE STATED THAT THE DEALERSHIP REALLY DID NOT HAVE THE TOOLS TO PROPERLY FIX THE TRANSFER CASE SEALS PROPERLY. MY SAFETY ISSUE: IF THIS TRANSFER CASE FAILS AGAIN AND I DO NOT NOTICE IT, THEN I FEAR THAT THE VEHICLE COULD BE SENT INTO AN UNCONTROLLABLE SPIN OR EVEN WORSE. THUS FAR TOYOTA HAS REPLACED THE TRANSFER CASE TWICE AND THE TRANSMISSION ONCE WITH A RE-MANUFACTURED TRANSMISSION. *JB

THIS IS NOT A COMPLAINT OR ACCIDENT REPORT BUT A REPORT OF FACTS THAT MAY BENEFIT OTHERS. 2005 MODEL TOYOTA HIGHLANDER, STEERING KNOCKING/CLUNKING. IT CAN BE DETECTED BY WIGGLING THE STEERING WHEEL WITHIN 5 DEGREES. IT IS WORSE WHEN THE STEERING IS LOADED, E.G. WHEN NEGOTIATING BENDS AND MINOR CURVES. TAKEN TO A TOYOTA DEALER AND THEY DECIDED THAT WHOLE STEERING WHEEL SHAFT ASSEMBLY NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. I AM WAITING FOR THE PARTS TO COME IN. I AM REPORTING BECAUSE THIS MAY NOT BE AN ISOLATE CASE. THE PROBLEM IS NOT EASILY DETECTABLE BY UNSUSPECTED DRIVERS. YET IT'S A SERIOUS SAFETY PROBLEM. *JB