2008 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER Complaints

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD WHEN THE TRACTION SENSOR CAME ON. FOLLOWED BY A WARNING OF CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM AND VCS SYSTEM. AND CAR SHUT COMPLETELY OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF TRAFFIC.

I HAVE TOYOTA HIGHLANDER HYBRID 2008. MY CAR IS MAKING NOISE UNDER THE HOOD WHENEVER I HIT THE BRAKE REGARDLESS OF IF THE CAR IS MOVING OR HALT. INITIALLY TOYOTA SERVICE GUYS SAID THAT THE SOUND IS EXPECTED AND NOTHING IS WRONG WITH MY CAR BUT DURING MY LAST VISIT TO THEM THEY MENTIONED MY ABS ACTUATOR AND MOTOR HAS GONE BAD AND NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. THE ESTIMATE COST TO FIX THE PROBLEM IS AROUND $3200. I HAVE READ ONLINE ABOUT THE SIMILAR CASES AND I REQUEST TOYOTA TO RECOGNIZE THE PROBLEM AND ISSUE A RECALL TO REPLACE THE PAT 'ABS ACTUATOR AND MOTOR'. PRIOR MODELS WERE RECALLED FOR THE SAME ISSUE AND ALTHOUGH 2008 USES THE SAME COMPONENTS , IT HAS NOT BEEN RE-CALLED.

DEAR SIR/MADAM THE TOYOTA HIGHLANDER /CAMRY AND SIENNA HAVE A OIL COOLER LINE WHICH IS MADE OF RUBBER AND EXPLODE DUE TO THE HIGH TEMPERATURE OF THE OIL. ALL THESE VEHICLES HAVE BEEN CAUSING OIL TO BE LEAKED ALL OVER THE ROADS OF AMERICA WITH TOYOTA NOT HAVING ISSUED A RECALL. YEARS 2008 - 2013 .THIS ISSUE IS DANGEROUS. *TR

WHILE DRIVING MY CAR AT APPROXIMATELY 55MPH ALL THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS FLASHED AND THEN THE CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM LIGHT CAME ON AND STAYED ON. IT SAID THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE HYBRID SYSTEM TO PULL OVER AS SOON AS YOU COULD SAFETY AND TO CONTACT THE DEALER. WELL THE ENGINE DIED ABRUPTLY AND LOSS POWER IMMEDIATELY. LUCKILY I WAS ON A ONE LANE ROAD WITH A SHOULDER AND NO ONE IMMEDIATELY BEHIND ME. THE MECHANIC SAID THAT IT WAS A LOWER END MOTOR FAILURE BUT REALLY COULD NOT FIGURE OUT WHAT IS WRONG WITH IT. IN FACT IT IS STILL AT THE MECHANIC'S AND THEY ARE STILL TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT. IT APPEARS THAT IT MAY BE THE ENGINE INVERTER BUT STILL NOT SURE. THIS IS A VERY UNSAFE SITUATION AND TOYOTA SHOULD HAVE ADDRESS THIS. MY CAR IS A 2008 HIGHLAND HYBRID WITH 119,000 MILES ON. *TR

RECENTLY ALL THE BRAKE LIGHTS CAME ON THE DASH AS I WAS DRIVING THE CAR. THE WARNING NOTE ON THE SCREEN SAID TO TAKE IT IMMEDIATELY TO THE DEALER TO FIX. AFTER THEIR DIAGNOSTIC THE DEALERSHIP FOUND THAT BOTH THE BRAKE BOOSTER PUMP AND ABS ACTUATOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AT A COST OF $3,064 INCLUDING THE 3-4 HOURS LABOR COST AFTER RESEARCHING THIS ISSUE APPARENTLY IT IS A VERY COMMON COMPLAINT WITH THESE VEHICLES.FOR SOMETHING AS SERIOUS AS THIS I'M SURPRISED THAT THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A RECALL ON THIS ISSUE. *TR

THE RUBBER OIL COOLER LINE (PART NUMBER: 040004-29131) OF OUR 2008 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER BURST AT 139,000 MILES CAUSING AN OIL SPILL AND COMPLETE AND IRREVERSIBLE ENGINE FAILURE DUE TO OIL STARVATION WHILE VEHICLE WAS IN HIGH-SPEED MOTION IN A CONGESTED HIGHWAY DURING ICY-AND FOGGY CONDITIONS. DRIVER MANAGED TO REMOVE THE VEHICLE FROM THE ROAD, NOT CAUSING ANY ACCIDENTS, JUST BEFORE THE ENGINE IRREVERSIBLY BROKE AND SHUT DOWN. TWO DAYS PRIOR THE INCIDENT, OIL-CHANGE SCHEDULED SERVICE WAS PERFORMED BY A TOYOTA-CERTIFIED DEALERSHIP SHOWING NO SIGNS OF ENGINE/ENGINE OIL-COOLING LINE ABNORMALITIES. DEFECTIVE SOFTWARE DISPLAYED WARNINGS ON THE DASHBOARD OF LOW ENGINE OIL/PRESSURE SECONDS BEFORE THE ENGINE SHUT DOWN. THIS DEFECTIVE PART HAS BEEN SPECIFICALLY ACKNOWLEDGED IN THE TOYOTA'S 2014 "WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM, ZE2" FOR REPAIRS AT NO COST UNTIL JANUARY 31, 2016 OR PAST THAT DATE FOR "10 YEARS FROM THE DATE OF FIRST USE OR 150,000 MILES, WHICHEVER OCCURS FIRST." TOYOTA CLAIMS THEY MAILED A LETTER FOR "SEVERAL MONTHS" AFTER "LATE JULY 2014" FOR ZE2 TO OWNERS BUT THE OWNER OF THIS VEHICLE NEITHER EVER RECEIVED SUCH LETTER NOR WAS NOTIFIED BY TOYOTA CORP./DEALERSHIP. VEHICLE HAS BEEN UNDER *CONSISTENT, SCHEDULED, AND REGULAR CAR SERVICES* SINCE ITS ORIGINAL AND SOLE PURCHASE IN 2008. THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN A RECALL TO THE NHTSA UPON *UNREASONABLY DANGEROUS DESIGN* FOR USING RUBBER PRESSURIZED PIPES IN V6 ENGINES INSTEAD OF METAL-BASED MATERIALS, DEFECTIVE PART AWARENESS, INCIDENT HISTORY, AND THE EXTENT OF THE HIGH HAZARD RISK THAT INVOLVES THIS PART FAILURE: OIL SPILL (NOT OIL LEAKING AS STATED IN ZE2) CAN OCCUR AT HIGH RESULTING IN A NON-OPPORTUNITY TO PREVENT VEHICLE LOSS AND HIGH PROBABILITIES OF CRASH, INJURIES, FIRE, AND/OR FATALITIES. THIS IS ALSO EXACERBATED BY THE EMBEDDED DEFECTIVE SOFTWARE IN TERMS OF POOR TIMING TO DISPLAY ENGINE FAILURE.

ABS FAILURE, WHICH SEEMS TO BE AN ISSUE WITH THIS MODEL BASED ON AN ONLINE SEARCH. PRIOR MODELS WERE RECALLED FOR THE SAME ISSUE, AND ALTHOUGH THE 2008 USES THE SAME COMPONENTS, IT HAS NOT BEEN RECALLED. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE GIVEN THAT THE BRAKES CAN FAIL. FIXING THE ISSUE BEFORE IT BECOMES A DISASTER COSTS $4000 +

THE ENGINE OIL COOLER PIPE ON MY 2008 HIGHLANDER WAS DEFECTIVE AND LEAKED AT 124,000 MILE/12 YEARS (IN FEB 2020). HAPPENED WHILE I WAS ON A HIGHWAY & SMOKE IN MY CABIN. TOYOTA HAS SET A LIMIT OF EXTENDED LIMITED WARRANTY (LCS-ZE2) TO FIX THIS DEFECT BUT ONLY IF IT OCCURS AT < (OR EQUAL) 10 YRS OR 150,000 MILES. MANY REPORTS ON THE WEB INDICATE CARS PAST THE TOYOTA ARBITRARY CUT OFFS FOR TIME AND MILES. THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY DEFECT/RISK BECAUSE ALL OF THE OIL COULD LEAK OUT FROM A DEFECTIVE PIPE & ENGINE COULD CATCH FIRE OR FREEZE. I HAD SMOKE IN THE CABIN AND A LOW OIL PRESSURE WARNING LIGHT. OF NOTE, MY CAR WAS SERVICED (OIL CHANGE) AND A MULTIPOINT INSPECTION BY TOYOTA 3 WEEKS PRIOR TO OIL LEAK (IN JAN 2020) AND THE OIL LEAK WAS NOT NOTED. THIS MEANS THAT THE LEAK OCCURRED RECENTLY AND WELL PAST THE ARBITRARY TIME INTERVAL/MILEAGE LIMIT SET BY TOYOTA. AT NO TIME DID MY TOYOTA DEALER NOTIFY ME REGARDING THE EXTENDED WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT OR THAT THIS COULD E A PROBLEM OR NOR DID MY TOYOTA DEALER SPECIFICALLY LOOK FOR THIS PROBLEM ON MY CAR DURING INSPECTION. A FULL SCALE RECALL IS REQUIRED FOR THIS DEFECT, NOT A LIMITED WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT LETTER. ATTACHED ARE 1- THE INVOICE TO FIX THE OIL ENGINE PIPE LEAK 2- THE INSPECTION FROM TOYOTA DEALER WITH NO EVIDENCE OF AN OIL LEAK (JAN 2020) 3-WARRANTY & WEBCHAT OTHER OWNERS COMPLAIN OF SIMILAR DANGEROUS EFFECTS OF THE OIL LEAK AND EXPENSIVE REPAIRS THAT OCCURRED PAST THE TOYOTA ARBITRARY LIMITS 4. INVOICE DOCUMENTING THE OIL CHANGE (JAN 2020) SHOWING NO EVIDENCE OF A LEAK WHEN TOYOTA SET THE LIMITS ON THE EXTENDED WARRANTY OF 10 YEARS OR 150,000 MILES, THEY HAD NO IDEA IF THAT WOULD BE SUFFICIENTLY IN LENGTH TO CATCH ALL THE PROBLEMS. BECAUSE TOYOTA OWNERS KEEP THEIR VEHICLES FOR A LONG TIME, THESE ARBITRARY INTERVALS ARE NOT SUFFICIENT. THEREFORE A FULL RECALL IS REQUIRED.

WHEN ACCELLERATING INTO TRAFFIC AFTER STOPPING FOR A STOP SIGN OR LIGHT THE CAR MOVES INTO THE TRAFFIC BUT DOES NOT ACCELLERATE BUT COASTS DISPITE FLOORING THE GAS PEDAL. AFTER 2 TO 5 SECONDS THE CAR WILL ACCELERATE. THE TECH AT THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP SAID THAT THIS WAS CAUSED BY THE COMPUTER THROTTLE CONTROL THAT SETS ACCORDING TO DRIVING HABITS. THIS STALL WHEN ACCELLERATION IS NEEDED HAS ALMOST CAUSED MANY COLLISIONS FROM TRAFFIC COMING UP BEHIND THE VEHICLE. THIS STALL HAPPENS ALSO WHEN TRYING TO PASS A VEHICLE ON ROADS, PULL OUT FROM BEHIND VEHICLE BEING PASSED, DEPRESS THE GAS PEDAL AND NO ACCELERATION FOR 2 TO 5 SECONDS THEN THE ACCELLERATION HAPPENS. THIS COMPUTER FLAW IS SUCH A SAFETY PROBLEM THAT IF I LET ANYONE ELSE DRIVE MY VEHICLE, I HAVE TO WARN THEM ABOUT THE ACCELERATION DELAY AND TO MAKE SURE THERE IS BEYOND NORMAL CLEAR SPACE BEFORE PULLING OUT INTO TRAFFIC. I TRY TO DRIVE SMOOTHLY AND AVOID FLOORING THE GAS PEDAL. IN ORDER AVOID A SAFETY ISSUE THIS COMPUTER THROTTLE PROBLEM REQUIRES THE GAS PEDAL TO BE CONSTANTLY FLOORED TO MAKE SURE THAT WHEN ACCELERATION IS REALLY NEEDED THAT IT WILL HAPPEN. I AM SURE I AM NOT THE ONLY OWNER DOING A DRIVING WORK AROUND OF THIS ISSUE. THIS HAS HAPPEND CONSISTANTLY SINCE I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE IN 2009.

WHEN ACCELLERATING INTO TRAFFIC AFTER STOPPING FOR A STOP SIGN OR LIGHT THE CAR MOVES INTO THE TRAFFIC BUT DOES NOT ACCELLERATE BUT COASTS DISPITE FLOORING THE GAS PEDAL. AFTER 2 TO 5 SECONDS THE CAR WILL ACCELERATE. THE TECH AT THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP SAID THAT THIS WAS CAUSED BY THE COMPUTER THROTTLE CONTROL THAT SETS ACCORDING TO DRIVING HABITS. THIS STALL WHEN ACCELLERATION IS NEEDED HAS ALMOST CAUSED MANY COLLISIONS FROM TRAFFIC COMING UP BEHIND THE VEHICLE. THIS STALL HAPPENS ALSO WHEN TRYING TO PASS A VEHICLE ON ROADS, PULL OUT FROM BEHIND VEHICLE BEING PASSED, DEPRESS THE GAS PEDAL AND NO ACCELERATION FOR 2 TO 5 SECONDS THEN THE ACCELLERATION HAPPENS. THIS COMPUTER FLAW IS SUCH A SAFETY PROBLEM THAT IF I LET ANYONE ELSE DRIVE MY VEHICLE, I HAVE TO WARN THEM ABOUT THE ACCELERATION DELAY AND TO MAKE SURE THERE IS BEYOND NORMAL CLEAR SPACE BEFORE PULLING OUT INTO TRAFFIC. I TRY TO DRIVE SMOOTHLY AND AVOID FLOORING THE GAS PEDAL. IN ORDER AVOID A SAFETY ISSUE THIS COMPUTER THROTTLE PROBLEM REQUIRES THE GAS PEDAL TO BE CONSTANTLY FLOORED TO MAKE SURE THAT WHEN ACCELERATION IS REALLY NEEDED THAT IT WILL HAPPEN. I AM SURE I AM NOT THE ONLY OWNER DOING A DRIVING WORK AROUND OF THIS ISSUE. THIS HAS HAPPEND CONSISTANTLY SINCE I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE IN 2009.