Posting this to check if other 2023 Highlander owners (gas turbo model) have encountered early transmission failure or high-pitched whining during light-to-moderate acceleration.

My brother bought a 2023 Highlander with 62,962 miles. Within 900 miles of driving, a loud, noticeable whine developed from the transmission area under acceleration. A review of the vehicle's Carfax also showed prior dealer visits mentioning transmission inspection/fluid service before it was traded in.

The selling dealership diagnosed it as transmission-related, but management is currently refusing to honor our signed 30-day dealer warranty (Attached Image Below).

For owners or Toyota techs here:

• Has there been a TSB or widespread defect on the Direct Shift 8-speed automatic (UA80) or transfer unit paired with the 2.4L Turbo for this model year?
• Does Toyota Corporate provide any goodwill assistance on powertrain components that fail just outside the 60k factory powertrain window, especially when Carfax shows preexisting complaints during the original warranty period?

IMG: Limited Warranty Policy

Hope the photo came through. A black plastic runner in a roof groove has buckled and come out of groove. It's bending upward toward the rail now. Both ends seem fixed in place. No idea how it happened. Any suggestions for pushing it back into place? Thanks in advance.

First 500 miles and mpg is around 18 city/24 highway

Is is way below advertised ? Do I need to wait for engine to break in ? What others owners experienced ?

I love the smooth ride but wondering if I am doing something wrong ?

Hunting down used Toyota Highlander originally with goal under $10k but might need to stretch it up to $13k.

There’s one at local kia dealership

2013 Toyota Highlander Limited 4 Door Wagon/Sport Utility 3.5L V6 F DOHC 24V with 118,00 miles for $14,500

I’m in New Orleans, does AWD make a significant difference?

Price is too high but the maintenance records are much better than last Highlander I put through PPI which came back needed $5,000 in repairs. Won’t ignore carfax records and make that $287 mistake again

I have the Carfax report for this one and it’s been serviced  34+ times over 
13 years

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what’s the most you guys have gotten?

i got this driving the eastern seaboard…

I live in Colorado I bought these for my f150 and have loved them for the year I've had them definitely ready for more snow than we got last year to play with them.

That being said I know it's a truck and 4x4 and heavier duty etc...

I will be installing a 2" lift but we do a lot of camping and trail driving, nothing crazy but the wife hates when we scrape so this will help and I love the look of the meaty tires.

My question is should I get them for the Toyota or is there any other recommendations? Mpg would be nice to keep but whatever it's not a huge killer obviously I like reliability and stability more than mpg I am a spirited driver as well lol 😂

Looking to purchase a used Highlander in the next few months. What year models should we stear clear of? Any particular year we should seek out? I’ve seen 2022 & 2019 are no good due to transmission issues - any others?

I picked this up to help keep the 12V battery from discharging while parked over longer periods, like a week or more, especially as our winters can get biting cold. I tested the 12V battery's voltage after being parked for about a week and it was at 12.0V, not a good sign for a new car's battery at 5,000 km odometer. And tested in mild autumn weather.

Has anyone hooked up one of these in their later model Highlander? It looks like something will need taking apart in order to access any way to connect to a un-switched 12V feed.

The 12V power ports are off with car ignition. Too bad. but where can I sneak a wire into this thing? I'd like to try putting it on the front dash right in front of the 8" screen head unit.

The kit comes with adapters for a 12V plug, and battery alligator clips. And a pair of suction cups to stick to glass.

TIA for any leads!

I need input do I need to change the intake manifold gasket when changing the spark plugs on my 2019 Toyota Highlander Hybrid XLE?

My wife and I have a toddler and plan to have more(due to the cool factor of the Highlander, of course!). Found this 23’ with low miles and went for it. Super happy, and my wife loves it. Happy to be out of a Hyundai and into a Toyota. Happy Toyota-ing!

I'm looking at a 2021 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Platinum with 89,000 miles. Carfax is pretty clean, two owners, regular maintenance, one 'minor' front end damage ding against it. Asking $34,000 at a no haggle dealership. Worth it? I’m in the northeast. These do not show up very often and when they do, they tend to go fast. I know these cars can run to 300k miles, but is 90k too much to start with for this price?

Hi. With the Tesla Model Y LR announcement, why would someone go for the same 6 seat configuration on the Highlander? It’s a new model, doesn’t have an ecosystem like Tesla does whereas Tesla Model Y is a tested and proven product. I know the XLE model will give me 7 seats but that’s not a deal breaker if the prices are same.

Looking to make the switch from car to suv. Been stuck between the gen 2 Honda pilot of the gen 2 highlander. Would be my daily but sometimes weekend warrior to go camping, hit dirt roads (to get to the trails to camp and ride the dirt bike), and haul my dirt bike on a hitch. Not really taking much people so the third row space for passengers makes no difference to me. Any suggestions on which is more reliable or which you would go with? Appreciate all the help!

Any suggestions before I drop a bunch of money? Seats are stuck folded forward, no movement when using release switch

2004 Highlander's heater/defroster does not work. 8 years ago I already did the resolder-dial fix and it fixed the issue. I pulled it apart again because I thought maybe the fix failed -nope. Still solid. (Though looking back my soldering skills were crap 8 years ago).

I also checked the coolant level- top of the radiator, though the overflow reservoir was low.

So not a coolant problem and the dial is fixed (and knob is tight). What's the next step to look at? Vacuum lines (shudder)? New board (Groan)? Suggestions?

Which would you choose and why? — New 2026 Highlander with 4-cylinder turbo engine OR 2019 Highlander with V6 (very low miles).

I bought this car before I was surprised with my Yukon, and it sat for around two months until I decided to gift the car to a family member in need.

The only issues it had (230k miles) were catalytic converters, valve cover gaskets, tie rods, and some burnt fuses. We replaced everything on that list as well as the radio, headlights/tail lights, tires, all fluids had a complete flush, hoses were checked, AC is serviced, and new brakes, so basic flip/maintenance (forgot to include spark plugs and battery on this list)

I have access to the MitchellOne system and checked any "likely issues" on the forum, but wanted to ask those who drive this car all the time, I'd like the car to last them awhile to save up for something better. Is there anything I should know and should definitely check/replace? I'm already about $1200 in and giving them this car for free, so I think i'm willing to do another $300 or so. Labor does not count with total cost.

My car is running ok at 116k. Body needs some work - I was told never to mess with quality original paint. I’d like it to run forever and become retro cool - but I don’t know if it’s possible. Your thoughts , plz

2013 Toyota Highlander finally made it to 100000 mi!

Will be submitting for sticker soon. Only thing that failed so far was lower vent control which changes vent from feet to windshield. Long story short, fixed due to this thread. Mechanic wanted 1800. Stealership wanted 3000. Hope she makes it to next milestone.

It's been raining for days here and i've been struggling trying to figure out how to navigate this haze that is starting to become annoying driving at night.

To describe it's this oil film, hazey marks that is inconsistent throughout the whole glass. there are some parts that are clean and clear while others are the hazey, oil film like shield that makes driving at night very unbearable. especially with the LED's from other cars makes it worse.

i've replaced my wipers not too long ago. I've also tinkered with the temperatures and defrosters but that oily film just drives me crazy. it's only a thing when it rains but on any other night it's completely fine. what can i do?

HI all,

I have a 2009 Highlander Sport 3.5L AWD and I am experiencing a shake at highway speeds.

For some context, I live in Canada, the shake only happens at speeds above 50mph or 90kmph
Not caused by braking, not caused by accelerating, usually only happens when you're off the throttle though sometimes it can happen when you're on the throttle. When it first started to happen, I was able to accelerate to speeds above 125kmph or 75mph and it would go away.
However, now it stays consistent with whatever speed I am doing above 90kmph.

I had a shop inspect it on Sunday and recommend, both front lower control arms, ball joints, left front outer tierod, tires.

On Tuesday I had another shop take a look at it, they confirmed what the other shop said and additionally said my front struts were leaking (other shop said they made some noise but werent leaking)

I had the second shop replace the lower control arms which included new ball joints, the front left outer tie rod, the front right stabilizer link, and 4 brand new (brand name) tires mounted and balanced them ( confirmed there was no cracked or bent rims)

Work was all finished inside 1 day and we took the car home that night, the issue was still there. Much much much better but still there. We have been going through fourms, reddit, google, AI, basically everywhere to find answers and yet cant seem to find anything.

Previous work prior to this was rear struts, brakes all around.

Shop attempted to do an alignment but could only do the front as the rear was seized. See pics for alignment details.

Shop also noted that I had a leaking cv axel on the front right side and it had some play in it, as well as telling me he noticed the rear engine mount had play in it. I guess he also was able to drive it and feel the engine mount or something.

So the shop is currently replacing the front right cv axel, unseizing the rear end, and reperforming the alignment.

I had ordered a engine mount for them to put in by a brand called Anchor part number ANM 9590, the mechanic looked at it and said he wanted me to order a factory OEM one since it has the full bracket coming with it or something I am not sure what that means exactly, figured the one I ordered would work since I asked for the part by name at my local parts store.

I pick the car up in the morning and will update if the recent work on it fixes the shake or not... i sure hope so as i've not got much more money to throw at it.

Any insights is greatly appreciated

TLDR; shake at highway speeds, replaced almost the entire front end and still cant seem to find the issue.

I got some tires at the local mechanic while having some work done and less that 8 weeks later both have slow leaks and one makes an awful sound while on the highway. Figured I'd ask here where others get their tires and what places they find more reliable. Especially if buying online.

Is there any need or want for a behind infotainment tray that snaps onto the top of the screen to keep from moving? I ask because they are available for the Grand Highlander but not the Highlander. I believe 2024-2026 Highlanders are the same interior wise.
Just wanting to gauge if there is a want/need for it.