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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2019 Toyota Highlander — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 495 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

495
Complaints
filed with NHTSA
22
Involved a Crash
owner-reported
1
Involved Fire
owner-reported
18
Injuries
across all reports
Years to Avoid

Toyota Highlander — Complaints by Model Year

Years flagged AVOID have at least twice this model's average complaint count — the strongest public-data signal of a bad year.

191 complaints

212 complaints

136 complaints

192 complaints

111 complaints

270 complaints

268 complaints

495 complaints

320 complaints

531 complaints

262 complaints

186 complaints

43 complaints

10 complaints

0 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Power Train 205 reports
Fuel/propulsion System 88 reports
Unknown Or Other 80 reports
Engine 69 reports
Electrical System 56 reports
Fuel System 21 reports
Service Brakes 20 reports
Gasoline 19 reports
In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Power Train ODI 11633345 12/31/2024

Transmission whine stated on or around 52000 miles. Whine progressively increased in volume over the next 2000 miles. Toyota dealer analyzed the noise and recommended the transmission be replaced. Transmission out of warranty. Independent transmission shop confirmed transmission internal pump was failing and could cause transmission lockup at speed.

Power Train ODI 11707790 12/30/2025

Per my mechanic (fyi: 56k miles on vehicle): I test drove the vehicle and can hear a noticeable whine type noise when accelerating the noise goes away when getting off throttle. I put it on lift and the noise is coming from the transmission pump and sounds like cavitation. I checked the fluid level and it was overfull, very dark and has some very fine metal debris in the fluid…

Power Train ODI 11292174 12/30/2019

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2019 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER. WHILE DRIVING 50 MPH, THE VEHICLE SHOOK UNCONTROLLABLY WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ALSO ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO HAMER TOYOTA (11041 SEPULVEDA BLVD, MISSION HILLS, CA 91345), BUT THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DETERMINED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE…

Power Train ODI 11632765 12/27/2024

automatic transmission makeing a whinning noise.Many other customers complaining about same problem. Car has 72,000 miles on it which puts it out of 5 year/60,000mile warranty.Customers feel that toyota should cover replacement or repairs cost knowing they have had same problem with 2017/2018 models and have not corrected the problem with the 2019 model.Very unprofessional fo…

Electrical System ODI 11291140 12/24/2019

WE STARTED THE VEHICLE THAT IS PARKED IN FRONT OF OUR HOUSE AT AROUND 8AM TO GET SOME GROCERIES. THE VEHICLE STARTED AND EVERYTHING SEEMED NORMAL. SHIFTED TO D AND STARTED MOVING AND AS I WAS LEAVING THE SPOT, I PUSHED THE BREAK TO MAKE A LEFT TURN AND IT WON'T STOP. PUSHED THE BREAK PAD SEVERAL TIMES AND THE CAR WON'T STOP. FINALLY MOVED THE GEAR TO P AND IT STOPPED AND T…

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2019 Toyota Highlander, or check your exact car by VIN with the free VIN lookup.

Check Another Car

Problems Checker

Any year, make and model: open the Car Problems Checker. Data: NHTSA (US DOT, public domain), cached up to 7 days.

Questions

FAQ

Is the 2019 Toyota Highlander reliable?
Owners have filed 495 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2019 Toyota Highlander, most often about power train. Compare the complaint counts across model years above — a year with far more complaints than the model's average is the strongest 'avoid' signal in public data.
Which Toyota Highlander years should I avoid?
The rule of thumb used by analysts: a model year whose complaint count is well above the model's own average (we flag 2× or more) usually had a real manufacturing or design problem — not just noisy reporting. Use the year-by-year strip on this page.
Where do these complaints come from?
Directly from NHTSA, the US government road-safety agency. Any owner can file a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire; NHTSA publishes them as public domain data. We cache each lookup for up to 7 days.
Do complaints mean a recall is coming?
Sometimes. NHTSA opens defect investigations when complaint patterns emerge, and investigations can end in recalls. Check the recalls page for this vehicle to see what has already been recalled.