LIVE Global accident monitoring — updating every 15 minutes
Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2021 Toyota Highlander — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 531 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

531
Complaints
filed with NHTSA
16
Involved a Crash
owner-reported
4
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.

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 227 reports
Service Brakes 68 reports
Unknown Or Other 67 reports
Structure 52 reports
Engine 47 reports
Air Bags 42 reports
Fuel/propulsion System 31 reports
Electrical System 28 reports
In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Structure ODI 11708038 12/31/2025

While I was driving the vehicle on December 30, 2025 emerging on to the highway I heard a loud popping sound which I thought was one of the tires going flat when the plastic barrier underneath the car became unattached

Unknown Or Other ODI 11633423 12/31/2024

While pulling onto highway I heard a loud pop and scratching noise. Pulled off road and looked at vehicle from outside. When I looked on top I saw that the glass from sunroof had a hole and had shards like it had exploded from inside pressure.

Power Train ODI 11707861 12/30/2025

The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and depressing the accelerator pedal, the contact heard an abnormal whining sound coming from the front of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where the contact was informed that it was a known failure. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer, where i…

Steering ODI 11633017 12/30/2024

Headed westbound on 285 in Georgia; hit on passenger side front door and vehicle swerved several lanes and hit a wall going 60 miles per hour. The airbags did not deploy. I was injured badly and the vehicle was totaled.

Power Train ODI 11707494 12/29/2025

I have a faulty transmission that is now widely known. 2021 Highlander with the UA80 transmission. Out of warranty and Toyota wants to provide no help even know this is an ongoing issue with so many owners

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2021 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 2021 Toyota Highlander reliable?
Owners have filed 531 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2021 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.