2012 Toyota Highlander owner complaints

Have noise in steering shaft at low speed when turning and backing up and pulling forward . Toyota dealer checked at 50,000 mile while still under warranty and said they could not duplicate noise . When having oil change at 62000 miles mentioned it again to service man and was told it probably is the steering intermediate shaft they always go bad in that year and Toyota will not replace unless I pay for it. Have been in touch with Toyota directly and they had the dealer calkl me twice to set up appointment to look at the car. When I was told that I would have to pay a diagnostic fee to see what is wrong and would have to pay for any repairs ,I declined ,was told then they were going to get back to Toyota factory representative , this was the week of 12/10 2018

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 Toyota highlander. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing steering failure. Freedom Toyota of harrisburg (6060 allentown blvd, harrisburg, pa 17112, (717) 545-4726) was contacted, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. While driving 20 MPH, the intermediate shaft separated from the steering column. The vehicle was pulled over and towed back to the dealer to be diagnosed. The manufacturer had been contacted. The failure mileage was 62,000. *dt*jb

Making popping noise in steering wheel when turning. Took to dealership where I have it serviced and they informed me it was the steering shaft assembly. Which cost $273 dollars before labor. My understanding is that they have had problems with the 2008 to 2013 models. In my opinion this is a safety issue and should be covered by Toyota.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 Toyota highlander. While the contact was backing the vehicle out of the driveway, a popping noise was heard from the steering column. The noise occurred for at least six months and was becoming more frequent. The contact scheduled an appointment with the dealer (mcgeorge Toyota, 9319 w broad street, henrico, va 23294) to have the vehicle diagnosed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 126,987. *tt consumer stated noise was diagnosed as intermediate steering shaft. Vehicle was repaired.*jb

Noticed a subtle knocking sound on the steering wheel one year ago. Today it became more pronounced ,louder , as I turn the wheel either left or right. I wanted to know if there is a recall on this problem. And is it safe to drive my highlander ?

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 Toyota highlander. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH and steering to the right, the engine suddenly emitted an abnormal noise. The contact also stated that the headlights would not shut off intermittently when powering off the vehicle. In addition, the defroster for the rear window would not function properly, causing the windows to remain foggy for a long period of time. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing where the technician advised that there were no failures. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact that the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 1,000 and the current mileage was 3,300. Updated 1/29/13 *cn

This is the second Highlander Hybrid I've owned that has had the brake actuator and booster assembly fail affecting the functionality of the car's braking system. Replacing these two parts has an absurd price of over 3k at the dealership and other independent hybrid repair shops. My car only has 70k miles on it and I've read this issue applies to almost all other Toyota Hybrids. If most hybrid's brakes will fail eventually, putting at risk owners, why is there not a recall to fix this "not a matter of if, but when" possible life threatening issue?

The front driver window was making a clicking noise as if it were coming off the track. Eventually, the arm motor stopped all together and I had to replace the arm. Now the front passenger window is making the same noise and I'm afraid to open it. The leather interior is cracking badly on all seats. I rarely have passengers and condition the leather. I've had to use an adhesive to prevent additional cracking

2012 TOYOTA HIGHLANDER was locked & battery was dead. Could not unlock using either the key fob or the mechanical key in the fob. Was told even the mechanical key requires battery power.

Well before my oil changes are due, my vehicle needs more oil. There are no apparent exterior leaks but the oil has to be leaking somewhere or burning away through the exhaust.

I was driving on a highway I heard a noise and smoke started coming from under the hood I pulled over and looked under the hood and saw smokr a tow truck driver who happened to be passing by pulled over and sure fire under the hood he put the fire out with a fire extinguisher I called nine-one-one four fire trucks to make sure the fire was completely extinguished my mechanic says a rod popped and punctured the oil tank which caused all the oil to leak out onto the side of the highway the firemen actually spread sand over it my insurance company he's refusing to repair the car because they say there was a maintenance issue because there was no oil in the car when they looked at it there was no oil in the car because it all leaked out on the side of the road I had just put oil in the car the

2012 Toyota highlander. Consumer stated the sunroof shattered while driving.

The visor on the driver's side no longer stays up, so it either has to be pushed to the side thus blocking the side view, or left as is blocks the ahead view, or must be held with one arm while driving one-armed (not ideal driving conditions). My garage is ordering a new visor but was told these visors are on backorder - there are 1000 already on backorder! Seems there is a major problem here. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 Toyota highlander. The contact stated that the hatchback separated from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer who diagnosed that the hatch lift needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the part do to the repair was unavailable. The manufacturer was aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 22,700.

Vehicle power unlocking mechanism is unreliable, and shows significant defect in the unlocking capabilities of all but the drivers door. After several lock actuator replacements, the vehicle still exhibits improper operation. Dealership agrees that there is a common complaint with this vehicle, and it's lock operation. Biggest issue I see is having to leave my children unattended to enter the vehicle to manually unlock doors. I have researched this extensively, and found similar complaints online, in many forums etc - Toyota refuses to acknowledge that there is an issue with the lock mechanisms. This has been an ongoing issue for over 2 years now, and should be examined for the safety impact at a greater scale.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 Toyota highlander. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 MPH, another vehicle crashed into the contact's vehicle and the air bags failed to deploy. The contact sustained a head injury that required medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 54,000.

Tl* the contact owned a 2012 Toyota highlander. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 70 MPH, control of the vehicle was lost due to the road being wet. The vehcile began to spin hitting another vehicle causing the vehicle to land off the road into a ditch. The vehicle received damage to the front-end and the air bags failed to deploy. The vehicle was towed and totaled. A police report was filed. The contact stated the driver received neck injuries and both passengers that were seated in the rear received injuries to the head and right side of the abdomin. No medical attention was needed. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 99,000.

The contact owns a 2012 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that 5,000 miles after purchasing the vehicle, the contact noticed an oil leak. The contact performed the oil changes and had noticed that engine oil had leaked down onto the weather seal in the vehicle. The contact noticed several oil stains on the ground during rainy weather. The contact noticed that the new tires that the dealer installed at the time of the vehicle sale were worn out. The contact checked the tires and noticed that the plastic rubber on the front strut was severely damaged. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the timing cover had a leak, and that the timing cover area was smeared with an unknown silicone patch. The struts were replaced. The contact stated that the failure persis

While entering a parking spot with foot firmly on the brake the vehicle experienced sudden and unanticipated acceleration resulting in the car crashing into a concrete wall and being totaled. Witness corroborated the sound of a the engine at high RPM immediately before the crash.

I have had at least 6 occasions that in shifting from reverse and backing up that the bakes did not work, fortunately I was going slow and stopped with emergency brake. I have it also after backing safely, then shifting into drive that the brakes went to the floor and wouldn’t stop the vehicle again, between the emergency brake and park I avoided disaster. Our car has only 27000 miles and we are very concerned that something bad could easily happen. The multiple occurrences have taken place in the last 1 - 2 years most recent today 12/12/2021.