Toyota Highlander Reliability by Year
Based on 2M+ real complaints filed with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
6,785 NHTSA complaints (1997–2025).Complaint rate: 21.0 per 10,000 vehicles sold in the US.
Compare Toyota Highlander vs:
Should I buy a Toyota Highlander?
Quick answer from 6,785 NHTSA complaints · 1997–2025
Toyota Highlander reliability depends heavily on the model year. Several years show complaint spikes well above the model's own average, while others are meaningfully cleaner. The most commonly reported issue across all years is transmission / drivetrain. Pick the right year and this Highlander can be a reasonable used buy; pick the wrong one and you're inheriting known problems.
- 2016 Toyota Highlander· 7.2/10K sold
- 2014 Toyota Highlander· 10.7/10K sold
- 2022 Toyota Highlander· 11.5/10K sold
- 2008 Toyota Highlander· 48.0/10K sold
Keep scrolling for year-by-year complaint trends, recall campaigns, and component breakdowns — or click any year above for a full report.
Why these years are worse
The most common issues driving the complaint spikes:
- transmission / drivetrain — 694 complaints (2.7% involved a crash)
- electrical faults — 572 complaints (2.3% involved a crash)
- brakes — 557 complaints (13.6% involved a crash)
- engine problems — 510 complaints (3.1% involved a crash)
- unintended acceleration — 400 complaints (38.5% involved a crash)
What Happened to 146,291 Toyota Highlanders On the Road
Complaints record what owners reported. These are the outcomes actually recorded against 146,291 Toyota Highlander VINs built 2001–2025 — accidents, title brands and odometer flags from our vehicle-history database, not from the NHTSA complaint file.
Do the complaint spikes show up in real accident history?
The Toyota Highlander averages 28.2% accident history across all model years. Here is how the years flagged above compare on real records:
- 2008 — 43.4% of 1,488 VINs on record show accident history, above the 28.2% model average. The complaint spike is backed by real damage records.
Typical Toyota Highlander on record: 1.4 owners on average, 63,895 average miles.
Toyota Highlander Generations
Manufacturer redesigns the car every few years (a “generation”). Each generation has different engineering and common issues. Click a generation to see year-by-year breakdown.
| Generation | Years | Complaints | Crashes | US Sold | Volume | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gen 1 | 2001–2007 | 1,936 | 243 | 395,081 | Hide years | |||
| 2001 | 158 | 28 | — | View 2001View→ | ||||
| 2002 | 335 | 27 | — | View 2002View→ | ||||
| 2003 | 316 | 43 | — | View 2003View→ | ||||
| 2004 | 335 | 42 | — | View 2004View→ | ||||
| 2005 | 289 | 50 | 137,409 | View 2005View→ | ||||
| 2006 | 344 | 38 | 129,794 | View 2006View→ | ||||
| 2007 | 159 | 15 | 127,878 | View 2007View→ | ||||
| Gen 2 | 2008–2013 | 1,686 | 174 | 629,778 | Show years | |||
| Gen 3 | 2014–2019 | 1,804 | 159 | 1,196,144 | Show years | |||
| Gen 4 | 2020–present | 1,357 | 93 | 1,016,364 | Show years |
Which Years to Buy & Avoid
Years auto-clustered by complaint volume relative to this model's median.
Rankings based on complaints per 10,000 vehicles sold — normalized for production volume so low-sales years aren't falsely rated "good".
Bottom line: Avoid the 2001–2004 Toyota Highlander (140 crash-related complaints). The 2016 models had significantly fewer reported issues. Most common issue across all years: Transmission / Drivetrain.
Avoid These Years
Average
Better Years
Too New
Need 3+ years on the road for reliable complaint data.
A model's reputation is just the start.
Even within the “good” years, individual cars can have hidden accidents, title issues, or odometer rollbacks. Check the actual VIN before you buy — full history report for $8.99 (vs. Carfax $44.99).
Complaint Rate per 10,000 Vehicles Sold
Normalized by US annual sales volume — higher = more complaints relative to sales
Show raw complaint counts
Common Toyota Highlander Problems
Most reported component complaints to NHTSA. Bar length = volume; color = crash-involvement rate.
Show full table
| Component | Complaints | Crash % |
|---|---|---|
| Transmission / Drivetrain | 694 | 2.7% |
| Electrical Faults | 572 | 2.3% |
| Brakes | 557 | 13.6% |
| Engine Problems | 510 | 3.1% |
| Unintended Acceleration | 400 | 38.5% |
| Steering Defects | 338 | 6.8% |
| Airbags | 318 | 41.8% |
| Body Structure | 255 | 13.3% |
| Fuel System | 250 | 4.8% |
| Wipers & Visibility | 208 | 2.4% |
When Each Problem Spiked
Year × component heatmap. Darker cells = more complaints that year. Reveals which model years a specific defect concentrated in — useful for spotting redesign-cycle quality dips.
Year-by-Year Breakdown
NHTSA complaint count per model year — click any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
| Year | Generation | Complaints | Rate | US Sales | Crashes | Fires | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001NO DATA | Gen 1 | 158 | — | — | 28 | 2 | View → |
| 2002NO DATA | Gen 1 | 335 | — | — | 27 | 8 | View → |
| 2003NO DATA | Gen 1 | 316 | — | — | 43 | 1 | View → |
| 2004NO DATA | Gen 1 | 335 | — | — | 42 | 3 | View → |
| 2005 | Gen 1 | 289 | 21.0 | 137,409 | 50 | 8 | View → |
| 2006 | Gen 1 | 344 | 26.5 | 129,794 | 38 | 4 | View → |
| 2007 | Gen 1 | 159 | 12.4 | 127,878 | 15 | 1 | View → |
| 2008AVOID | Gen 2 | 502 | 48.0 | 104,661 | 59 | 19 | View → |
| 2009 | Gen 2 | 178 | 21.4 | 83,118 | 7 | 7 | View → |
| 2010AVOID | Gen 2 | 271 | 29.4 | 92,121 | 28 | 5 | View → |
| 2011 | Gen 2 | 228 | 22.5 | 101,252 | 16 | — | View → |
| 2012 | Gen 2 | 228 | 18.8 | 121,054 | 20 | 4 | View → |
| 2013 | Gen 2 | 279 | 21.9 | 127,572 | 44 | — | View → |
| 2014GOOD | Gen 3 | 156 | 10.7 | 146,127 | 8 | — | View → |
| 2015 | Gen 3 | 242 | 15.2 | 158,915 | 19 | 11 | View → |
| 2016GOOD | Gen 3 | 137 | 7.2 | 191,379 | 22 | 1 | View → |
| 2017 | Gen 3 | 354 | 16.4 | 215,775 | 33 | 2 | View → |
| 2018 | Gen 3 | 332 | 13.6 | 244,511 | 39 | 1 | View → |
| 2019 | Gen 3 | 583 | 24.4 | 239,437 | 38 | 1 | View → |
| 2020 | Gen 4 | 321 | 15.1 | 212,276 | 19 | — | View → |
| 2021 | Gen 4 | 534 | 20.2 | 264,128 | 29 | 3 | View → |
| 2022 | Gen 4 | 256 | 11.5 | 222,805 | 22 | 2 | View → |
| 2023 | Gen 4 | 197 | 11.5 | 171,289 | 14 | — | View → |
| 2024TOO NEW | Gen 4 | 44 | 4.9 | 89,658 | 9 | — | View → |
| 2025TOO NEW | Gen 4 | 5 | 0.9 | 56,208 | 0 | — | View → |
Year-by-Year Breakdown
Tap any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
Data Sources & Methodology
Complaints: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation consumer complaint database (6,785 records for this model). Public domain data, updated monthly.
Sales data: US annual vehicle sales from goodcarbadcar. Coverage: 84% of model years have sales data. Total US sales: 3,237,367.
On-road outcomes: Accident, title-brand, theft and odometer records for 146,291 Toyota Highlander VINs in our vehicle-history database. Independent of the NHTSA complaint file — a complaint is what an owner reported, these are what was recorded against the vehicle. Year-level figures are shown only for model years with at least 200 VINs on record.
Rate calculation: Complaints per 10,000 vehicles sold = (complaint count / US annual sales) x 10,000. This normalizes for sales volume so high-volume models like Civic or Camry aren't unfairly penalized.
Year classifications: AVOID = 1.5x+ the model's median complaint rate. GOOD = 0.6x or below. Years less than 3 years old are marked TOO NEW (insufficient data).
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