Headlights problems of the 2011 Toyota Highlander

The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Highlander. The contact stated that the low beam headlights failed. The low beam would not provide adequate lighting coverage. As a result, a deer crashed into the vehicle. The contact was not able to avoid the crash due to failed visibility coverage. The contact was not injured and a police report was not filed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times for the failure prior to the crash. The dealer aligned the headlights several times however, the failure was not corrected. The dealer stated that the headlight design was a manufacturing defect that could not be corrected. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 25,000 and the current mileage was 32,000.

When driving at night, the new headlight design on the 2011 Toyota Highlander causes the low beam lights to appear as if there is a visor on the lights. When traveling on level roads or going up hill the headlights beam throw distance is efficient with the visor effect. However, when going down hill after cresting a knoll, the visor effect diminishes the throw distance of the headlight by an estimated 50%. This light throw reduction took me by surprise and caused me to almost hit a deer this evening on the first night of ownership. Toyota needs to make a change to get rid of the visor effect. Request NHTSA investigate this new design before numerous accidents occur. I am contacting Toyota tomorrow to see what they have to say.