Automatic Emergency Braking Problems of Toyota Highlander - part 1

I own a 2022 Toyota Highlander xle (ua80e transmission, ~66k mi). The vehicle exhibits a severe transmission defect: uncommanded braking/drag at 35–40 mph and sudden loss of power when accelerating from a stop, making merging/crossing intersections dangerous. Two Toyota dealers (bryan Toyota and plano Toyota) reproduced the issue, documented the vehicle as unsafe to drive, and recommended full transmission replacement. The failed unit is preserved at the dealer for inspection. (Toyota corporate case #250917001779. ) this mirrors long-standing defects within Toyota’s ua80 family that Toyota itself has documented: • customer support program zjc / pol19-04 (4/18/2019)—ua80 whine, harsh shifts, reduced power 2019 mc-10159730-9999 . • t-sb-0160-18 rev1 (12/17/2018)—ua80 whine/harsh shift/mil/reduced power 2018 mc-10198131-9999 . • t-sb-0001-18 rev2 (1/8/2018)—ecm/ua80 mismatch causing harsh shifts 2018 mc-10185780-9999 . • t-sb-0008-21 (2/9/2021)—ua80e/f failures in 2021 Highlander (whine/grind, pinion shaft) 2021 mc-10188917-9999 . The same safety-critical behavior now recurs in my 2022 model. I request NHTSA investigate this as an ongoing ua80 transmission safety defect trend and consider recall/coverage for affected vehicles.

See all problems of the 2022 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

I was involved in a vehicle crash on 7-1-25. I had just pulled out of the gas station and was coming up to a stop sign so I was only going about 8mph I put my foot on the brake and nothing happened. I had my foot all the way down on the brake pedal because I saw a car coming and they were traveling at about 40mph. No automatic braking nothing worked. I had no control. I just prayed that I hope this doesn’t hurt. None of my airbags deployed. My car is now totaled and of course I got the ticket because I did not have control of my vehicle. I strongly believe this has to do with the brakes and how it switches from electric to gas in my hybrid vehicle. Toyota has recalled prior years 2020 to 2022 hybrids for this exact issue. This is a huge safety issue and thankfully I am alive to make this complaint. My husband went to my Toyota dealership where I get all my service and the service manager said yes he has noticed this as a problem that he himself pulled in a Toyota Highlander hybrid into the garage and had the same thing happen. We have been reading online about others complaining of this same issue.

See all problems of the 2023 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

On multiple (3-5), but not all, occasions at the same location my pre collision warning and automatic breaking appear to have been triggered as I approached an expansion plate at the edge of a bridge. The pre collision warning sounded, then the brakes were automatically applied. After a few seconds the braking stopped and my car proceeded normally. If a car had been following closely I may have been struck in the rear.

See all problems of the 2016 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

My father in law drove my Highlander car and got into an accident on 8/27/2024. Front of the car was damaged but did not deploy the airbags. And as far I know it is equipped with automatic braking system but the damaged looks really bad.

The battery was leaking fluid, smoke was visible and rotten smell from the battery. Electrical secondary brake system came on the dashboard.

See all problems of the 2021 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

The start/stop operating system failed. When the engine cut off while waiting for train to pass, the engine went to turn over and completely stopped the vehile. Although the car would not start, I was unable to cut the car off completely. It would say ignition on. The lights in vehicle were on. Running the ac caused the car to say high power consumption but there was no way to cut vehicle off without removing the battery to reset the vehicle. Caused the car to malfunction while sitting at a complete stop. Also cause the parking break to engage and I was unable to disengage parking break. A message came across saying parking break unavailable. My safety and others were put at risk because had it happened at any other time a crash would have been caused. It caused a roadway to be blocked off which caused confusion and near accidents.

Unknown.

We received this from Toyota. Customer support program bulletin date: page: pol19-06 6/6/2019 1 of 3 revised 8/28/19 customer support program bulletin (zkc): repair coverage for brake actuator assembly and brake booster pump assembly on certain 2008-2010 my Highlander hybrid vehicle. When we received this bulletin, we asked our Toyota dealer service department (stevenson Toyota east, denver, CO) to address this issue multiple times when bringing in our vehicle for service in 2019 and 2020 and were told repeatedly they would not fix this issue since the abs light was not on. Now that this bulletin is expired the abs light is on. We took our Highlander to the Toyota dealership in melbourne, florida and were told that this repair will now cost us $2473. 89. Our 2010 Highlander is barely worth that, and now we have to repair this on our own even though Toyota knew the brake actuator assembly and brake booster pump would eventually fail at some point in time. Despite this, Toyota refused to resolve this issue when we asked (more than once) right after receiving the service bulletin in 2019 and as a result is causing a safety issue for our college aged son who drives this car, and all other drivers on the road should the abs system fail. The attached estimate states the abs service light has not come back on but this is not true and my son is having issues with the brakes.

See all problems of the 2010 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

On numerous occasions when applying the brakes on my vehicle there is a very noticeable "surge" when the vehicle slows to a near stop. It feels like there is a momentary loss of braking before the brakes re-engage. I have had the vehicle since new and it seems like the problem has become more noticeable over time. I have lost some confidence in the safety performance of the vehicle due to this dangerous issue.

See all problems of the 2020 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

On March 16, 2024 this vehicle experienced a complete brake system failure. This is a very serious braking issue and the vehicle has had several braking incidents leading up to the complete failure. Toyota motor corp has dismissed the issue each time as there have been no codes or warning lights prior to this incident. We filed a complaint concerning this braking issue on June 12, 2023, ref#11526496 since that first report there have been several other incidents where the brake pedal went soft and depressed to the floor as the vehicle accelerated forward. Since the complete system failure occurred on a Saturday, as of this writing, it has not yet been reported to the service department. We filed a complaint with Toyota motor corp stating that this is a very serious safety concern that could lead to injury or death and they dismissed it.

The Highlander has been having starting issue where the dash reads that the hybrid system is not functioning and won’t turn over. There is a consumer report program instead of a recall. This is deceiving. This morning the tpms was reading that all tired were at 32 pounds of air when in fact the right front passenger was complete flat to the rim. Clearly the computer was malfunctioning with not just one aspect of the car but multiple. The local dealership isn’t helpful in that they charge $185 for diagnostic tests.

The electric park brake makes a loud screaming sound during engaging cycle as I put the gear in park. The sound gets worse during warmer weather. I visited the dealer twice for the same problem and reported it to Toyota. During my visit another Highlander came into dealership. It made the same sound when the driver placed it in park. According to the dealer, this sound is normal. I say it’s not. I have way cheaper cars with electric park and they don’t make this sound. If the park brake unit fails it’s going to be real costly to repair and may fail while driving and gets engaged.

Display screen brake fluid low. Stop safety. Engine stop to start. .

See all problems of the 2019 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

While I am driving my Toyota Highlander xle 2019 in a parking lot to park my car, I stopped to yield to people crossing and I slowed down and applied brake , but my car stopped and unable to restart as car display showing an error - braking power low I unable to star the car and ended up towing to Toyota dealer ship in plano,TX I am still waiting for dealer to check on and advise on the issue I feel this is huge safety issue as car can stop in middle of traffic or on busy highway with out any warning and can cause a serious accident I am really pissed off at Toyota quality.

Picked up my Toyota Highlander in April 2023 I have had to return it to the dealer on two occasions for check engine light and secondary break failure I'm at the fourth check engine light and secondary brake failure report now it has been inspected by the dealer and tried to remedy it too times already currently getting ready to return to the dealer with the third check engine light secondary brake failure message.

While driving all of these lights started to flash.

See all problems of the 2017 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

My car experiences intermittent acceleration when applying the breaks. It lunges forward for some reason. It has also not stopped when hitting the breaks hard but lunges as well. I am using the last date that this happened.

Warning lights appeared while driving on city streets.

My airbag light came on and I don't understand why the airbag light came on. I took it to a auto shop and they said I would have to take it to a toyato dealer. Also, my emergency brake is all the way to the floor and it has never released. It will not release at all. It has been that way ever since I bought the vehicle.

See all problems of the 2009 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

I have had problems with the brakes since I bought the vehicle new in 2016. I have the brakes checked every year and when I had problems but they never found the problem why the brakes do not work. The worse accident was on November 19, 2022 when my wife was using the car. She was in the car alone. She went to brake and the brakes did not engage, she slammed on the brakes 4 times and the car did not even slow down and she rear-ended the car in front of her. The air bags did not engage and she was injured. The brakes do not always work, I have gone through stop signs and red lights but the dealership says there is no problem.

While driving on the highway the entire dashboard warning system came on all the adas and messages saying braking failure to loss of control. This vehicle is not even three months old and is a platinum awd vehicle fully loaded version. Toyota dealership never mentions or stated this vehicle had any issues, even today they seem not to know what caused the vehicle to underperform. This is dangerous and this vehicle going at 65 mph and unable to stop is a real danger to the occupants and others. They say its safe to drive, I disagree for the safety of all indivduals on the roadways.

I was driving and arrived home and suddenly lost my braking and almost hit my house if I didn't steer the wheel towards my lawn and put on my parking brake it would have been a disaster. I felt so unsafe that I had my vehicle towed for repair and had to replace the brake master cylinder. Two weeks later, we went on a family trip and parked my vehicle with my family and it was on a slight slope and went to put on the parking brake and it was still slightly moving forward only to put my vehicle in reverse quickly in order in not drive into a lake with my family in the vehicle!!! I have just read the complaints and this is an ongoing problem since 2011 and I am quite shocked that this is not on recall!!! my wife has a prius v 2013 and have not had any problems at all, but has a recall on a brake hydro-boost pump fail for her vehicle, but nothing is wrong with her brakes, only the 2012 Toyota Highlander!!! please let me know what Toyota needs to do to get this this fixed!!! I know there are probably more that no one is reporting this and I guess there must be a fatality in order for Toyota to fix this problem!!!!.

See all problems of the 2012 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

I am having an issue with my brake assist in my 2018 Toyota Highlander. This car was purchased new and has had regular service/ maintenance with the dealership since purchased. 1st incident was minor in nature. My brake was gently applied and the abs feature turned on and brake system engaged without any need. 2nd incident brake was applied and at the halfway point the brake stopped working. It felt like it locked. I could not stop my car as I was approaching another car. Car stopped at the last possible moment before impact. The situation was extremely dangerous for myself, my kids and the other driver. Later on during my drive I gently applied my brake and the brake would not release to it original position until a few seconds later. This time the brake light came on. Once the car came to a stop, I shifted my gear to park and the brake light disappeared. The car was then sent to a service station for analysis. Service station advised that there was a hissing sound coming from the front of my engine when the brake was applied. They recommended that I send vehicle back to dealership as they concluded that the car has a brake assist issue. The car was towed to the Toyota dealership where they mentioned that there was a recall for this exact issue however, my specific VIN is not included. I travel everyday with my kids and this is a real safety issue that needs to be addressed. No car should be on the road with faulty breaking systems. This can cause unnecessary loss of life. These vehicles should be included in this recall, especially mine. I filed a case with Toyota and am waiting to hear back from them. Please help make the roadways safe.

See all problems of the 2018 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

My mother was killed on 5/27/22 by her brand new 2022 Highlander platnum with about 2000 miles on it. There wasn’t anyone inside her car at the time of her wrongful death. No person’s car should kill it’s owner in her own driveway at anytime especially when the car was empty. The police report has not been completed by the local police department yet. The day before the accident she took her car to her dealership hansel Toyota petaluma at 9am where she bought her car only a few weeks earlier bc her front bumper had fallen off on the freeway to ask them to put her bumper back on but hansel Toyota of petaluma refused her reasonable request. What they told my parents was to go file a claim with her auto insurance carrier. So they did. The next day my mother was run over and killed by her own car. Why did hansel Toyota refuse to fix my mother’s front bumper that day? isn’t that their job? isn’t that their legal responsibility? doesn’t the front bumper affect the safety the vehicle? so why did hansel Toyota of petaluma refuse service when the car’s warranty was in effect? we feel my mother was wrongly killed by a machine that malfunctioned. Her front bumper was dragging on the ground for a few miles on the freeway when it abruptly fell off and hence exposed a metal part of the car. This unfortunate event should never have happened. Our mother would still be alive today had it not been for other peoples irresponsible behavior. We believe the missing bumper played a role in her death. We also believe her car malfunctioned that led to her wrongful death.

While driving down the 405fwy downhill, all my lights went off and showed vsc system on my dashboard. This part of the fwy is not extremely steep but somewhat is. When applying my brakes it was hard to get my vehicle to stop especially because I’m on a freeway and when trying to slow down because I’m going downhill. I had my family in the car. I can’t imagine if my my brakes actually gave what would happen. I researched this and Toyota only called this a “warranty extension” for your brake actuator. I can’t believe this hasn’t been classified as an official recall. Especially since it pertains to the brakes. An essential quality mechanism to prevent death. They obviously know they were in the wrong here since the warranted this as a “warranty extension”. All these vehicles should be recalled for human safety. Shame on them.

See all problems of the 2007 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

Approaching a stop light brakes didn’t work. The automatic system activated and the car stopped right before I rear-ended the car in front of me. I took it to a Toyota dealership and they diagnosed a faulty brake booster pump with a price of $2500 to replace. I see this isn’t a unique problem for the 2018 Highlander but after talking with Toyota they denied any coverage since my vehicle has 48,000 miles and is out of warranty.

Abs brake actuator started to fail.

See all problems of the 2011 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

Unkown.

Forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking isn't functioning as stated in the Toyota Highlander 2021 owner's manual. Dealer stated that software tests were conducted and the vehicle's radar and optical sensors are performing in accordance with the test results. However, there is only intermittent warning lights and alarms that are functioning. The dashboard audio and visual alarms only function in rare encounters on approaching a vehicle. The service manager rode with me and when I was approaching a vehicle where an alarm should have sounded or illuminated inside the vehicle, that did not occur. However, the software tests showed that the vehicle was approaching on a collision event that was recorded on the system, but failed to alert the driver. After additional testing, the service manager stated that the vehicle reads stop lights from the vehicle ahead to execute the safety functions of the forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking safety feature. The owner's manual doesn't make that claim. In addition, another service manager stated that the system uses artificial intelligence to learn the driver' habits and the system adapts to the driver. The owner's manual doesn't state that claim either. Lastly, the invoice stated that the owner should read pages 257 and 260 of the owner's manual to understand how the system operates. This describes the dynamic radar cruise control functions and not the forward collision warning or automatic braking functions. This information is found on pages 235-238. They missed the problem. My suggestion was that their test only looked at a single variable that may have covered the external sensor operation and didn't test the dashboard internal warning system of the audio/visual alerts inside the vehicle. My recommendation was to seek assistance from the supplier that manufactured this system and seek guidance from their engineering staff. I complained to the Toyota corporate customer servi.

Where the incident happened? the incident happened at the following google coordinates (39. 21707240377137, -77. 6491829535095) on an unpaved, but well-maintained road. When this incident took place? 09/11/2021 – around 10. 30am who is travelling with you? I was travelling with my wife (vijaya) and pet dog (leo). Both my wife and I have the seat belts on. How are the driving conditions? a bright and sunny morning with clear visibility, minimal wind and no rain. The road is totally dry. In a way perfect driving condition. How the incident happened? a white truck came in the opposite direction and since the road is narrow I pulled my Highlander to the right, where there is some loose gravel on the side of the road. When I pulled to the side I am almost at a standstill and after the truck had passed started moving the car towards the middle of the road. At this moment the Highlander suddenly started swiveling to the left, and the traction became very wobbly and when tried to apply brakes, brake did not work at all. In stead the car started going out of control on the left side and is about to crash into 2 large trees on the side of the car. At that time without having any control over the brakes, I tried to steer towards right and the car turned sharp towards right, crossed road and fell into a 15 feet ditch on the right side of the car. What is the car behavior witnessed? total loss of breaks, self-acceleration, and unpredictable steering control. The whole incident might’ve happened in about 10-15 seconds. Neither the auto-braking nor the collision control has triggered. Not sure what triggered this behavior of the car. It appeared as if the car tried to auto-correct the traction and something malfunctioned.

While driving threw a construction zone the car upfront of me stopped. Upon applying the brakes nothing happened. There was a tractor trailer beside us and I was at the rer and another car was at the front plenty of time to stop. Brakes didn't activate until right before impact and the nose dove down. Abs never activated and the collision avoidance never activated. I was traveling with my wife and two young kids lucky no one was hurt and I had no avenue of escape due to cement barriers and 18 wheeler.

The forward collision did not activate cause the vehicle to meet into a accident. The car didn't give a warning, or try to stop itself. Took it to the dealer and was told that the system was working properly. But I tested the system in the parking lot, with a cardboard box and the system still didn't activate.

The dashboard on my Highlander hybrid 2006 (awd) had all its check lights on suddenly. I was not driving then. The car was in my parking lot for a few hours before which it had no signs on. The warning message said: vehicle stability control (vsc). I took it to my nearest Toyota service center for diagnosing the issue. They reported that the abs systems have started to fail. Specifically, the abs actuator is losing pressure and should be replaced. They quoted a price of $2700 approx. Which includes about $2000 for parts. Turns out that this same part had been replaced in 2016 during a recall - but they cannot attend to this again without charging the customer. What I was never told about was that a whirring sound - which has always been an issue with this car - was always from the abs actuator. The same service center has checked and diagnosed this car multiple times - so I am surprised that they did not find the abs actuator noise a problem on earlier occasions. I have been reading about this on this forum and Toyotanation and this seems to be a consistent issue with the older Toyota hybrid Highlanders and other hybrids as well - with the same diagnosis and approximately the same price quoted by the service centers. I have not currently fixed this issue since I cannot afford this price. It also seems that I will be paying for manufacturer's or service center's negligence since this actuator seemed to be faulty all along and I was not warned about this.

See all problems of the 2006 Toyota Highlander 🔎.

My abs, vsc, (I), and emergency brake dash lights are on continuously. It is very hard to stop the car as it feels like the brake isn't engaging. When it does engage you are jerked forward.

Driving on a two lane road following a car in front of me. Cruise is on and the car in front of me is not affecting my speed. The car in front of me turns left into their driveway and is completely off the roadway. My car brakes very hard like there is something in front of me. Their was no on coming trafiic. I've have had this happen again but the other car was turning right. The car was completely off the roadway and again my car starts braking very hard. I was almost rear ended by the car behind me.