Quick News About Toyota 3rd Generation Highlander Gen 3 Problems

Short stories about 2014-2019 Highlander recalls, lawsuits, and other interesting bits. Signup to have these stories emailed to you for free from CarComplaints.com.

  1. A lawsuit wonders how Toyota can keep calling their bluetooth implementation "hands-free" when owners very much need to use their hands to prevent echos on each and every call.

    For years owners have complained about this issue, but Toyota's only suggestion has been to pickup the phone and turn it's volume all the way up after the call has been initiated. Oh, and also make sure the radio volume is below level 45. Sorta defeats the point, don't you think?…

    keep reading article "Illinois Lawsuit Says Toyota's Hands-Free Calling is Unusable"

  2. Toyota has blamed a musty A/C smell on microbes [i.e., mold] growing o the evaporator surface and now a lawsuit wants them to do something about it.

    The plaintiffs claim the vehicles have defective heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems that cause smells and health problems from mold that collects on the evaporators. Numerous complaints have allegedly been filed with the government, Toyota and Lexus dealerships nationwide since at least 1999.

    This isn't the first time Toyota has been sued for musty A/C units.

    keep reading article "Air Conditioner Lawsuit Complains About Mold Smell From Toyota HVAC"

  5. When Toyota switched away from using plastic or glass-based inulation in favor of soy, it invited in some very unwelcome Toyota loyalisits.

    According to the plaintiff, she learned the hard way about the soy wiring when her Avalon wouldn't start and a look under the hood showed wires chewed, so she had the car towed to a dealer. Toyota told her rodents had caused the damage and it would be no problem to repair the problems as long as she could cough up $6,000 to cover the bill.

    The soy-based wiring is allegedly attracting in rodents, who love to chew it up and use it for nesting material. The lawsuit, Heidi Browder vs. Toyota Motor Corporation, et al. follows a similar lawsuit filed against Honda earlier this year.

    keep reading article "Lawsuit Says Toyota’s Use of Soy-Based Wiring is Attracting Rodent Damage"

  6. This just in from the team at Toyota: sensors work much better when they're connected during manufacturing.

    Toyota says federal safety standards require a vehicle to activate a warning light if there is a drop in the brake fluid level. However, the automaker says there is a possibility the wire harness that attaches to the brake fluid reservoir sensor was never connected during manufacturing.

    In other news: the sun is hot, traffic is the worst, and I can't believe this actually went unchecked. There's no word on when the recall will begin.

    keep reading article "Highlander Brake Sensor Needs to be Reconnected"

  7. A minor label issue is about to become a major pain in the butt for 2,500 Toyota and Scion owners.

    Why do automakers bother with recalls about stickers? Because of federal law. Based on federal regulations, a load carrying modification label must be added to a vehicle if weight exceeding the lesser of 1.5 percent of 100 pounds is added to a vehicle between final vehicle certification and the first retail sale of the vehicle. Any corrected values must be accurate to within 1 percent of the actual added weight.…

    keep reading article "Wrong Weight Limit Label Recall"

  8. Toyota says the power steering circuit board in 110,000 vehicles might have been damaged on arrival, prompting a recall.

    The circuit board was probably messed up during assembly and can cause a sudden loss of power steering. If you're traveling at slow speeds and your power steering suddenly goes away, pulling over to the side of the road is going to feel like you're steering through a vat of caramel. That sounds delicious, by the way.…

    keep reading article "Power Steering Circuit Recall"

  9. Pop quiz -- name two things that don't mix well because they're highly combustable.

    Go ahead, I'll wait ... if you said flammable liquids and sparks you're absolutely right! Bonus points to anyone that said republicans and democrats which is also 100% correct these days. Toyota recently announced it is recalling 20,000 vehicles that could experience gas leaks. Anytime flammable liquid is somewhere it shouldn't be, there's a chance for fire. Here's a breakdown of what you need to know:…

    keep reading article "Popular Models With Bad Welds Are Leaking Gas"

  10. Toyota says dealers need to reprogram the airbag electronic control unit (ECU) in the 2014 Highlander and Highlander Hybrid for a dangerous misunderstanding.

    The software used to determine the front seat passenger's size and weight is faulty. The system is classifying all passengers as small and light, regardless of their actual size. That kind of flattery will get you nowhere, Toyota. This can cause problems with how much force the seat belt uses, and ultimately can result in injury.…

    keep reading article "Highlander Airbag Occupant Sensor Failure"

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